DECRYPTION – As order intake declines and customers postpone their decisions, travel agencies are emphasizing their role as trusted third parties and their ability to manage crisis situations.
A conclusion in the form of mobilization. “It is precisely during crises that we must show added value”said Patrice Caradec last Friday during the closing of the 16e forum of the Union of Tour Operating Companies (SETO). After several weeks of war in the Middle East and temporary airspace closures, the tourism sector is moving forward on shifting ground, but it is not at a standstill. Where the pandemic had almost frozen departures, almost all countries remain accessible, Asia in the lead, even if the maps are being redrawn according to diplomatic recommendations and airlines. In this confusing context, travel professionals are trying to make an argument out of instability: rather than navigating alone between price increases, route detours and program changes, it would be better, they say, to rely on specialists capable of reading between the lines of world maps.
For Selatt Erdogan, commercial director of Mondial Tourisme, the current context makes “even more relevant” the use of agencies than in normal times: “When the economic situation is favorable, organizing your trip yourself, taking a plane ticket, a taxi, reserving a hotel, is entirely possible. But going through an agency still guarantees more security”. Past turbulence has made it possible to measure the robustness of the actors. “In 2010, we experienced the eruption of the Icelandic volcano which paralyzed almost all European air traffic for several days. I was working for a tour operator at the time and we had to charter more than 40 planes to repatriate our clients.”he remembers.
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In these episodes, the presence of a contact capable of organizing special flights and following each file becomes an essential argument. Selatt Erdogan insists: “today, having the advice, presence and support of specialists constitutes a key factor in security and serenity”. More recently, with tensions in the Middle East, “Customers who booked through an agency were all offered a solution and were repatriated. To my knowledge, with the entire panel of tour operators here, everyone was repatriated within 10-15 days.”.
Insurance, the new sinews of war
Laura Dinane / Le Figaro
For economic columnist Emmanuel Lechypre, the rise in risks is profoundly transforming the way we “consume” travel. “We are heading towards an increase in risk in travel and tourism”he observes, evoking both “climate events, wars, pandemics, strikes, logistical chaos”. In this context, insurance becomes a key element of the purchasing decision. “You go from a world where you were in a logic of “I’ll maybe take out insurance just in case†to a world where you say to yourself: I won’t travel anymore if I’m not properly covered.â€.
According to him, this change would even open up a strategic space for agencies: “With insurance, you may find a differentiation offer for which people are prepared to pay. If you create trust, you create value. And today, there is a need for confidence to travel.”. He even sees a “major competitive advantage over platforms”which struggle to offer the same level of personalized support. Like the automobile, where “A well-managed problem makes your customer more loyal”a repatriation or an incident handled properly can strengthen the relationship between the traveler and his agency.
Soaring prices, but safe leisure
However, nothing can soften the reality of rising prices. However, the French seem to continue to protect their leisure spending, even when it becomes very high. In this hierarchy of priorities, travel appears as a pillar of the ‘pleasure’ budget. Selatt Erdogan, however, qualifies the idea of a rush on leisure at all costs: “Are they ready to spend more? I’m not sure. They are still relatively careful with their budget”. According to him, the priority lies elsewhere: “The vast majority of French people are more in wait-and-see mode”.
Rather than rushing to destinations deemed safer to “compensate” for the war in the Middle East, they are delaying. “They don’t know where this conflict is going to lead and are therefore very careful about when they are going to spend their budget.”he explains. In this context of uncertainty, the sector is recording a clear slowdown in reservations: “We are all between -25 and -30% order intake. There is a slowdown, but it is not a handbrake pulled suddenly.”.
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Même des destinations de proximité comme l’Espagne ou la Grèce en pâtissent : “It’s not that we don’t want to out of fear, it’s that we don’t want to book right away in order to wait for the outcome.”. The fear of a wider conflagration, or even direct involvement of France if a country in the European Union was affected, encourages people to postpone the purchase: “We say to ourselves: if the situation worsens, we will think less about vacations. We’re no longer going to say to ourselves: I should have put that money aside.”.
In this climate where the desire to leave clashes with prudence, agencies are asserting their strengths more than ever: security of files, solutions in the event of the unexpected, legible insurance and, above all, a contact person «en chair et en os» when the situation gets complicated. “We are ready to always try to find solutions for our customers”urges Selatt Erdogan.
