DM p18-19 Case Study Dec08.qxp 02/12/2008 10:42 Page 18
Case Study
Sales growth is the ultimate barometer of success, so a 5% hike in sales since May is a
remarkable result for global tour operator Bales Worldwide following the implementation of
Neolane’s Cross-Channel Marketing Optimisation solution, finds Antony Begley.
Cross-channel marketing
optimisation delivers sales
F
ormed way back in 1947 by George Bales who Embracing the future
had been working for an air broker for just “We offer a broad product range to a large and
three days when he decided he could do bet- diverse customer base with a variety of holiday pref-
ter himself, Bales Worldwide is a highly regarded tour erences,” says Raymond Howe, marketing communi-
operator offering a wealth of experience matched by cations manager at Bales Worldwide.
very few of its competitors. “So we became very interested in addressing the
Formerly known as Bales Tours, the business is still issue of how we took a much more proactive
family run and independent. Molly Hammond, later approach to managing the relationships we had with
to become Mrs Bales, joined the company as George’s our many clients and prospective clients.”
secretary in May 1948 and is still there to this day as In a nutshell, says Howe, the company wanted to
“By any metric
chairman of the company while the current MD achieve a number of aims including automating
we consider,
Mandy Nickerson is the couple’s daughter. many of the time-consuming, labour intensive tasks
Neolane has at While it has been long rooted in a traditional busi- it typically carried out manually, it wanted to
least doubled our
ness with a traditional business model, the company improve turnaround speed on all customer interac-
campaign
has managed to successfully embrace the technologi- tion processes and it wanted to seek out any efficien-
cal change that has transformed the travel and leisure cies it could within its vast multi-channel communi-
response rates,”.
sector, unlike many others who fell by the wayside as cations programme.
Raymond Howe, marketing
communications manager,
the face of the industry was revolutionised through Wisely, Howe decided to call on the services of an
Blaes Worldwide. direct mailing and then the internet. experienced, expert consultant to help Bales seek out
18 Database Marketing December 2008 www.dmarket.co.uk
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