Eric Maryanov
My Bio
Eric Maryanov, of Los Angeles-based All-Travel.com, is no stranger to the travel industry – and no stranger to industry recognition. Last year, All-Travel.com won TravelAge West’s Trendsetter Award for Best Online Marketing Strategy. This year, they took home the prestigious title of Best Agency Web Site along with the Magellan Award for Best Consumer Internet Marketing from Travel Weekly, a national publication.
More than 24 years ago, Eric Maryanov opened ALL-TRAVEL in West Los Angeles with one employee, a vision and determination to succeed in the travel industry. As the industry changed, Maryanov recognized the need to reinvent his business and responded by embracing change, new technologies and the Internet. In 1996 “.com” was added to the company name to reflect the increasing presence of the Internet to retail travel business. It's no secret that technology has revolutionized the industry and the way business is conducted. However All-Travel continues to thrive based on traditional core values of providing added value to their clients, delivering a high level of customer service by a dedicated and committed sales team, and cultivating true supplier-agency partnerships. Today, ALL-TRAVEL.com employs more than 30 people, with an office in West Los Angeles, California and has a major national and international Internet presence.
Maryanov states “We have become ‘travel marketers’ for our preferred vendors. We are not trying to be all things to all people. We have identified what we want to sell and have gone out to find those people that want that product.” The formula is clearly working. Utilizing the agency’s 10+ websites, All-Travel has risen to become one of the premier agencies in the world of online marketing.
Maryanov is a Certified Travel Counselor and has been in the travel business for 28 years. He is a hands-on manager and is involved in the daily operations of the agency. As a published travel columnist and regular guest for local radio, his business insight is regularly sought after by a variety of industry trade publications.
He is an active board member, treasurer and past vice president of the Signature Travel Network, a national co-op for retail travel companies. Additionally, he has served on several industry advisory boards including Fours Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Classic Custom Vacations, TravelAge West Editorial Advisory Board, Enterprise Rental Car and currently is a member of the Club Med and TravCorp Advisory Boards.
My posts from the All-Travel Blog
Eric Maryanov, All-Travel President - How To Communicate Consistently (SmartBusiness Interview)
By Meredyth McKenzie
In difficult times, Eric Maryanov strives to maintain a direct connection with his 32 employees at All-Travel.
“The core message of an organization and its core factors do have stability in this ever-changing world,” says the company’s founder and president. “You need to apply the message in all aspects and communications.”
Focusing on his message and on open communication has helped Maryanov grow the company, which he founded in 1984, to 2007 sales of $38 million.
Smart Business spoke with Maryanov about how to maintain open communication and how to set the tone at the top.
Q. How do you develop a message for employees to follow?
By open communication and their ability to query back, so that if they’re sensing, ‘Wait, that’s not the message I heard last time,’ their ability to question it, so I am able to either redefine or reclarify it. Listening to the staff and all of their input is a huge part of success. They know more of what is happening on the customer level. And not listening to only one member of the staff but getting information from all staff and multiple perspectives of the same questions.
It’s regular and consistent communication and consistency in your message, be that through e-mail, staff meetings or one-on-one conversations. The consistency of the tone and message has to be there. It’s not one of those things that just happens once in awhile; it’s ongoing, daily, it’s a reinforcement of the message.
The tone comes from all aspects of everything you do. Sometimes we don’t realize the staff watches our every move, motion and attitude, and it’s an awareness that we have to have at all times.
Q. How do you keep the lines of communication open?
Make sure that sometimes you’re out and about in the office. E-mail is a wonderful tool, and I spend a good amount of my day on e-mail with staff, being accessible to them, raising questions to them to trigger back their response and keep a dialogue going back and forth.
It’s being responsive and at least acknowledging. I try to encourage most of that communication to come in the form of e-mail. But also what fosters that is, at times, sharing the positive with the staff. By receiving a commentary e-mail, when you’re able to put it in a positive light, it’s easier to respond not only to the person who sent it but share it with a greater segment of the staff with a positive response and/or explanation. But if you always start with, ‘That was a good question, and here’s why,’ or, ‘That’s something we should give some further thought to,’ and letting everybody hear that response, it doesn’t give people the fear factor of coming forward with their own comments or ideas.
(You learn about) trends in the marketplace, trends within the business itself, and oftentimes, it’s the first source of finding out if there’s an employee problem. It’s important to treat employees as individual people and recognize that everybody’s needs are different and their individual needs change over time. Show an honest interest in the basics and fundamentals of their life.
Q. How do you treat employees as individuals and not just as employees?
It’s listening and paying attention. People will usually share with you far more if you listen, and that’s how you know the highlights of what’s happening in their world. And then periodically ask about those issues — be it the person who’s expecting their first grandbaby or somebody whose child is getting married or somebody who’s dealing with an ailing parent. Pay attention to those factors and ask about it.
Pay attention to one’s own words. Don’t apply a cookie-cutter approach to everybody in the company. They are, in our case, 35 different individuals, and just like no two people are alike, you just can’t communicate necessarily the exact same way with all of them. You need to recognize how best to communicate with them individually and what levels they need themselves. My most important clients are the staff — if I take care of the staff, they’ll take care of the customer.
Q. What is the benefit of keeping the lines of communication open?
Our most important asset is the employee. It’s the relationship they establish with the clientele, and that’s our best way of knowing what is of interest to the client, what we’re doing right for the client and where the trends may be in the marketplace.
Treating the employees as individuals is the way we want them to be treating our clients. If I’m not treating them as individuals, how would I expect them to treat our clients as individuals and to build that same relationship with the client individually on some level as I look to build with them.
How to reach: All-Travel, (310) 312-3368 or www.all-travel.com
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Add a commentAll-Travel's 25th Anniversary: A Message From the President
I’m not really sure how it happened but somehow we kept turning the pages of the calendar – day after day after day – for a total of 9,125 days, and low and behold 25 years pass by.
It was on THIS DAY………25 year ago….. All-Travel first opened it doors.
When we first started, our “IT“ equipment consisted of 4 telephones and one typewriter. We did not so much as have a copy machine and ”in those days” we had to go to the business center one floor up to make a copy.
As for delivery of tickets, well most of the time, I did that myself. As there were no E tickets (only paper tickets) delivery was part of my daily ritual. When Fed Ex came into existence I thought it was the slickest thing – to be able to have a document across country tomorrow, WOW! Who would have thought that possible?
A lot has changed in the last 25 years, lots of ups and downs, ins and outs – sometimes it seemed like we were the ones on a cruise.
But All-Travel has continued to modify and change and reinvent ourselves. In these challenging economic times, one thing I hold certain is WE WILL SURVIVE and WE WILL CONTINUE TO CHANGE AND REINVENT.
THANK YOU to my incredible team and to our valued and loyal clients who have entrusted us to fulfill their dreams, for all these years…
And a special thank you to Jerry for having the faith 25 years ago that this day would come.
Eric Maryanov, CTC
President
ALL-TRAVEL
Add a commentEric Maryanov, Pres. of All-Travel, on our Challenging Times and Emerging Opportunities
As I watch the rollercoaster ride that currently is our stock market, my 30+ years in the travel industry no longer just remind me how old I am – they’ve suddenly become a priceless knowledgebase that can save you money during these challenging times. Here are my thoughts and suggestions on what we can all do to stay afloat. A month ago I read an article about how ‘close to home destinations’ (such as theme parks) will get a boost from our volatile situation but as I glance at my world map, I realize the end of my business is nowhere in sight – people are still traveling.
You can also continue to travel (and save money doing it) but first need to realize that your savings are directly proportional to your demeanor. If you’re looking to escape the evening news and get out of town for a couple of weeks, you need to have flexible travel dates and be prepared to act quickly. This is not a time for prudent planners, nor is it a time for haste. If you take this advice and work with a travel consultant (who can wade through the hundreds of daily bargains), you’re bound to come up with a great deal. But, simply telling your consultant you want a ‘bargain’ or a ‘last minute deal’ is no longer enough – you need to have some prerequisites in mind (i.e. destinations, activities, land/cruise, etc…). If you don’t already own one, I’d suggest getting a world map.
When people hear me mention getting out of town for a ‘couple of weeks’ the reaction is usually to gawk in horror – who can possibly have that much time to take off? But if you have the days saved up or if you’re retired, we’re seeing way more bang-for-your-buck on longer voyages. On a per-day basis, 2 week cruises have been significantly cheaper but expect to see reduced deposits and cancellation periods in order to get more commitment. Might I also remind you that in this day in age, handhelds and wireless cruise ships reduce two weeks out of the office to just a few days. You are now able to stay as connected as if you were actually at your desk – trust me, I’ve done it a number of times…
My next point is a common misconception I see with clients – the blending and/or confusion between the words ‘cheaper’ and ‘better value.’ Just because something is cheap(er) does not necessarily mean it’s a ‘better value.’ Some have been asking if cruise fares will now dip lower at the last minute (1 to 2 months out); a great example of when having a travel consultant is essential. The short answer is that high-end lines will concentrate on value (same voyage price but with more extras), while Premium lines will increase last minute deals. The reason for this is that the luxury brands generally include more in their price (i.e. gratuity, offshore excursions, transfers, etc…) and don’t feel the same need to fill the ship. The Premium lines will try to reduce their rate to fill cabins, but boost the prices on everything else they can squeeze out of you.
If you’re a family traveler, squeezing into a cabin might not be an option but this is the other area we’ve seen a huge increase in value. If you’ve got the added human baggage, be sure to look into lines that offer cabins which can comfortably fit 3-4 instead of having to book a separate room for the kids.
Finally, keep in mind that the U.S. is not the only place challenged by the economic downturn – other places are feeling it and also offering bargains. We’ve seen some great deals in Europe and the Caribbean but buyer beware of Europe – the cost to cross the pond might negate the money you’re saving from the cruise booking.
To sum it up: be flexible, prepared to act quickly, and have a preconception of what you’re looking for.
Happy (All-)Travels!
Sincerely,
Eric Maryanov
President
All-Travel
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