Our Approach

The main focus was to develop a communication strategy for promoting the benefits of using a personal travel manager, as this really set Darren apart from his competitor. It was also important to continually innovate with the development of compelling promotions, unique events and relevant tactical offers. As Darren builds most of his business on referrals, we were able to devise several automated marketing processes to help continual build and incentivise his referral network. We also helped him introduce a member rewards program, which proved to be a hit.

Over the years we have helped Darren Kelk Travel implement a number of marketing services:

The Challenge

Darren Kelk started as a sole trader specialising in unique travel experiences. He didn’t have the biggest budget, but he knew he needed a solid marketing program that he could implement over a 12-month period. Bright Owl Marketing Agency did the initial assessment and created a marketing plan that built on his personal strengths and created additional revenue opportunities.

The Results

We helped Darren Kelk correct his logo after he spent a lot of time and money on a cheap logo package from overseas, which are typically sourced from cheap and unqualified offshore freelance designers. They ended up giving him a lot of design options, but then Darren spent countless hours of his valuable time constantly revising that concept. Bright Owl Marketing then helped revise the original design brief and worked with one of our local designers to help develop a travel logo that truly reflected his brand personality and level of service. From here we were able to establish trust and went onwards to design his website, eDM, business and promotional collateral.

Darren Kelk received the Most Improved Travel Manager of the Year in Victoria, as part of TravelManagers 2011 annual awards thanks to the brand refresh and increase level of marketing promotion and communications. It has been five years now and Darren is going from strength to strength with well a crafted monthly communications, Social Media promotion, print advertising and specialising in niche tours driving sales and revenue growth. 

As Darren’s database was extremely valuable, we focused a lot on his email marketing strategy which involved regular monthly email communications and sales bursts, which linked back to his website and social media strategy. His Open Rates were consistently above 40% and Click-through rates averaged 10%, which meant the content we were writing was highly engaging and personable for his travel audience. Bright Owl Marketing has been helping him every step of the way as he grows his business, where he hired two more staff to help meet customer demand.

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“All I can say is that your marketing plan was just the thing I needed to kick start my business to the next level. It was detailed and actionable, and I love how you summarised everything so concisely – a constant reminder for everything I have to achieve over the coming year. It’s since been five years since I started with Bright Owl Marketing, and I am loving every year as the team continue to help grow my business.”

The best part about the process is Craig’s intuitive style and easy-going approach. You totally understood my business model and where I was coming from. Your ability to build on my business strengths has been clearly demonstrated with the direction of the marketing plan and the business success I’m experiencing already.”

Darren Kelk, Darren Kelk Travel