Agents aiming to sell ‘thousands’ of copies of new trade planner

Two travel agents who designed a planner to make life easier for consultants without marketing experience are hoping to sell thousands of their new 2023 edition.

Agents Kate Holroyd, of Strawberry Holidays, and Mia Walmsley, who returned to work in marketing during the pandemic having previously worked for Footprint Travel, have put together the Beyond the Bookings guide for the third year running. It goes on sale on October 10, 2022.

Both previous editions, released in 2020 and 2021, sold more than 1,000 copies. Following feedback, the new version promises to be more compact and portable as well as holding more trade-specific content.

The guide aims to help agents who have little or no marketing experience and who spend a lot of time with clients and don’t have much time to focus on marketing.

It offers an A4 journal with a week-per-view diary planner for 2023, including specific dates for the outbound travel sector; international dates of interest such as holidays and occasions; national awareness days for business content; social media planning templates; currency tables; airline and supplier contact information.

Agents who buy the guide also get access to a closed user group on Facebook.

Holroyd said: “We’ve learned a lot over the last 24 months, and we’re putting it all into the 2023 editions of the planner.

“Journal owners surveyed said they would repurchase and we’ve listened really carefully to their feedback. This year’s will be smaller again, but with even more content specifically for the travel industry.”

Holroyd said there would be more copies of the guide available this year, based on the success of previous years, and that it would be delivered to agents within a week of being ordered.