Carnival Launches Home Based Travel Agent Training Program

Carnival Cruise Lines has launched a new online home based travel agent training program offering sales and marketing techniques. Available within Carnival's travel agent Internet portal

Carnival University Online is divided into seven chapters, each focusing on a different component of the line's business.

Chapters include "Who Is Carnival Today," providing an overview of the brand; "Identifying Clients," offering detailed information on Carnival's demographics; "Cruise Choices," covering accommodation types, onboard activities, and destination and shore excursion options; and "Sales Climate Today and Tomorrow," with information on the evolution of the travel agency distribution system and how agencies must adapt to a changing business landscape.

The "Special Sales: Group and Cruising for Charity" chapter offers tips for developing group business, while "Booking/Marketing Support" provides an overview of Carnival's wide-ranging sales tools and resources.

There's also a "Make Sure They Know Before They Go" section providing with information and tips on embarkation, packing, attire and other areas. After reading each chapter, home based travel agents must answer a series of multiple-choice questions correctly before moving on to the next chapter.

Chapters can be completed individually and the program does not have to be completed in one session. Upon successful completion of the program, travel agents receive a certificate of completion signed by the Carnival regional vice president for their particular region.

Carnival's travel agent portal is designed as a "one-stop shop" to fulfill agents' sales and marketing needs, with more than 1,000 pages of content and a dynamic booking engine linked directly to Carnival's reservations system. For more information, visit www.bookccl.com or call the line's business development services department at 800-327-7276.