TORONTO — For many travel advisors, the biggest challenge isn’t finding clients or closing sales – it’s finding enough hours in the day. Between managing bookings, fielding emails, handling invoicing and keeping up with ever-changing supplier updates, even the most organized advisor can feel like they’re constantly racing the clock.

But there’s hope – with firm boundaries in place, says Geraldine Ree, author of the best-selling book Flying Colors: The Travel Advisor’s Guide to Breakthrough, who served as the keynote speaker at Uniglobe Travel (Canada)’s annual conference last month in Saint-Sauveur, Quebec.

Addressing travel advisors in the room, she asked: “What’s your biggest roadblock? Time, time, time – I’ve literally heard it 10,000 times before. What you’re all doing as solopreneurs and individual and corporate advisors, and the volume you put through, is intense and incredible. But it’s incredibly important that we help advisors figure out how to do all that better, in less time.”

Ree’s keynote explored strategies for prioritization and efficiency, especially as advisors juggle a growing volume of clients, supplier updates and digital tools. “We get to decide. We block our time. We have to put up boundaries, and we have to leave time for deep, important work to grow our business.”

Ree encouraged advisors to narrow their focus to their most valuable relationships. “We’re going to shift to fewer, better, bolder customers,” she said. “We’re going to be really clear on who our 250 to 500 clients are — the ones that know, like and trust us.”

She stressed that efficiency isn’t about cutting corners but about recognizing which clients and activities generate the greatest return. Advisors, she noted, can’t afford to spend hours on “tire kickers” or “flight-only” requests that seldom lead to profitable bookings.

“The only way we can do this better in less time,” Ree said, “is if we learn to say no to the ones that are never going to turn into our ideal people. This isn’t about saying no to good business. It’s about asking better questions.”

Breaking the Busy Cycle

Ree challenged advisors to step away from busywork and focus on client connection. “Top performing advisors spend 75% of their time with customers — having conversations, selling, exploring, servicing,” she said. “The rest would rather do the work. We often hide in the busy.”

For many advisors, that “busy” often includes invoicing, document management or back-office tasks that eat into selling time. Ree urged attendees to delegate, automate or outsource where possible — and to use artificial intelligence tools to handle repetitive work. “You can use AI to do the heavy lifting,” she said. “Your clients need you to look them in the eye and say, ‘How can I serve you? What destination are you yearning to go to?’”

Tools That Save Time

For Shalene Dudley, owner of Latitude Concierge Travels in Oakville, Ontario, adopting the right technology has been key to saving time. “We are now using Tern as our CRM and it integrates many tasks and helps avoid simple errors,” she said. “ChatGPT Pro has been amazing for task management, sending communications and organizing social media.”

Dudley admits that while she sometimes feels overwhelmed – especially after returning from trips to find hundreds of unread emails – automation has helped her reclaim hours in her week. By integrating CRM functions and AI tools, her team now handles routine communications and administrative work more efficiently.

In Toronto, Lou-Anne Fradsham, owner and travel advisor, shared that delegation was essential as her agency grew. “I had to start delegating – since we are growing, I had to make some drastic changes,” she said. Fradsham hired a part-time social media specialist who now assists with onboarding new independent contractors and managing daily tasks. “She has been a godsend,” Fradsham added. “She’s now working on an onboarding program for new ICs, which will save a lot of time when I sign on new agents.”

After two years of research, Fradsham also introduced a new web-based accounting system in October. “The ICs are loving it – it saves them a lot of time. I love it also for how easy things are to change,” she said. “Now we are looking at some of the AI programs to see what will work best for our agency.”

Tech for Better Client Management

For advisors balancing client service and admin work, automation tools can be game changers. Carla Moore, a travel advisor with Envoyage in Halifax, said automation has made a major difference in her ability to manage details during busy seasons. “I rely on tools that automate reminders and help maintain clear communication across platforms,” she said. “Using Outlook and Travefy, I can set automatic alerts for upcoming payments, documentation deadlines and itinerary updates.”

These systems, Moore explained, reduce back-and-forth communication by keeping clients informed and organized. “Travefy offers excellent time-saving features that streamline itinerary management and client updates, allowing me to focus more on delivering a personalized travel experience.”

In Vancouver, Jonathan Arden, an experienced travel manager and agency owner with Envoyage, said combining third-party apps with his GDS platform has transformed how he presents information to clients. “I use Trip Proposal, which formats flight, hotel and car options into a clear, easy-to-read layout,” he said. “I also use Travefy, which lets me build attractive, interactive quotes and itineraries while keeping communication organized in one place.”

Arden also uses Asana for task management. “It acts like a secondary calendar that keeps me on top of what needs to get done each day,” he said. “These tools have really helped streamline my workflow, but I think it’s all about finding what systems and apps work best for your own style and process.”

The Freedom to Focus

The overarching message from Ree’s keynote and the advisors’ experiences is clear: efficiency doesn’t come from working faster – it comes from working smarter. That means delegating non-core tasks and embracing technology that supports productivity to free up room for what advisors do best – engage one on one with their clients.

As Ree put it, “Your clients are starving for attention. They’re starving for you to care that they came back from their trip and where you’re going to go next.”