Are You Following These Agency Technology Trends?

Technology helps agents expand their reach, build their businesses and keep their clients coming back. That’s why staying up-to-date with technology trends is more important than ever in a world that moves faster than your Facebook newsfeed. Are you taking full advantage of these four agency technology trends?

Let’s Get Social

We live in a digital age and social media reigns supreme. That being said, no agent should be without Facebook, Twitter and Instagram in their business arsenal. Every social network comes with its own community and culture allowing agents to unlock unlimited potential after mastering the basics of each website/application. Here are a few notable uses for these three different tools:

• Facebook – Probably the most popular platform among agents and clients, Facebook can help you build your brand in a variety of ways. The platform allows travel agents to post wanderlust-inducing photos, ask questions and offer polls, create targeted advertisements and share their expertise through statuses and commenting.
• Twitter – Start a conversation with travelers and other agents on Twitter, everyone’s favorite platform for connecting in 280 characters or less. Twitter is especially nifty for providing and requesting customer service, promoting articles and original content and for connecting with other travelers in regularly scheduled travel chats. Can you link to your source here?
• Instagram – According to Travel Market Report, 48% of Instagram users rely on the photo-sharing app to find new travel destinations, after all, a picture is worth a thousand words. Share your adventures with followers by posting high-quality images and using relevant hashtags to extend your reach.

The World is Your Office

Whether it’s working from home or working remotely, more agents are straying from the traditional brick and mortar agency than ever before. A survey of VAX’s users found that more than 50% of our agents are home based and with today’s technology, it’s easy to see why. Agents have the freedom to take their business wherever they go which is exciting news considering that if there’s one thing travel agents love to do it’s – you guessed it – travel.

Communication is Key

There are a variety of apps travel agents can use to communicate with their clients throughout the duration of their trip. A recent survey from SKIFT showing mobile usage among travelers found that 82% of mobile is used during air travel, 87% is used for finding entertainment and places to eat and 90% is used for maps and navigation. The data also showed that many of the travelers surveyed preferred to use mobile apps over traditional websites. This means that you should be available for your clients while they’re in-destination with mobile apps like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and your preferred email service provider.