Benefiting travel agencies and customers
The myth, however, is not necessarily true. Travellers may discover many advantages in booking through an agency, such as a simpler booking process, expert and expeditious service, and company deals that can be loaded into the travel agency’s booking systems.

Not only can travel agencies provide better service to their customers, but they also enjoy substantial financial benefits by booking hotels for their customer – particularly if the booking is made via Amadeus Hotels. A simple calculation reveals that if one travel consultant makes two additional hotel reservations (i.e. an average of two nights) each day, the agency’s earnings would rise by approximately NOK 136,000 per year.

“Do you feel lucky?” campaign
Having realised this substantial potential, VIA Travel Stavanger has now decided to offer its customers a one-stop service.
“We actively use Amadeus Hotels, and when we see that there is an opportunity for booking accommodation, our policy is always to ask the customer if we can assist them in finding a hotel,” says Bente Adolfsen, team leader and training manager at VIA Travel Stavanger. The agency launched the “Do you feel lucky?” campaign on 1 February in co-operation with Amadeus, to stimulate further growth. Consultants can win lottery tickets for their hotel bookings. The campaign will run for three months until the end of April, and the results at the halfway mark are quite impressive: a 13-per-cent increase.

“We have kept our goal simple – an increase in hotel sales compared with last year. If all our consultants average an extra 2.5 bookings per day, we will see a significant increase over last year,” says Adolfsen. Amadeus sends out results and follow-up every two weeks. Adolfsen believes that swift follow-up is essential to maintaining enthusiasm amongst the consultants.