• by Larry Dobrow , June 6, 2003

While most potential advertisers were hit hard by the recent recession, few absorbed as many body blows as the travel category. A profligate spender of ad dollars during the boom years of the Clinton Administration, the industry became a miser almost overnight. And then, after 9/11 fueled fears of flying and travel abroad, the category went into a tailspin from which it hasn't yet recovered.

Don't try telling this to the minds behind MediaSavers International, a new media-buying and fulfillment firm that already counts several desirable travel destinations as clients. "The travel business needs something like this," says executive vice president Lois Dale. "Just because business isn't good doesn't mean you should just give up on new ideas."

An offshoot of TravelSavers, an umbrella organization for nearly 3,000 independently owned travel agencies in 13 countries, MediaSavers is designed to ease media buying and planning tasks for its member agencies. While a handful of the company's early successes - billboards for New Mexico and Costa Rica in prime New York City locations - were in the outdoor category, MediaSavers considers itself equally adept in securing radio, television and other placements.

The company believes it will distinguish itself by being a one-stop shop for travel and other clients. "That's our main selling point," Dale says. "We can do design, placement, marketing and distribution." The company also takes the process a step further, by offering clients the option of using TravelSavers' global network to follow though on advertising and marketing leads.

Another trait that makes the agency somewhat unique within the media-buying space is its ability to (and borderline reliance on) barter. Let's say that a travel client (for example, Spain's tourism board) has $1 million to spend on a buy or buys. MediaSavers, with its access to the combined resources of its clients and member agencies, might attempt to strike a deal in which the $1 million in media space is exchanged for, say, $650,000 in cash and $350,000 in hotel rooms.

"What does a room cost? The price of a maid cleaning it," Dale says. "If a client has a $1 million budget, we might be able to get them $2 million in exposure for that. In times like this, people need creative solutions."

In the months ahead, Dale hopes to add airlines to her client roster. While she hasn't set a billings target for the company's first six months or year, she is convinced of the viability of the MediaSavers model. "We expect to be doing this worldwide," she says confidently. "Between our expertise and our resources, we have a lot to offer."