Uniworld UK managing director Chris Townson believes clients are at risk of being let down by overmarketing by travel companies
The word luxury must be one of the most overused words in travel marketing. Go to many travel company websites and it seems that even the most pedestrian offering can be dressed up as luxury or luxurious, with five-star this or award-winning that. With collateral and hyperbole that overpromises with abandon, it can feel like the Wild West out there, but the reality is that – like most things in life – you get what you pay for, and clients will ultimately be let down if we succumb to the overmarketing.
So, in a post-pandemic boom where clients are seeking truly bucket-list experiences, how can travel agents really understand the difference and make sure that what they are selling to their customers is going to live up to their expectations and keep them coming back for more?
Firstly, and most obviously – get to know the product for yourself, inside out. Here the onus is on the operators to help provide this experience and knowledge to agents, and it is crucial to offer fam trips, thorough, engaging training and a full asset bank that tell your story. We can’t expect our partners to understand what makes us different if we don’t show them. Every time I am on one of our beautiful ships hosting agents, it is so gratifying and exciting to watch them as the penny drops, and they can see, hear, feel and taste the difference between our offering and the next.
Secondly, look at who the brands align themselves with and be prepared to cross sell across them. Well thought-out brand partnerships or alliances can help agents get a sense of the level at which a company is operating. This was the premise of the recent Ultra-Luxury Cruise Showcase in Paris that was hosted on Uniworld’s SS Joie de Vivre, in partnership with Clia.
It has never been done before, but we wanted to bring together those cruise brands that offer true ultra-luxury so that agents could meet and hear from them all in one room, within the surroundings of our Parisian floating hotel. Ocean cruising is still far better understood than river, but hopefully events such as this will help us bridge the gap.
Most importantly, agents came away with the understanding and tools to make the right choices for their clients – because a six-star ocean cruise customer will be a six-star river cruise customer, and vice versa. This is a huge opportunity and win-win for everyone, and I am sure it was the first of many such events as we seek to harness this potential and get more cut through amidst the flagrant overstating in the marketplace.
It is often said that what is luxury to one person might be different to another. For one person it might be the comfort and elegance of the surroundings, for the next it’s VIP access to iconic places, fine dining or having every detail taken care of through highly personalised and attentive service. While this is certainly true, surely real luxury is all of these things together, so that it can respond to the want and whim of each of its guests. It is elegant, effortless and of the highest quality at every turn.
So I encourage agents to look for a brand that can deliver on all these levels – while every customer is different, at the top end of the market, every detail matters.