How agents can enter travel awards – and make the most of winning

Being a great agency can often be just one part of the journey to awards success: winning businesses are also good at submitting strong applications and maximising publicity afterwards. 

The year started very well for Justin Huxter, co-founder of Cartology Travel. He won Luxury Travel Designer of the Year in the TTG Luxury Travel Awards in February and was also ranked by Conde Nast Traveller as an Africa travel specialist. 

He runs the business with his wife and between them, they take a reverse approach to completing awards applications. “We try to figure out what points we want to get across and how we frame that in a way that answers the questions,” he says. “We try to dial up the stuff we do differently.” 

Editing is also important. The couple let a completed entry form “stew” before returning to “craft and refine” it a few days later, making sure their answers are clear and avoid repetition. Cartology’s homeworkers may be the next focus for awards attempts, as Huxter believes by concentrating on one aspect of the business a year he avoids submitting conflicting applications. 

Thorne Travel scooped Top Agency in Scotland in this year’s TTG Top 50 awards and has also won local business accolades. Director Shona Thorne says having something new to talk about helps. “You have to evolve every year anyway, looking for the next big thing, not only to keep your regular customers but to attract new ones.” 

In fact, the agency looks beyond travel to seek inspiration – that could be brands like Mercedes, or to the wedding industry and Instagram. 

Thorne says she also makes a social occasion of the application, with the whole team chipping in. “We get some food and drink delivered and bash it out,” she explains. This rough draft is then polished before submission. 

Memory matters 

Thorne admits trying to remember the past 12 months’ successes can be “extremely daunting”. She advises: “Start to keep a tally of things that you’re doing, such as innovations, and get your team to do the same. That will start them thinking about new innovations too.” 

This year, The Cruise Line won Luxury Cruise Agency of the Year in the TTG Luxury Travel Awards at the first time of entering. Managing director David Smith says having to focus on the previous year alone was tricky but highlighted things such as the agency’s new internal Green Report on cruise lines. 

He found the application process itself invaluable: “It probably tells you more about your business in a short space of time than you’re actually aware of. The real benefit, besides winning the award, is realising where there are gaps. That then gives you the motivation to go and fix those things.” 

For The Cruise Line, this resulted in creating extra touch points in its customer service, which is a win-win in itself. 

Publicity perks 

Photos from the TTG Top 50 awards ceremony in Birmingham are prominently displayed at Thorne Travel. The agency also broadcasts its win at its twice-yearly parties for its most regular customers and on social media and in client newsletters. Meanwhile, its press releases even garnered publicity in Scottish national the Daily Record. 

“We build relationships with all the newspapers throughout the year,” Thorne explains. As a result, one new customer travelled from Aberdeen to meet the team in Kilwinning and now regularly books by phone. 

Cartology employs a PR agency on a contract basis to amplify the business’s successes in the media, but Huxter believes his TTG Luxury win was most valuable in raising his profile within the industry. “Even a lot of suppliers we hadn’t dealt with before reached out to congratulate us and we had a chat.” It’s something he now foregrounds when making connections. 

Local media coverage has been a boon for The Cruise Line. It also added the accolade to its website and office front. Smith says new business is doing “extremely well” thanks to “a bit of a halo effect”. In particular, he believes having the award in email signatures is a valuable affirmation of trustworthiness when sending quotes to new clients. 

He’s now buoyed up to enter other awards too, saying: “We don’t want it to be something we did once 10 years ago.” 

5 ways to... make the most of awards 

• Record it 
  Recalling what you’ve done all year can be time-consuming and you might miss something. Create an ongoing spreadsheet staff can access to log achievements. 
  
  
• Provide proof 
  Give examples of your good work – judges will always want to see exactly what you have achieved and the impact of the measures and activities you’ve done. 
  
  
• Plan ahead 
  Use upcoming awards as an impetus for planning innovations – it’s also a good way to drive projects forward, thinking of how the conclusions can be used in the entry. 
  
  
• Release ready 
  Ask awards organisers for template press releases (with logos and other collateral) to adapt after wins. Initially becoming a finalist can be used as a marketing push. 
  
  
• Party time
  Keep your award front of clients’ minds by throwing a “thank you” event – never be shy to share your successes and remind them of the qualities that earned you the win.