How to Turn Client Feedback Into Your Best Marketing Tool
Blog Overview: Most travel advisors collect feedback but rarely use it strategically. In this post, I review why the right questions matter, what to listen for, and how to turn client insights into language that does the selling for you so your fee stops feeling like something you have to justify and your process becomes rock solid.
If you've ever had a potential client say:
‘I can book this myself.’
’What exactly does your fee cover?’
’Why would I pay for planning?'
You're not alone — and you're not doing anything wrong.
Here’s what often gets missed: Fee resistance is rarely about the price at all; it's almost always about clarity.
When clients don't fully understand what makes working with you different, they default to comparing you to what they do understand — booking engines, Google, and DIY research.
That comparison usually happens long before you ever get on a call.
Which means this isn't a pricing problem. It's a positioning one.
The Gap Between What You Do and What Clients Actually Value
Most travel advisors describe their services from the inside out (because you know them well).
They talk about:
destinations and itineraries
supplier relationships
logistics and coordination
years of experience
All of that matters. But it's not how clients decide whether your fee feels worth it to them.
Clients decide based on things like:
how supported they felt
how much stress they didn't have to manage
what went smoother than expected
and what they would never want to handle themselves again
That's the value — and it often goes unstated.
Here's what gets overlooked in all of this: Design doesn't create clarity. It amplifies it.
If your positioning and messaging aren't clear, a website can look beautiful and still struggle to convert, still attract the wrong inquiries, and still leave you defending your fees.
That's why positioning has to come first — before the visuals, before the copy, before anything else.
PS. This is also why I partner with Smeuse Studio for clients who need creative direction
If you’re struggling to attract clients that value the work you do, will pay your planning fee, respect your time, and feel aligned with your business, you might need (new) branding. A visual identity (logos, colours, typography) that actually reflects the level of service you provide and speaks to those people provides the foundation needed.
Once it's solid (just like your home foundation), a website can do real work (the design) to make it feel representative of you. Without it, even a beautiful website won't close the gap between people teetering on the precipice of reaching out. Your expertise and professionalism can speak before clients even reach out, so you want to set the expectation of value.
Amandolin (the creative genius behind Smeuse Studio) offers a One Day Brand package that's perfect for Travel Advisors who need professional branding but aren't ready to drop high four or five figures on a full custom process. This is a semi-custom design, which means you get all the polish and strategy of high-end branding, but with way less time and budget commitment. You can use the visual branding on socials, email marketing, and your website - when you’re ready for it!
Here's what makes this package perfect for Travel Advisors:
Done in ONE DAY – Seriously. You choose your brand style, collaborate in real-time via Slack, and walk away with a complete brand identity by the next day.
Semi-custom means strategic – You're not getting a generic template. Amandolin creates elevated, flexible brand identities that feel uniquely yours based on her stylish designs. Only five of each style are ever sold, so you're not showing up looking like everyone else.
Everything you actually need – Logo suite (primary, alternate, submarks), curated fonts and colour palette, brand guidelines, final files in every format, a walkthrough video, plus launch graphics to announce your rebrand.
Payment plans available – You can pay in full or split it into three monthly payments, making it totally doable even if cash flow is tight right now.
The vibe? Refined, elevated, and strategic—exactly what you need to charge those service fees with confidence. Check ‘em out below.
Ready for your brand to feel as elevated as the service you provide?
Head to Smeuse Studio's One Day Brand, check out the available styles, and when you reach out, mention Lara at Birch & Bud Design Co. sent you or enter BIRCH&BUD on your invoice to save $100 USD off her design services! She's insanely talented and will (re)design a brand that finally matches the calibre of expertise you offer.
Your Best Positioning Is Already in Your Client Feedback
Post-trip feedback is one of the most underused tools advisors have, and not because it isn't collected, but because it's rarely mined for meaning.
The problem isn't that clients don't have insights to share. It's that most advisors ask vague questions or rely on rating only (1 out of 5 style).
When you ask, 'How was your trip?' you get 'Great!'
When you ask, 'What surprised you about working with me?' or 'At any point did you think, ‘I'm so glad I didn't plan this myself’, that's when the real and valuable language emerges.
TL;DR Head to the bottom of this email to grab my Post Trip Feedback Framework if you need help forming questions that extract better feedback from clients.
If you’re already receiving helpful feedback, here’s what you might not be unearthing:
-
This tells you:
clients value decision-fatigue relief
your role is about filtering and judgment, not just booking
your fee protects their time and mental bandwidth
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This tells you:
trust is a core benefit
your service creates confidence, not just convenience
this directly supports a planning fee
-
This tells you:
advocacy matters more than perks
your value extends beyond the booking moment
clients don't want to problem-solve while travelling
None of this is generic, like:
‘The hotel was amazing.’
And that's exactly why it matters.
Why ‘Everything Was Great’ Isn’t the End of the Story
Surface-level feedback usually means the right questions weren't asked.
When clients are prompted to reflect on:
what they were worried about before working with you
what surprised them during the process
what felt most supportive or valuable
You get insight that does more than affirm your work. You get language that future clients recognize themselves in.
Timing matters too. The best feedback comes 2–5 days after clients return — after they've unpacked but before daily life takes over completely. And the format you use shapes what you get back.
Open-ended questions produce the testimonial language you can actually use in website copy, marketing copy (emails, socials, ads) and in review shaping. Multiple choice helps you spot patterns quickly. Mix the formats, and you'll get both.
That language is what:
can improve your process
softens fee conversations
supports your pricing without defensiveness
and makes your website work harder before someone ever reaches out
Where Most Advisors Get Stuck
Many advisors have the insight but don't know how to translate it.
They struggle to:
explain their value clearly
talk about fees without over-explaining
reflect what makes them different on their website
That's not a lack of expertise. Its proximity.
It's hard to see your own business clearly when you're inside it every day. Viewing what you offer from your customer’s perspective adds another lens to gather more intel.
When positioning is solid, design and messaging can do their work. When it isn't, no amount of beautiful visuals or well-written copy will close the gap.
Why I Created the Post-Trip Feedback Framework
Getting great feedback isn't about asking more questions; it's about asking the right ones in the right way.
After years as a travel advisor and team lead, and now as a web designer gathering copy from TAs, I see the same pattern over and over: incredible service, but advisors struggling to collect the language that actually supports their value.
The Post-Trip Feedback Framework was built to solve this. It's a system — not just a list of questions — designed to help you ask in ways that uncover what clients actually value, spot patterns across your trips, and collect language that does the selling for you.
Because when your positioning is clear, your fee stops feeling like something you have to justify. That's where everything shifts.
It's not meant to be used all at once. It's something you can return to — especially when your website or positioning feels harder to explain than it should.
Here's where to start:
Download the framework and begin with the questions that resonate most with where your business is now. You don't need to use all of them, just the ones that matter to your growth.
Refine your service, strengthen your positioning, and build trust with future clients
If your feedback process feels inconsistent, awkward, or underused — you’re not alone. I created this free resource to help travel advisors ask better questions, get more meaningful responses, and turn client insight into something useful: clearer messaging, stronger referrals, and real trust.
P.S. If you're DIYing your website and trying to gain some clarity on what to do next and how to actually say all of this, Squarestylist’s AI Copy Spark is a helpful tool designed to help you move beyond generic descriptions and start writing from a place of clarity. Check it out if you need a starting point for the copy!
Prefer a Strategy Session? Pick my Brain for an hour to gain clarity on your next steps in your business or the flow of your website before getting in too deep.
At Birch & Bud Design Co., I understand the heart and soul you put into your work. Your website should be a reflection of that passion, a space where your clients can see the care and thoughtfulness you bring to your role.
If you’re ready to invest in a website that truly represents your brand, I’m here to help!
