SELLING EAST AFRICA

Here we look at two scenarios:

1. A client or agent who knows East Africa and possibly even operates a program to this destination.

In this situation Liberty Africa Safaris have five main advantages over their competitors, that in it-self are powerful selling points. These are:

• Drivers, buses and reps.
  Being the most important element of any African Safari is the driver and bus, these are with the client for the entire trip. Therefore as you can imagine, this can make or break a good safari. We at Liberty have taken great care to make sure we have the best drivers in the industry (even though it costs us more) and a partner who supplies brand new buses. Therefore we can guarantee top quality in this area.
  
  Our customer service department is very strong, we are always there to assist clients at airports, hotels, railway stations, restaurants etc. This gives the client a true feeling of being really pampered. We have our own HF and VHF radio network allowing reps to be in constant communication with the office and each other.
  
  
• Experience and Product Knowledge.
  All our management team has spent all their working lives in the East African tourism scenes, working from the bottom to the top in each of their respective fields, and therefore we can boast an incredible wealth of experience and product knowledge. Furthermore, due to an incredible base of local contacts, through socializing and networking we are constantly up to date with new products being offered.
  
  
• Flexibility.
  Working in a complicated and often unpredictable destination such as East Africa flexibility is of the greatest importance. At Liberty Africa Safaris, we are small and personalized and therefore pride ourselves on always being as flexible as the situation allows. This is a major hitch when working with one of the bigger operators in East Africa, as they have set systems that must be followed. Due to the fact that Liberty Africa Safaris is privately owned and managed “hands on” the top management is always available to make decisions on the spot.
  
  
• Easy Communication.
  Thanks to good contacts within the post office, Liberty Africa Safaris have all “high priority lines” normally reserved for embassies, banks and government. Furthermore we have dedicated lines for incoming calls and faxes. This ensures overseas agents never have a problem contacting us. This can be a major problem for agents as they can literally spend hours, trying to get through to their local DMC. Furthermore, our offices are in one of the most prestigious buildings in the Central Business Area of Nairobi, with excellent client entertainment facilities. Some operators operate from back street offices and this leaves a bad image when a client has to visit the offices.
  
  
• Pre-payment advantage.
  Liberty Africa Safaris, for the time being, insists on paying their suppliers up-front for all services. Although this means we have to have an enormous capital base, it gives us great advantages with the hotels and lodges when it comes to clearing waitlists and bumping bookings. Therefore we do not suffer the problem of having to re-route itineraries or change brochured hotels during high season, as often as most of our competitors.
  
  Your goal in this scenario is to find out what program they are currently operating to East Africa and try to get a chance for us to quote the same, and give any suggestions we may have to improve their program.

2. A client or agent who knows nothing or little about East Africa as a tourism destination but have the potential to send clients here.

In this situation, first and foremost is to try to make the clients understand how exciting and varied East Africa is as a destination for tours and incentive travel. There are basically six different classes and products available:

• Beach Holidays and City Stays – please see price list.
  (Approx. 3* US$ 45 and 4* US$ 70 per pax per day) – Generally clients arrive on charters from Europe, directly into Mombasa, they then have a week or two stay-put on the beach and may choose to do an optional 2,3 or 4 day safari into the southern parks by road or Maasai Mara by air.
  
  
• Overland, cheap camping - þ on sample itineraries.
  (Approx. US$ 65 per pax per day) – This is a product mostly used by young people, it is camping safaris where you all help out to build camp and cook. Transportation is in 18 seater trucks. It is a real adventure and can include white water rafting and mountain climbs.
  
  
• 3 Star Lodges - þþ on sample itineraries.
  (Approx. US$ 120 per pax per day) – This is the most common safari. It uses 3 to 4 star lodges, and visits the main game-parks. Easy to combine Kenya and Tanzania. Transport is in custom built 8 seater minibuses.
  
  
• 4 to 5 Star Lodges - þþþ on sample itineraries.
  (Approx. US$ 180 per pax per day) – Same as the above, using 4 to 5 star lodges, which are generally a little smaller. Ideal for mid to up-market incentive groups, again easy to combine Kenya and Tanzania.
  
  
• Homestays - þþþþ on sample itineraries.
  (Approx. US$ 300 - 400 per pax per day) – There are many very beautiful areas of East Africa where people have built their own houses or camps, way off the beaten track in the virgin bush lands. Here clients are welcomed as friends and have an opportunity to share some of the amazing experiences of true Africa, untouched. These homestays are the absolute in luxury, cozy yet still rustic and wild. They mostly have a maximum capacity of 8 beds.
  
  
• Private Tented – Itineraries are personally discussed on request.
  (Approx. US$ 600 – 1000 per pax per day) – For those who can afford it, this is the ultimate African Safari experience. To give you an example, for four clients; a crew of seven staff will spend three days erecting a 7 ton canvas camp in the middle of no-where, once the clients arrive, there is hot showers or even baths, an open bar, massive airy tents with proper beds and even wardrobes. The advantage of this system is that you are not confined to areas where services already exist. You can really go off track but still enjoy the luxury. Mostly limited to 10-12 pax and an average stay in each camp is 3 – 4 days. (Although we have done a 100 pax incentive in a private tented camp).

Apart from the above East Africa is an excellent destination for incentive travel and special interest groups, please see separate section.

To sell in this scenario you need to go armed with a map of East Africa, some sample itineraries and a basic knowledge of the area. Once the client has chosen East Africa as a destination, the next thing is why Liberty Africa Safaris. For this refer to above section.