Advisor Insights: Teodor Mihail on Evolving Expectations

Teodor Mihail has been a travel advisor for almost twelve years.  An independent advisor with Centre Holidays, Mihail started Unravel World Travel after working for many years at a brick and mortar agency. He’s visited 45 countries and says he’s seeing travellers’ expectations evolving; more than ever, travel is being thought of as a necessity.

“I see it as a necessity too and many people are seeing it from that perspective now; the pandemic made people realize they took travel for granted,” Mihail told Travel Market Report Canada in an interview earlier this month. “In the end it’s the memories you’re going to remember, and more people just want to create memories and enjoy and then look after their finances later.”

Mihail says he of course still has clients looking to travel on a budget, but more and more are looking for higher-end properties and destinations.

“I’ve had clients who come to me with higher budgets and say, for example, they want to visit Jamaica instead of Cuba. They also want to upgrade to Preferred Club rather than a Standard Room. They want something higher end and they will pay for that. And about 40% of the time I have those requests, they want to add more inclusions. They want lounges, in Jamaica they want Club MoBay. They want to prepay for their seats, they want everything to be done so it’s all there waiting for them. And they prefer to make their life easier by having the travel agent take care of all that for them”.

But what about those clients who have a lower budget to start with? With travel in general being more costly in the past couple of years, we wondered if Mihail had any tips on setting those expectations and potentially growing the sale.

“I always begin with their budget and if it’s an unrealistic one, then I simply tell them it’s just not doable. But then I ask, would you be open to other dates, or maybe an all inclusive if they were looking at a Caribbean cruise for example.  I have to find out their needs so I can best find something that fits what they’re looking for.  I also always offer the suggestion that if you pay a bit more you will get what you really want. It’s important to set that expectation – if they come in wanting Cuba because it’s cheap, I can tell them that for a couple hundred more they can get a budget resort in the Dominican.  That’s exactly my approach; if you can budget a bit more, you can get that right.”

Mihail says a big consideration in getting those higher-budget clients is how advisors market themselves.

“I used to advertise flight deals on my social media and very good last minute deals, and my advice is that’s not the way to go,” he says.

“You want to advertise the new Norwegian ships or guided tours like Globus. That’s not to say those clients will come right away, but if you keep yourself out there, and people can see you offer higher-end product, you will naturally attract clients with a higher spend.”

“I also recommend advisors advertise themselves based on their experience. How many countries have you been to? Show when you’ve attended a FAM to a higher end destination and get your image out there in order to avoid getting those last minute deal clients.”

“Travellers are savvy and are paying more for their experiences. This is how their mindset is now.  They want an elevated experience and to really escape the stress of work. Lounges everywhere are getting busier because people are learning about them. Higher end hotel room categories are selling fast. Tours and cruises have limited last-minute availability.

This goes to show how travellers are looking for an elevated experience”.