Location: Portsmouth, Hampshire
Shopping for: A week in Sardinia or Sicily in early summer, for a couple who enjoy walking and good food
The agencies
Thomas Cook
242 Commercial Road, Portsmouth
Score: 34%
There were no other customers inside the shop when I entered, and the three agents were chatting among themselves.
One of the consultants greeted me, but no one asked if I needed help until I had browsed through the brochures for a couple of minutes. Then an agent came over to ask if I was looking for a particular brochure.
I told her about the type of holiday I wanted to book, but instead of asking me to sit down and offering me advice or asking further questions about my trip, she merely gave me the Thomas Cook Italy brochure and told me it would give me all the information I needed.
When I asked for her advice she again told me to look at the brochure and went back to her desk without even saying goodbye. All in all, this was a disappointing experience.
The Co-operative Travel
The Bridge Shopping Centre, Garnier Street, Portsmouth
Score: 57%
One of the two agents was busy helping a customer when I walked into this clean and tidy shop, but the other greeted me straight away and asked if she could help.
The consultant asked a few basic questions about my holiday but didn’t probe deeper to determine what type of break I wanted.
She brought me two brochures, one featuring the destinations I had mentioned I was interested in and another featuring the Balkans, which the agent thought I might like to consider.She suggested I go away to look through them.
While very polite and attentive – even holding the door for me to exit – the agent seemed to lack both product knowledge and basic sales techniques. The intent to help was there, but with no skills to back it up
First Choice
41 Palmerston Road, Portsmouth
Score: 59%
Both the shop’s agents were free and one approached me straight away. I told her what I wanted, and she hunted for a brochure, returning with Italy by Citalia.
She showed me the pages featuring Sardinia and Sicily, but this was as far as any sales push went. Again, there were no detailed questions about the holiday I was looking for, and no personal recommendations or advice – even when I asked for them.
Despite being very friendly and pleasant, the agent knew little about my holiday destination. She suggested I return to the shop after reading the brochure, even though I knew exactly what I wanted.
However, she did have the initiative to take my details and follow up my enquiry.
The winner
Thomson
248c Commercial Road, Portsmouth
Score: 69%
Although the consultant in this shop gave the best level of service of all the agencies, her performance was beset by faults echoed by many of the other agents.
The consultant greeted me in a friendly and helpful manner as soon as I entered the shop. My query led her straight to the brochure display, from which she found me a copy of Thomson Italy and Croatia.
I asked for some advice, but her response was to explain that she hadn’t been to the area. She referred me back to the brochure, pointing out that I could find details of attractions, beaches and maps and invited me to return once I’d had a chance to look.
The agent gained the winning edge by asking in more detail about the type of holiday I wanted. I was impressed by her ‘can do’ attitude, though I still didn’t receive as much information as I would have liked.
Low scores overall this week don’t bode well for tourists drawn to the Italian islands.
While the agencies achieved differing levels of service, Mystery Shopper experienced the same worrying trend at all four shops: too much reliance on brochures.
As competition intensifies, the agents who sell the most holidays will be those who go the extra mile to ask detailed questions, have in-depth knowledge of the destination and bother to spend time chatting to the customer.
Selling tips
Tip 1: Every region of Italy offers its own unique cuisine, and Sicily is no exception. Send foodies on a gourmet cookery break, such as the ones offered by Tasting Places.
Tip 2: For Sicily, recommend a walking tour around Mount Etna, Europe’s most active volcano. Visitors can take in the lava fields before cooling off with a pre-lunch dip in Alcantara Gorge. Operators featuring the tailored tours include Cadogan Holidays.
Tip 3:Mountainous Sardinia is a great place to explore by car. You can take in the medieval town of Alghero, the beaches of the Costa Smeralda and the archaeological sites of Nora and Tharos.
Tip 4: For those who want to combine a trip to both islands, Tirrenia runs an overnight ferry from Palermo to Cagliari, and Meridiana operates flights.
Tip 5: addition to the packages offered by the larger operators, check out the specialised programmes of smaller niche operators such as Sardatur and Voyages Ilena.
Mystery Shopper scoring system
- 60% Advice and product knowledge
- 12% Customer service
- 8% External/internal appearance
- 7% Welcome
- 7% Farewell
- 6% Staff presentation