Delray Beach, FL – May 1, 2014: HICKORY GLOBAL PARTNERS ("HICKORY" and “Hickory”; www.HickoryTravel.com), a travel management services company providing innovative service, distribution and technology to its network of travel agency and supplier partners, announced today its new partnership with TripLingo, a mobile application that helps international business travelers to better manage and navigate language and cultural barriers when travelling abroad. TripLingo makes it easy and enjoyable for travelers to learn the local language, improving the international business traveler’s overall experience. With an increasing focus on serving travel management companies, the partnership makes it possible for Hickory’s travel agency network to make TripLingo available to their clients. As a result, a travel agency’s clients will be able to download TripLingo onto their mobile devices. Versions are currently available for Android devices and Apple’s iPhone family.
"We are very pleased to collaborate with TripLingo to provide their award-winning language translator and all-in-one mobile application to our travel agency network, said Chris Dane, President of Hickory Global Partners. "Our strategic alliance with TripLingo is an all-around win-win situation for Hickory and our member agencies alike. We are excited to add a new valuable tool to their toolkit, helping our agency network to grow their business and further build customer loyalty among their clients,” continued Dane.
A practical, customizable, cost-saving travel app – with a human touch
HICKORY’s member travel agencies have the ability to customize the TripLingo experience for their travel clients, including adding their brand and contact information. Using TripLingo via their travel agency, business travelers can program their mobile device to call a travel agent’s number in case of an emergency by pressing a dedicated button.
"We're thrilled to partner with Hickory and their extensive portfolio of travel management companies. TripLingo empowers TMC's to offer their customers more comprehensive Duty of Care solutions as well as enabling new categories of global cost-avoidance" says Jesse Maddox, CEO at TripLingo. "Combining Hickory's strong agency relationships with our mobile travel platform provides a best in class solution to their clients." In addition to the language translation feature, TripLingo users have the ability to connect to a “live” human translator directly. With real-time language assistance at hand, a potential emergency or crisis situation could be de-escalated or even avoided altogether.
TripLingo is also a practical, cost-saving tool. Wi-Fi connectivity helps TripLingo users avoid costly voice fees, data roaming charges, and country-to-country calling surcharges. Usage tracking and reporting features enable travel expense management.
The agreement further demonstrates Hickory’s strategic drive to lead the travel industry to measurable results and greater profitability. In providing a continually growing platform of tools to its travel agency network – with TripLingo being the latest addition – Hickory is delivering on its mission to forge long and mutually beneficial relationships with its travel agency membership and supplier partners alike.
About HICKORY - Hickory Global Partners, An INTRAVEL Company
Positioning itself as a travel management services company rather than a consortium, Hickory’s unique approach focuses on return on investment for agency and supplier partners alike. HICKORY guarantees its agency partners a positive ROI. With a suite of services including a visionary hotel incentive program, a robust and one-of-a kind air program, a car rental program, and 24/7 support products, Hickory is an important strategic partner to travel agencies. Proprietary, innovative tools designed to share data with agency partners allow agencies to make better, faster decisions, thus driving more revenue. These tools also enable Hickory to aggregate bookings from agency partners. Hotelier partners gain access to a reporting platform that illustrates daily, weekly and monthly booking trends across the Hickory network. Supplier partners also benefit from measurable results and extensive distribution and marketing opportunities across the Hickory global network. For more information, please visit www.HickoryTravel.com.
About TripLingo
TripLingo helps Travel Management Companies (TMCs) drive ancillary revenue while delivering a heightened level of service to their clients. The company helps travel agencies equip their travelers with state of the art language and translation tools, insight into the local culture, and access to critical safety information. For more information, please visit: www.TripLingo.com, or email letstalk@triplingo.com. You can follow the company on Twitter at @TripLingo.
