The Tourism Authority of Thailand, owner of Thailand Privilege Card Co (TPC), has approved a revised Elite Card membership target of 317 members worth 311 million baht, down from 1,300 members and 2.6 billion baht.
TPC president Apisit Chuenchompoo said the lower projection was due to the recent domestic turmoil, which hurt tourism in the first five months of this year.
As of yesterday, the company had sold just 41 Elite Card memberships. It needs to sell 276 more to meet the target for fiscal 2014 ending Sept 30.
"It will be very difficult to meet the Elite Card target, but we are pinning our hopes on improving sentiment," Mr Apisit said.
"Our sales agents will organise a trip and bring 300 potential customers to Thailand to try our service."
TPC will spend an existing budget of 185 million baht on marketing and promotional activities to boost Elite Card membership sales in the coming months.
The plan will focus on potential markets such as China, Japan, Dubai and Iraq.
TPC has 18 sales companies and 10 personal agents to help sell Elite Card memberships.
Sellers receive a 5% base commission fee, 11% for selling up to 20 memberships, 13% for 21-40 memberships and 15% for more than 40 memberships.
The Elite Card has four membership types. For the individual one, cardholders receive a five-year multiple-entry visa with a one-year stay per entry, 24 complimentary rounds of golf (greens fees only), 24 spa treatments per calendar year and a free annual medical checkup.
The family membership offers a five-year multiple-entry visa with a one-year stay per entry, 10 complimentary rounds of golf and 10 spa treatments.
The Thailand Easy Access Membership simply offers a five-year multiple-entry visa with a one-year stay per entry.
The newest type is the Privilege Card for Thailand Real Estate Business aimed at high-end markets in China, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia.
Members get a five-year multiple-entry visa with a one-year stay per entry, plus spa and health treatments from providers with links to the property firm Nusasiri.