How Engaging with Clients Now Can Help Inspire Future Travel

As the travel industry continues to deal with the wave of uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the importance of communication and messaging with clients, vendors, and even employees, has become paramount.

On Wednesday, Travel Cares hosted a virtual webinar comprised of business leaders from across the industry, including Virtuoso’s Matthew Upchurch, Easton Events’ Lynn Easton, interior designer Michael S. Smith, and marketing expert Dr. Roberta Clark, to discuss the roles that communication and engagement will have in stimulating a return to luxury travel.

Communicating with compassion
The truth is, for a while at least, general travel is on hiatus, but that doesn’t mean travel companies should just relax and wait for the industry to bounce back.

Jack Ezon, Founder and Managing Partner for Embark Beyond who hosted the webinar, said he has adapted to this crisis by using customer engagement to inspire future travel. In the last few weeks, his company has hosted events like virtual live safaris and cooking classes, even sending travel-inspired coloring books to client’s homes. Anything to get them thinking about, and excited for, the chance to travel again, he said.

“We’re being proactive and speaking with [customers], but of course, you need to temper your words with the way they’re feeling and what they’re going through,” said Ezon.

“Not only is that great for goodwill, but listening to people and hearing about what they’re going through in different parts of the world gives us tremendous direction of what we think [travel] is going to look like on the other side [of this crisis].”

Likewise, Smith said he has remained in contact with his clients, not to sell to them, but to check on them.

“We stay engaged as much as possible,” said Smith. “I think people are afraid, and many people right now are isolated… so we’re just checking in on people…we’re just trying to create as much human capital as we can.”

He also discussed how the lack of travel impacted not just clients and businesses, but destinations and communities that depend on the economic boost from tourism.

“There’s an altruistic aspect to traveling. People are looking for ways to give back, and we’ve seen this so many times… stopping tourism can literally take food off of people’s tables, and it’s so much better to go there and spend your money [naturally], than to give them charity.”

Sharing is caring
Right now, with so many of us stuck in our homes, communication has become more important than ever. A sentiment that also holds true for businesses.

“So much of what we do is around actually getting people to share,” said Matthew Upchurch, CEO of Virtuoso. “We keep to that ethos, that there’s more to be gained by sharing than there is by keeping to yourself. That’s been a natural part of what we’ve done [at Virtuoso].”

He says Virtuoso is focusing on engaging with its members by forming collaboration teams comprised of smaller agency owners, and conducting town hall-style meetings to hear about their views and concerns. “I’m a big believer that you can really be effective when you frame the conversation. We live in a world where you can google anything. Answers are a dime a dozen, but really good questions are hard to come by,” said Upchurch.

“I think we’re in an era right now where we’re asking the right questions.”

He also praised the work Virtuoso had done in cultivating relationships with clients and business partners over the years. “We’ve been networking over the course of decades, and it’s really paying off right now, because in this virtual world, the depth of your physical and emotional relationships are absolutely coming to bear.”

He predicts that when travel starts to return, it will be the luxury travel segment that will recover quickest. However, only through communication and engagement can luxury travel companies respond and cater to the needs and concerns of future travelers in a post-COVID world.

“Travel and tourism are not expendable industries, but an essential part of our economy and protecting cultural and natural heritage… and really understanding the clients, and the perception of risk is going to be really important going forward.”

Embracing the unknown
“The one thing you don’t want to do, in terms of communication, is go silent,” said Clarke, who also serves as an associate professor at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business. “You want to be there, [but] you don’t want to sell. You don’t want to seem tone deaf. What the customer is interested in hearing is not how are we going to make money, but how are you contributing to a solution.”

Clarke discussed how to address the ways the pandemic has impacted businesses and stressed that the most important thing to do is be honest. “The one thing you really need to do no matter what is tell the truth. Don’t sugarcoat,” said Clarke. “The thing you don’t want to lose in all of this is the trust that not only your customers have in you, but that of your employees and vendors. If nothing else, stick to the truth.”

She highlighted that now more than ever, communication is key in fostering relationships with past or potential clients. Even if you can’t sell them travel right now, “they’re looking to you for comfort and reassurance, but they also want you to be a part of the safety net. To step up, and help solve the problem.”

She also discussed how important it is for travel businesses to promote the ways they’re protecting and supporting their employees. “Even when there wasn’t a pandemic, people cared about how you treat your employees. It really does matter.”

There is a general sense of uncertainty surrounding the future of the travel industry, and right now, how travel professionals address that concern will directly impact how their business will fare during the recovery.

Lynn Easton, owner of Easton Events, said it was important to keep customers and employees engaged and connected as much as possible, to help reinforce the notion that we’re all in this together. She also recommends advisors not to shy away from the unknown, but embrace the uncertainty.

“When connecting with our clients and customers, we’re embracing the fact that we do not know where the journey is going to lead us, and we’re all on this journey together.”

While none of us have a crystal ball, staying in communication with clients, partners and team members will go a long way in preparing businesses for the return of travel.