When you consider industry alliances that help to define The Group Travel Leader Inc., it makes sense to start with the oldest and work forward. The real test for such relationships is the test of time.
“Our working relationship with the Group Travel Family goes back as far as the company itself,” said publisher Mac Lacy. “Charlie Presley and his group have always been at the vanguard of industry segmentation — Charlie began creating niches within the industry before niche marketing was a term. As a result, The Group Travel Leader Inc. has benefited by creating magazines and media brands for emerging groups of all types over the years. And the Group Travel Family has benefited by 25 years of continuous coverage of its conferences and programs.
“Our first real industry alliance after that was formed 21 years ago with Travel South USA,” said Lacy. “We began partnering with them to produce tour planners every year that we publish in our magazine and make available to them as reprints. That alliance has been remarkably strong, fueled by a mutual respect for the quality of each party’s work and industry standing.”
In 2008, Grand Central USA, a regional group consisting of Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma, asked The Group Travel Leader to publish an annual travel planner for its region. That extensive publication is also overprinted for each state travel office involved so that copies can be used in promotional programs year-round.
Four years ago, the industry’s largest cooperative venture of tour companies, Travel Alliance Partners, agreed to entrust The Group Travel Leader with publishing an annual travel planner that showcases trips it sells as one company.
“As part of this partnership, we attend their annual meeting TAP Dance and host their daytime hospitality suite,” said Lacy. “We do a great job of entertaining their attendees for them, and they make sure we get valuable visibility in return. It’s worked beautifully.”
The most recent industry alliance created between The Group Travel Leader and an industry partner has been the relationship forged with one of America’s iconic travel destinations: Myrtle Beach. In 2015, the company will publish its third year of holiday and student travel guides in association with the Myrtle Beach Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.
For more information about building a business alliance with The Group Travel Leader, contact Kelly Tyner or Stacey Bowman at 859-253-0455.
