Franchise Friday Podcast Episode 221 with Melissa Pang and Doni Ferreira of iTrip

In this episode of Franchise Friday – with Melissa Pang, meet Doni Ferreira Franchise Development Specialist

Doni Ferreira is a seasoned franchise professional with over 10 years of experience in business development, operations, training, and legal aspects of franchising. He has extensive experience in successfully placing qualified candidates through vetting and by getting to learn more about them, making him a valuable asset to the franchises he has worked with. His expertise in drafting FDD’s and Franchise Agreements has helped numerous franchises achieve success both domestically and internationally.

Doni’s passion for franchising is infectious, and his ability to captivate audiences sets him apart.

iTrip® (itrip.net), founded in 2008, is a leading short-term rental property management company with locations in more than 100 cities in North America.

Founded by vacation property managers, iTrip continues to grow throughout the U.S., Canada and beyond. With franchise locations in North America managing thousands of rentals, we bring boutique-level, personalized care to each owner and rental guest. We also provide short-term rentals at competitive rates because of our advanced online booking technology and proven business model.

Check out what we’re up to on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and YouTube.

THE iTRIP FAMILY

When you decide to become part of the exciting and growing private accommodations industry by owning an iTrip Vacations franchise, you’re benefiting not just from a respected name in the industry, but from the decades of experience we bring to the market.

Our franchise team of real estate and short-term rental experts have deep knowledge in buying, selling, managing, and building real estate, as well as in technology and branding, finance and business development, and thinking outside the box. As an iTrip franchisee, you will enjoy an advantage that your competitors simply can’t match!

iTRIP SUPPORT PROGRAM

When you join iTrip to operate a short-term vacation and urban rental property management business, it’s possible to create the lifestyle you’ve always wanted, one that gives you the freedom to run your business from anywhere and enjoy more time with friends and family — all while helping others find their home away from home!

As Doni shares: Let me share a little bit about how I got into franchising. It’s a long, long story. I was probably 10. I was just a kid, and I was watching Ronald McDonald the McDonald’s TV commercials for the first time I knew right there and then Melissa that I wanted to be part of this magical world of franchises. Just kidding, that didn’t happen. It did not. I was not watching a McDonald’s commercial. That’s not how I started in franchising. But with all seriousness, I got into franchising because I was drawn to the idea of helping people achieve their entrepreneurial dreams and goals of building a successful business. And what happened with me, Melissa, was that over the years, I’ve had this opportunity to work with some fantastic franchises and even franchisees and help them grow, expand into different markets and become successful franchisees. Now, it is challenging; it was very challenging to be part of that. But it’s been very rewarding to be part of this journey, part of groups like TES, and work with wonderful coaches and help their clients find what’s right for them. What’s their next chapter? So, I’m excited to be here, and I’m excited to see what the future holds for franchising as well.

Let’s talk about iTrip. First and foremost, as you said, Melissa, we’re not a travel company. We’re not a timeshare. iTrip is essentially and I’ll keep it very simple. It’s a full-service technology-driven, short-term rental property management business. And what sets us apart is the fact that we are a technology company.  We are well known for being a software lead partner with VRBO giving us a lot of benefits. And one of the biggest benefits is that we become essentially a beta tester. So when VRBO is considering introducing a new software feature or tweaking something, they will contact iTrip software engineers to run some beta testing. Now, that lets us know exactly what’s coming down the pipeline before anybody else knows. We can tweak our award-winning software platform to meet or exceed any expectations in this industry. We have over 100 franchisees and 100 destinations and have been around for over 15 years. Our technology has integration and API with over 80 national and international listing sites, including Airbnb, VRBO and Booking.com. We recently added three massive new booking sites: Homes and Villas by Marriott, which is part of the Marriott hotel chain, Hopper and also Google Vacation. iTrip is a Technology company running a property management company where franchisees are responsible for converting properties to manage while servicing and managing those properties, in addition to overseeing all the generated bookings.

Melissa points out: You’re touching on two points here client experience and franchisee support. Both are needed to bring in those really great people that you want to align with your brand. They’re going to become part of your culture and become brand ambassadors for you. Before someone becomes a franchisee, they need to learn all about your brand. That’s what that discovery experience is all about. And if someone feels like they’re just getting pushed through steps or they’re another number, that experience doesn’t do it for them. You can have the greatest brand in the world however if someone really can’t build a personal connection with the brand, they will dismiss it for something else.  The client experience on that front end has to include hand-holding, it’s one-on-one and meeting the client where they are. If the client has this amazing experience with you, they’re much more likely to say, yeah, it’s iTrip. I feel a connection, it resonates and I feel so supported. And then on the back end, they continue to feel that support after becoming a franchisee. And that’s really where I mean, of course, a potential franchisee wants to know that, like, I’m going to join you and then you’re not just going to drop me off in my little territory. And I’m just going to figure out what’s going on. But it’s also great for the coach to know that too. You know, this is a brand that I can truly trust my client with. That’s so important. So I think you touch on two very key components here.

More about our host, Melissa Pang

Always customer service-focused, Melissa is a proud member of the TES SourceLink team and works with TES franchisor members on a daily basis, providing a collaborative environment that fosters win-win relationships.

She feels most in her element when collaborating with franchisor members – working together, Melissa helps them find solutions and build strong, long-lasting relationships with TES coaches and clients in order to achieve the franchise growth results they desire