Expert website drives business back to agents

Travel Agents are being invited to register for a new travel platform, Going.Expert, connecting travellers with “been-there” travel agents.

The website is designed to be a hub for travellers searching for the local knowledge you can only get from booking through a travel agent who has actually been to the destination.

Going.Expert CEO and founder Rogan Carroll told Travel Weekly the idea for Going.Expert came about because “I am a marketer, not a travel industry person, and as such from an outside view, I saw an increase in the OTA growth with an obvious take away from the Travel Agents business. I started looking at the marketing model of the OTA’s and Travel Agents and realised that there was an untapped niche, a big niche, to bring attention back to the travel agent based on their individual experience.”

“Everyone has written off the travel agent, saying the Online Travel Agents or OTA (the big online booking platforms) are taking over and there’s no need for travel agents any more. Well that couldn’t be further from the truth.”

The new connection tool for travellers is designed to eliminate time wasted by travellers researching their holiday travel online. Another major draw card is shifting back to using a travel agent to avoid issues that can occur by booking with an online travel agent such as: missing out on the uniqueness of a destination, poor timing on connecting flights, sub-standard hotels, lack of travel insurance, incorrect or no visa, and so on; things an OTA just can’t correct mid trip.

Carroll says the OTA’s are aggregating available flight, hotel and packaged holiday data from multiple sources, they aren’t planning a vacation for the individual.

“If you want to pick up a quick inflexible, impersonal holiday package then go ahead and use an OTA, and pray that nothing goes wrong during your trip. But if you want a holiday that will be memorable for every last organised detail, and have someone to back you up even when you’re away, then you better use a travel agent,” Carroll added.

The benefits of using a Travel Agent through Going Expert means the travel booker gets the local knowledge of a specialist travel agent, someone who has ‘been-there’. They know the restaurants, the culture, the tours, where to go, and where not to go.

The big question is how does Going Expert work for travel agents?

Travel Agents setup a profile(s) based on their “been-there” destinations.
When travellers search for their destination they are presented with a range of travel agents who have been-there.
The Traveller chooses one Travel Agent based on their profile, at which point contact details are exchanged. It’s a simple contact exchange platform working 100% for travel agents.

“While designed for the individual travel agent, Head Offices can register and although not individually ‘searchable’ by travellers, they will gain powerful metrics and insights into the activity of their registered travel agents through their own dashboard,” Carroll said.

“Going.Expert doesn’t sell travel and doesn’t compare prices, we simply connect the Traveller with Travel Agents who have been to that destination. And it’s not putting them in-touch with the travel agency office, this is about one-to-one connecting with the actual travel agent who has been there. We currently have destination experts covering 78 countries and growing daily,” Carroll concluded.

So if you are a been-there travel agent looking for more business, then register at www.Going.Expert/travelexpert and get connected with new travellers, business you wouldn’t ordinarily get.

Been-there Travel Agent NZ Example Search and Match

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Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

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