Being a “non-automechanic” I blamed it on the cold weather. I soon caved in and determined the screeching sound coming from the engine area of my Ford Explorer might be a little more pressing than just a cool breeze rushing across the “frigus diametric.” This is an auto term pronounced FREE-Guz Die-a-met-tris. Read the rest of this entry »

Part 2 of 2 in a series on how to cope with long telephone hold times. Read Part 1.

Gilligan might have regretted booking his three-hour tour on the S.S. Minnow that turned into a 60s TV show, but today’s travel advisors have come to rue their own travel nightmare: the four-hour telephone hold times involved in trying to reach some suppliers.

At AmaWaterways, chief marketing officer Janet Bava noted that call volumes skyrocketed when Europe loosened its travel guidelines in March. “We saw a huge influx in demand, and we had to staff up very quickly across the board. It was an issue, but we’ve been able to solve it.”

It took about two weeks to respond, she acknowledges; but now Read the rest of this entry »

I was reading Richard Earls’ article about learning some good examples of bad examples and he rightly called out the cable companies, doctors and pharmacists, airlines, software companies, and yes, online travel agencies. He said the customer service bar is pretty low and that it doesn’t take too much to stand above the crowd. And it got me thinking about what keeps a customer coming back for more.  I came up with nine things. Do you have some to add? Please leave them in a comment! Read the rest of this entry »

In the past, I’ve written articles about how travel professionals can learn from really good companies and industries. An incident over the past week, however, reminds me of how much we have to learn from companies whose sense of customer satisfaction was apparently developed in a vacuum. On a positive note, because most consumers have to deal frequently with these bungled attempts at customer service, the cosmic bar has been lowered and good customer service is a very welcomed change you can deliver on with surprising ease. Nevertheless, it is worthwhile to briefly study some good examples of bad examples: Read the rest of this entry »

To ensure that your clients come to you each and every time they want to travel, for you to develop the kind of customer loyalty that ensures repeat business, you have to WOW them. Surprise your clients. The WOW factor is often best generated by something unanticipated. WOW happens when the client does not expect the special favor. Think beyond the standard fare.  Read the rest of this entry »

Client retention is a big part of marketing, certainly as important as client acquisition. By retaining your existing clients, you stabilize your travel practice and provide a base onto which you can layer client acquisition and growth. WOW customer service is the way to retain clients, and a big part of great client service is accomplished by educating your clients. Read the rest of this entry »

Clients want to feel important. By being prompt in all of your dealings with clients, by always entertaining them in your presence with a warm and welcome manner,  you make them feel special and you stake your claim to their attention. Far too often, though, we allow our perspective to wander off course and clients become intrusions on our day. If you catch yourself thinking of clients as annoyances rather than the primary reason you are in business, it’s time for an attitude adjustment. Read the rest of this entry »

Clients enter into a professional relationship with you not fully understanding what you do. It is your job, as the professional, to teach them, to train them in their responsibilities and in your own role in the travel planning exercise. Assume responsibility for the course of the relationship. Take charge. But respect your clients. Your attitude is written all over your face. Clients will inevitably sense the way you approach them, the way you feel about your responsibilities. Read the rest of this entry »

Customer service. Everybody talks about it, but the fact of the matter is, good customer service can be pretty difficult to find.  Think about your day-to-day transactions and how often the companies and businesses with which you deal let you down by failing to deliver even a base-line degree of good customer consideration. Watch this TRO 2 Minute Marketing Video for your daily dose of customer service advice!

Read the rest of this entry »