search.noResults

search.searching

saml.title
dataCollection.invalidEmail
note.createNoteMessage

search.noResults

search.searching

orderForm.title

orderForm.productCode
orderForm.description
orderForm.quantity
orderForm.itemPrice
orderForm.price
orderForm.totalPrice
orderForm.deliveryDetails.billingAddress
orderForm.deliveryDetails.deliveryAddress
orderForm.noItems
The Interview Steve Byrne, Travel Counsellors


The chief executive of the homeworking group shares his thoughts on travel restrictions, pivoting to meet demand and customer service in the Covid era with Lucy Huxley


Government decisions “When considering government decisions, everyone thinks about their own business, but bigger than that is what these decisions mean for customers. We’re a customer-facing business – we love sending people on holiday – so we want a system that’s easy for customers. Customers have broadly got their heads around the traffic light system, but the variations were clearly unhelpful. It wasn’t just red, amber, green; it was a number of other variations thereof. You’ve got a UK system people may understand, but what happens when you arrive may be completely different from one destination to another. We want to make the process as simple as possible so customers can book securely and safely, understanding what’s required. “Greater simplicity would


have helped. We understand why decisions were taken, but they weren’t thinking about people’s experience. If there are more changes, we hope the government gives people


12 9 SEPTEMBER 2021


some time to get their heads around them. We’re constantly lobbying that when they’re making decisions for health reasons, think about the impact on people in a broader way: mental health, economic, wellbeing and customer experience. Those decisions affect us and when they affect our customers, we step in to help pick up the pieces.”


Covid testing “It’s pretty clear the government is driven by data. So the fact you’ve got such a low percentage coming back to the country testing positive is encouraging. We need that trend to continue. Testing was put in place to try and identify variants of the virus; so it doesn’t make sense if you’ve been double-vaccinated to have PCR tests. We hope the data, over time, gives the government confidence to simplify the system. “We have to do our best to


influence things in a way that’s right for our customers but focus on things we can control. We can take control


of our attitude and our ability to help our customers and each other. Make your opinion heard but don’t let that dominate or influence your approach.”


Pivoting sales “Be driven by what the customer wants. I expect demand for staycations next year, partly influenced by experiences people have had this year. But there’s no doubt we expect summer 2022, in terms of overseas travel, will be much better than summer 2021. Hats off to cruise lines for pivoting to UK ‘seacations’. I don’t know how permanent that’ll be but it’s been a great short-term opportunity. “We’ve all seen our incomes


decimated for a prolonged period,


albeit it’s now recovering. You do what you need to get through it. If that means taking other paid income, you do. But if you want to stick to travel, you pivot. We’ve got travel counsellors who were selling cruise now doing more non-cruise, and corporate agents doing a bit of leisure.”


Customer service “We’ve been open for business throughout summer but making sure we advise customers in an appropriate way. We’ve got a duty of care, taking into account government travel advice. Every interaction with a customer, about a refund, rebooking or change, is an investment in that relationship. That will pay dividends this winter and next year. A lot of


Agents who have been doing acts of kindness because they care about the customer can look ahead to a brilliant few years


travelweekly.co.uk


PICTURE: Sarah Lucy Brown


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60