‘In like a lion’ is proving true for the travel industry this March. While this popular proverb normally applies to the weather, it could also apply to travel these days, as booking volumes come roaring back. Will the month go ‘out like a lamb’ for travel, or will the fierce uptick in bookings hold steady? Just this once, we’re hoping the lion sticks around all month!

Our Independent Contractors have told us in no uncertain terms that travel is back, given full email inboxes and voicemails from clients eager to get a trip on the books. With St. Patrick’s Day around the corner, many are finding a veritable pot of bookings at the end of their rainbow, but strategic agents know that now is not the time to leave things up to luck.

Many independent contractors are emerging from a period of booking ‘hibernation’ where after taking care of their clients at the start of the pandemic and bookings paused, they turned their focus to internal aspects of their business.

With the increasing inquiry level and bookings, that focus has turned outward again, making it an ideal time to review your current situation, your plans for the future of your travel business – and ensuring your host agency is positioned to help you achieve them.

What has your host been doing to prepare for the travel boom? How have they been working to improve the tools and supports you need for success? What systems are they putting in place that will help you service your clients better and grow your business?

As part of global company FCTG, Independent by Flight Centre was well-positioned to weather the pandemic financially and could shift focus into developing growth marketing strategies for our Independent business.

Given the unprecedented nature of the pandemic we couldn’t rely on historical data, realizing we had to forge a new path forward. That path is in partnership with our Independent Agents, utilizing focus groups as well as the global lens our company has access to from the many countries we operate in.

With this combination of global resources, we were able to improve on current systems, invite preferred suppliers to our Workplace environment allowing another avenue of contact and support between our Independents and BDMs, provide more learning opportunities with our dedicated education team, streamline our onboarding experience as well as introduce 24/7 support for password resets, payment supports and more.

The next few months will see us launch several new initiatives geared specifically for our Independent Contractors and their travel businesses. These include lead generation and a new marketing platform that will allow our Indies to utilize the full potential of FCTG Marketing and empower our travel-preneurs to grow their businesses to new heights.

Now is the time to take stock of the supports and systems for your business and ensure that they can help you achieve your goals in 2022 and beyond.

In the spirit of St. Patrick, IFC would like to leave you with an Irish blessing sure to resonate with every entrepreneur: “May you get all your wishes but one, so that you will always have something to strive for!”