YTB Travel Traffic

While YTB still maintains that "travel" is their business, the traffic on their "travel" websites seems to indicate that they might want to reconsider that. In July 2007, the aggregated YTB Travel sites (ytbtravel.com/whatever) were averaging close to 500,000 people per month.  Right now, they appear to be struggling to get over 60,000 per month.

 

In fairness, most online travel sites have declined as consumers are either re-discovering traditional agents who have experience and expertise, or are booking directly with the supplier.

Since October 2007:

• YTB -88.0%
• Travelocity -63.9%
• Expedia -58.8%
• Orbitz -71.3%

It is also very interesting to see that the traffic at YTB rival, WorldVentures also declined in the almost exact percentage as YTB. While WorldVentures was never as large as YTB, they dropped from 60,000 monthly visitors to 7,000 monthly visitors or roughly 88.3%.

Source: Quantcast

What's Next? Medical Doctors?

Yes, just take the ZamZuu Course and you are a "Certified Internet & Child Safety Advocate."  I wonder if there is an ID card for that and if they can get all sorts of Internet related discounts like IT people do?

Never Let A Capitve Audience Get Away

I honestly hope that this is a joke, but in case it is not, I thought I would post it.

And if you can't read the text:

Although the office is closed, there is still an opportunity to push the Zam Zuu opportunity. I am pushing mine at a family funeral.

Another Problem For YTB In California?

UPDATE: At 5:00pm today (01/24/2011), Kim Sorensen posted a video stating that the footer was a human mistake and an error and that YTB is allowed to sell in California. He assured the Facebook fans that it would be corrected by the end of the day.   But as of 10:58pm on 1/24/2011, it wasn't. He mentioned that a "detractor" brought it to their attention.

Check out the disclaimer when you book with YTB! Sorry California!  I hope YTB is not collecting dollars from "agents" who are not allowed to sell to their clients.

Unless otherwise marked, all prices are in U.S. dollars.
Travel services, arrangements and products are not offered or available to residents of California.
Copyright 2009 YTB Travel Network, Inc. - All Rights Reserved - v2.3.0.982 - 144789-APP1 - Privacy Policy
ON: Seller of Travel - License # 50016421, BC: Seller of Travel - License # 43029.

YTB Enters Into Special Deal With PJ Jensen's Company

But it's funny how his bio seems to leave out the part where he spent years with YTB and that whole speech he made about never leaving YTB back at the 2009 convention.

On January 19, 2011, YTB International, Inc. (“ YTB ”, “ ZamZuu ”, or the “ Company ” ),   entered into a marketing agreement with Ft. Myers, Florida based America Approved Energy Services (“ America Approved ”, or “ AMC ”), a full service energy procurement and management company, to provide commercial and residential energy services and renewable energy solutions through ZamZuu’s network of 34,000 Subscribers and 96,000 Free Agent Site Owners.

America Approved is one of the largest, most experienced and trusted energy consulting firms in North America. AMC is licensed and bonded in U.S. de-regulated states and will now service ZamZuu’s sales organization for resale.  By having the largest footprint in the energy industry, working with the nation’s largest Retail Energy Providers (REPs,) AMC offers an all-inclusive “fixed rate” product, helping small, medium and Fortune 100 companies save up to an estimated 20% - 40% off their   electricity bills and providing clean energy solutions and category-leading renewable energy technologies.

Subscribers of ZamZuu will have access to market this product in addition to the diversified products already in place.  The Company continues to strengthen its product line in its commitment to take advantage of the growing trend of online retail sales.

YTB Defaults On Home Office Mortgage

On January 13, 2011, YTB International, Inc. (the “ Company ”) received notification that the Company is in default under the terms of the promissory note (“ Note ”) and Mortgage (as defined below) with FH Partners LLC (“ FH Partners ”) relating to the Company’s headquarters located in Wood River, Illinois (the “ Property ”).

On July 26, 2006, the Company financed the purchase of the Property by borrowing $2.5 million from Meridian Bank.  On January 8, 2008, the Company’s $500,000 certificate of deposit representing restricted cash collateral for the Company’s outstanding indebtedness related to its corporate headquarters property was surrendered in partial repayment of the principal amount outstanding under such indebtedness.  On July 26, 2008, the Company renewed the Note for the principal sum of $2.0 million, the outstanding balance as of that date (the “ Note Renewal ”).  The Note Renewal bore interest at the rate of prime plus 1%, floating daily, and was collateralized by the first mortgage on the Property.

In October 2008, Meridian Bank was closed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Banking and subsequently, the FDIC was named Receiver.  On February 13, 2009, an unrelated third party, FirstCity Servicing Corporation as Servicer for FH Partners LLC (“ FH Partners ”), Owner, purchased the Note Renewal.  The terms of the Note Renewal did not change as a result of the purchase.  On July 26, 2009, the $1.9 million balloon payment on the Company’s note on its corporate headquarters matured.  On September 29, 2009, the Company executed a Loan Modification, Renewal, and Extension Agreement (the “ Loan Modification ”) effective July 26, 2009, with FH Partners with respect to the Company’s corporate headquarters.  The Loan Modification renewed the note executed by the Company in connection with the loan, in the new amount of $1.9 million (the “ FH Partners Note ”) and extended the maturity of the FH Partners Note and loan to April 30, 2010.  The amount due under the FH Partners Note bears interest at a rate of 8% annually.  The Company paid a principal installment of $300,000 on September 30, 2009.  A second additional principal installment for $200,000, originally due and payable on December 31, 2009, was extended to January 31, 2010 then subsequently extended to April 29, 2010.  In connection with the April 29, 2010 payment extension that the Company entered into on April 22, 2010, the Company assigned to FH Partners a promissory note, mortgage and all related documents between the Company and WR Landing, LLC.

On June 17, 2010, the Company executed a First Amendment to the Loan Modification (the “ First Amendment ”) with FH Partners.  The First Amendment modified the Loan Modification after its maturity.  The First Amendment modifies the Loan Modification and extends the maturity date to August 31, 2010.  In addition, the Company agreed to release FH Partners from all liabilities and causes of action, known and unknown, which may be related to the Loan Modification, as amended.  In the event of default, as defined in the FH Partners Note, FH Partners has the right to declare the entire unpaid balance of principal and interest on the FH Partners Note due and payable.  All other terms of the FH Partners Note and the loan, including the representations and warranties, remain unchanged.

On September 22, 2010, the Company executed a Second Amendment to the Loan Modification (the “ Second Amendment ”) which is effective September 1, 2010.  The Second Amendment extends the maturity date of the Loan Modification and the FH Partners Note to November 30, 2010 and increases the interest rate on the unpaid principal balance on the FH Partners Note from eight percent per annum to ten percent per annum effective September 1, 2010.  In addition, the Company agreed to pay monthly principal payments of $50,000 in addition to the current monthly installment payments of $16,392.23 beginning September 30, 2010.  All other terms and provisions of the Loan Modification, as amended, and FH Partners Note remain unchanged.

On or prior to the maturity date of November 30, 2010, FH Partners offered further renewal terms the Company feels are unacceptable.  The Company is in the final stages of refinancing the outstanding debt with an unaffiliated third party and confident it will be completed in the next sixty days.

More Restless Natives With YTB

It seems that YTB is really shifting focus away from travel.

According to one of their RTA's they may not be paying commissions and it seems they are not answering his questions or inquiries. Can anyone say Joystar? He posted this t noon on January 18th and no response--but interesting to note that Kim Sorensen had time to produce a video and  post it.

Right beneath that, someone is asking, once again what is happening with Royal Caribbean. For those wondering, it seems like it is a no-go! YTB will not answer you--that should be telling in and of itself. Every other legitimate host agency out there can sell Royal Caribbean--maybe give them a call and see what you are missing?

Diamond Ice and Jolie Cou--all done. See this post.

Funshine? Not happening like originally promised. Just a few months ago, they were busy negotiating conference space in Florida (yeah right, at a resort, during spring break, five months before arrival...uhm, OK) but now, you can catch it on your computer. Just take off from work on Monday and Tuesday, April 4th and 5th and send YTB a check for $10 and you can see webisodes of vendor training. Hint: You can probably get them on demand at the supplier's site for FREE!

Sorensen Pleads For ZamZuu

In this facebook video, Kim Sorensen pleads with all the folks who are in YTB for the travel to get on board with ZamZuu.  And then as the video wraps up, he asks them to sell some travel.

More sighs.....

Recently, someone invited me (well, they actually placed me) in a new facebook group called "Travel Agent Marketing Tips". I have been lurking for a bit and was pretty sure that it was nothing more than a cross recruiting ground for MLM.

The group's "owner" has tried to switch it from an open group to a closed one and he really seems to have some good intentions. But when I see a chat like this which appeared on my monitor this morning, I just have to sigh...

Really, you are a travel agent and the thought of a newsletter never crossed your mind? Cross promoting content on your site never crossed your mind?  But wait, I see that you are a "travel agent" with YTB plus other agencies!  That explains a lot.  Does she not realize that YTB sends out (or at least used to send out) weekly travel specials "Deals & Steals"?

And yes, when you click "CHAT WITH GROUP" and begin your conversation with "was wondering if anyone does a newsletter to send out to their customers?" there is a good chance that your conversation is not private and all 235 members have seen your conversation.

And so it goes...

Today

Adonia Rask

11:41pm

Hello....My name is Adonia and I am a travel agent.....was wondering if anyone does a newsletter to send out to their customers?

Judy Roggow

11:42pm

not that I know of

Adonia Rask

11:43pm

I think that would be a great idea! Maybe we could pull together with information to get us started, and whoever wants can take it to the bank if they want (figure of speech).

Judy Roggow

11:45pm

Sounds like a plan.

Adonia Rask

11:45pm

Does anyone pull info from their websites and does an all inclusive trip and market their particular info!

Judy Roggow

11:47pm

not that I know. You should ask Rob Roy he is my up line

Adonia Rask

11:47pm

Is he in our group?

Judy Roggow

11:48pm

not that I see

sorry I was working on some photos

So I am with the zamzuu group

Adonia Rask

11:49pm

Are you a travel agent with Zamzuu or do you just provide travel on Zamzuu?

Judy Roggow

11:50pm

we are agents with travel and much more

Adonia Rask

11:50pm

What is your name?

Judy Roggow

11:50pm

kind of both

Judy

Adonia Rask

11:50pm

Who are you?

I see....Judy Roggow?

Hi Judy.

Judy Roggow

11:51pm

hello

Adonia Rask

11:52pm

I am also with Zamzuu but joined when they only provided the travel so I have had all the travel training from YTB + other agencies!

Judy Roggow

11:52pm

yes

Adonia Rask

11:53pm

I am really in the business strictly to sell travel? What is your goal?

Judy Roggow

11:53pm

that's it

not sure at this time

here but not doing much

going thru a lot of medical stuff

Adonia Rask

11:54pm

So can you sell travel or can you only refer people to your website?

Judy Roggow

11:54pm

both

as you 2

I am in Colorado

u?

Adonia Rask

11:55pm

Ok. I am in Missouri.

Judy Roggow

11:56pm

I see. that make a diff

Adonia Rask

11:56pm

what do you mean?

Judy Roggow

11:56pm

not in the same state

not as easy to get together

and go over things

Adonia Rask

11:57pm

We can get together here!

no one can see what we chat!!!! Right?

Judy Roggow

11:57pm

yes that is true. I need to go . thanks for the chat.

right

as far as I know

ttyl

Adonia Rask

11:58pm

Maybe another time!

Judy Roggow

11:59pm

u got it. have a great day

Today

David Nina Marks

12:10am

guess what? i can see what yall are writing

Herb Stiger

7:16am

Hello

Diamond Ice Prints -1 YTB/Zam Zuu - 0

While YTB / Zam Zuu continues to say there is a "technical issue" with Diamond Ice Prints, it seems that Diamond Ice is still operating strong. As a matter of fact this morning, they solicited YTB/Zam Zuu's reps and RTAs and their customers to buy direct and offering a 20% off special for doing so. Yes, your Diamond Ice Prints are available not on the Zam Zuu site, but direct and at a discount!

YTB Announces Travel Expo & Training

Come one come all to the Western Regional Red Carpet Travel Expo and Training in beautiful Las Vegas. Yes, you can learn from five travel experts who have likely never sold a lick of travel in their life.  Yes folks, for the bargain price of $75 you can hear from Linda Chae about her organic makeup, Chris Cokely about his classes on how to recruit, Gina Alexander on how to put pictures on purses, Kriss Hansen to find out how to adjust your swimming pool's pH, and none other than Scott Tomer who will tell you how he built his fortune off of gullible people $49.95 a month at a time.  Space is limited for this "Travel Expo and Training" so be sure to send in your checks right away!

Why Did Travelocity Drop YTB?

It is obvious that it was Travelocity that dropped YTB and not vice versa, as alluded to in the YTB Travel Compass.

Changes to the YTB Travel Network Booking Engine Effective January 5, 2011

Orbitz Worldwide will replace Travelocity Partner Network as the provider of air, car and hotel products and will now be the EXCLUSIVE provider of said products on the YTB Travel Network booking engine.

If this was a planned transition, why is it done literally at the last minute with an email sent out at 4:30pm on the day of implementation?

There are a few reasons why Travelocity might drop YTB including excessive chargebacks and credit card disputes. Considering that YTB is not recognized by the airline industry as a legitimate travel agency, perhaps YTB does not know the way that chargebacks are handled. Charges are ultimately made by the airline and when a dispute arises, the airline asks no questions and refunds the amount and (under the terms of the ARC Agreement) debits the issuing agency for the amount--Travelocity.

The shift to Orbitz is questionable considering that YTB sells a good amount of Carnival cruises. Orbitz no longer sells American Airlines along with Expedia. One would have to think that American Airlines provided a substantial lift to the YTB clients looking to cruise.  I wonder if YTB took the time to actually look at the carriers and city pairs before this 11th hour decision was made.

Of course, had YTB not been in the business of re-selling their IATAN credentials several years ago, they could still be recognized as a legitimate travel agency and been able to negotiate upfront (possibly) and back end (certainly) commissions with many airlines. Many larger agencies still find a lot of profit in selling airline tickets.

Yet it seems that this new "exclusive" relationship between Orbitz and YTB is nothing more than the standard program available to every company in the world to manage their travel. YTB will merely translate the Orbitz data to appear on their booking site by data mapping.   What is curious is that YTB is claiming Orbitz is paying "commission" of $2.50 per ticket. See, some travel agencies are indeed making money on airline commissions. But is the $2.50 all that YTB is getting or is there more? Another interesting note is that Orbitz has said that commissions will not be paid until travel has commenced. Again, this offers further support that chargebacks may have been the crux of the breakup between Travelocity and YTB.

How long will this "exclusive" venture last? There is only one other online agency out there after Orbitz that can handle this type of deal--Expedia.  Will YTB remain in the travel business long enough?  Time will tell as it seems that right now all focus is on Zam Zuu and recruiting new members to sell girdles.

YTB Leaves Travelocity, Joins Orbitz

In a strange move, YTB has left Travelocity as the provider for their booking engine and switching to Orbitz.

Of course this means that they have now eliminated American Airlines from the number of airlines they can sell.

Kim Sorensen mentioned that there is a "commission" (actually a fee) of $2.50 that the RTAs can share for each ticket sold. 60% of $2.50 is $1.50.  The other change is that they now have the ability to have customer profiles.  This sounds like the standard Orbitz For Business program.

If YTB were a legitimate travel company, they would be able to negotiate upfront commissions with m any carriers and a backend override. But the reality is that IATA decided they were fraudulently using their accreditation and blacklisted them from the airline industry. Now all they can do is behave like any other corporation and sign up for an affiliate program and sublet that out to the people who paid to become a "travel agent".

Kim also mentioned that there are differences in how Orbitz pays and advised there would be many glitches going forward!

Non Travel Vendors Leaving YTB Now

For those who frequent the Zam Zuu/YTB  sites, have you noticed that there are some missing pieces? What happened to YTB Outdoors, Jolie Cou and Diamond Ice Prints?

And these were to be YTB exclusive vendors.  So what happened?

According to YTB there is a "technical problem" with Diamond Ice Prints. But according to our sources, the "technical glitch" is that YTB is trying to get Personalize That (formerly known as Beryl-Martin creators of the $8 million dollar Statue of Liberty and a privately held company owned by Kim Sorensen and Coach Tomer) to manufacture the Diamond Ice products at a fraction of the cost. Keep your ears peeled for a patent infringement suit soon.

Jolie Cou was another darling of the YTB /Zam Zuu stable that is now no longer available. According to YTB, Jolie Cou will "be back soon." But according to Jolie Cou, that is not the case.  It seems that the profit margin and sales were not as expected. In addition, the partners in Jolie Cou have split up because of allegations of "unethical behavior" on the part of one of the partners. I know, "unethical behavior" and YTB mentioned in the same sentence is a stretch.

YTB Outdoors just went away. No explanation. And when YTB's own associates ask the question, they ignore it!

 

So what is happening now? First the travel suppliers leave. Then the travel suppliers cut commissions. And now the very "exclusive" vendors who were going to make YTB the largest distributor of products in the world by 2020 are beginning to leave. I wonder if anyone involved in YTB or Zam Zuu will question this or if they will just send in their monthly check like always.

Maybe Coach has something up his sleeve for his birthday coming up. YTB always uses this as a springboard to retain people.

We have heard that Coach is going to increase the price of the  Broker Agent License to allow more bonuses to be paid to the recruiters under yet another compensation plan change. Does anyone remember the price fluctuations for the YTB Travel "opportunity"? Deja Vu!

With this change, the Reps selling the broker license don't have to participate in selling the products that they are claiming are so great to the people they are selling the license to.  Wow, does this sound like the old YTB Rep trying to sell the RTA product?

Lisa Madigan in Illinois and Jerry Brown (or your replacement) in California--are you listening?