Boost sales by asking the right questions
IN ORDER for agents to
effectively sell coach tours to
prospective clients, they need
to ask as many questions as
possible to uncover exactly
what the client is looking for.
Part of the reason for this is
because the traditional coach
tour has changed significantly
in recent years, says Trafalgar
md, Theresa Szejwallo. It is
therefore up to the agent to
familiarise themselves with
the ways in which coach
tours have evolved and to
suggest the right type of
tour to specific customers
– because travellers are
unlikely to approach agents
asking for a coach tour if
their understanding of what it
entails is outdated.
“A few years ago in Canada
and America, Trafalgar
had some people suggest
vacations to their clients using
the term ‘coach holiday’,”
Theresa explains. “Shortly
thereafter, they suggested
vacations to their clients using
the term ‘guided holidays’. All
of it was recorded and this
marked the start of Trafalgar
changing the way it presents
its trips.”
According to Theresa, the
body language of the clients
when the term ‘coach holiday’
was used, versus the body
language when the ‘guided
holidays’ term was used
instead, was clearly different.
“They would move back or
change their facial expressions
when they heard ‘coach
holiday’ because all they could
imagine was old fashioned
buses,” she says. “But the
minute they started talking
about guided holidays, they
were a lot more intrigued and
interested. So we changed our
offering to be presented as
‘Trafalgar Guided Holidays’.”
Along with this came
a change in the guided
holiday experience itself,
says Theresa. “The major
transformation came in when
we had clients requesting a
more authentic experience.
So over the last six years we
have been offering different
‘Insider Experiences’, allowing
travellers to really get to the
bottom of the destination they
are visiting and explore them
in as much detail – and as
authentically – as possible.”
More authentic
experiences
Theresa says before this
transformation took place,
Trafalgar’s tours were sold
primarily according to the
types of styles on offer. “So,
for instance, we started with
our Discovery Style holidays,
which included eight to 10
countries over up to 37 days,
but we had people come back
to us and say they would’ve
appreciated more time in
particular countries to truly
get an authentic experience
of that particular country or
region.”
As such, Trafalgar introduced
regional guided holidays like
Spain, Portugal and Morocco,
which Theresa says have
become immensely popular.
Travellers have the option of
exploring just one country, two
out of the three, or all three
if they prefer – but it is up to
the agent to illustrate that
these types of holidays have
transformed greatly from what
they were in the past.
“So if an agent suggests a
guided holiday and the client
declines, the agent should
find out why the client is not
keen on the idea and first
explain how the guided holiday
experience has evolved before
suggesting an alternative type
of holiday,” Theresa says.
Tailored departures
However, there are many
travellers who may approach
the agent ready to book a
coach tour – but even these
sales could pass agents
by if they do not ask the
right questions, says Inge
Dobihal, co-owner of Austria
Connection.
Austria Connection allows
travellers to forego certain
destinations within a particular
tour if they so wish and
receive a refund for the days
of the tour they missed out
on. For travellers who wish
to start their tour a day or
two later than the itinerary
stipulates or perhaps leave
a few days earlier, the tour
operator will also refund
US$70 per night (R1 034)
from the total tour price.
“We may have a tour that
covers quite a few countries
in one go and the agent may
have a client who says they
have been to one of those
countries but would like to
visit the others.
“They can leave the tour
before they get to that country
and those nights will be
deducted from the overall
price,” says Inge.
Similarly, if a particular tour
overlaps a client’s suggested
dates for travel, the agent
could lose out on the sale
if they do not check the
itinerary and gather as much
information about the client
as possible. Inge suggests
asking clients questions such
as ‘which countries have you
visited before?’ to enable
agents to suggest suitable
options.
“This paints an important
picture in the mind of the
client and allows the agent to
suggest suitable options for
the client.”
How to match travellers to the right tour
CHOOSING the right tour
for your client relies on a
sound qualification process.
Agents should refrain
from suggesting a general
coach tour without taking
into account the particular
experience that has been
created for that tour,
says Trafalgar’s Theresa
Szejwallo.
Pentravel consultant,
Esihle (Izzy) Nomkuca
says the importance of
client profiling cannot be
underestimated.
“You cannot do anything
without profiling your
client first,” she told TNW.
According to Izzy, it is
important for agents to
not only learn as much as
possible about the tours on
offer, but take time to get to
know their client and ensure
they put each traveller on
the correct tour.
“Asking whether the
traveller would like a budget
option or a more up-market
experience narrows down
the options for the agent
to suggest straight from
the outset,” agrees Austria
Connection’s Inge Dobihal.
“It is important to get a feel
for exactly what it is that the
clients want before making
suggestions or completing
the booking.”
It is also important
to get an idea of what
clients would like to do
in the destinations they
are visiting, says Theresa.
“Do they want to visit the
Eiffel Tower and the touristy
places or would they like to
meet the locals and have
something like a Trafalgar Be
My Guest experience during
which they get to break
bread with the locals? The
answers to these questions
will result in a much happier
client – and likely a repeat
client – because they
would’ve been booked on a
coach tour that specifically
catered for their desires
versus simply being sold a
generic coach tour and not
enjoying aspects of it.”
“There is a coach tour for
everyone – so if someone
has been on a coach tour
and they didn’t enjoy it, it’s
because they went on the
wrong one,” Izzy agrees.
“And the best part is they
do not have to worry about
planning a single thing. That
is the main point I think
agents should be driving
home to their clients,” she
says.
Advice for specific
groups of travellers
Coach tours are a great
suggestion for agents to
make to first-time and lessexperienced
travellers. “For
those who would struggle
to understand the railway
stations in a foreign country
for instance, or would feel
insecure in a destination
where English is not the
primary language, coach
tours are the best option,”
advises Inge.
Those who are used to
travelling will appreciate the
fact that all facets of the
trip have been sorted out
for them before they arrive
– they will not need to worry
about their luggage or their
accommodation or their
meals; it is all sorted out for
them, adds Inge.
As a result, coach
tours are ideal for elderly
travellers. “These are
travellers who like comfort
and don’t want to deal with
the stress of putting an
overseas trip together,” says
Inge.
Theresa recommends
that agents avoid booking
independent travellers on
family experience tours.
“We have had solo travellers
on these types of tours
because they are intrigued
by the itinerary but we
generally don’t recommend
it,” she says.
“I feel sorry for the
younger children on these
types of tours because
they would have to behave
or they can become a bit
difficult for independent
travellers on the trip to deal
with,” agrees Inge.
Clients must be warned
from the time of booking
that coach tours largely
restrict travellers to the
times set out on the
itinerary, warns Inge. “There
may be a traveller who
prefers to do things in their
own time and does not want
to adhere to itinerary – in
which case, a coach tour
might not be for them.”
Trafalgar offers an option
for these sorts of travellers
though, says Theresa. “We
developed our ‘At Leisure’
experiences because we
noticed that travellers
were becoming more
sophisticated and wanted
more time to themselves,”
she says. “On these
particular holidays, no day
starts before 09h00 and
many of the experiences
on the trip are optional for
travellers.’’
The ‘At Leisure’ holidays
are thus a great option for
couples who want to spend
time together, adds Theresa.
Top tips for closing the deal
Pentravel’s Izzy Nomkuca
provides her top tips for
closing coach tour sales.
1. Explain how costeffective
a coach tour is
compared with self-drive.
Illustrate that they will
get to see more of the
destination by being part
of the tour – and they
don’t even have to drive!
2. Get to know your client
by asking as many
questions as possible
so that you know which
tour to put them on.
3. Let them know that with
certain tour operators
like Trafalgar, they get
VIP entrance to the
best attractions. Always
use the example of the
Vatican, where travellers
often queue for hours at
a time, but with Trafalgar
they stroll right in.
4. Drive home the idea
that the tour guide
offers personal touches
that travellers would
otherwise miss out on if
they travelled alone.
The guides have
knowledge of those
hidden gems in the
city that are not well
known or advertised but
always offer the best
experiences.
