Travel agent and entrepreneur Celeste Koutavas wants to put travel professionals in the spotlight. “The value of a trip isn’t in price alone – it’s also in your experience and expertise. That’s why TripWitt.com was created” says Celeste, the company’s co-founder along with partner Michele Nickolas. Celeste has been in the travel industry profession since 1992 and sees a need for a new way of bringing travelers and travel professionals together. “Research has shown that consumers would rather use a Travel Professional who specializes in their destination instead of a generalist. The same findings also indicated that consumers are not sure where to find these destination specialists. TripWitt.com is the tool to bridge this gap.”
TripWitt.com brings travelers and travel professionals together via a detailed profile directory. This directory is searchable by destination or theme allowing the potential client to select a travel agent that is right for their needs. In this way, the travel agent can start building relationships with clients early in the process. TripWitt.com fosters trust in the travel industry by educating the traveler on what the different associations and consortia mean to them as a consumer. TripWitt’s new site allows every travel professional’s profile to be viewed at anytime; however, to rate a travel agent the traveler must have an account. This is all available for free to the traveler.
Celeste indicates that TripWitt doesn’t sell the same lead to multiple travel agents, but rather allows the consumer to choose the agent most suited to their needs. “This is not about giving the impression that agents are competing for the business. Travel is an experience, and that experience begins long before the client arrives at the destination. TripWitt.com lets the traveler decide who should help them with their travel; and the Professional’s profile gives them the information to help them make that informed decision.”
On the TripWitt.com site, the travel agent creates a profile page with a unique URL showcasing the agent’s your knowledge and expertise. The travel agent specialist can add photos, personal bio, industry affiliations, social media links, website, and contact information. Signing up only takes an average of 15 minutes and TripWitt.com has a support team to help the travel agent optimize their profile.
This is a great way to have an additional presence on the web; or, for those of you who aren’t on it yet, it is a very economical way to create that presence.
As an introductory offer, TripWitt.com is giving $200 off their base membership for the first 200 members within 200 hours starting on December 8th. This means that those who act fast enough will be receiving their first year’s subscription for only $50.
You can view the beta version of TripWitt’s new site at www.TripWitt.com.
