Your agency sells more than trips. It sells expertise, confidence, personal service and memorable experiences. Email helps customers recognise that value before, during and after their journey — from the first enquiry to the next booking.
All MarketingManus tools are free. No account required.
Selling travel is different from selling most products:
Email supports each of these moments. It does not replace personal conversations, your booking system or your CRM — it keeps you present and helpful in between.
Many people enquire weeks or months before they are ready to commit. A short, helpful follow-up keeps your agency in the conversation while they decide.
Example: Two days after a Japan enquiry: “Three questions most travellers ask before booking Japan in spring” — covering crowds, rail passes and how far ahead to plan.
Why it works: It answers real hesitations and shows expertise instead of asking for a decision.
After you send an itinerary or quote, silence is normal. A thoughtful follow-up helps the customer decide without pressure.
Example: “I’ve kept your Amalfi itinerary on hold. Would it help if I showed a version with one fewer hotel move, or a lower-budget alternative?”
Why it works: It offers options that remove friction (budget, pace, dates) rather than repeating the sales pitch.
Read the guide: how to follow up on travel quotes →Send destination or trip-type offers only to people who have shown that interest: cruise fans, families planning school holidays, winter-sun couples.
Example: A river-cruise departure announcement sent only to past cruise customers and cruise enquirers.
Why it works: Fewer, better-targeted promotions protect trust and keep unsubscribes low.
Previous destinations, trip types and the time of year someone usually travels are strong signals for what to suggest next.
Example: A family who booked a summer villa last year receives early ideas for next summer in the autumn — with two options matched to their children’s ages.
Why it works: It feels like personal service, not mass marketing.
Useful updates — practical preparation tips, new routes, destination insights from your team — keep your agency familiar without constant selling.
Example: A quarterly “What we’re recommending this season” email written by your advisors.
Why it works: Customers remember who helped them, not who emailed most.
A week after customers return, ask how the trip went, invite honest feedback and make it easy to recommend you.
Example: “Welcome home! What was the highlight — and is there anything we could have done better?” with an optional review link.
Why it works: Honest feedback improves your service, and happy customers are your most credible marketing.
Travel is a trust-heavy purchase. Customers are not only buying flights and hotels; they rely on your judgment, experience, service and ability to solve problems when plans change.
A specialist agency should make clear what it stands for, whom it serves and what it knows exceptionally well. Illustrative examples: tailor-made family adventures, expert cruise planning, luxury and special-occasion travel, small-group cultural journeys, or accessible travel. Not every agency needs one of these — but every agency benefits from a clear answer to “why you, and not a booking platform?”.
A consistent tone of voice, useful advice and relevant messages help customers remember and trust your agency. A list people joined voluntarily is a direct channel that is less dependent on social media algorithms — alongside your other channels, not instead of them.
AI assistants increasingly help people research destinations and narrow down options. In that environment, a clear identity, credible expertise, consistent public information, useful content and a strong reputation matter more. Email strengthens loyalty and brand familiarity among your customers; it does not directly influence whether an AI system recommends you. Treat those as two separate goals.
Practical takeaway: use automation to save time, but make your expertise and personal service more visible — not less.
| Campaign | When to send it | Example content | Business objective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enquiry follow-up | 1–3 days after an enquiry | Answers to common questions about the destination | Keep the conversation going |
| Proposal follow-up | 3–5 days after sending a quote | Offer to adjust budget, dates or pace | Turn proposals into bookings |
| Destination campaign | When a relevant departure or offer appears | Specialist trip, aimed at interested segment | Qualified enquiries |
| Seasonal promotion | At the start of the relevant booking window | Winter sun, school holidays, cruise season | Timely enquiries |
| Pre-departure information | 2–4 weeks before departure | Practical tips, packing, local insights | Reassurance and service |
| Post-trip feedback | About a week after return | How was the trip? Optional review link | Reviews and improvement |
| Repeat-booking campaign | Before the customer’s usual planning time | Ideas matched to past trips | Repeat bookings |
| Referral request | After positive feedback | Simple way to recommend the agency | New customers via referrals |
Timings are starting points; adjust them to your trip types and booking process.
Use information you legitimately hold: preferred destinations, trip type (cruise, adventure, cultural, luxury, beach), family/couple/solo/group travel, past bookings and — where known and appropriate — their usual planning horizon. Smaller, relevant audiences usually beat sending every offer to everyone.
“Algarve villas with pools for the summer holidays — short transfers and kid-friendly beaches.”
“A quiet autumn week in the Douro Valley: wine estates, river views and boutique stays.”
Respect privacy: collect only what you need, get appropriate consent for marketing emails, make unsubscribing easy and follow the email marketing rules that apply where you and your customers are. Avoid collecting unnecessary sensitive information.
Booking confirmations, payment notices and operational travel updates often belong in your booking or reservation system, not in a marketing tool. An email marketing platform is not a replacement for booking software or a full CRM. Keep a human in the loop for high-value, complex or sensitive situations.
Map out a year of enquiry, seasonal and repeat-booking campaigns for your agency.
Turn a few notes from your advisors into a clear seasonal update for past customers.
Find relationship-building topics for the months between trips.
Write calm, specific subject lines for proposal follow-ups and destination offers.
Track which campaigns lead to enquiry-form visits and booking requests.
MailerLite is one option for managing subscribers, creating campaigns and setting up simple automations such as post-trip feedback emails. For a small agency, its value lies in segmenting customers by interest and sending relevant campaigns without a large team. Features vary by plan, so check what your plan includes. New to it? Read our MailerLite starter guide.
Choose one customer segment — for example past cruise customers — and plan one genuinely relevant campaign for them. Useful, relevant communication is worth more than simply sending more emails.
Plan My First Campaign