This winter we’re pleased to have launched Altitude Search Marketing, specializing in paid Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Social Network Marketing (SNM) for the travel and tourism industry, plus small business.

Since 2005 our team has been trusted to provide marketing and business planning services to some of the finest tourism and aviation organizations in Canada through Altitude Consulting. We’ve seen such great results in SEM and SNM that we’ve decided to setup a new company specializing in this area named Altitude Search Marketing.

Using unique search method techniques (that we’ve spent relentless hours refining), plus regression analysis, we’ve been able to achieve exceptional advertising ROI (exceeding 1,000% in one case relative to ad spend vs. room revenue generated). In June 2009, we received our Google AdWords Professional designation.

We’re looking forward to serving you in the future. Please phone us toll free 1 (877) 884-2276 or (604) 755-4336.

Health and strength,

Ross Brown

Managing Partner and Co-founder

P.S. We still offer consulting services for the travel and tourism industry too. For more information visit www.AltitudeConsulting.com

Was there any doubt? When the son of recycling forerunners and the daughter of Mennonite farmers decided to start Lotusland Vineyards in Fraser Valley, “there wasn’t a choice” to be organic.

Restoring fallow ground and even gravel pits into crop producing land presented a formidable challenge for David and Liz Avery. But over the past nine years, the pioneering couple learned how to feed the soil to produce the highest quality fruit with the least amount of inputs.

“Mother Nature has a habit of keeping in perfect checks and balances,” David says. “We used to need eight to 10 people to tend 8 ½ acres, now we only need four to six people for 14 vineyards. We don’t do 80 percent of the steps anymore so the vineyards look a little more unruly but grow wonderful, wonderful fruit.”

In keeping with their appreciation for the land’s natural variety, Lotusland wines forgo commercial yeasts or acidifying. “If the wine turns out a little crisper, that’s the vintage we got that year,” David says. Lotusland patrons enjoy the unique character and limited release of each year’s wine. “Many of our clients have come out to visit and appreciate our philosophy,” David says.

Some wine aficionados can’t make it out to the British Columbia vineyard for a tour (barrel sampling included!) or to browse the Lotusland Wine Boutique. Fortunately, they can still sip this premium wine and see Lotusland photos on the bottles featured at restaurants and retail outlets throughout Alberta and British Columbia.

“More and more restaurants are switching over to an organic and local bent,” David says. This trend means that without a doubt Lotusland will find more partners to share the fruit of their labors throughout Canada.

Contact:

(604) 857-4188
www.lotuslandvineyards.com

Lotusland Vineyards
28450 King Road
Abbotsford, British Columbia, V4X 1B1

info@lotuslandvineyards.com

You glance at the clock. Yikes! It’s almost 3 p.m.! You only have a few minutes before you need to dash to catch a floatplane to Vancouver. If only you could stay a bit longer in Victoria to wrap up a meeting or a bit of paperwork.

Thanks to Helijet, you can.

In 1986, Danny Sitnam, the company’s president and CEO, launched the first scheduled helicopter service in Canada. His goal: increase commuter’s productivity by offering longer hours and more reliable flights.

“Danny saw that the ferry system took a lot of time and that floatplanes couldn’t be reliable because of the Pacific Northwest weather,” says Ken Glaze, vice president of business development. “The planes couldn’t operate in rain, snow, and fog, and they were limited by hours of daylight, which can last from just 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.”

Armed with a message of increased reliability and productivity, Helijet targeted time-sensitive professionals through traditional means like business publications, newspapers, radio, and sales people, says Rick Hill, vice president of operations and commercial programs.

But they also gained new customers from some unexpected press. “We were flying into the downtown core of an urban setting, and we got a lot of noise complaints that became a local media controversy,” Glaze says.

The team resolved the noise issues and gained community acceptance by agreeing to fly higher, stay over the water, and restrict hours. “But we learned from our initial passengers that many of them found out about us through the noise issue coverage,” Glaze says.

“We turned a negative into a positive,” Hill says. And after almost a quarter of a century, Helijet remains very friendly with the community and continues to fly high with scheduled flights, charter services, and even air medical services.

Relax! You’ve still got time before you need to take off!

Credit:
Website: www.helijet.com
Contact:
Corporate Office: 604-273-4688
Passenger Services: 800-665-4354

“We learned that we had to first market Yukon and then market our own airline services,” says Joseph Sparling, president and co-founder of Air North, Yukon’s Airline.

For 25 years, Air North traversed Yukon and Alaska with both chartered and then scheduled services, starting with one Cessna 206 and advancing to turbo props. Then in 2002, Air North seized the market opportunity to also offer scheduled low-cost, direct flights on Boeing 737-200 jets between Whitehorse, Yukon, and three gateway cities: Vancouver, British Columbia, Calgary, Alberta, and Edmonton, Alberta.

“This seemed like a natural next step for us,” Sparling says. “We believed we could offer better service at a lower cost than other airlines.”

But marketing team members knew they couldn’t just “Wow!” current customers with flights at less than half the prior cost—starting at just $195 one-way. They needed to win support both inside and outside of Yukon. To weave the airline into the fiber of the territory, Air North has hundreds of Yukon shareholders and maintains a “buy Yukon” policy. During the flight, passengers receive a taste of the regional food served by flight attendants in traditional uniforms.

Air North actively promotes Yukon to individuals in gateway cities who have a significant interest in visiting the area. “We’ve seen the travel market in and out of Yukon grow with more people traveling and more often,” Sparling says.

Although the company is excited about introducing visitors to the wonders of Yukon, Air North also knows it must continue its quality service to those in the territories. Now with Hawker Siddeley 748 aircraft, passengers can still fly Air North to Dawson City, Old Crow, Inuvik, and in season, Fairbanks.

To Yukon!

Credit:
Website: www.flyairnorth.com
Contact: 800-661-0407

Ever spotted polar bears from a tundra buggy? Whale watched in St. John’s? Or visited the world’s smallest desert in Yukon? Neither have most Canadians. That’s why Classic Canadian Tours created effortless excursions to these far-flung locales.

Through his work in the airline industry, the president of this Alberta-based company, Bill Lamberton, visited many remote, yet spectacular destinations. His travels caused him to ask: “Why don’t Canadians see more of their own country?”

The launch of these boutique escapes in 2005 was his answer. “We try to make it easy for them to see their own country by getting them from their homes efficiently without overnights or high prices,” Lamberton says.

To reach their nature-loving target market, Classic Canadian Tours advertises in magazines like Canadian Geographic and takes advantage of e-marketing tools. But as a pioneer in the efficient tour business, this tour company emphasizes the seamless experience as much as the beyond-the-maple-syrup adventures. On the Polar Bear Tundra Tour, you can eat breakfast on your direct flight from Alberta to Manitoba, spend five hours cozying up to polar bears, and sleep in your own bed that night—guaranteed!

Credit:
Website: www.classiccanadiantours.com
Contact: 866-460-1415