The agency teams launch a consumer magazine: Travel Weekly

In the wake of the marketing boom, two major agency groups launched consumer-focused print publications this year targeting their clients.

The magazines, from Ensemble and Internova Travel Group, are a sign of the increasing diversification of marketing from digital to tangible formats.

Digital marketing is clearly the primary way most travel agencies reach their customers — according to Travel Weekly’s 2022 Travel Industry Study, email, websites, and free social media were the top three sales and marketing channels recommended. But executives from both agency groups say these print investments will elevate their brands and advisors in the eyes of travelers.

“Having something tangible is what sets most businesses apart,” says Elaine Cernka, Internova’s senior vice president of editorial. “I don’t know about you, but when I get a catalog in the mail from a brand I care about, it’s like a little treat. I think more and more businesses are sending email marketing, and I think this is just an opportunity to make ourselves stand out.”

Ensemble Range magazine editorial director Sidney Looney also said that print offers a unique way for a brand to stand out among consumers.

“It’s a physical manifestation of our power, our expertise in the travel industry. Digital is amazing, and they work so much together in the same way, but what people get is that tangible thing – they feel like they’re receiving something really special.

“And that’s something you can’t find anywhere else except in print.”

Marketers in all fields are looking to expand the channels they use to reach consumers, especially given the challenges associated with the digital environment, such as spam filtering and digital fatigue that comes with more hours of screen time for work and entertainment.

A 2022 Forrester report by direct mail company PFL found that 76% of marketers agree that engagement with digital touchpoints is declining and 78% agree that engagement with analog touchpoints is increasing.

Internova’s vice president of publishing, Laura Sport, says it’s important to get in front of consumers in a variety of ways.

“Someone who is on their computer all day certainly doesn’t want to spend a lot of time reading their email,” she says.

And while email marketing is very useful in getting consultants’ names in front of clients on a regular basis, as Sport explains, “with the print product, you can actually sit down and spend time with him, some quality time, reading and formulating your thoughts.” This is what you want your next trip to look like.

“gift” to customers

In addition to the quarterly range, which has a print circulation of 50,000 to 75,000, depending on the issue, Ensemble also markets some additional publications. Range Best is published six times a year and features ideas, promotions and discounts from selected suppliers. Ensemble offers launch products, the first of which focuses on cruising and is called Range by Sea. A hotel-focused directory will be released later this year.

The publications will replace many of the print marketing elements that were previously used, says Shahla Lalani, senior vice president of marketing, and they also have a digital component.

Ensemble is working with members to determine which customers will receive print products, but generally speaking, they are the main ones, Lalani says. Association members are in the process of segmenting customers into profiles to target publications.

Loney describes the original range as “that sought-after quarterly magazine.”

“We see it as the kind of gift that arrives in our customers’ mailboxes,” she said. “It’s full of the tools you need, lush photography, some great stories.”

Beyond the sales tool of consultants

Internova’s quarterly magazine, Alter, began arriving in consumer mailboxes this month and is aimed at clients of Internova’s luxury division, the Global Travel Collection (GTC). Like the range, it also has a digital presence.

Srnka, which says GTC has never done any print media before, says the print magazine is a “luxury product”.
Oltre says it’s printed on heavy paper stock, and it’s called a “volume,” not an edition, “to indicate the collectible, custodial nature of each.”

As such, GTC is aimed at high end customers.

“We try to cherry pick who receives it, because the objective is really the touch point with consumers,” Srnka said. “So to thank them for their business, they’re like, ‘Oh, hey, I want to do this Antarctic cruise.’ I call my travel consultant and ask her about it.” It’s meaningful information and inspiration for the consumer, but it’s a long-tail selling tool.”

With a print circulation of 100,000, it’s a hefty investment, Cernka says.

“But it’s the quarter, so we’re taking it easy,” she said. “It’s an investment, but I don’t think we’re throwing money away.”

Internova’s ambitions with Alter are more than just a marketing tool for consultants. In the next five years, sports plans to be a paid consumer magazine.

“We started this magazine not just to stay in the international travel collection universe,” Sport said. “It’s always going to be there. We’ve always had the Global Travel Collection customer receive this magazine. But our plans are bigger than that, which is to be a travel publication on newsstands.”