Gemma Antrobus says agents won’t fall for operators who didn’t support the trade before the pandemic
Without doubt, it is when times are tough that you really know who your friends are. When life is good, and bookings flow through the door, you have no reason to question your partnerships. The real test of how great a working partnership really is comes to light only when the proverbial hits the fan.
Those of you who have not been put on furlough and are still working around the clock on the travel industry’s ‘frontline’ will know exactly what I mean. Regardless of which operators are able to give instant refunds and which are not (for their own, individual reasons), the way in which our tour operator partners conduct themselves and their way of communicating key points to us is absolutely vital.
Not only from personal experience but also from speaking to other Aito Specialist Travel Agents, I have found one common theme: the greatest overall support we are getting is from our Aito tour operator partners.
These are the companies which pick up the phone, call you back, work with you to find a solution and genuinely value our working relationship. I feel I now know the owners of some of these businesses far better than I ever would have in normal times as we are pulling together and working towards a common goal in this crisis.
Some of these operators work with both agents and direct clients, while others have dedicated themselves 100% to the trade. All of them, however, are not only here for us now but always have been. These are the companies that support our client events, provide us with marketing assistance, take us on magical fam trips and work with us at all times to meet our clients’ needs.
Highly irritating
Therefore, it is perhaps no surprise I am personally highly irritated by the new wave of previously ‘uninterested in the trade’ tour operators that are now citing ‘working with agents’ as part of their recovery plans post-pandemic.
I feel that some operators have simply ‘played’ at working with agents. By this, I mean they are happy to take an occasional agent booking and to pay commission but, beyond that, their support just does not extend.
Perhaps they have one or two agents they work with more regularly, and they like to regard this approach as trade-friendly, but I can assure them this is not what a truly trade-focused tour operator looks like from our side.
Relationships pay off
Client relationships have been key to how bookings are dealt with during Covid-19.
It is obvious that those of us with better client relationships are the ones winning in terms of moving holiday dates rather than having to claim for refunds. Our clients have always come to see us personally; we nurture these relationships and, due to our way of working, our operators are benefiting.
We know that those suppliers which have never worked with agents, or rarely do so, see this and now want a piece of the pie, because clients booking via agents are not demanding credit card chargebacks or threatening court cases.
Why is that? It’s because we manage these clients with care. We handle them in a way we would like to be treated were we on the other side of the desk or other end of the phone. These are also the clients who are likely to start booking first post-Covid.
We’re not daft
Please hear me when I say that I, for one, am not interested in working with operators which have never previously been interested in working with the trade, or in giving them the benefit of my many years of hard work. If agents weren’t part of your plan prior to Covid-19, please don’t think we are daft enough to start giving you our business now.
I know exactly who my travel friends are, and the vast majority are members of Aito. These invaluable relationships have taken years to build and nurture and I will not be supporting anyone, post Covid-19, who has not supported my business through the highs and lows over the years.
I suggest all ‘newly trade-friendly’ operators have a think about why you now want to work with agents. If this is simply because we can drive revenue to your business, when your direct clients are harder and more expensive to reach, I’d say you should have thought about this – and acted upon it – sooner.
Remember, an agent is for life, not just for post‑Covid-19 recovery purposes.
