The Caravan Club has selected Consensus.NET as part of its new IT modernisation programme, Evolution. Using Consensus, The Caravan Club aims to standardise its site bookings, membership management and overseas travel bookings functions onto one technology platform and provide both members and non-members with online access 24 hours a day.

The Caravan Club was formed in 1907 as an organisation designed to bring caravanners, motor caravanners and trailer tenters together and provide useful services to them. Nearly 100 years on, The Club prides itself on the delivery of high-quality sites and services.  During 2004 The Caravan Club has experienced record membership growth, current membership stands at over 334,000 households surpassing the previous record set in 2003.  In total, The Caravan Club represents the interests of over 850,000 caravanners.

As part of The Caravan Club’s commitment to providing the best level of service to its members, it made the strategic decision to upgrade its entire legacy IT systems. In doing so, The Caravan Club will be able to make all of its member services accessible online, such as membership applications and site bookings.

Consensus was selected as the preferred IT supplier following a full tender process. During the process, Consensus demonstrated a superior understanding of the membership market and the needs associated with such organisations. Its selection was also based on the fact that its software platform is a strategic fit with The Caravan Club’s platform of choice, Microsoft.NET.

“Following the unprecedented increase in its membership, The Caravan Club has to continually examine the services it provides to ensure they are up-to-date and in line with what our members expect. Since the launch of The Club website in 1997, our member’s web access has increased from 4 per cent to 70 per cent.  Therefore, the first project to be delivered will be the online UK Site Booking service for around 160 Club managed sites,” said Brian Savage, Director of Membership Services. “Consensus.NET will enable us to modernise a number of our legacy IT systems with just one application. This, alone, will give us a platform for improved operations and will allow members to book all-year round.”

The initial stage of the project will see Consensus provide The Caravan Club with a centralised site booking system. Regardless of how a member attempts to book a site - directly with the site, via the call centre or online - the same information will be accessed from the same system, centralising this function and providing a better and more consistent booking service to members, and improving The Caravan Club’s own management reporting.

The Caravan Club places a big emphasis on working relationships and has been pleased with the way the Consensus project team has formed such as strong bond. “The Club is a unique organisation where the members come first and Consensus has proved that it is flexible, adaptable and willing to listen to the customers’ needs,” continues Brian Savage.

After the first phase of the project, Consensus will be involved in modernising other areas of The Caravan Club’s IT systems, such as membership management, overseas travel bookings, stock and despatch, marketing and financial systems.

Simon Clayton, sales director at Consensus, said, “The Caravan Club has a huge network of members across the UK and it is important that The Club’s interaction with them is made as easy as possible. People need to be able to access services as and when they want to, rather than how and when the organisation prescribes. By modernising its IT, and at the same time improving the way it can service its members’ needs, The Caravan Club can continue to grow and become a central resource for all caravanning needs. We are delighted to be helping The Club achieve its strategic objectives.”
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