We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Andrea Augwe a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Andrea, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Do you wish you had started you own firm sooner?

I started my business in 2019 after a conversation with someone in the travel industry. At the time I had been a stay at home mom homeschooling my son. He was about to enter middle school and spending more time on campus. For me that meant more time to get back to business. Prior to homeschooling, I was a teacher. I had taught elementary school and once my son came along, I switched to early education so that I could be on the same schedule as him.

After college I worked in corporate travel, which I honestly did not love. Fast forward to homeschool years and travel became a way of educating outside of textbooks. My love of travel grew exponentially during this time. When the opportunity to go back into travel on the leisure side presented itself, I was excited to move forward.

Since 2019 I have pivoted in my focus. The pandemic gave me time to complete certifications I might not have had to do otherwise, or at least not in such a timely manner. I completed two certifications between the spring of 2020 and 2022. Luxury Travel Certification and Group Travel Certifications. I also decided to narrow down my travel options with a focus on small ship cruises. I enjoy working with travelers who enjoy destinations for the in-depth knowledge they can experience. From culture and history, learning while traveling and working with those like minded travelers excite me.

If I could go back, I would have stayed in travel since my early post graduate days. By now I would have greater knowledge and experience. I would also have a larger client base. However, I would never have become a teacher and found my niche as a result. Typically I am not one to look back and think “what if?” My life experience brought me to where I am today, and as a result I do believe this is where I am supposed to be.

Andrea, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

The service I provide is customized travel planning. In taking the time to get to know the travelers I can research, plan and book based on their needs. There is no one size fits all travel. I provide every travel related detail so that they can show up and enjoy their vacation. From booking flights, transfers, accommodations, cruises, tours, and more, the client can be assured that I will book items that meet their expectations and suggest options they might not be aware of. I am their point of contact from the time we begin working together until they are back home from travel. They never need to provide a reservation number when they call. Before they travel we have a pre-travel call to go over all the details, and after they return home an optional post-travel recap is offered.

From our first Zoom meeting through travel, my clients know that they can reach out to me and receive high level service. I have had clients tell me that I am the only one who sent them a birthday card! I believe it is important to nurture the relationship throughout the year, even when they are not in the process of planning travel. I have clients who I just call to check in with and see how they are doing. Many clients have become friends in the process.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

I use multiple ways of keeping in touch with my clients. A weekly travel inspirational email goes out to both clients and subscribers. This is an educational and inspirational email, I try to provide value and let them get to know me in the process.

Those who are current/past clients receive birthday, anniversary and sometimes get well cards if I am aware. I had write these and try to match the card to the client.

I send hand-written thank you cards to clients when they return home from travel.

My consortia also offer branded emails and mailers, I don’t use these often as the focus is often on suppliers. I prefer to focus on the clients’ needs, not promoting specific brands.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Since I am a solopreneur, I don’t have a lot of capital…yet. Therefore, I don’t have a big marketing budget like other travel agencies may. I have slowly acquired clients and have spent time nurturing our relationship. A handful of those clients have referred other clients to me, which has helped me continue to grow my business. A referral program is in place that I make my clients aware of. They earn referral rewards when one of their referrals books through me (after travel is completed and with certain guidelines).

I also do a lot of networking and belong to some networking groups. This is essential in meeting other business owners and lifting each other up on our journey.

Recently I began reaching out to businesses that might be good collaborators (for example, an event planner).

It is important to think outside the box in any industry.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.vacationsbyandrea.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/andreaaugertravel
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrealynnauger
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-auger-297a2494
• Other: Spotify: Cruise Explorers with Vacations by Andrea