“We turned down vacation that didn’t in shape our organization model”: Specialized niche tips from Niche Journey Group

Travelweek: What does it indicate to you, as the operator of Market Journey Team, and to your workforce, to get this award?

Sproule: “It was an amazing honour and a complete surprise for the Niche Vacation Group staff to gain this remarkable award. It validates the path that we have been on for the last ten years, focusing on specialised ‘niche travel’, and not making an attempt to be a full-support company that publications all the things for every person. We created a crew initially, anticipating the rising need for knowledgeable advisors who can offer you guidance based on private encounters touring with these luxurious manufacturers. Just as critical, we turned down journey that didn’t suit our organization design, with a very clear eyesight in head of what the future could look like if we could concentration on what makes revenue in the prolonged expression.
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Travelweek: ATC noted that Specialized niche Journey Team was honored in portion for its revolutionary offerings, customer assistance, and imaginative advertising and marketing. Can you deliver us with some examples?

Sproule: “Our progressive offerings are twofold. To start with we provide advisor-escorted groups to destinations like Tuscany, Eire, Morocco, France, and many others. Our advisors actually get to know the clientele in the course of the booking approach, so that by the time we embark on these significant team journeys, anyone feels like they are touring with their very best buddy. We also have hosted Audio River Cruise Teams with AmaWaterways.“Many advisors offer excellent consumer company to our shoppers. By focusing on luxurious vacation and turning away air-only bookings, our advisors have far more time to send out out ticket wallets, baggage tags, bon voyage and welcome residence email messages. We’ve also started applying Zoom and Google Fulfills when a deal with-to-face meeting is necessary, together with when clients are in a destination encountering a vacation crisis.

“As for innovative advertising, marketing can often be a black gap that swallows profits, so we principally use social media and a weekly e-newsletter that I produce. I am not a travel author, and they may perhaps not be great, but they have an opening fee of around 50%. It’s a circumstance of ‘Ready, Fire, Aim’ – bear in mind, around-evaluation leads to paralysis!”
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Travelweek: You outlined that Delta has added twice-daily direct flights out of Halifax to LaGuardia starting up in June 2024, and Icelandair is on its way again starting up in May possibly 2024. Additional elevate, which is terrific! Are there any gaps in raise out of YHZ that you’d nonetheless like to see loaded, and can you convey to us what’s marketing particularly properly for your agency in 2024?

Sproule: “The Delta flight to New York is fabulous, but I have discovered that they really do not supply connectivity from LaGuardia to Europe, Hawaii, or South America. It will be outstanding for trips to New York or other U.S. cities and great for Nova Scotia Tourism, but will not assistance us get purchasers to Europe or exotic places. The Icelandair flight will be incredible for most of northern Europe.

“We are all hoping that WestJet brings back our immediate flight to Dublin, Glasgow or Paris. What I feel we are lacking is a direct flight to Portugal, Spain, Greece or Italy. I feel the least complicated alternative would be a direct flight to Lisbon, specified the favourable flying time from Halifax.

“If Air Transat could give a Montreal – Halifax – Lisbon flight that would be best!

“Our river cruise groups with AmaWaterways are advertising quite properly, and a lot of of our advisors now have a faithful pursuing of clients who want to go on a new team journey with them each and every calendar year. Our escorted teams fill up promptly, but it took yrs to make that loyalty. Not all advisors make good escorts and hosts you want the ideal identity and ability set.”