Archive for 2006

Win $1000.00

Our customers could win $1000.00 by sharing their favorite customer service story with Telephone Doctor.  It doesn’t have to be about Sundance Vacations, though we’d love it if it is!

Details:

"(December 2006) Telephone Doctor Customer Service Training Company, based in St. Louis MO, has heard thousands of horror stories over the years of how poorly people have been treated on the phone or in-person. Or, as Nancy Friedman, president of Telephone Doctor says, “How they’ve been MIS-treated.”

So at this holiday time when it’s so important to spread good cheer, Telephone Doctor is looking to hear GREAT customer service stories. Stories about how someone has gone the extra mile, or said something special, or turned a negative into a positive, great event. It could be from a neighbor, a friend, a relative, a co-worker or even a complete stranger that you’ll never see again.

“We know good customer service stories are out there,” says Nancy, whose firm for the past 20+ years has been helping companies communicate better with their customers. “We just don’t get to hear them enough. Sadly,” says Friedman, “there is what is called that old 3 to 11 ratio. Seems we’re more prone to tell 11 people how badly we’re treated and only tell 3 folks about a good, positive exchange.”

Friedman says, “I’ve been in elevators, where someone has gotten on and in front of 7 or 8 strangers complain about the bad experience they just had with a clerk or whatever.” Can you imagine – to perfect strangers!

So, “Whether you have given the best service or received the best service, we want to hear the good, the great, the best things that people have done,” says Nancy.

Please keep your story to 500 words or less. Names of companies and/or persons will be used (with permission) if the story is included in our new book tentatively titled “The Greatest Customer Service Stories Ever Told.”

Second and third place prizes will be $250 and $100, respectively.

Only stories submitted with name, complete address, and phone number will be eligible. Contest ends January 31st 2007.

Send your GREAT Customer Service story to bestcustomerservicestory@telephonedoctor.com

Call 314.291.1012 for more information or an in depth interview and visit our website at www.telephonedoctor.com "

Wilkes-Barre, Pa (PRWeb) December 7, 2006 — Sundance Vacations employees attended the first annual Stevie Awards gala in Las Vegas on December 4, 2006. Although none of the finalists were chosen as Stevie Award winners, it was a great honor to reach the level they each did.

There were approximately 600 entries for the awards and only 55 finalists actually received a Stevie award. The editor of Selling Power magazine, Gerhard Gschwandtner, warned that it will be even more difficult to win a Stevie next year. He expects the entries to double to 1200. The awards gala was well attended by some of the best sales organizations in the world. Event sponsors, SAP America and Careerbuilder.com, were among 250 of the world’s best sales executives and sales representatives in attendance.

"Being selected as a finalist for the Selling Power Sales Excellence award is an honor. We offer our congratulations to Marriott Vacation Club, who was selected for the Stevie in our category. To be in the company of some of the best sales organizations in the world was humbling but also inspiring," states Sundance Vacations co-founder, Tina Dowd

Each finalist was instructed to prepare a 30 second acceptance speech. John Dowd, President of Sundance Vacations, found a story that was quite applicable; "Some people say the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. That’s not true. The grass is always greener where you water it. The sales levels and growth rates of the winners inspired us. So, we intend to water our grass and go back after the Stevie award next year."

Exciting News…

Sundance is growing once more! Our sales division is expanding again with the addition of our seventh office in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  Veterans Mike and Barbara Kasper accepted the positions of Sales Director and Assistant Sales Director (respectively).

Location

The office is conveniently located near Interstates 81 and 83 and the Colonial Park Mall, in the northeast section of Harrisburg’s metropolitan area.

When 

We are keeping our fingers crossed that construction is complete by the projected date of December 15^th, 2006.  If all goes as planned, the doors will be open for clients beginning the first week of January, 2007.

Joining the Community

ARCA racecar drivers Angela and Amber Cope enjoyed kicking off the company’s presence in the Harrisburg market when they rode the Sundance float in the downtown Thanksgiving parade on November 18^th.  Sundance Vacations will be at various venues and events in Harrisburg and its surrounding areas including the Giant Center and the Farm Show Complex.

As always, we welcome your thoughts and comments.

Kathy O’Mara

Communications Director

Sundance Vacations

komara@vacmail.com

Sundance Vacations and some of their employees were named as Finalists in various categories in The 2006 Selling Power Sales Excellence Awards to be presented on December 4, 2006 in Las Vegas.

The new awards are jointly presented by Selling Power magazine, the leading sales management publication with 145,000 subscribers in 67 countries, and The Stevie® Awards, which have been hailed as "the business world’s own Oscars" by the New York Post (April 27, 2005).

Several employees will represent Sundance Vacations during a gala banquet for finalists on Monday, December 4 at the Westin Casuarina Hotel, Spa & Casino in Las Vegas. Nominated sales executives from around the world are expected to attend the gala for the unveiling of the winners.

More than 300 entries from companies of all sizes and in virtually every industry were submitted for consideration in more than 40 categories. Sundance Vacations is a finalist in four categories including, Timeshare Sales Organization of the year (the category that most closely matches our business type). Roger Johnson is a Finalist as Sales Representative of the Year. Roger works in the King of Prussia division of Sundance Vacations. In addition, Sundance Vacations’ Chicago Sales Team received Finalist recognition for Sales Team of the Year and manager Steve Decker is a Finalist in the Sales Director of the Year category.

Members of the Awards’ Board of Distinguished Judges & Advisors and their staffs will select Stevie Award winners this week from among the Finalists. Business professionals worldwide chose the finalists during preliminary judging.

The elegant Stevie trophy was designed by R. S. Owens, the same company that makes the Oscar and the Emmy.

"Being named a Finalist in The Selling Power Sales Excellence Awards is an important achievement," said Gerhard Gschwandtner, founder and publisher of Selling Power. "It means that independent business executives have agreed that the nominee is worthy of international recognition. We congratulate all of the Finalists on their achievement and wish them well in the competition."

"We strive to maintain high standards in every division of our company. In addition to the 2006 Stevie Award nominations, Sundance Vacations was honored to be the recipient of the 2005 Northeast Pennsylvania Better Business Bureau Torch Award for our business practices and marketplace ethics. To be publicly recognized two years in a row for our commitment to excellence is especially gratifying," adds John Dowd, President of Sundance Vacations.

Details about The Selling Power Sales Excellence Awards and the list of Finalists in all categories are available at www.stevieawards.com/sales.

Two or three Internet posters mistakenly insist that our clients must request three different dates of travel, and/or three different vacation areas in order to book a vacation. The truth is that in our effort to provide our travelers with quality condominium vacations at affordable rates, the Sunsational Guarantee was created. We offer three absolute service guarantees, called Sunsations. These posters are referring to Sunsation #3, Guaranteed Vacations.

These posters assert that Sundance Vacations dictates when and where our clients travel, and they are absolutely wrong.  We book many clients who request one area and/or one date for their vacation.  Of the eight weeks of vacation I have used, six were for specific dates and locations.  Visit the official Travel Advantage Network site to see locations our clients visit.

Please forward your thoughts and comments.

Kathy O’Mara

Communications Director

Sundance Vacations

komara@vacmail.com

We recently returned from a wonderful stay at Eagle’s Nest Resort in Branson, MO.
What a great spot to get together with our relatives and enjoy the area attractions.  The location and view from the balcony was superb.

The reservationists were so helpful when we put this trip together.  Not a question was left unanswered!  TAN is the best!  We have listened to several "vacation deals" in the past few years and remain convinced that Sundance Vacations along with TAN has provided us with the most bang for our buck!  Thanks again.

Elroy and Ginny Gauerke
Hendersonville, TN

Why Do We Call You?

In today’s competitive markets, companies use a variety of advertising tools to attract new customers.  Sundance Vacations has display booths and kiosks located in shopping centers, sports arenas, festivals, etc…, where you enter to win our sweepstakes and register your contact information. We call you because we want your business!  When we call, we ask you to attend an informative and hopefully fun 60-minute presentation to learn about (and we hope purchase) our vacation program. In exchange for your time and attention, you receive a promotional gift.   Attending a presentation does not increase your chances of winning the sweepstakes.

Why Do We Keep Calling?

Some Internet posters accuse us of harassing potential clients. Why, they want to know, do we continue phoning if there has been no response to our calls and messages?  The answer is, our marketing goal is just one live contact.  If the result of our call is no answer, or an answering machine, we call you back.  Once we have the opportunity to speak with you directly, it’s easy for you to accept or decline our offer, effectively completing the direct marketing portion of our program.

We do, of course, telephone our clients in order to provide service.  As a courtesy, we call to remind and confirm appointment dates and times; we call to reschedule missed appointments. 

Hopefully, this clarifies how our call process works.  For sweepstakes details and registration, visit the official site of Sundance Vacations and check out our giveaways.  We’re interested in your comments, thoughts and suggestions.

Thank you!

Kathy O’Mara

komara@vacmail.com

We returned from our Sundance Vacations Hawaii trip this past Sunday and here are my comments on our stay at Maui Banyan.  This is our 7th trip to Hawaii and all of them were outstanding to say the least.  As for the Unit we stayed in, it was just fine.  We had maintenance install a security chain on the inside of the entry door and had the cleaning service come in to thoroughly clean the Lanai that, in our opinion, had not been cleaned in weeks or maybe months.  It was that dirty.  When we left for our 2 week vacation on Kauai, we told the rental office that the air condition in the bedroom needed to be repaired.  It kept going on and off constantly so we just shut it down.  Between the fan in the bedroom and the A/C in the living room, the Unit was cool enough.  We also told the rental office that the non-conducting material (for the lack of a better description) that is just around the front inside of the oven the oven door closes on was not only frayed but in some areas completely torn.

Aside from those deficiencies, it really was a nice place to stay.  The Maui Banyan complex was a great place and located in a nice area of Kihei.  We made good use of the beach across the street as well as the pool in the complex.

Russell and Diane Scardigli

Maui-Sept. 23 to Sept. 30

Thanks to the reservation agents and the Banyan property office staff at

Maui for making the planning and check-in process stress free, smooth and

informative.

Maui is a true paradise with something for everyone: A rainforest,

breathtaking vistas, superior beaches, premier vegetation, plus typical

shopping stores in the more commercialized/touristy communities.  Prices for

food, souvenirs and things you’ll forget to pack, did not seem out of line.

TIP: Take slip-resistant, treaded sandals/water shoes for walking on the

volcanic rocks, "tropic wear" clothes, and 1 or 2 nicer Hawaiian outfits for

luau’s. Shop around for prices that will fit your budget for side trips and

excursions. Our unit at Maui Banyon was very clean, spacious and well

equipped (incl. cooler, beach chairs, washer and drier).  Pack light, to

save room for all the mementoes you’ll bring home with you.

Molokai-Sept. 30 to Oct. 7

Our second week was in Molokai, where we rested from the activity of Maui.

The Hotel Molokai is like a step back in time, 180 degrees from the other

islands’ tourist trappings.  The locals deliberately designed this island to

remain a true representative of the "real" Hawaiian island.  Here you will

sleep late, read, play cards and mingle with the locals.  Our time there was

private, romantic and unforgettably restful. Jeanie at the hotel, her staff,

and the residents of the island made sure we were enjoying this peaceful

escape from our real life.  THANKS to all!

Sandy Burkhalter-Sundance Vacations Hawaii trip