Travel Counsellors’ turnover grew by almost 20% in the last 12 months, but the company has identified a significant opportunity to drive revenue further.
Chief executive Steve Byrne revealed at the company’s global conference in Liverpool that sales in the last 12 months hit £800 million, compared to £675 million in 2019-20.
Sales in the last few months specifically were 30% up compared to the same period, he reported.
"It’s because of what you did and how you conducted yourselves during Covid; you are amazing," he told delegates.
But Byrne said that driving conversion rates, and doing more to encourage one-off bookers to rebook, remained a “massive opportunity”, even without introducing new customers to the brand.
“In any year, about 60% of our customers have previously booked with us within the last three years. We know from post-booking satisfaction scores, which are around 97%, that they’ve had a great booking experience, and yet they haven’t gone on to rebook,” he told TTG. “So what can we do to continue the relationship?”
Key to improving conversion and rebooking will be a rebranding project that’s currently under way to bring more consistency to the customer experience.
“The rebrand signifies that the business is looking to the future, and building a personal, digital business,” said Byrne. “So that whenever customers come across us, it looks the same, reflects our values, and the way we make you feel is the same.”
The new branding will be unveiled at the start of next year and will be an “evolution, not revolution”, Byrne promised.
He added that, while many TC customers are more affluent so less likely to be impacted by the cost of living crisis, a focus on conversion and repeat levels could mitigate dampened demand in 2023.
“Even if we did see a little bit of a softening of demand, if we convert more of those that do enquire, then we can still help our TCs thrive,” he explained.
