Our consultants are booking 60 per cent more cruise holidays than last year which is good news as it’s one of the most lucrative areas of travel.
But how can you become an expert if you join us?
Our senior cruise business development manager Duncan Croucher explains…
What is your role and how do you help consultants?
As senior cruise business development manager (BDM) my job is to head up our cruise division and help our travel consultants become experts in selling cruise holidays.
What’s your background?
I’ve been in the travel industry for 34 years, predominantly working in cruise for the past 12 years.
How many cruise ships have you experienced?
I’ve been on 52 cruises to date and that’s varied from high three-star ships up to those that are six star in different parts of the world. I couldn’t tell you my favourite because they’re all my favourite. I love them all. I’ve probably done a hundred, maybe 150 ship visits on top of that when I’ve just gone to experience the ship for the day.
Wow. And are you still passionate about cruising?
Oh, absolutely 110%. Cruises are my biggest passion. I always say I’m the luckiest person in the world because I get to do a job talking about the topics that I love the most and that’s cruise holidays.
Okay, and why is cruising so important if you run a travel agency?
So the cruise industry has consistently grown since 2007. We’ve seen people’s perception change from believing cruise is for the older generation to that it’s absolutely perfect for multigenerational families, couples and groups of friends.
And are there new ships being built right now?
Yeah, there’s always new ships being built. I think there’s some 16 cruise ships to come to market in the next two years. And that’s everything from luxury, adult-only boutique cruising to big ocean liners with the zip wires and the ice skating rinks and the rock climbing walls and all the new initiatives that are coming out from the cruise lines.
Are the commissions really higher than other sectors?
Absolutely. So cruise lines traditionally pay higher commission per booking than what land operators do as a rule of thumb. So it has always attracted people that are quite savvy. It’s definitely the sector to be in to make more money and increase repeat bookings. 85% of the people that go on a cruise will rebook another cruise. So it kind of sets your business up for the future, you’re essentially future proofing your database because they’re going to go on a cruise and then they’re going to book another one and they’re going to tell their friends… it just helps you to accelerate your business.
So Not Just Travel has many cruise key trade partners – how does this help consultants?
Our key trade partners are a select number of cruise lines that we’ve decided to work with very closely over the next year and then going into 2025. So we get things like exclusive offers, fam trips, educational places, ship visit days and lots of webinars – plus many offer our agents a preferential phone line for support.
Could you explain a little bit about what happens when a consultant joins the Cruise Division?
So when you join our Cruise Division, you set off on what we call our Cruise Mastery Programme, which is a 12-month course aimed to really empower you and upskill you to sell cruise. You’ll get specialist one-to-one coaching from the cruise BDMs, along with fantastic online training. You’ll also get invited on a Seminar at Sea…
Tell us about your pioneering the Seminar at Sea
The Seminar at Sea is designed to enable our travel consultants to step on board a cruise ship, sometimes for the first time, and really experience a cruise through the eyes of a customer. We have a good tailored training schedule that fits really nicely to ports of call allowing our travel consultants to have the best of both worlds. So they come along, we coach them and train them in an exclusive environment and they get to experience the ship, the destinations and everything else that being on a cruise has to offer.
How many Seminars at Sea have you done and on which ships?
We have hosted four Seminar at Sea cruises since 2022. The first one was onboard NCL Norwegian Prima and the second one was onboard Virgin Voyages’ Valiant Lady, where we flew everybody to Barcelona and sailed the Mediterranean for seven nights. Our third one earlier this year was on the beautiful Sky Princess on a Scandinavian discovery cruise sailing out of Southampton. We’ve recently finished our fourth Seminar at Sea which was on board Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady where we sailed from Barcelona for a seven-night Mediterranean cruise.
What has been the feedback from some of the consultants after they’ve been on the cruise or during the cruise?
I remember the very first Seminar at Sea on board NCL Prima. 70% of our consultants had never stepped on board a cruise ship but many had that lightbulb moment where they say: ’I get it, I understand, I now know the logistics of going on a cruise’. After being on board and experiencing the food, the entertainment, the destinations and training, they came away feeling really equipped to be able to promote and sell cruise holidays to customers.
And do they sell cruise holidays whilst on board or on their return?
Oh yes, on every single Seminar at Sea, we’ve had a record number of bookings from our TCs for that particular cruise line. Because of the specialist training that we give, mixed in with being able to understand the brand and the product because you’re onboard experiencing it, you absolutely see a big spike in sales.
So why should people book a cruise through a travel agent? What are the advantages?
We have price parity with many cruise lines, so our price is the same as it is if they book direct with the actual cruise. But if they book with us… they get us for free. So they get our fantastic service, they get the support, the knowledge and everything that’s needed to create a fantastic, memorable experience. We’ve got all the BDMs on hand to help plus we’re surrounded by support from our cruise lines.
And how can an agent add value to someone’s booking?
So a travel consultant can add value to a booking in many different ways. It depends on the type of cruise that you’re booking. It could be adding parking at the port if you’re not flying and you’re sailing from the UK. It could be travel insurance or booking speciality dining packages.
From a cabin perspective you can advise over the best cabins. We can’t give the tricks of the trade away, but we’ve got tools and websites to help our travel consultants find the perfect location onboard any cruise ship. And of course, the BDM’s have that superpower knowledge about everything.
So how do you join the Cruise Division?
Anyone who joins Not Just Travel can join. It’s optional. But you’d be mad not to!
