Sea Dragon Charters - Vancouver, B.C.
Kevin and his wife Jan have been running scuba dive charters for over 35 years. They first opened up shop in Winnipeg, Manitoba with The International Dive Center. Chasing the sun, Kevin and Jan moved down south to start Blue Adventures Florida. Now in Vancouver, Canada, Sea Dragon Charters is one of the top rated diving outfitters in the Lower Mainland.
Kevin and Jan have been taking clients into the waters of the Howe Sound for nearly 17 years, making them one of the longest standing scuba diving charter operations in BC. Sea Dragon Charters is also the only diving outfitter that owns its own dive boat, which means that tens of other outfitters rely on Kevin, Jan, and the Sea Dragon Charters team to bring them and their clients out to open waters.
Before Adventure Bucket List
Kevin has always handled reservations the old fashioned way, over the phone. "I was old school. I enjoyed talking to people on the phone. I liked being able to judge people’s abilities by the tones in their voice.” But it was clear that some things were slipping through the cracks. "When customers call, they may not have a voice on the other end of the phone when they needed it. We played phone tag a lot, which was frustrating for our customers”.
Moving to online reservations
When a staff member insisted Kevin look into online booking, he was surprised with what he learned. "The more I investigated, the more I realized online booking was something that customers really wanted, especially young customers”. Every other aspect of travel: flights, hotels, and car rentals are all automated. The amount of time and effort it takes travelers to book activities is a major pain point for them. That is why tour operators using online booking systems see such high adoption rates from their customers. Kevin has experienced this now first hand.
"When they see book-now, they know that they can book our excursions months in advance. It’s great for them to know they have pre-planned part of their holiday.”
Tour operators with repeat clientele most commonly believe that online booking is not necessary for their business. Kevin points out that this, in fact, is not actually the case. "Our repeat clients actually tell us that they love being able to book online. They no longer need to ask when our trips are going out or if they are available. They like knowing that we have received our money and that we know their requirements ahead of time for the trip.”
The AGENDA Experience
"The best part of dealing with adventure bucket list is that they very interactive with us. They call us frequently to check in on us and ask for our feedback so that we can offer the best possible programs to our customers. We love that the reservation system keeps track of what is going on for us, both on the boat and in the shop".
With the increasing number of tourists to the Vancouver area, Sea Dragon Charters has started offering kayak and snorkel adventures that take guests up the inlet to admire vibrant marine life. The success of this new arm of their business has been outstanding. "We expect our bookings to explode in the coming year. We are looking forward to using Adventure Bucket List as we grow”.