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Wednesday 3 June 2009

Tips to get client to book your sightseeing tours

What is the moment you were most excited to hear from OurExplorer? For most tour guides, it’s the email in your inbox “Excellent news, you have a confirmed booking on OurExplorer”.

The client found you on the internet, was happy about your profile details + offer and decided to book your service for sightseeing tours. To reach this exciting moment, here are some tips and next steps after receiving a client booking enquiry.

Be prompt to reply. This is very important. Imagine yourself as a client who is looking for sightseeing tours. It’s great to get a reply in 24 hours, even in 48 hours at the most, but quite disappointing when there is no reply after three days. Quick reply builds up good first impression. You also have higher possibility to get a booking as the client may check with several providers/competitors. So check your email regularly if you can. Do look at spam/junk folder in case of blocked Emails. If you change to a new email address, update relevant partners you are working with.

Be honest. Be honest and sincere in your replies. This is a flat world that people can get information from various channels. Don’t presume travelers know little even though they come from the other end of the world. Moreover, it’s good to get long-term benefits with a client rating after the sightseeing tours.

To the point. Every traveler is unique. They look for different things. So when replying to the client’s query, stick to the specific queries asked by the client. Do not include all your knowledge in one email reply. You may frighten them away with too much information. Many clients prefer the right answer, rather than an all-inclusive standard reply.

Offer more than they expect. Most people like extra free things. It is like the cream on the cake. Offer your clients some free service within your ability, e.g. a free drink, a local souvenir, free entry to a popular destination, a discount to a local activity/performance etc. These are the little nice things as an extra.

Do follow up and confirm the details. If you didn’t receive any message after your first reply, then send on a kind follow-up after 2 days. See if the previous reply was well-received, if the client had any further queries, or any decision on the tour. When the client showed clear interest in your service, ask them to make a booking for the day directly on OurExplorer.

What’s next? The booking email you have been waiting for - “Excellent news, you have a confirmed booking on OurExplorer”
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