Executives were bullish about the future of the travel industry during Travel Leaders Network’s Edge conference this week, where more than 1,500 travel advisors and suppliers met at the Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center in Aurora, Colo.
“It’s a wonderful time, in my opinion, to be in the travel industry,” said John Lovell, president of Travel Leaders Group, during the conference. “All indications are we are in a growth curve.”
In fact, based on advanced bookings, Lovell said he believed 2023 sales would eclipse those of the record-breaking year that was 2019.
John Lovell, president of Travel Leaders Group, (right) and Roger Block, president of Travel Leaders Network, take the stage at the 2022 Edge conference.
Credit: 2022 Travel Leaders NetworkWhat Travel Leaders Advisors Are Selling Right Now
Demand is currently high for active and adventure travel, as well as expedition cruising, Lovell said. Consumers are also willing to pay a premium, which is a positive in the face of higher pricing due to demand and inflation.
It’s a wonderful time, in my opinion, to be in the travel industry. All indications are we are in a growth curve.
Lovell also anticipates a jump in travel demand in the wake of the Biden Administration’s decision to eliminate its rule requiring negative COVID-19 tests for air travelers entering the country.
"I think the barriers just keep falling and falling,” he said. “We anticipate that European travel [will] really kick in … People just really want to get back to Europe. That’s what we’re seeing. That’s what we’re hearing. So hopefully, in the next two [to] three weeks, we’ll see that demand start to work its way through the funnel.”
'Super Agent’ Status Introduced
Travel Leaders Network also unveiled the latest update to Agent Profiler, the lead-generation tool that enables agents to make profiles that tend to rank high in searches. Now, advisors meeting certain criteria (like number of reviews) will be designated as a “Super Agent,” giving them an even higher rank in search results.
Agent Profiler is free for advisors. At its high point in 2019, the program delivered 170,000 leads to advisors. This year, it’s on track to deliver even more — as of this month, Agent Profiler is trending at 7% more leads than 2019.
According to Stephen McGillivray, chief marketing office for parent company Travel Leaders Group, profiles do well in search results because of the number of agents that use the system; in total, there are more than 9,000 users who have profiles.
"That’s what makes it this incredible marketplace, because [the profiles show] their unique stories, and what they’re good at, and how they got into the travel business,” he said. “And all those things are what Google rewards.”
Also introduced were three new “Alliances,” or groups for advisors and agency owners interested in a certain topic that share best practices and network with suppliers. Alliances initially launched last year with the Luxury Leaders Alliance and the Host Agency Leaders Alliance. New this year are the Honeymoon & Destination Weddings Leaders Alliance, the Technology Leaders Alliance and Building Better, which is focused on growth and profitability for mid-size agencies.
New Members and Network Growth
Roger Block, president of Travel Leaders Network, said the network’s footprint continues to grow. Since its last conference, held in October, the network has added 139 members, 32 in the fourth quarter of 2021, and 107 this year so far.
Those new members include corporate, leisure and luxury-focused agencies.
"News in the travel industry today is excellent, and the forecast for tomorrow is getting even better,” Block said.
