NEWS CONFERENCE REPORT


Cruise.co.uk unveils plans to advertise through traditional media. Hollie-Rae Brader reports from the agency’s annual conference in Villars, Switzerland


Gary Anslow, Cunard; Christian Verhounig, CMV Holdings; Alex Delamere-White, P&O Cruises; Giles Hawke, Avalon Waterways;


Steve Endacott, Teletext Holidays; Ben Bouldin, Royal Caribbean; Seamus Conlon, Cruise.co.uk; and Angus Struthers, Cunard


Cruise.co.uk plans its first print and TV ad campaign


Online cruise agent Cruise.co.uk is turning to print advertising for the first time to reach a wider pool of potential clients.


The Worcestershire-based agency believes using “traditional” channels could help drive new business, complementing its social media and email marketing strategy. Its senior management team


is also touting the idea of a TV ad campaign later this year. Speaking at the agency’s annual


conference in Villars, Switzerland, Cruise.co.uk managing director


“We’re lucky enough to have a


“It’s important we look for more customers using more-traditional channels too”


Chris Gardner said the print campaign would launch this weekend as a trial but said that he hoped it would continue long-term. Cruise.co.uk’s first print


advertisement will run in the Daily Mail in Saturday’s travel section,


with further ads booked for the following three weeks. Each ad will focus on one of two cruises in partnership with the relevant cruise lines. “We are very successful on our online channels,” Gardner said. “But we know it’s important


Peter Shanks, Silversea; Samira Salih, Kreuzfahrtberater; and Lisa McAuley, dnata Travel


we look for more customers using more-traditional channels too. “There’s an opportunity for us to capitalise from press and TV. We’re looking at both channels and how we develop those. “If print works well for us, we


will continue on that journey as a way to reach new consumers.


12travelweekly.co.uk28 February 2019


lot of intelligence on what works through feedback we get from clients on our email programme.” Gardner worked on TV campaigns in his previous roles at Which? and Cancer Research UK. He said Cruise.co.uk was more likely to run ads on cable channels rather than terrestrial TV, and said his aim was to “do this in the most-targeted way possible”. Currently Cruise.co.uk and its German business, Kreuzfahrtberater, have a combined email database of “way over” 700,000 “cruise-interested individuals”. The group reported that it


recorded 9.7 million visits to its website in 2018, with 153 million page views and 20 million on-site searches. Gardner added: “The average time spent on our site is eight minutes and that’s a very strong number. We know that driving engagement through content is really important and it works


for us.” › Cruise news, page 28


Gardner believes online bookings ‘should go up’


Cruise.co.uk is looking to “nudge up” the number of bookings made on its website. While the agency employs


more than 100 consultants, most of whom work from home, managing director Chris Gardner said there were opportunities for the brand to capitalise on online bookings, an option it introduced last year. Pointing to the high online booking rate achieved by German sister brand Kreuzfahrtberater, Gardner said: “Online bookings across both businesses is 34%, but it’s 87% in Germany, so that gives you an idea of how low it is in the UK. “Online booking is a clear


strength in the German market. The vast majority of our UK bookings come through our consultants, but we will look to nudge up the number of online bookings. It will never be that more than 50% of people in the UK will book online direct, but it should go up.” Gardner said he had plans


to reduce administration for consultants to improve efficiency and give agents more time to sell.


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