Ever wonder why some people spend hours planning their own trips when travel agents exist?
Right now, thousands of people are searching for their next vacation.
But here’s the weird part…
Most of these searches? They’re the same people, searching over and over, for days or even weeks.
They’re looking for something they’re not finding on Expedia or Booking.com.
Which brings us to a question: What if you could reach these people at exactly the moment they realize they need help?
One of our users, a small agency figured it out.
They went from helping 3 families a month to 17. Not by shouting louder than the big booking sites. Not by burning cash on ads.
They just started showing up at the right moment with the right solution.
Want to see how they did it? Let’s break it down…
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Understanding Your Market Before Building Your Virtual Agent
Let’s start with a question that might seem obvious: What exactly are you selling?
No, really. Take a second.
Because here’s what usually happens – agencies jump straight into promoting their packages without understanding if that’s what people actually want.
“We did a luxury travel campaign years ago where we simply asked people to select the type of experiences they wanted. Temples? Local cuisine? Five-star hotels or homestays? Just by letting them choose, we learned more about our market than months of traditional research.”
The thing is, people aren’t just buying a hotel room or a tour package. They’re buying an experience. And here’s where it gets interesting…
What Most Travel Agencies Get Wrong…
I have a cousin. Dude’s loaded.
But whenever he goes on vacation, you’ll find him in some basic hut, eating street food, living like a backpacker.
Yet he flies first class to get there. (I keep teasing he’s a hypocrite)
But here’s the point – if you were building a travel package for him based on his profile, you’d get it completely wrong.
And that’s exactly what most agencies do.
The Virtual Travel Agent Solution
Think about walking into a really good travel agency. What happens?
The agent doesn’t start throwing brochures at you. Instead, they ask questions like:
“So, are you looking to rough it out for a couple of days with the locals, or is this more of a luxury escape?”
That’s exactly what we’re going to build – but better. Here’s how it works…
Step 1: The Basic Setup
Start with this simple question: “Have you already booked your travel, or are you still in the planning phase?”
Why? Because it immediately tells you two things:
- Are they looking to enhance an existing trip?
- Or are they starting from scratch?
This changes everything about how you help them.
If they’ve already booked flights, you can’t be flexible with dates.
But if they haven’t… well, that’s where it gets interesting.
Step 2: Understanding What They Actually Want
Now you can start asking about:
- Group size (“Just you? Family? How old are the kids?”)
- Trip purpose (Holiday? Wellness break? Wedding? …Divorce party? Hey, it happens.)
- Location preferences (Beach? Mountains? Cultural sites?)
- Travel style (Local homestays? Luxury resorts?)
Here’s Where It Gets Really Smart…
Let’s say for every 100 leads that come through, you notice 30% are asking for something you don’t offer.
That’s not a problem – that’s gold.
Why? Two reasons:
- You just discovered a market gap you can fill
- You might be over-invested in packages nobody wants
Here’s What To Do With That Data
Remember – you’re not just filtering leads. You’re learning from every single person who shows interest.
“You don’t want to fail because you had the wrong product. The business itself probably has merit, but you’re selling the wrong stuff.”
Making It Work In Real Time
Let’s get practical. Here’s what happens after someone goes through your virtual agent:
If you’re using an online booking system:
- Their answers automatically filter available packages
- They only see stuff that matches what they want
- No more scrolling through irrelevant offers
If you’re doing phone follow-ups:
- Your team already knows exactly what they’re looking for
- No time wasted on mismatched packages
- Higher conversion rates because you’re having relevant conversations
But What If You Don’t Have What They Want?
Here’s where most agencies mess up – they just let these leads die.
Instead, try this:
“What’s the best way to contact you? We’ll be in touch with some options soon.”
Then get busy:
- Talk to tour aggregators
- Build relationships with local providers
- Fill those product gaps fast
Because here’s the truth – if 30% of your leads want something, and you’re not offering it… someone else will.
Getting The Timing Right
Remember those “when are you planning to travel” questions?
Make them work harder:
“Jan to Feb is rainy season, Feb to March is sunny…”
Just by framing the question this way, you’re:
- Adding value immediately
- Showing expertise
- Helping them make better decisions
The Questions You Should Never Ask (Yet)
Open-ended questions are great… but not at this stage.
Keep it simple:
- Multiple choice
- Clear options
- Easy decisions
Save the deep dive for when you’re actually talking to them.
Want to see exactly how this works in practice?
