Agent Diary: Why my AAAs win makes it easier for clients to recommend me

Award win should provide peace of mind for all who book with me, says Leisure Agent of the Year, The Travel Snob’s David Walker, a Not Just Travel homeworker

I am still very much overwhelmed by my win at the AAAs, where I was named Leisure Agent of the Year. Who would have thought it? It was an amazing shortlist and when my name was called out I couldn’t help but feel rather guilty for the others, especially the ones I know and like.

I am still in a state of shock, but it has been wonderful seeing the reaction of my friends, clients and fellow agents, who are all over the moon for me.

It was an amazing shortlist and when my name was called out I couldn’t help but feel rather guilty for the others, especially the ones I know and like

Perhaps it was the additional thrill of being shortlisted, but this year the AAAs felt truly spectacular – even more so than usual. It definitely seemed bigger and better than ever before, so I must give a big shout-out to the sponsors and organisers. Having attended many smaller supplier gatherings, fam trips and the like over the years, it was lovely to see so many faces from all those events celebrating each other’s achievements and enjoying a drink or two.

Never off duty

I’ve been in this industry for just nine years, yet my network of incredible peers is huge – if I were to have bought everyone I knew there a drink at the bar, as someone suggested I should, I would now be a very poor man! In all seriousness we really are a great bunch of folk, in my humble opinion.

On the day of the awards itself, at 3.45pm – just 15 minutes before the first pre-drinks (or pre, pre-drinks) – I received an email from BA saying a client’s flight to Tokyo the next morning had been cancelled. Needless to say, it wasn’t the ideal start to what would prove to be a memorable day, but thankfully the supplier was responsive and I managed to get them rebooked on a Saturday flight before the AAAs officially kicked off at 6.30pm.

She was not worried when she found out about the cancelled flight as she had booked through me, and therefore knew I would sort everything

That client sent me a message on the Friday morning to congratulate me, having seen the news on Facebook, adding my win was not a surprise to them. She said she was not worried when she found out about the cancelled flight as she had booked through me, and therefore knew I would sort everything from rebooking to rescheduling, meaning they wouldn’t need to do a thing.

Sure enough, by Friday evening everything was taken care of and the client had an updated itinerary, new boarding passes and the rest, and off they went on Saturday. I received a message from them while they were on their trip to say everything had been seamless and that the Four Seasons in Hoi An was the “most beautiful resort we’ve ever seen”.

A win for clients

That testimony sums up what winning the award means: it’s peace of mind for all who book their holidays through me and it also makes it much easier for them to recommend me. They will now be able to say: “Give my guy a call – he’s Leisure Agent of the Year, don’t you know?”

[My clients] will now be able to say: “Give my guy a call – he’s Leisure Agent of the Year, don’t you know?”

I don’t advertise much, if at all, and therefore can’t add the winner’s logo to adverts or posts. And I have no one to ask for a promotion or pay rise. So this is all about what it means for my clients. Oh, and it’s nice to give myself a reason for a pat on the back, of course.

When will the madness end?

Is it just me, or does it feel like we’re back in the middle of the pandemic again? In addition to the flight cancellation to Tokyo the day before departure, I also recently had to deal with a cancelled flight the morning of departure for a connection to Phnom Penh and a flight that was cancelled while the customer was sat on the plane waiting to take off from Miami to Quito. I managed to sort out both of them within 30 minutes, but the spate of cancellations prompts me to ponder once again: when will the madness end?