According to Chris Bailey, senior vice president of sales & marketing, international market, the largest source markets for Singapore are the United Kingdom and Australia. Clients from Australia, in particular, are happy to visit Singapore as a sole destination but demand more creative programmes. North America is also a growing market, which is why Tour East is opening a sales and service centre in Los Angeles.
Leading Singapore-based DMC Tour East is developing more special interest tours and tailor-made programmes for its customers amid growing demand, especially from repeat visitors to the city-state.
According to Chris Bailey, senior vice president of sales & marketing, international market, the largest source markets for Singapore are the United Kingdom and Australia. Clients from Australia, in particular, are happy to visit Singapore as a sole destination but demand more creative programmes. North America is also a growing market, which is why Tour East is opening a sales and service centre in Los Angeles.
“One of the challenges is obviously the time difference; very rarely do you have the opportunity to talk during office hours. Payment issues, like expensive telegraphic transfers, are also hindrances to sales,” shared Bailey.
“With this service centre, our consultants there can work with agents in their own time zone and help them book tours across all of our 15 offices.”
To further enhance the entire travel experience, Tour East is also in the last stages of testing a new smartphone app that can be used by both partners and customers. Travel agents can create and share itineraries which are then viewed by customers, and customers can also make bookings on the fly via the app.
Bailey adds that the new app also creates additional earning opportunities for agents even during a trip. “Customers sometimes just want to book the basics upfront, but then if they decide they want to do an additional tour, they can book that on the app and the agent is credited with commission.”
The new app, together with a new online platform, serves to complement the company’s brick-and-mortar facilities. Earlier in October, Tour East officially launched Singapore’s first premium tour lounge at Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel, providing its customers with a dedicated service venue in the city centre.
This article is part of Travel Weekly Asia’s special report from ITB Asia 2018.