Travel Advisor Emotions Are Shifting from Fear and Uncertainty to Hope and Excitement

Fear. Anger. Uncertainty. Desperation. Worry. They are the emotions travel advisors were first feeling when the Covid-19 pandemic took hold of our world. Fortunately, more than 90 days later, the attitudes of advisors have shifted, revealing a horizon that looks much brighter.

TMR spoke to several travel advisors who are leading the charge back to a new normal while inspiring those around them to channel their latest emotions: hope, excitement, fight, fire, and optimism. With soft marketing efforts and inspirational social media posts, these men and women are staying positive and most importantly staying in front of their clients, aiming to shift the tone to ease them back into the travel arena.

How to make the shift
Okay, so maybe up until now, you’ve been silencing all your marketing efforts, refraining from posting anything at all about travel on social media, and taking a wait and see attitude as to when your clients will need you.

Most of the advisors we spoke to were right there with you at the beginning … and then they pivoted. They shifted their mindsets to make room for those who weren’t thinking like them. And guess what? Not only is it catching on, but it has made them realize there are a lot of people out there who are ready to travel.

Just like you’ve been taught to not sell out of your own pocket, you also cannot sell out of your own fears. Not everyone feels the way you feel and these advisors say the time has come to venture forward and join the momentum for change.

Here are some of the tips these leaders have offered to help their peers return. Hopefully, it will inspire you to forge ahead too.

1. Give up the all or nothing mentality.
Like anything that is new, when you first opened your business, you started at one. You took baby steps towards your goals until you finally met them and then exceeded them. One can swallow the enormity of this pandemic and its impact on the travel industry in one gulp, or one can start at one and work his or her way back inch by inch and mile by mile.
 
How to get started? First and foremost, keep your clients engaged. “Stay in front of your clients by sending informational emails like recipes or inspirational ones that get them excited about traveling again,” said Effie Beshere-Walthall, owner of On Deck Travel. “Be that mother who is pushing her ducks. If you’re not staying in front of your customer, guess who is? The suppliers.” Beshere-Walthall notes that you have to be conscious of your clients’ feelings but you also have to tell them that others are traveling and let them know you are ready to help them book.  “I’ve booked 19 trips in the month of May for the fourth quarter and into 2021. My motto is to keep moving forward!”
 
Don Capparella, owner of Quality Travel Solutions in Mesa, Arizona, concedes. “It’s not an on/off switch that’s going to bring us back to the way things were. It is a stepped process. I think the number one thing though (even if agents aren’t ready to dive back in) is to keep the lines of communication open with your clients.”
 
2. Don’t let shame stop you.
When is the right time to travel? That depends on your audience. Your neighbor might feel differently than your family friend and each is entitled to have an advisor who can accommodate their desires as well as their concerns. “I’ve got a trip booked personally for the end of July. We’ve already got clients reaching out looking to book in the future and we’re excited to help them get back to traveling. That being said, I’m allowing each person to feel through their own journey,” said Michelle Abrams, owner of Deluxe Travel Consultants in Navarre Beach, Florida. One advisor shared a story of a celebrity client who was worried what her followers might think if she booked a trip back to the amusement parks in June with her kids. The advisor’s advice? “Do what’s right for you and don’t worry about being judged.”
 
3. Don’t assume you know your clients that well.
Sure, many travel advisors have had clients for ten, twenty, thirty years or more, but not one of them has ever lived through a pandemic. That being said, no one can predict how their clients are reacting to this crisis or whether they’re already in “recovery” mode. “All these people think they know their customers. You don’t really know how they are dealing with Covid-19 unless you reach out and ask them,” said Beshere-Walthall, who encourages her peers to send an email or pick up the phone and ask them how they’re doing and where they are dreaming about going next?
 
4. Stay positive.
In times of uncertainty, it’s very easy to throw in the towel, but these advisors are doing anything but that, turning their fears into motivation by staying optimistic. “Post positive messages on social media and don’t stay stuck in that toxic mindset because it will consume you,” said Kristi Emo, owner of Your Dream Escapes in Fresno, California. As a cancer survivor, Emo said her fight for her health has given her a better sense of resilience. “If you let things defeat you, then they will. You never know when somebody needs the positive words you have to say. I can’t dwell on what I’ve lost. I have to move forward and be there for my clients.”
 
“My pivoting point was my clients,” added Sharon Printy, owner of Good Life Travel & Events. “They’ve been awesome and understanding and they want to travel again. I don’t have a fear that they’re not coming back. They are just moving their dates.”
 
5. Think outside the box and inspire them.
Offer the opportunity for clients to participate alongside you in a virtual cooking class or a zoom wine tasting. Send them emails with links to a different site around the world each day or a list of travel books to read. Do little things everyday that keep them engaged was the advice given by this collective group. For example, Printy has used this time to send reviews out to her clients. “I friend my clients on Facebook and if they give a review, I put them in a drawing for a gift card. If they send a picture, they get an extra entry in the drawing.” Printy said this was her way of letting them know she was there when they needed her without directly asking them for business.
 
6. Use your time wisely.
There’s only so much Netflix one person can watch and now is the time to ignite the fire and stay busy, said Don Capparella, owner of Quality Travel Solutions in Mesa, Arizona. “One day I just woke up and said, ‘Travel agents are stronger than this.’ That’s when I decided that instead of monthly meetings with my team of 20 agents, we were going to start having weekly meetings. They’ve kept busy with online learning and getting certifications and now it’s time to get back to work. Their starting points are drive vacations in the United States and all-inclusives in the Caribbean and Mexico.” Emo also has been participating in a lot of webinars, gathering up information so, as she stated, “I am informed when my clients start asking me questions.”

7. Be the change.
“We can’t let fear paralyze us to where we just stop. We have to keep moving forward and taking calculated risks,” said Capparella, who incidentally is proceeding with a planned annual summer meeting he holds with his advisors each year in a different location. This year the spot is Puerto Vallarta and the date is set for the last week of June. “Thirteen out of 20 agents are still coming and I’m going to get really good photos so I can show my clients on social media that you can still have fun and be safe in the same space. I think when our clients see us planning future travel, they will say they can do it too.” Beshere-Walthall agreed, noting that its “crucial” that advisors themselves start traveling. “I think the minute these resorts and cruise lines start inviting advisors on fams, it will be the smartest thing they do. Get us out there with Wifi so we can show our clients what changes have been made to keep them safe.” Emo, who is immunocompromised, said she will be one of the first people on a cruise ship when it sets sail. “I want to be an example to my clients and provide them with the information they need to help them feel secure.” Emo points out that between the sanitizing measures taken by the suppliers, airlines, resorts, and cruise lines, coupled with a heightened awareness by individuals with regard to personal hygiene, “some things will never be cleaner than when we resume traveling.”

Finally, travel advisors of this mindset said the key to the message is the delivery. Now is not the time to tip toe around the question of when they are going … Now is the time to reach out to your clients and ask, “Where can we send you next?”