How Advisors Can Optimize and Personalize the Customer Experience: Travel Weekly

At a time when complex technological advances are changing the travel landscape at lightning speed, many travel agencies are finding that one of their biggest selling points is far simpler than any high-tech invention. The human touch empowers advisors to improve the travel experience in myriad ways, when they find the approach that works best for them. 

“In an era where booking options are endless and AI is taking the jobs of many travel agencies, the ability to provide exceptional service is what differentiates trusted advisors from transactional booking platforms,” says Shonté Alce, owner of Just Book It Travel, a NEST affiliate. “Quality service is not just important. It is essential.”

“The human touch becomes even more critical when something changes, goes wrong or feels overwhelming,” Alce adds. “Knowing there is a real person who understands their priorities, anticipates challenges before they arise and will step in immediately makes all the difference. That level of trust, accountability and advocacy is something technology simply cannot replace.”

Christopher Gioitta, founder of Parea Travel, agrees about the importance of addressing client needs. “We place a lot of value on building personal relationships with our clients,” he says. “We take the time to understand what they genuinely enjoy and what they don’t — like art, food and wine or cultural experiences. Anyone can Google the best hotel in a destination, but being a great advisor has to do with deeply understanding what the client wants, which is only possible when you get to know them on a personal level.”

The client qualification process plays an important role in this, notes Pam Walker, travel advisor at Walker Adventures, a Travel Experts affiliate. “I have a questionnaire that I send out to get their preferences on hotel types, tours and hobbies, as well as food preferences and anything else to make their trip special,” she says. “I almost always use DMCs [destination management companies] in each country and make sure that I follow through with their requests. I also choose hotels based on personal experience and connections so that their stays are special.”

McLean Robbins, founder and lead designer at Lily Pond Luxury, an independent affiliate of Travel Experts, describes an advisor’s ability to connect with the client’s mindset in somewhat psychological terms. “The human touch is pattern recognition layered with judgment,” she says. “It’s knowing not just where a client wants to go, but how they move through the world — how they sleep, what stresses them, when they’re most open to wonder and when friction will quietly ruin an otherwise perfect plan.”

Air France Business Lounge in Chicago

Precision Behind the Scenes

Optimizing the customer experience often depends on agency work that clients never see, according to Gioitta, who describes his team’s approach as “structure without the trip feeling structured,” noting that every detail is mapped in advance to ensure the pacing feels natural while still allowing flexibility. “We go into every trip assuming that not everything will go to plan, but we have contingencies in place where the client will not even feel it,” he explains. 

Other advisors describe similar goals. In the destination wedding segment, for example, Alce focuses on removing stress not only for couples but for their guests, by handling all communication and logistics from invitation through return. “When communication is done well, it looks effortless and personal, even though we are managing every detail behind the scenes,” she says.

Luxury advisors, in particular, stress the need for firsthand knowledge and operational discipline. Michelle Master Orr, founder and luxury travel advisor at Master Travel, a Travel Experts affiliate, invests heavily in her own travel to remain current, while also insisting on rigorous verification throughout the planning process. “You can’t reconfirm things enough,” she says. “We triple reconfirm at various points in the trip planning.  We also take care of everything on the concierge level: provide dining guides, shopping guides and other insider tips for every destination.”

Robbins takes a similarly active approach. “I focus relentlessly on three things: clarity, capacity and consistency,” she says. “Clarity in process: clients know exactly how we work and what to expect. Capacity: protecting white space so my team can think, not just react. Consistency: using systems to handle the repeatable so we can personalize the irreplaceable. Operationally, that means tight intake, disciplined supplier relationships, and post-trip debriefs that actually inform the next journey. Luxury isn’t excess; it’s precision.”

The Importance of Trust

Trust is crucial for advisors who want to build a loyal client base, according to Alce. “My clients are not just booking travel,” she explains. “They are trusting me with their time, their money and some of the most important moments of their lives.”

Supplier relationships also play a central role in ensuring client satisfaction, according to Carrie Millunzi, president of Carrie M Travel, a Travel Experts affiliate. “Trust and a collaborative working relationship are key with my suppliers,” she says. “Things happen, people make mistakes or life just goes sideways with sick family members, etc. I have to trust that the suppliers have our best interests at heart. It comes down to trust and honesty all the way around.”

Ultimately, providing a positive client experience is as much a business strategy as an interpersonal skill. “In a world where options are endless, customer service is what actually sets an agency apart,” Robbins says. “Strong service builds long-term relationships, referrals and stability, and it gives agencies the ability to grow intentionally rather than constantly reacting. It’s the foundation of a sustainable business.”

Gioitta agrees. “This industry is incredibly relationship driven and your reputation is everything,” he says. “Issues are always going to happen in travel. What matters most is how you handle those moments and how people are made to feel when things do not go perfectly.”