Well, what a past six months this has been. To have chosen travel as my career of choice may not have appeared to be the best move during a global pandemic. But as we tip-toe into the light ? battered, bruised and bleary eyed ? there are plenty of things to hold onto.
After the initial shock and awe of March and April, things have settled down. It has made me appreciate things that I?will take with me into the coming years. It has made me focus my mind on the suppliers I use, with my own little black book created for those who played fast and loose with the rules. But mainly those that helped and did the right thing. It has made me value the relationships I have with my clients, and reaffirmed the ones I?don?t want to deal with. It has proved the value of personal touch ??I?drove down to Heathrow from Leeds to pick up my stranded clients in April.
I?ve been available 24/7 to my clients throughout and have fought through phone waiting times, website chat boxes and constantly changing rules to be able to help, care and be able to give my clients the best advice.
I?don?t feel as if this has been replicated by all in the trade, some have chosen to hide behind websites and leave their customers high and dry. You only have to look at recent Trustpilot scores for some big industry names to see the effect that COVID-19, and their responses, have had on their customers.
My hope is, certainly in the short-term and into the future, that clients remember this. I hope that they remember the value that a professional can bring to their holiday, trip or adventure. My hope is that they remember the lengths that were undertaken from those of us who truly care about their customers and what they have gone through in these toughest of times. It might take a while, and there will be plenty of bumps in the road along the way, but we will get there, and those who have done the right thing will hopefully get their reward.
