Becoming a Homebased Travel Agent

Back to Blogging

2011-10-15T23:08:00.000-06:00

I had taken time off from blogging mainly because I just had twins in May. When I first started my agency I had just had my son who is now almost 15 years old. Now having my twins, I am remembering how I had to balance work and a baby. The main difference was I was trying to build a business back then and now I am trying to manage the agency since it has grown so much in 15 years.

I am very fortunate to have many great people involved in my agency now. I no longer shoulder the full load but have great people who work for the agency. I can now get help when I need it and am not so stressed about getting in as much hours as I did when I first started out.

Many people have asked me how the business is doing. So many people are surprised when I tell them we have had the best year so far this year. Our business with suppliers is up 38%. We have met sales goals we have never made before and suppliers are now calling us to make arrangements for our commission % for 2012.

I think our agents are really getting out there and getting business which is so awesome! The truth is only you can make your business succeed. So many people think it will just come to them but if you are not out there working at it, you aren't going to make it.

Tonight I spent hours just trying to get our website into better position on the search engines. I am hoping when people look for information on our agency they find websites like this blog and feel they get to know what we are all about.

I hope to blog much more now and try to help anyone I can who is interested in becoming a homebased travel agent.

Travel is picking up!

2011-01-27T13:39:00.000-07:00

For those wondering if travel is still a business that is profitable, I can say that travel is definitely picking up. We have seen a big increase in our sales and people seem to be traveling more than they have been the last year or so.

What does that mean to you as a homebased travel agent? It means there are more and more people out there who are looking for a professional to help them plan that trip. As a travel agent you will have the ability to look at the client's options. You won't be pushing one particular thing like many websites do.

Say someone wants to go to Disneyland. Now they might go to Disney's website and look for pricing. If you can help that same person, you will more than likely get them a better deal using another supplier. Sometimes Disney has specials that are the best pricing but many times you can put together a package using different suppliers to get your clients a better price.

People are busy. They want someone to help when they can. If it doesn't cost the client anything to use you and you can actually SAVE them money.. you will have a client for a lifetime. I know I love when I get to have the groomer give my dog a bath and I don't have to do it! A travel agent provides a service to those needing or wanting to travel.

Now is a great time to start that new business as a homebased travel agent!

Jennifer Dugan

Crazy people!

2010-02-23T13:53:00.000-07:00

Have you ever seen Jim Cramer's rant "They're Nuts! They know nothing!" on CNBC? There are days I feel I am channeling that in my head.

Don't get me wrong, the internet has allowed me to have connections with people all over the place and most people I have met are great people. But then there are the days when it seems everyone I deal with is crazy. It isn't completely true because I answer usually 60 or so emails a day and not all of them are from people who seem nuts. But I usually have a few that I wonder if I am crazy myself for being in business.

Over the past day I have had one person email me over 30 times. She was upset and she felt the need to lash out on me. She doesn't know me. Doesn't know anything about me personally but I ruffled her feathers and she began emailing me hate email. I always am amazed that there are people so angry at the world to lash out at complete strangers.

Then I get people who don't seem to realize the importance of having a business or don't take it seriously. They want to make extra money but don't want to put in the work it requires. They don't want to complete training or follow up with a client. They don't understand that it is important to take it seriously and follow procedures. It isn't something that you can take lightly. You are on the hook and have to make sure you take care of your clients and cover yourself against issues.

Agents email me all the time with strange stories and crazy customers. I wish I had the perfect advice for those who have to deal with someone who really does seem "off balance". I question would people who send hateful crazy emails be the same in person? Are they the same people who in the grocery line attack the check out person because their bag of apples rings up for .15 more than they expected.

I guess all I can say is "they're nuts!"

Fun ideas to promote your business

2010-02-19T09:30:00.000-07:00

You can have fun while promoting your travel agency. Above is a picture of the float we did in the light parade for Christmas. I rode on the back in a bikini and it was snowing! We took 2nd place. It was a fun time and it really promoted the agency.

Your local chamber of commerce can help you find out what you can participate in to get your business name out there.

We also have a movie ad at the local theater. You can see it at http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1138202728210&subj=1021631919

Your local newspaper also can be a great source of ways to get your name out there. If you can develop a relationship with someone at the paper who does the ads, he or she can inform you when there is special editions or low cost advertising opportunities.

Keep in fun and remember to promote yourself so that everyone knows your name!

Search engines and getting links

2010-02-08T22:54:00.000-07:00

One thing I tend to do late at night is find places to get my websites listed. Although it can be very time consuming and boring, I have found it an important part of having a business. I find as many places as I can to get links to http://www.travelathome.com/ and http://www.duganstravels.net/

It is amazing how many places you can get listed if you spend a couple of hours each week just submitting to websites. It was easier back before people really began charging for listing. I was on many at home work websites but now to get listed it costs alot more money. I think this is because so many of the MLM's are willing to pay big bucks for a link or two.

It is also important to realize that you will get dropped if you don't submit on a regular basis. So be sure to put some time into finding places to submit your website. If you spend the money to have one, you should make sure people are viewing it.

Are there places you recommend for submitting websites? I would love to hear!

Jennifer Dugan

Is there business out there?

2010-01-18T11:40:00.000-07:00

Agents can get very frustrated about finding customers. I can relate to this because when I started out, I had no idea how to get customers. I knew travel but I worked in a storefront agency so clients just showed up or were already customers of the agency. I didn't have to try to get my own customers like I did when I started my own travel agency.

Friends and family really are the place to start. Don't feel frustrated when your own family books elsewhere. Sound crazy? No it happens all the time. I still to this day have family members who do not use my travel agency. But they sure do call when something gets messed up by some online travel website and they are stranded with no help. The best thing is I can tell them, I am sorry since I didn't book it, I have no control to help you. Sometimes this is all it takes for someone to get the importance of having a good travel agent.

For the friends and family who do want to help you, they will give your name out to those they know. So don't be afraid to ask for those referrals. Make sure friends and family have a few business cards. Ask them to put a card on their refrigerator at home so when they have guests they see it.

This business is a personalized business. People like to get referred to you by someone they know. A great tool is to do photo albums for your clients. This way when they come back and want to show people their pictures, they will not only show the wonderful moments of their vacation you helped them with but also your name will be displayed to associate the wonderful trip with. Here is a place you can get photo albums for your business http://www.cruisealbums.com/

Go the extra mile for your customers. Do you think a travel website (won't mention names) will provide the personalized service you can provide? No way. You are a human being who cares about your customers. That means if you just take the time to go the extra mile for your customers, you will be their travel agent for life. And they can send you countless new clients who will then send you more and more clients. Build from it.

So instead of worry about the number of clients you have today, find ways to get a few new customers and spoil them. Then continue on this path until you need to hire someone to help you spoil clients!

You can do it.. just think of ways you would want to be treated and go above and beyond for your customers. It will come to you if you just get out there and start marketing yourself.

Are you really committed to being successful?

2010-01-12T13:38:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately what I see time after time is people who join our agency and then do not realize the amount of work a business will require. You have to commit so much of your time and energy to your business. If you do not promote yourself, no one will. That might mean late hours at night trying to find ways to get your business name out so people can see it.

When I first started my agency there were several in town. I had to compete against storefront agencies as well as the bigger chain type agencies. I had the local paper do a story on my business to show the difference between my agency and another agency. The paper took a picture and wrote about my desire to be a work at home mom. People began calling just to help my business out.

Most people want to help others. If you let people know you are a business who really wants to make it, they will help you. However if you aren't committed to your business, then why should someone who does not know you help you? Show that you care and you want to make it. That means you have to put in the work. It means getting your business card out and mailing flyers. It means attending seminars and events around town. It means every night before you go to bed, do 1 thing for your business even if it is just submitting your website to a search engine.

So what are some easy things you can do for your business? Here are some ideas that only take minutes to complete.

Get a facebook page for your business

Get listed with Google for your business listing http://www.google.com/local/add

Get your own free listing in Yellowpages.com http://listings.yellowpages.com/Services/ServiceClaimSearch.aspx

Get listed in Yahoo Local
http://local.yahoo.com/

I will add more but wanted to give some ideas of places you can quickly make your business name seen.

Promote the heck out of your business! You can do it.

Having goals helps your business

2009-12-20T13:44:00.000-07:00

For years now I have a made a few goals for my business for the New Year. You should make the goals achievable. Something as little as increasing your sales by 5% can really help motivate.

This year my main goal is to use technology to help the agency. We have been looking into the different options for online bookings as well as automating things for the agency.

Our past goals have been getting to the highest levels of commission with suppliers like Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean. When we met those goals, it felt like such an accomplishment.

Being a homebased agent means you have to find ways to stay motivated and know that only you can make your business a success. Finding ways to help you continue to increase sales and go after business is 1/2 the battle!

I think 2010 will be our best year yet.

Why I became a travel agent

2009-12-17T14:25:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not, being a travel agent was not what I originally planned on for a career. I wanted to be a preschool teacher but decided that it would be hard to work full time with children and then come home to my own children. I went back to my notes from high school where I took a test that gave ideas for careers based on your answers. I saw travel agent as one of the options. So with a leap of faith I went to travel school.

I had a hard time memorizing the airport codes but made it through the classes. I got hired by a travel agency before I even graduated from school. I really enjoyed travel. It felt like a puzzle most of the time trying to fit together all the pieces in order to plan that perfect trip.

Once I had my son, I realized I could not go back to work. It was too hard to leave him each day knowing I could miss the basics (first roll over, first step etc..) so with the support of my husband I started Dugan's Travels. It was the best decision of my life. I was able to be a full time mom at the same time build an incredible business.

I met other work at home moms online (thru dial up.. yikes) and began tutoring other moms on the travel business. That was another fun aspect of my job. I loved teaching others what I knew. We began working together in order to build our sales. In fact, one of my very first students is now the manager of the agency!

Now that our agency has grown so much in the last 10 years, I am now focused more on the business side of things and do not get to do as much travel as I would like but I still enjoy having my own business.

For those who also are homebased travel agents, I wonder why you decided to become a travel agent? Would love to hear your stories!

What is a homebased travel agent?

2009-12-17T14:12:00.001-07:00

A travel agent books travel for customers and is paid by suppliers a commission on the booking. For bookings that suppliers do not pay a commission on, a travel agent also can charge the client a service fee for his/her time. An example is if you were to book a hotel for a client, the hotel would then send a check to the agency after the client checked out. Most hotels pay 10% of the price of the hotel before taxes and fees. A $100 per night hotel reservation would mean $10 a night for the travel agent who made the booking. This hotel would cost the same whether the customer uses a travel agent or books through the hotel directly. In many cases the travel agent can get a better price. It costs the customer nothing to use the travel agent unless the travel agent charges service fees.

Can anyone do this? In order to work with suppliers, you must have an account set up with the supplier. Most require an agency to hold an IATAN, CLIA or ARC number. IATAN stands for International Airlines Travel Agent Network. CLIA stands for Cruise Lines International Association. ARC stands for Airline Reporting Corporation. Each of these memberships requires different things including sales, money in the bank, experience or training in the industry, and membership fees. Many will require Errors and Omissions insurance of $1,000,000 or more.

For the average travel agent, membership is not a possibility with some organizations so the agent will team up with an agency and work as an independent agent or outside agent. There are also advantages of working with an agency because most travel agents cannot make enough in sales with a particular supplier to obtain higher commission levels and bonuses. Working with an agency with many agents can increase the commission percentages the agent gets because of the joint sales of all the agents at the agency. Support is also a very important aspect of being a successful agent. Agents who do not work with others tend to feel more isolated and have to learn to do it all solo. Since no agent can have the experience of being everywhere in the world or staying at every hotel or resort, having others that you can get advice from is really helpful.

The future of travel agencies is always questioned. The truth is the industry has changed in many ways. Some changes were for the better, some for the worse. Many airlines have cut commissions for travel agents. However, there are many other suppliers who are paying travel agents more than they were ten years ago. Cruises used to be booked by only the rich and now people in every income book cruises. Each year more and more people go on cruises. Most people say they want to go on a cruise at least once and many who go on their first come home to want to book another.

You can earn commission on many travel reservations.

Hotels

Rental Cars

Tour Packages

Cruises

Some airline tickets

International airline tickets

Travel insurance

Ground transportation including limos

Attraction tickets

Train tickets

Plus many other things

People all need travel arrangements at some point in time. Those who take road trips need hotel reservations. Those who need to travel for business need airline tickets, rental cars, and hotel reservations. Families want to experience vacations with their loved ones. People visit family and relatives. Most people who win money say they are going to spend it to take a nice vacation. Newly married couples go on honeymoons. You are not selling something that is hard to sell. People contact you for help; you are not calling them or approaching them trying to sell them something they don’t want.

Educating the public is the main thing any travel agent must do. Most people put travel agents into the same category as real estate agents. They believe it costs additional to use a travel agent. This is untrue. In many cases a travel agent can get a better price than the general public through the suppliers who work only with travel agents. Many people do not know all the options for booking a vacation. A good travel agent does. Once people are educated on how a travel agent gets paid, they are more willing to work with travel agents. If a person knows that if he or she let you book a hotel and it will cost the same price regardless, she or he will work with you. It is important to let people know how you can help them save time and money on their travel arrangements.

So how do you get into the industry? Many people think they must go to school or become certified. This is not true. You can get into the industry and begin training. I don’t recommend anyone spend thousands on a travel school until he or she knows this is a career that he or she will really want to pursue. The truth is you do not have to spend thousands to get trained. There are many courses free to travel agents from suppliers. There are also organizations such as ICTA (Institute of Certified Travel Agents) who offer courses as you get more years experience in the industry. CLIA also offers courses. There are some agencies that will offer training. Even if you decide this is a career you would like to pursue, you do not need to spend thousands to become an educated and competent travel agent. There are many courses you can take with suppliers and organizations to get a better education in travel. I truly believe a hands on approach is the best way to become a better travel agent. Learning to work with suppliers and how to find the information your clients need is an important part of becoming a good travel agent.

How can you find an agency to work with? There are a few organizations dedicated to independent travel agents. NACTA and OSSN are the top organizations. NACTA stands for National Association of Commissioned Travel Agents. OSSN stands for Outside Sales Support Network. You can also search online for home-based travel agent programs. I would never recommend anyone spending a lot of money to start this business. It is key to first try and see if it is something you would really want to do and get training before you invest too much money into it. Get involved in the industry first and see if it is really a career that is best for you.

For more information, you can visit

http://www.travelathome.com/

I also have an ebook on this website with more detailed information.