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5 THINGS TRAVEL AGENTS NOTICE ABOUT CUSTOMERS WHEN THEY FIRST WALK IN THE STORE...

Travel Agents are a perceptive bunch, keenly aware of all those little details and adjustments to the body that speak volumes about just what type of customer has just sat down in the seat before them.

Travel Agents are a perceptive bunch, keenly aware of all those little details and adjustments to the body that speak volumes about just what type of customer has just sat down in the seat before them.

Call it Travel Agent smarts, call it instinct, call it whatever you like, but there’s just no denying that agents are able to notice things about customers that non-agents fail to see. (They’re experts at reading another agent’s body language, too.)

Here are five things that Travel Agents first notice about a customer as soon as they walk into the store…

 

1. ARE THEY LOOKING AT THEM IN THE EYE?

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One of the first things agents register when someone new sits down in front of them is whether that man or woman is looking them directly in the eye.

Direct eye contact is absolutely necessary to building rapport, and so you’ll find many a Travel Agent holding strong eye contact with their potential customers and expecting it back in return.

 

2. DO THEY SMILE?

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Smiling is one of the first body language cues that agents look for when dealing with someone for the first time, as they understand that smiling is vital to building rapport and earning the person’s business.

After all, smiling is the social lubricant that helps ensure that the consultation ends up being enjoyable for both the Travel Agent and the customer

 

3. DO THEY KEEP FIDGETING?

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Fidgeting customers are usually prone to anxiety and bouts of impatience, which Travel Agents definitely notice and can in fact use to help lock in the flight, justified by the real possibility of the flight price going up or tour getting booked out.

Experienced agents also end up learning that fidgety clients are often more likely to flake on them too…

 

4. ARE THEY ALWAYS LOOKING AT THEIR PHONE?

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Travel Agents are also keenly aware just how many times a customer keeps checking their phone, and they continually monitor the person’s phone checking habits all throughout the consultation.

This is because customers that continually glance at their phones are usually searching Skyscanner or sending quotes to other agents to try and get the best price possible on their flights. Knowing this helps the agent know the best time to go over their price beat policy…

 

5. DO THEY KEEP CHECKING THE TIME?

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Apart from monitoring the number of times a customer checks their phone, Travel Agents also notice if they keep looking at their watches.

People that walk into a travel agency and keep checking their watches are either time-poor movers and shakers with deep pockets and luxurious travel plans, or just bored mums or dads killing time before picking the kids up.

Unfortunately it takes experience to tell which is which, but with time, you’ll be able to pick them out a mile away!

What do you first notice about a customer when they walk through the door? Tell us all about your observations in the comments below…