We thought we would share with our Blog readers and regular contributors a recent Crain's interview with our company President, Howard Scharf, that was posted on the widely-read Crain's Chicago Blog (www.chicagobusiness.com):
Q&A: How one travel shop competes with Web giants
Crain’s contributor Steve Hendershot asked Mr. Scharf how a small business like his can compete in an industry that’s increasingly dominated by giant dot-coms.
Crain’s: It’s got to be difficult to compete on price with the big online travel sites. So how do you provide value to your clients?
Howard Scharf: You’ve got to have a laser focus on service. People can point and click on their own. But a truly professional travel consultant is going to excel where the Internet fails consumers. That means really engaging clients to learn the reasons for their trip—why they’re thinking about the places they’re thinking about, and what they want to get from their vacation. If we’re careful, if we’re listening, we can really hone in on what people are driving for, and we’ll be able to deliver that every time.
When you go online, all the sites will say they’ve got the best beach, best restaurants, best nightlife. It’s our job to be source of unbiased advice, and with 62 people on our staff, we pretty much always have somebody who’s just been there and just done that. That’s really important, especially in this economy.
Hotels are hurting, cutting back on services and amenities, and we know where there’s trouble, where the good values are, and when to stay away.
And the biggest thing is that typically the Internet is not there to take your call when something goes wrong. One thing consultants excel at is problem solving, issue resolution.
Crain’s: Do clients understand that, or do you struggle to convince them that they can’t do the same job on their own?
HS: We had plenty of clients that, when the Internet came along, gave that a shot. The majority of them have come back, and the big reason is that it only takes one bad experience with a nameless, faceless portal for people to understand the real value of what we provide. For the same reasons, word-of-mouth marketing and referrals are a big part of how we reach new customers.
Also, there's a common misconception that the best deals are on the Internet. The fact is, travel consultants are professionals who are paid to know where the real values are. That's how we excel.
Crain's: If you emphasize service and a personal touch, as opposed to your Web competitors, how much do you try to incorporate the technology that they use?
HS: We don't focus on emulating the Internet. That hasn't been our MO. We haven't tried to be an overwhelming source of comments and user reviews and opinions that may be paid for by airline or hotel or cruise company.
But we do want to reach out to younger professionals who like to communicate in different ways, including on the Internet, so want to get our unbiased, expert information out there in those realms. So, for example, we have a new blog with content from our staff, based on their experiences and observations.
Q&A: How one travel shop competes with Web giants
Crain’s contributor Steve Hendershot asked Mr. Scharf how a small business like his can compete in an industry that’s increasingly dominated by giant dot-coms.
Crain’s: It’s got to be difficult to compete on price with the big online travel sites. So how do you provide value to your clients?
Howard Scharf: You’ve got to have a laser focus on service. People can point and click on their own. But a truly professional travel consultant is going to excel where the Internet fails consumers. That means really engaging clients to learn the reasons for their trip—why they’re thinking about the places they’re thinking about, and what they want to get from their vacation. If we’re careful, if we’re listening, we can really hone in on what people are driving for, and we’ll be able to deliver that every time.
When you go online, all the sites will say they’ve got the best beach, best restaurants, best nightlife. It’s our job to be source of unbiased advice, and with 62 people on our staff, we pretty much always have somebody who’s just been there and just done that. That’s really important, especially in this economy.
Hotels are hurting, cutting back on services and amenities, and we know where there’s trouble, where the good values are, and when to stay away.
And the biggest thing is that typically the Internet is not there to take your call when something goes wrong. One thing consultants excel at is problem solving, issue resolution.
Crain’s: Do clients understand that, or do you struggle to convince them that they can’t do the same job on their own?
HS: We had plenty of clients that, when the Internet came along, gave that a shot. The majority of them have come back, and the big reason is that it only takes one bad experience with a nameless, faceless portal for people to understand the real value of what we provide. For the same reasons, word-of-mouth marketing and referrals are a big part of how we reach new customers.
Also, there's a common misconception that the best deals are on the Internet. The fact is, travel consultants are professionals who are paid to know where the real values are. That's how we excel.
Crain's: If you emphasize service and a personal touch, as opposed to your Web competitors, how much do you try to incorporate the technology that they use?
HS: We don't focus on emulating the Internet. That hasn't been our MO. We haven't tried to be an overwhelming source of comments and user reviews and opinions that may be paid for by airline or hotel or cruise company.
But we do want to reach out to younger professionals who like to communicate in different ways, including on the Internet, so want to get our unbiased, expert information out there in those realms. So, for example, we have a new blog with content from our staff, based on their experiences and observations.
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