Travel Village Group chief Phil Nuttall worries BDMs are at breaking point due to busy conference schedules
As another busy peaks comes to a close in this ever-evolving, challenging and rewarding industry, I find myself even more tired as I sit down with a glass of red reflecting on the last 12 months and asking the question: “Have we lost our moral compass?”
Last year was the year many have described as “normality resumed”. Airports reported being back to and, in some cases, exceeding pre-pandemic numbers. Cruise lines reported record profits. Package holiday operators extended their seasons to accommodate the surge in popularity of some destinations. There was a real appetite for luxury accommodation worldwide.
Not only that, but the high street flew the flag for great customer service and certainty for their guests.
While this was great and bodes well for 2025 and beyond, I firmly believe that the people we (travel agents) need to help us remain focused and be relevant to the consumer are being taken for granted and, in many instances, put under enormous strain to the detriment of their health and their family life.
I am talking about the business development managers – the representatives of our tour operator partners. These are the very people we rely on to build relationships with suppliers, but we are finding it increasingly difficult to speak to them at certain times of the year.
Why? Because they are out and about overseas at conferences, which for many involves tens of flights over a period of possibly three months, as an example; a period where they are away from their families, partners, husbands and wives.
It’s a time when they constantly share out-of-office email replies, which inevitably end up backing up and, for some, result in frustrated and curt responses.
The worst period for this, more often than not, is pre-Christmas. By the time a period of what should be celebration and rest comes along, they are absolutely dead on their feet, struggling mentally, physically shattered, and inevitably picking up bugs and viruses as a thank you for taking three months out of their lives.
Personally, I do not understand why our industry feels the need to have a conference every year – surely it is far better to alternate (as we do) and reduce the costs incurred. I for one would welcome a percentage of the funds tour operators are expected to put up to support annual conferences being used for targeted marketing campaigns and driving sales.
There are so many potential benefits to slowing down and rebooting “conference season”, and the health and welfare of our business development and sales representatives should be at the heart of this. We are in danger of breaking them and it will be on our watch!
The money saved by suppliers halving their conference budget has to be a huge benefit for three reasons:
- We will have more “energised” time to spend with our suppliers to plan and invest in business development
- Hopefully a percentage of the money saved by suppliers through supporting conferences every other year can be reinvested in our businesses and our salespeople
- A conference will be something to look forward to and celebrate, not something that is taken for granted
Whether you agree or not about the number of conferences in a calendar year, you cannot argue about the effect this is having on the people we need the most and their families who support them and are asked to be understanding of our industry.
The people who give up their weekends in January to support our consumer events who we value enormously. Also, let’s not forget the people within our businesses challenged with arranging a conference – it consumes your life and no sooner have you finished one, the next is around the corner.
We need to take a step back and evaluate because if we do not, I believe we will have lost our moral compass and the people we need the most and that would be a tragedy.