As a travel agent, you’re probably still recovering from the damage that Covid-19 inflicted on your industry. And while many travellers and tourists are slowly dipping their toes back into international travel, independent travel agencies are finding it difficult to compete with their online rivals.
Within this saturated market, travel agents need to look at multiple ways they can gain a competitive edge and sell breaks and holidays to the masses all whilst turning a profit. Whether you’re positioned firmly on the Highstreet or you’re a home-based travel agent, focusing on the customer experience and the daily operations of your travel business are good places to start, and by implementing the right kind of software, you’ll be selling sun, sea, and sand again in no time. Read on to discover the top software choices for travel agents.
VAT and Tax Software
Keeping your finances in order and your VAT returns accurate doesn’t exactly say – great customer experience. However, when you streamline your daily operations and invest in tax software, you’ll spend less time worrying about your tax obligations and VAT returns and get back to what you do best: selling dream holidays. By implementing this software, you’ll have the information you need to build and submit accurate tax returns, keep your growing business 100% compliant and keep your business protected from penalties, inaccuracies, and poorly maintained financial records.
When everything is done for you digitally, you’ll have a closer insight into your finances, giving you back control of your financial position and helping you to make stronger, business-based decisions that drive your success forward, rather than holding it back.
Booking and Reservation Software
With booking and reservation software you can take care of the hassle and confusion that comes with booking a holiday, away from your clients and let them relax before their holiday has even started. While many online reservation websites give customers the autonomy of booking their own hotels and making reservations, utilising booking and reservation software means you can remove the confusion, the barrage of emails and give your clients peace of mind.
As a travel agent, you’ll benefit from booking confirmations, payment systems, billing and invoicing applications and the ability to add discounts, streamlining your daily operations and helping to shift your focus onto the customer.
Tour Building
As a travel agent, planning a holiday for your customer is one of the many highlights of your role. However, it’s also incredibly time-consuming. Utilising tour building software means you can design a tour that takes budget, time constraints and the location into consideration whilst using tour templates, confirmation data and even recommendations for how the tour can be optimised for time and experience!
This kind of software can turn any run of the mill holiday, into one that your customers will never forget. And it’s this kind of experience that keeps them coming back to your travel agency year after year.
Final Thoughts…
Creating a holiday for a client is easier when you have the right tools and software at your disposal. Whether you want to streamline your travel agency or start your own home-based business from scratch, these tools can help!