Onboard Voyager of the Seas, Europe: Travel Agent is attending the annual
conference of Travel Counsellors (TC), the first and largest home-based travel
company in the UK, which
recently opened an Orlando office and has
offices in Ireland and the Netherlands,
and is expected to expand further in the near future. The conference, which is onboard
Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas, runs Nov. 11–14 out of Barcelona,
with port calls in Genoa and Marseilles. Approximately 500 home-based
agents, suppliers, TC employees—and for the first time, media—are in
attendance.
The company, which was started in 1994 by dynamic founder David Speakman, used
this platform for reviewing 2006 successes and previewing 2007 initiatives. The
item outlined in the conference program that is receiving the most buzz is TC's
first TV ad campaign, which Speakman expects will begin airing on digital TV
(e.g., Skype) in January in the UK.
The 40-second spot features a TC agent, clients on holiday, and the voiceover
of actor Sean Bean (best known in the US for his roles in the Lord of the
Rings trilogy, Patriot Games and Golden Eye), ending with: "A friend, an
expert and a smarter way to book your holiday." Other highlights from the
conference include: The announcements of double-digit growth each year since
the company's 1994 inception, the 2006 launch of a recruitment campaign, the
Travel Counsellors magazine, and a "high street" (retail shop)
business owner package; 145 new agents in 2006; and the winning of two major UK
awards. Reported at the conference, on average, TCs earned 50 percent more than
agents on the high street; and TCs sales increased (although by a small margin,
2 percent) whilst industry sales in general went down. And not only did sales
increase, but margins did as well, as did commissions and time spent with
clients; and discounts decreased. The company, which prides itself on customer
service, was proud to announce the results of a customer service questionnaire
that asked only one question: "How likely is it that you would recommend
Travel Counsellors to your friends and colleagues?" Many companies use
this questionnaire; amongst results cited were Southwest, which got a 60
percent score, Apple 66 percent, and previously with the highest score in the
history of the test, Harley-Davidson, with 81 percent. Travel Counsellors
scored a record 86 percent. In 2007, Travel Counsellors will: focus on increasing
its number of business travel counsellors and agency owners, initiate a
TripAdvisor—like customer feedback tool and further personalization of
communications (e.g., brochures, Deal of the Week, quotes), roll out web cams,
and will expand to other unnamed countries (Germany was hinted at). Managing
Director Steve Byrne closed his remarks on Sunday describing Travel Counsellors
as, "An international company of the very, very best agents worldwide
pooling their experience." Referring to recruitment and international
expansion, Byrne spoke passionately about TCs, as Travel Counsellor agents are
known, saying that when the cream of the crop around the world learn about the
"family" and their dedication and professionalism as well as the
company's general make up, "They will join us in droves."
