The Untapped Revenue Stream: Why Small Travel Agents Should Consider Outsourcing to Boost Sales and Customer Satisfaction
The travel industry has witnessed significant changes in recent years, forcing travel agents to rethink their strategies to stay competitive. Amid the flurry of holiday bookings, small travel agents often focus on the core elements, such as flights and hotels, while the smaller but lucrative components, such as attraction tickets, excursions, travel insurance, and airport transfers, are often overlooked. This article delves into this untapped revenue stream and how small travel agents can seize this opportunity through strategic outsourcing.
The Dilemma for Small Travel Agents
Many holidaymakers book the significant elements of their holiday many months in advance. However, the smaller details are often left until the last minute, sometimes even until they are on holiday. This creates a golden opportunity for travel agents to offer additional services and improve their bottom line.
Unfortunately, small travel agents, with limited resources and manpower, find it challenging to capitalise on this opportunity. They are often so busy managing the primary booking operations that they lose out on these potential revenue streams.
The Opportunity: A Pre-Departure ‘Customer Services’ Call
What if every passenger received a call six weeks and then two weeks before departure? It might sound like a daunting task, but it’s a strategy that could pay off handsomely.
The beauty of this approach is that it doesn’t have to be a sales call. It can be positioned as a customer service call, a ‘holiday reminder’ that simultaneously offers a chance to reconfirm all booking details. This offers a natural opportunity for the agent to introduce ancillary products or services that the customer may find valuable.
The closer the call is to the holiday, the more likely the customer is to make additional purchases. After all, these are items the customer will likely purchase anyway, so why should the agent miss out?
The Solution: Travel Outsourcing
Implementing such a strategy would be a daunting task for a small travel agency juggling multiple responsibilities. This is where outsourcing comes into the picture. By using an outsourcing solution, travel companies can both create a superior customer service experience for their clients and generate additional revenue.
A well-trained, outsourced post-sales team could manage these calls professionally, offering a customer-centric approach that seamlessly integrates upselling. At the very minimum, the expense of the outsourced post-sales team will be covered by the additional revenue. At best, the team will become a real profit centre.
The Benefits: Superior Customer Experience and Additional Revenue
Outsourcing offers several benefits. First, it allows travel agents to focus on their core operations while ensuring that the smaller but crucial details are handled professionally. This not only increases efficiency but also enhances the overall customer experience, leading to increased customer loyalty.
Secondly, it opens up an untapped revenue stream. With the right approach, the additional sales from these calls can significantly increase profits. By offering services that customers are likely to purchase anyway, travel agents can capitalise on a previously untapped revenue stream.
Conclusion
In the rapidly evolving travel sector, small travel agents need to continually adapt and innovate. While the core elements of travel bookings remain important, there is significant potential in the smaller details. By leveraging outsourcing, travel agents can tap into this untapped revenue stream, enhancing their profits and offering superior customer service. After all, in today’s competitive environment, every opportunity to generate additional revenue and enhance customer satisfaction is worth exploring.