Whether holiday-goers book their trip with a travel company or an online travel agency (OTA), the time between booking and boarding is often empty, apart from the odd confirmation email or info request. And where’s the excitement in that? Clients should be giddy with excitement in the run-up to their trip!
This gives you a golden opportunity to supercharge your customer journey and stay ahead of the competition. After all, OTAs can’t put the trip in the palm of a client’s hands, and they can’t connect them to the gorgeous places and thrilling places that await them. But with Vamoos, travel companies can.
To discover just some of the ways our travel company clients are using tech to enhance the pre-trip experience, keep reading. Or click here to download our full guide to taking OTAs, including 20 best practice examples, for free.
Countdowns proved to be a big hit with clients for EverTrek. With clients often waiting over a year for their once-in-a-lifetime trip, an exciting visual reminder really gets them buzzing with anticipation, as well as keeping them motivated for their pre-trip training.
And the great thing about excitement is that it gets people talking. Vamoos Countdowns are specifically designed to be easily shareable on social media, to help boost your brand awareness. EverTrek has even had requests for countdowns from their client’s families and friends, which immediately brings them into their sales funnel – now that’s impactful reach.
“The thing that our clients absolutely love and get the most excited about is the Countdown timer. When they first get it, it’s the ‘oh my god, it’s real. I’m actually doing this!’. It becomes the main talking point around Vamoos, and they love to share it on social media”.
Fi Hawthorn, Project Manager, EverTrek
Black Tomato is a leading luxury travel company providing innovative and inspiring experiences for individuals, couples, families and groups.
And the travel consultants at Black Tomato are known to be some of the very best in the game, so they need an itinerary that matches the client’s already high expectations. They immerse their guests in their upcoming trip long before they set off, using breathtaking images to whisk them across the world with every swipe through their visual itinerary.
“As a cutting-edge luxury tour operator, we want the trip overview we give our clients to reflect the perfectly tailored experience they got from our consultants. Our clients love the visual summary of the trip which transports them to their destination every time they open their phone”.
Alice Dunne, Senior Operations Expert, Black Tomato
The travel designers at Horizons Nouveaux – a Swiss travel designer, tailoring itineraries to combine luxury and authenticity – want every trip to be original. And what better way to show clients how unique their route is than by letting them track it in real-time? As well as a personalised map of the trip, they build tracks of daily excursions and hikes – following their live blue dot on the map gives clients confidence that they are on the right path. That’s an experience that OTAs simply cannot match.
“We integrate lots of activities into our trips that clients may want to do on their own, including self-guided day hikes. The clients don’t need to do anything technical. it’s all there for them to enjoy, and it complements the information we provide perfectly”.
Nicolas Jaques, Director, Horizons Nouveaux
Specialising in full-service treks around the glove, the team at Hobnail Trekking takes full advantage of live messaging and automatic notifications to both stay on top of important info and build excitement before, during and after the trip.
The last thing their clients expect when they are about to head off on a stunning remote trek is a message from their travel company wishing them luck. So when they get it, they know they’re being looked after by the best in the business, and they won’t soon forget it.
“We pre-schedule our notifications and messaging throughout our customer journey. Two months ahead of their trek, they’ll get a notification checking they’re up to date with training. From a week out, they’ll start getting messages to get them excited for their adventure”.
Holly Johnson, Co-owner, Hobnail Trekking
To find out how more of our tailor-made travel clients are building a pre-trip experience that clients will love – or to discover how tech can also be used during and after clients’ trips – check out our full guide.
For a more personalised introduction to Vamoos, book a consultation to chat with one of our team. Or you can dive right in with a free trial.
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