TSN will answer all calls and social media contact points as Trending Travel, using the firm’s enquiry and booking platform. Trending Travel chief Keith Herman said the partnership with TSN would allow the brand to match call centre resource with demand to "maximise efficiency" and ensure the business doesn’t carry excess staff during quieter periods.
“Trending Travel is a relatively new business enjoying massive success exploiting the post Covid-19 travel boom for summer 2022 departures," said Herman. "Enquiries are already running 430% above our budgeted levels, and partnering with TSN allows us to continue expanding seamlessly while we maintain our brand identity."
Launched earlier this year, TSN has been designed as a route back into travel for experienced professionals who may have left the sector during the pandemic. It plans to utilise their expertise to serve as overflow call centre capacity for the rest of the travel industry as demand return, while also providing them with the tools and resources to grow their own homeworking businesses.
“Trending Travel retaining control of the customer relationship and ownership of customer data was a vital element of the TSN offering over other potential outsourcing partners," Herman continued.
"Skill set matching and sophisticated rostering will mean we always have first access to the staff we have trained, but these same staff can be used by other companies in the days/hours we don’t need them – keeping them motivated and always earning.
“The partnership allows me to build my internal call centre resource to match my median demand, allowing me to maximise efficiency and not carry excess staff. Topping up internal resource up with an experienced but flexible outsourced team allows me to deal with peak demand on certain days of the week or hours of the day, as well as allowing seasonal peak demand to be planned for.
"This protects Trending Travels brand and allows me to have an ‘always on’ approach to advertising, as I know we can flex to deal with the enquiries it creates."
Managing director Ruth Endacott said: "Keith understands and fully embraces the benefit of sharing our expert sales team with other business as long as Trending Travel have first call over the staff they have invested time and effort in training."
According to TSN, average annual call centre staff turnover is in excess of 40%, meaning expertise is often lost faster than it can be trained. This level, the firm claims, drops to 25% when staff are allowed to mix homeworking with call centre hours. TSN says it hopes to reduce this to 15% with its mix of outsourcing and own book business.
