Julia Lo Bue-Said, Advantage Travel Partnership
Operators add active options for mature travellers
Tour operators are adapting their products as mature travellers seek more active and immersive holidays. Giles Hawke, Cosmos Tours & Cruises chief executive, said the operator’s customers were well travelled and wanted to go to more unconventional places such as Iran. “In river cruise, people don’t
Ted Wake, Kirker Holidays (left) and Harold Burke, UK Holiday Group
‘Agents don’t dream of selling to mature market’
Getting agents excited and engaged about selling holidays to the mature market is a “challenge” for the trade, according to Kirker Holidays’ Ted Wake.
The marketing and sales director said: “I don’t think agents wake up and dream of selling to this market. It isn’t on their minds. “We have always worked
well with the trade,” he said. “But I think there is a challenge for travel agents. “Silver Travel Advisor does a
great job and Travel Weekly also has a role to play in stopping agents just dreaming of selling nice holidays in the Maldives and more a long weekend in Vienna or Prague.” However, Wake said agents
were often better when it came to converting high-ticket items compared with online. Advantage Travel Partnership
recently partnered with Silver Travel Advisor to train its members on selling to the mature market.
“Selling to this market isn’t on their minds. There is a challenge for agents”
Julia Lo Bue-Said, Advantage
Travel Partnership managing director, said: “Our members know
how to service their clients, but there is a whole opportunity out there that they’re not touching, because they’re not talking about [mature customers] in the right way. “It’s complex and they are
individuals. We’re asking how can we capture what those customers are booking so we can speak to them in the right way.”
Silver travellers: the key points
l They are “sticklers” for good customer service and less tolerant of imperfections
l They prefer to speak with a person on the phone than to an automated call centre
l Their holiday budget is ringfenced l They dislike being pigeon-holed, patronised or given a label
l Their health is more likely to get in the way of a holiday than concerns over security/terrorism
Moderator Lucy Huxley, Travel Weekly
l Humour in marketing and advertising works, but it must be based on truth
l 60-plus market is very different to 80-plus and age groups cannot be lumped together
just want to sit on a coach, they want things that are more immersive,” he said. “It’s more about the
experience and making sure they are looked after, with a bit of hand-holding in soft adventure.” Maria Whiteman, managing
director of Saga Holidays, said the company had added more active itineraries to coincide with its brand relaunch, after research showed people in their 50s and 60s were more active than people of the same age 10 years ago. She said the company
was founded with a mission statement to “enrich retired people’s lives”, but this had changed as more people work into older age. However, Ted Wake said it
was the 80-plus market, which was growing the most as more people live longer, that held the most opportunities. He said being mindful of and
communicating accessibility issues with suppliers in this age group was key.
Giles Hawke
14 December 2017
travelweekly.co.uk 21
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