It is no secret that selling group travel is a smart strategy for travel advisors. You can, for instance, plan and sell 50 individual trips to 50 different people or you can plan one itinerary and sell it once to a group of 50 people. The latter is far more efficient, offers higher commissions, and often generates repeat business.
Cathie Lentz Fryer, president, CTA Travel, describes her experience with groups: “Groups create a solid base of business, and the repeat guests from groups are well over 90%. The ROI on groups is an excellent plus to our bottom line. Most importantly, groups open the door to shared adventures, and we find the cancellation for guests in our groups is very minimal. This path [of selling group travel] has been a cornerstone for our growth and for repeat and referral business.”
That explains the why of selling group travel in a nutshell. Here is the how, in the form of several tips to help travel advisors market and book more group business – including the booming niche of multigenerational travel.
1. Identify a group leader
“For selling groups, you need to find that group leader to attract others into the group,” says Richelle Schuetz, travel advisor, Independent Agency of Avoya Network. “I have done many groups for professionals, doctors, and lawyers, or social groups like wine groups, which really go well with the river cruising. Get involved in your community and groups, and then find your leaders to get started with group travel.”
She continues: “I love selling groups in my business because it helps scale your business for the most profit. You also get a lot of repeat business for other trips as your head of your group brings in new clients that can be repeat clients in the future as well.”
For multigenerational trips, “we find our key is the grandparents!” explains Fryer. “We have found engaging the grandparents (usually the trip is for them to see their family) with one or two of their family members works best in the planning. We ask our main contact what is most important to them, and usually, it involves one of their children or grandchildren. Planning the trip with one or two of their family engages everyone, and ensures we are planning a journey that has something for everyone.”
2. Engage current clients in destination planning
“Our ‘CTA Travel Wander List’ is one key to our group success,” describes Fryer. “We gather destination ideas from our loyal guests on ‘where they want to wander.’ This engages them and creates an ‘ownership’ (for lack of a better word) for their destination. We look ahead two to three years in planning our Wander List, promote the destinations, and see what works best. Guests want to travel with one of our CTA Travel Team, and identifying our Host early is very important and a big part of our key to success.”
3. Book early with select travel suppliers
“Locking in a special group rate [with one of our preferred suppliers] allows me to promote the departure to my entire client list – and gives me a pricing advantage over other travel advisors who are just selling individual reservations,” notes Melita Hein, CTC, luxury travel advisor, An Independent Affiliate of CADENCE, a Virtuoso®? agency.
“In my experience, blocking group space early is the key to getting the best prices for the group. Depending on the cruise line, the group contract usually locks in the rates from the first booking, plus most cruise lines provide additional marketing funds to promote the groups.”
4. Organize like a pro
“You need to be very organized to keep everything together, as most times, multigenerational travel is coming from all over the country. I usually do an itinerary up for them to keep it all straight about the main trip, but then customize it for each family or group member. You need to run an Excel spreadsheet to keep all costs and segments of the trip together for each person in the group, so it keeps you organized and on track,” offers Schuetz.
5. Hold Zoom calls for the whole group
“We hold regular gatherings for those local, and Zoom calls to engage everyone – from the time of booking until time of departure and then upon return home,” says Fryer. “We believe the journey begins with the first call and the planning is part of the journey. We encourage our guests traveling on a group to invite family and friends to our gatherings, and this has proven to be very successful in engaging new travelers.”
6. Book multigenerational cruises for the holidays
Schuetz describes her approach to booking groups at holiday time: “The majority of my business is river cruising for senior clients, but then those clients like to book multigenerational travel as well. Traveling with family makes great memories, and is a way for the whole family to get together.
“I do a lot of multigenerational travel on the Christmas Market cruises or the Caribbean at Christmas time. You usually have the family head and then build out with the family. Cruises are a great way for families to travel together because there is something for everyone and family dinners together every night. Usually, it is best to contact your senior clients about organizing a family trip and let them know you will do all the planning.”
7. Pass along the Tour Conductor Credit
“I usually set up a cruise group when I have two or three couples or a group of friends traveling together. Once we reach the target goal to qualify for a Tour Conductor Credit, I either pass this on to the group leader or equally divide it among all group members. This gives everyone an incentive to promote the departure among their friends and family,” explains Hein.
These seven business-building tips came directly from travel advisors who have proven success with booking groups. What better time is there than now, as the global travel rebound continues, to give one (or a few) a try?
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