(above) The Management team at VNL Sales
VNL Sales is a vital part of the success of Village N Life. They work behind the scenes with a range of trade partners including online and traditional, domestic and international. VNL Sales brings R500 million in sales value and 170,000 nights to market annually.
VNL Sales links the beautiful VNL properties to the world. They service the traditional trade market, manage trade reservations, distribute rates for online systems, and cover corporate and group markets.
In 2017, VNL Sales had some particularly impressive achievements and important changes.
Trade enhancement
Trade in VNL Sales is always seeking to develop new partnerships with Destination Management Companies and travel agents, and this year marked tremendous achievements in this regard.
For example, VNL Sales participated in the 2017 World Travel Market (WTM) in London in November. WTM is one of the largest travel industry events in the world. At the event, VNL was able to connect with new partners and strengthen existing relationships.
The London World Travel Market was an exciting chance to network with potential partners.
Technology
VNL Sales is always working to make sure it keeps pace with industry trends, one of which is improved technology in booking platforms.
One of the ways that VNL Sales improved booking technology this year was to rebuild the booking buttons on the various property websites. As a result, they were able to provide a more streamlined and user-friendly way for the guest to book. Consequently, VNL Sales saw a higher conversion for direct bookings from the properties’ own websites.
Another way VNL Sales has used technology to improve the booking process was with the implementation of Tourplan. This feature can be seen via the VNL trade website. Tourplan assists with the dynamic distribution of rates and live availability to trade partners.
Launching VNL Mauritius
In conjunction with Horizon Holidays, VNL has obtained serviced apartments in Mauritius. This is an exciting new destination which forms part of the Village N Life portfolio. Read more about the Mauritius properties here.
Property additions
Villa 5 was obtained and forms part of Camps Bay Retreat. Through this addition, Village n Life has gained four additional rooms in this desirable property.
Independent Offices
VNL Sales moved to an independent office in Durbanville in March 2017. So far the move has had an extremely positive impact, enabling VNL Sales to build better relationships with partners and hold more frequent client meeting at their offices.
The Online Trade team at VNL Sales.
The Travel Support team at VNL Sales.
