Three luxury agents have shared advice for increasing booking value, after contributing more than £500,000 to Carrier’s growth sales in the past year alone. 

Helen Thomas, Sara Greene and Janey Berry took to the stage at the luxury operator’s second Retreat last month to discuss their respective successes, one year after attending the inaugural training event in Corfu. Led by Lee Marshall, head of trade partnerships at Carrier, the panel discussion called on each advisor to reflect on what they learned from the first Retreat and how they have implemented these takeaways in their work. 

Founder of The Luxury Travel Studio, Thomas, has become one of the company’s highest-growth partners in the past year alone. She specialises in high-end trips with a sustainable focus, working closely with select suppliers to create bespoke itineraries. 

While she had no trouble finding clients before, she said the Retreat had highlighted to her the importance of finding the right people for her business. She is now far more intentional about who she accepts as a client, admitting she had previously worked on trips that didn’t align with her brand. 

“I realised, I don’t need to take every enquiry,” she said. “One of the biggest things I’ve learned to say is no, and to focus on the people who appreciate what you do.” 

Similarly, Janey Berry has also reaped the rewards of narrowing the clientele of her travel consultancy, Berry Travel. After a follow-up session with last year’s marketing coach Ben Blacker, she was able to identify an untapped market that has since led to a “whole new income stream.” 

“Ben put me on the spot and asked me: ‘What makes you different?’,” she recalled. “After some needling, he uncovered it was my safari knowledge.” 

Once this was established, Berry restructured her brand to emphasise her speciality in this area. She developed a guide called ‘How to Find Your Perfect Safari’, covering all the must-know details about the big five destinations in just 10 minutes.

Now downloaded by more than 1,200 people, this manual has effectively bolstered Berry’s expertise in safari and exposed her to a whole new cohort of clients. She is now dealing with between six and nine enquiries for luxury safari holidays per week, and is actively promoting her safari product insights across her social media platforms. The conversions are equally impressive; she went from booking just one safari last year to a 14 since January. 

Meanwhile, Greene, who has worked under Travel Counsellors for 18 years, revealed that investment in client relationships has been key to her higher-value bookings. 

After returning from last year’s retreat, the Radcliffe-based advisor invited each of her clients for a coffee meeting, demonstrating her commitment to servicing them on a highly personal level. 

She has also gone out of her way to meet clients where they are (literally), even arranging a dinner with one who happened to be in Thailand at the same time. Her thoughtful approach has paid off: after sending a £26 breakfast hamper as a welcome home gift to a client, they went on to make a £40,000 booking. In November, she will be hosting an appreciation dinner for those patrons who have booked with her for the past 15 years. 

“I always want them to know I’m there for them beyond just the booking. I’m also there when something goes wrong,” she said. “That’s where your value shows.”