The Case of Morgane Trussardi (aka Little Gypsy), travel influencer, and Barbara Roussel of the agency Voyages Couture
Travel influencers have prescription power.
While they can report on destinations and inspire their audience to visit them, they also have direct contact and, by definition, the power to influence tens of thousands of people on a daily basis.
While agencies have long been wary of collaborating with this emerging profile, which could undermine their work as intermediaries between traveler and destination, more and more travel bloggers are now being sponsored by agencies to benefit from a spotlight.
One agency has gone a step further in influencer collaboration, pioneering the concept, Voyages Couture, a Marseille-based bespoke travel agency launched the first subscriber trip for travel blogger Little Gypsy‘s community in 2018.
Interview.
- Barbara, Morgane, how did you meet?
How did this project come about?
Barbara, Voyages Couture: Stanislas (of Travel Insight) put us in touch.
My basic idea was to promote Voyages Couture.
I’d done a first operation with influencers (a blogtrip) and I was up for a new operation.
I was already following Morgane, I liked her style, the fact that she wasn’t smooth, that she was different, very committed, and I loved her sense of humor.
First contact by phone, we were both up for a joint project.
Morgane had the idea of a trip with her subscribers.
We had to define our expectations, our desires… We met shortly afterwards, spent a great day together discussing the project but also our profiles, our backgrounds, and it was a great fit right from the start.
Morgane is my professional crush, a real love at first sight.
She’s a wonderful, wonderful person with a big heart.
Morgane, Little Gypsy: I’d had the idea for a long time of taking trips with my subscribers.
The agencies I proposed the idea to wanted to sell very expensive trips to my community to capitalize on the fact that they were traveling with me.
For example, I was offered 4500 euros for a trip to Thailand.
I respect and love my community far too much to propose such a price.
I’d given up on the idea until Travel Insight said to me one day: “Wouldn’t you like to travel with your subscribers? I can introduce you to an agency you’ll get on well with”.
It was Barbara, and from the very first call, it was love at first sight.
Same values, same desires, same ambitions!
- What did this community travel operation involve?
How did each of you get involved?
VC: The idea was to really stick to the journeys that had touched and marked Morgane, which are in a way her trademark!
So the programs were defined by Morgane, and I took care of the logistics and putting them online.
Then we validated everything together.
A real team effort.
And always in good spirits.
And Morgane went on to promote it to her community.
LG: I really wanted to pass on a journey, a passion and a country that I already knew.
I wanted them to experience with me what they’d already seen on video.
I was in charge of telling Barbara what I wanted them to discover, the activities, the cities, the places, etc. And Barbara took care of all the logistics, hotel bookings, the travel arrangements.
And Barbara would take care of all the logistics, booking hotels, planes, cars, and the total cost for each traveler.
Then we’d call each other and discuss it all together, and a few days later we’d come up with the travel package, including the itinerary and days on site.
- What are the success indicators for this operation?
VC: We weren’t expecting it!
The first night, the server crashed.
My site couldn’t handle that much activity!
It was a total flip, we were calling each other, we were super stressed.
We had to find solutions without delay.
Such was the success that there were even waiting lists.
We had to add a departure date for the trip to British Columbia scheduled for the first year.
Honestly, I didn’t expect it to be such a success.
Morgane made the announcement on a Saturday, and I spent Sunday sending out registration forms and answering everyone’s questions.
It was crazy!
LG: From the very first day of the announcement, the website crashed because so many people were logged on.
We also had all the sessions filled on every trip and people on the waiting list for the following year.
If I could, with the success of these trips, that’s all I’d do with Barbara!
- Why do you think it worked?
VC: The trips were really created in Morgane’s image.
I didn’t impose what would have suited me, or what I would have liked to emphasize.
And we really had the same values, the same final idea: to please, and to please ourselves in this sense!
We’ve stuck to her identity, and Morgane doesn’t cheat!
Her community finds itself in her, with her… In fact, the most successful of the “little bastards” trips have been the orca trips to Norway and British Columbia.
Because that’s clearly Morgane’s identity… We experience the trip with her, the encounter with the orcas… Our eyes light up just thinking about it.
I’d love to have taken part in one of the trips… But I live it every time with her.
She calls me, she cries, she screams, she sends me videos… And I cry too.
It’s very powerful every time.
Clearly, it’s a human adventure, not a marketing operation.
I remember Morgane telling me, “It’s also about giving a chance to people who don’t dare to travel alone, and who don’t want a traditional group trip.”
I’ve had parents call me to say “my daughter wants to go with Little Gypsy, is it safe, is it well organized?”.
It was different from anything I’d ever done before.
Completely different from a classic tailor-made trip like I’m used to.
LG: Because with Barbara, our main motivation was human.
We didn’t set out to inflate the prices of our trips in order to make a lot of money.
We wanted to make people happy through our shared passion, and keep it accessible.
Sometimes I’d be on the phone to Barbara in tears, telling her that our subscribers had managed to see the orcas, or that we’d experienced something or other.
Our understanding and the fact that we had the same expectations and values also played a big part.
It’s no longer a collaboration in my eyes, but a joint project with a friend today.
And I think you can feel that.
I also think that in the same way, I’ve always been authentic and sincere with my community, which makes them trust me and want to travel with me.
- What were your fears, and what are the limits of such an operation?
VC: At first, before the launch of the 1st edition, it was that it wasn’t really working.
We were in total limbo.
Then there was the difficulty of group travel, which is different from individual travel.
Everyone’s personalities…
Then I had a big scare about the trip to Norway.
10 people were going to swim with Orcas!
And then the big flip!
Okay, it’s all tied up, it’s all framed, but still!
LG: I was afraid I’d end up with people with whom things wouldn’t necessarily go well.
But in reality, out of the 7 trips, many became friends and only one trip went badly because of the personalities of certain people who pulled the group down.
So I’d say that the limit is unfortunately not being able to take everyone, and becoming selective so that the group can fully experience a trip in good spirits.
I was also afraid at first that I wouldn’t be able to lead a group of 10 people, because it’s a job after all, and you have to give a lot of energy.
But in the end I love doing it!
I’m lucky enough to have done other jobs, such as riding instructor, where leading groups was 90% of the job, so that soon came back to haunt me.
- You’ve already produced several editions. Are you planning to repeat the operation in the future?
Perhaps on other themes?
VC: A trip was planned for August, but flights and hotels are blocked, and with Covid-19, it’s a bit difficult to plan ahead.
I don’t think we’ll be changing themes… We did have a few slightly different ideas, but always in keeping with the idea of Morgane’s flagship trips.
We’ll talk about it again!
But yes, it’s still planned.
And there are quite a few requests on the subject!
LG: We’re going to continue, yes.
We were due to release a new edition in British Columbia with the orcas, but unfortunately the Covid has put everything on hold.
- Your final word: Travel agency and influencer, a marriage that lasts or a lightning marriage?
VC: With the same vision and shared desires, it’s bound to last!
I’d even say we’re growing together.
It was after meeting Morgane that I changed the direction of some of the trips I offered my customers.
It was then that I decided to review some of the services we had been offering up until then.
To give priority to services with a real ethic, and to refuse to offer tourist attractions that went totally against animal welfare.
And I’ll say it again, Morgane is my professional crush… So yes, I’ll make sure the wedding lasts a long time 😉
LG: If the agency reflects the influencer’s values and vice versa, it’s a marriage that lasts!
