Avis appoints new account manager

Avis has announced the expansion of its business travel team with the appointment of Paul Clark as account manager. The growth comes as a response to a strong 2010, which saw the specialist team increase its market share to 43%.

Reporting into Lisa Eastwood, head of business travel sales, Paul will be responsible for all the independent Travel Management Companies (TMCs) across the UK. In his new role, Paul will help grow the car rental market through personal training of frontline staff during regular branch visits.

Paul starts his new position having spent the last two years working at Avis as an account development executive, responsible for the company’s SME corporate customers. During that time, Paul developed strong and lasting relationships with his customers and in the process received five ‘Spirit of Avis Awards’ for his commitment and willingness to go the extra mile to deliver the ‘Gold Standard’ experience for his clients.

Lisa Eastwood, head of business travel sales, commented: “Ancillary services are now key to travel management companies and car rental is rightfully becoming recognised as a potentially major revenue stream. However, only a small percentage of all bookings currently have a car rental attached, so we believe there is a real opportunity to grow the overall market and expand what could become a significant income for our customers.

“To help achieve this, Avis will support the frontline staff with dedicated training on sales, products – including Avis Business Traveller, an SME product designed specifically for the TMC market - and the GDS system. Having a dedicated regional account manager/trainer to do this will be key, which is why we are delighted to have someone of Paul’s calibre onboard.”

Commenting on his appointment, Paul said: “I am excited to make the move into business travel as it will give me an opportunity to work on the ground and interact with our customers on a face-to- face basis. Car rental has the potential to generate significant revenue and I hope that through training and day-to-day support I will be able to provide my clients with the right tools to fulfil that potential.”