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San Jose-based transportation provider Ecko Worldwide Transportation Group has borrowed a page from the credit card industry known as cashback rewards, which it expects will stimulate bookings.
Founder Harry Dhillon implemented the program using the same concept as credit card companies like Discover use with its cashback bonus. Dhillon realized the great appreciation people have for being recognized for their loyalty and has implemented a 5 percent Loyalty Dollars program that rewards Ecko clients for each booking. As America continues to move out of the pandemic, the Loyalty Dollars program is intended to help spur additional business and foster even greater loyalty.
“The majority of our reservations are booked by administrative assistants and travel bookers,” says Dhillon.
The rollout of the new loyalty program was announced to clients through an e-blast and was supported by social media posts and inclusion in the company’s monthly newsletter. In November, the campaign focus will switch from messages encouraging clients to earn points to messages that encourage the use of points for such things as holiday parties, holiday light tours, and other holiday functions.
Ecko was founded by Dhillon 12 years ago, and has since been included on Inc. Magazine’s list of Fastest Growing Companies in America.
Visit eckolimo.com for more information.
[05.03.21]
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Bus manufacturer TEMSA introduced its new TEMSA TS30 34-passenger bus at the recent UMA Expo in Orlando, Fla. The company exhibited the single vehicle at the fair and managed to attract the attention and appreciation of all participants with its new redesigned TS30 motorcoach.
Having entered the U.S. market in 2010, TEMSA continues to operate through the TEMSA North America (TNA) Company founded in 2018. TEMSA that has managed to be one of the most important actors in the industry, by achieving a 10-percent market share where it operates presently, appears to be an "automotive-focused technology company" with over 1,000 vehicles in the U.S. The company that considers the North American market as one of its growth accelerator in the future and aims to bring the TS45 Electric Bus that it has recently developed specifically for U.S. market.
"We are proud of having arrived at a successful point on a challenging market like the U.S.,” says TEMSA CEO Tolga Kaan Doğancıoğlu. “Besides, it is an important factor in identifying new targets for the forthcoming period. We have so far undersigned great achievements through the contribution of having analyzed the market and determined the needs in an accurate fashion. Our electric vehicles that we produce along with all their technology will soon hit the roads in different parts of the U.S., particularly Silicon Valley. In the forthcoming period, we aim to write greater success stories, especially in the North American market, through the new partnership of PPF and Skoda Transportation."
TEMSA North America Country Director Fatih Kozan recognized that it is the 50th anniversary of UMA. "As in every year, we also took part at the fair this year with an innovative product, which brings design and technology together,” he says. “Our TS30 vehicle has been the number-one choice of transport companies providing services with high quality standards in the market, as a high-end product that has never been in the travel/motorcoach segment in the past. Our model that we have enriched through new equipment gained the appreciation of all operators. We believe that we will bring our sales performance in the market to higher levels thanks to our new product that stands out with its sturdiness and low operational cost."
Visit temsa.com for more information.
[05.03.21]
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Travelers get a bit of reprieve as the Department of Homeland Security has again extended the deadline for its REAL ID requirement, an enhanced identification card (typically a driver’s license) issued through your local DMV for the purposes of domestic air travel. Those who choose not to get the REAL ID will need to use a valid U.S. passport or another federally approved ID at airport security checkpoints instead.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas made the announcement in late April 2021 that the REAL ID full enforcement date would be pushed back by 19 months, from October 1, 2021 to May 3, 2023, due to circumstances resulting from the ongoing pandemic. This is the second COVID-related delay, which was originally scheduled for October 2020.
“As our country continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, extending the REAL ID full enforcement deadline will give states needed time to reopen their driver’s licensing operations and ensure their residents can obtain a REAL ID-compliant license or identification card,” said Mayorkas in the DHS press release.
DHS reports that currently only 43 percent of all state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards are currently REAL ID-compliant. Driver’s licenses that are compliant are denoted with a star in the upper right-hand corner. The process to get the ID varies by state, but do require additional proof of identity to be issued. You can check for your state’s requirements here.
The U.S. Travel Association applauded the postponed enforcement to 2023, noting that the enforcement may hinder the travel sector’s recovery.
“Extending the REAL ID deadline is the right move, and we’re grateful to DHS for heeding the evidence and the calls from our industry,” said U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President for Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes. “Getting to REAL ID compliance on time was already going to be a challenge before COVID shut down DMVs for extended periods. Significant travel disruption was likely if the deadline were allowed to hit, which the U.S. economy can’t afford after a $500 billion decline in travel spending last year and millions of travel jobs lost to the pandemic.”
Visit dhs.gov/real-id for more information.
[05.03.21]