Most Outstanding Travel Reward Program — Four or More Nights, 200 or More Participants
Cantrav Services’ onsite Flexibility makes
president’s Conference an Inspiring Success
Crystal Winner: Tom Ebner, Cantrav To that end, Cantrav Services featured typical
Services, West Des Moines, Iowa, USA Canadian sports by showcasing budding
Canadian athletes during an extraordinary gala
Client: ITA Group
evening, and brought entertainers from Canada’s
Program: President’s Conference First Nations People who conveyed their deep
sense of heritage in their performances. Outdoor
activities included heli-sightseeing, Lake Louise
w
hen an insurance company decided to tours, canyon biking and hiking, and boating and
reward its highest achieving agencies fishing expeditions. Providing guides for the tours
with a five-day trip to Banff, Alberta, ensured guests received an overview of the area’s
Canada, it looked to ITA for implementation. ITA, rich history, culture, wildlife and geology.
in turn, selected Cantrav Services to execute a Another goal of the incentive program was
spectacular travel incentive program that would to find a unique and interesting way to award
evoke a high-end experience synonymous with
many nominees. Cantrav Services orchestrated
European sophistication and Canada’s natural
a series of award banquets throughout the
beauty, and would motivate the sales force to
program and imbued each ceremony with a
improve client service and increase sales.
sense of pride and meaning. To convey the
“with a deeply rooted understanding of the insurance
company’s goals, Cantrav Services and ITa were able
to create a program that was innovative, experiential
and inclusive.”
The program also needed to create a positive insurance company’s strong foundation and
and inspiring atmosphere to rebuild morale after create a sense confidence, Cantrav Services
a difficult year fraught with natural disasters, selected themes that mirrored the insurance
recognize a large sales force while sustaining company’s goals.
excitement and interest and convey a consistent
Historically, the first evening of the trip included
theme. Finally, because another subsidiary within
the presentation of green jackets to Hall of Fame
the insurance company held an awards event
awardees in recognition of career achievements.
in Banff the previous year, Cantrav Services had
To echo the tradition, the program included a
to not just top it, but to raise the bar for future
medieval night that represented the insurance
events. This feat required something strikingly
original, even for audiences who had recently company’s deep roots and longevity. Cantrav
visited the same destination. Services also created a Journey through
Canada, Evening at MountView, and Midnight in and business sessions, and hired a versatile and
The program showcased local talent and natural the Rose Garden receptions to express present- flexible production crew for all events, reducing
beauty to rekindle a sense of hopefulness and day success. To underscore the company’s overhead costs.
reenergize the sales force. Cantrav Services bright future, the final evening was a winter
added old-world charm by incorporating elements wonderland gala, complete with an indoor With a deeply rooted understanding of the
of sophistication into each event, while paying insurance company’s goals, Cantrav Services
ice skating rink where Olympic hopeful figure
homage to a truly unique Canadian experience. and ITA were able to create a program that
skaters performed and Cirque acrobats soared
In partnering with one of Canada’s most was innovative, experiential and inclusive.
effortlessly high above.
renowned hotels, The Fairmont Banff Springs, The business results of the program and the
the program offered a unique juxtaposition: the After planning a flawless event, Cantrav Services unsurpassable experiences for the attendees of
luxury of a baronial castle nested in the great had to show the best possible ROI for the the President’s Conference helped this insurance
Canadian wilderness. Because the majority of insurance company. Organizers were adamant company achieve its goals in an unstable
participants were from the USA, the objective about using resources judiciously to prevent marketplace. As proof to the value of incentive
was to emphasize cultural experiences in overlap and eliminate unnecessary spending. travel rewards, the end-client signed on for
combination with outdoor pursuits to clearly Cantrav Services juggled transportation logistics another three years of reward program design —
delineate the unique and divergent aspects of by maximizing the transport of goods, chose and now are ready to greet three more years of
the respective cultures. equipment that could be used for social events goals achieved. •
2007 SITE Crystal Awards 9