secrets of-successful-travel-agents

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www.HomeTravelAgency.com Copyright©2009byKellyMonaghan,allrightsreserved

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Secrets of Successful Home-Based Travel Agents

Inside The Home-Based Travel Revolution

by

Kelly Monaghan, CTC

www.HomeTravelAgency.com

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Secrets of Successful Home-Based Travel Agents

All rights reservedCopyright © �009 by Kelly Monaghan

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmittedin any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,including photocopying, recording, or by any informationstorage and retrieval system, except where permission

is specifically granted in the text, without theexpress written permission of the publisher.

For information contactThe Intrepid Traveler

P.O. Box 53�Branford, CT 06405

www.intrepidtraveler.com

PLEASE NOTE

Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure the completeness and accuracy of this ebook, we assume no responsibility for omissions, inaccuracies, or inconsistencies that may appear. Any perceived slights of people or organizations are unintentional. To the extent that this book provides recommendations or comparisons, they represent only the opinions of the author.

This ebook is sold with the understanding that neither the author nor the publisher are engaged in rendering legal or other professional advice. If legal or other expert assistance is required, the reader should consult with a competent professional.

The author and The Intrepid Traveler shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused, or alleged to be caused, directly or indirectly, by the information in this book.

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Table of ContentsIntroduction ........................................................................................................ 4Secrets of Successful Home-Based Travel Agents ......................................... 5Secret #�: They’ve Figured Out What Kind of Travel Agent They Want To Be ...6Secret #�: They Pick The Right Host Agency ........................................................7Secret #3: Host Agencies Won’t Give You Your Money Back ..............................8Secret #4: They Have Realistic Expectations About Money .................................9Secret #5: They Understand It’s A Business ........................................................�0Secret #6: They Understand It’s A Service Business ..........................................�0Secret #7: They Understand That Things Can Go Wrong ..................................��Secret #8: They Know That It Involves Selling .....................................................��Secret #9: They Do Their Homework ...................................................................��Secret #�0: They Go Into Business With Their Eyes Open ................................�3Secret #��: They Specialize ..................................................................................�4Secret #��: The Biggest “Secret” Of All ................................................................�5Secret #�3: They Avoid The Biggest Mistake Beginners Make .........................�6Secret #�4: They Take Action ................................................................................�9

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IntroductionCongratulations! You have done something that 99% of people who become home-

based travel agents fail to do.You have decided to arm yourself with information before you take the plunge and

sign up with one of those pricey “become a travel agent TODAY!” offers.This ebook, if you take its message to heart, will save you a lot of time — and

money!Why? Because you will make smart decisions and gain the knowledge you need

to enter the travel industry on an equal footing with business opportunity vendors and “host agencies” that want your money.

I have been studying the home-based travel agent scene since the early 90s. My home study course for home-based agents has trained literally thousands of entrepreneurs to start and succeed in their own travel business.

Over the years, I have had the privilege of meeting many outstanding home-based agents and I have made a special point of determining what it is that separates the winners from the also-rans.

This ebook shares what I discovered.So sit back, grab a soothing beverage, and read on.

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The Secrets of Successful Home-Based Travel Agents

Like I said, 99% of people who get involved in the home-based travel agent revolution go off half-cocked and wind up making costly mistakes.

Everyone is different and each of us travels his or her own road to success, but over the years I have noticed a number of qualities that make for success in the home-based travel agency business.

I truly believe these “secrets” separate the travel agent destined for quick and early success from those who will struggle to figure out the business before it’s too late.

Accelerate your progress towards success by modeling those who are already successful. It’s much easier to copy what someone else has already done. What’s even better is you can then improve upon

what someone has done and achieve better results, often in a shorter period of time.

— Tony Robbins

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Secret #1: They Have Figured Out What Kind Of Travel Agent They Want To Be

Broadly speaking, a home-based travel agent is anyone engaged in the marketing and selling of travel products from a home office. Sounds pretty simple, right?

But that simple definition can cover a wide variety of different types of home-based travel agents.

For example, you could be someone who . . .• . . . works out of a home office as an outside sales representative for a

bonded, accredited ARC/IATAN travel agency, usually referred to as the “host agency,”

• . . . works as a reseller of products of various travel suppliers, without involving a host agency, or

• . . . does a bit of both. (Most serious home-based agents fall into this third category.)But there’s more to it than that. Some agents are “referral agents.” That is, they don’t do a lot of consultation with

clients or interface with suppliers. Instead, they concentrate on funneling prospects to inside salespeople at their host agency.

• Some agents are MLM agents who sell “biz opps” and very little travel.• Some home-based agents sell every type of travel imaginable.• Some sell everything but airline tickets.• Some are “cruise-only” agents.• Some sell only in tightly defined “niche” markets.You also have to figure out how much you want to work. There are home-based

agents who work . . . . . . full-time . . . part-time . . . only occasionallyAny one of these choices might be perfectly valid for you, but not for the next

person.Then there’s the matter of money.There are home-based travel agents who earn . . . . . . pin money. . . a tidy part-time income

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. . . a substantial middle-class income

. . . six-figure incomes.What’s your goal?Why is all this important?Because the type of agent you want to be will determine the type of host agency

you should be looking for.Put another way, your choice of host agency will determine the kind of travel agent

you can be!That is why you must have a strong basic knowledge of how the travel industry

and the travel distribution system works. You must know how different host agencies operate.

Without it, you are guessing about some of the most important business decisions you will make when starting out.

Knowing what type of travel agent you want to be will go a long way to assuring that you make wise decisions in your choice of business partners.

Secret #2: They Pick The Right Host Agency — For ThemAs you can see, there are so many variations and combinations that it is difficult to

define the “typical” home-based travel agent. The good part is that this means that virtually anyone can be a home-based

travel agent, on their own terms and at their own pace, creating the type of home-based travel marketing business that makes sense for them.

The hard part is that you have to choose your host agency carefully.If you haven’t figured this out, you run the risk of forming a relationship with a host

agency that is not the ideal one. In fact, you could wind up with a host agency that won’t let you do what you want to do! Why? Because they are simply not set up to do that.

To the newcomer, all those host agencies that advertise their business opportunities on the Internet look pretty much the same.

Nothing could be farther from the truth!In researching the Host Agency Directory, I uncovered over 350 host agencies

across the U.S. and Canada. None of them operate in exactly the same way!To the extent that they look different, it’s usually because some have web sites that

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are a lot slicker than others.Far too many people choose a host agency (which is the easiest way to get into

the business) for superficial reasons.It was the first site they saw.The pictures looked alluring.The price was cheap.Or maybe they were so eager to get started that they didn’t really think about it.Successful home-based agents understand that they have to match what they

want to do — the kind of travel agent they want to be — with the right host agency.This takes time and effort and investigation. The methodology I developed in How

To Choose A Host Agency is rigorous and thorough. It takes time to do things right.But successful home-based agents know this is crucial because they also know . . .

Secret #3: Host Agencies Won’t Give You Your Money BackWell, okay, some host agencies will give you your money back — within 7� hours

of signing up!Do you think you’ll know for sure you really like this host agency in that short period

of time? If so, dream on.But with most host agencies, once they have your money, it’s gone forever. That

could mean hundreds — or thousands! — of dollars lost. Not to mention the time you’ve wasted.

The good news is that finding a new host agency is a relatively simple matter if you have a resource like the Host Agency Directory.

But fixing your mistake can costs hundreds — or thousands! — more dollars.Successful home-based agents don’t make this mistake. They implement Secret

#� to get it right the first time.

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Secret #4: They Have Realistic Expectations About MoneyPut simply: Being a home-based travel agent is no get-rich-quick scheme!Sure, there are some home-based agents (about 5% according to industry

surveys) who make more than $�00,000 a year.BUT . . .Those who make large sums of money selling travel work very hard and earn every

penny. Will you be one of those $�00,000 a year agents? I hope so, and the secrets in this

Report will put you on the right track to success.But the truth is, most agents make less, especially when they are just starting out.How much money a person makes and how hard they have to work to make it,

varies from person to person. Some people have more time to devote to their travel business than others. Some

have more drive and determination than others. Some folks are natural salespeople; others will have to work harder to hone their skills. It may sound like a cliché, but how much money you make is up to you.

I certainly can’t predict how much you’ll make, but I can guarantee you that if you think you can make a small fortune working just a half hour a day while watching television, you’ll be disappointed.

Of course, one of the great allures of the travel business is the prospect of free or much reduced travel.

There’s good news here: It is extremely easy to get great discounts on your travel, even as a beginner. Traveling free is harder, but not that much harder and earning free trips can be a lot of fun.

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Secret # 5: They Understand It’s A BusinessThe statistics tell us that the majority of new businesses fail in a year or two.

There’s no reason to expect that your travel business won’t meet the same fate. The saving grace is that, if you follow some simple, common sense strategies, you

will not lose more money than you can afford in a failed venture. Also, if you decide being independent is not for you, you should have enough of a

track record to make you an attractive employee for a local agency. You can enter the travel industry knowing you’ll earn just a few hundred dollars a

year. If that’s fine for you, then everything’s okay. Of course, you can also seek to make selling travel a moneymaker. And that’s fine, too.

Successful home-based travel agents know that the best way to succeed in business is to be businesslike, so they approach their travel marketing business — whether large or small, full-time or part-time — in an organized and businesslike fashion.

Most important, they seek out a mentor or a training program that will teach them, step by step, how to succeed.

Secret #6: They Understand It’s A Service BusinessWhatever else you are selling, you are selling customer satisfaction.If you have never worked in a setting in which you had to “please the public,” you

may be surprised at how much people will expect from you and how readily they’ll blame you for things over which you have no control.

Believe me, if the toilet in the luxury hotel in Nairobi backs up and overflows, it’s your fault!

Successful home-based travel agents know that providing solid service, before, during and after the sale is the key to success.

The good news is that learning how to do things right is not hard if you have the right resources.

And providing people with exciting vacations and marketing the joy of travel can be great fun as well as being personally rewarding.

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Secret #7: They Understand That Things Go WrongMost people who go into business have at least some bad experiences. I certainly can’t guarantee that you won’t have some of your own. You may just

accept problems as a natural part of life. I think that’s a healthy attitude. On the other hand, you may decide that the kinds of problems that tend to come up

in this business aren’t worth whatever you’re getting out of it. So be it.Successful home-based travel agents get this basic fact of life and are prepared to

deal with it. For those who are truly serious, my home study course discusses in depth some of

the things that can go amiss and some ways you can protect yourself.

Secret #8: They Know That It Involves SellingNo one gets into the travel business simply because they’re looking to sell

someone something.But, no matter how glamorous travel may be, to make real money at it you have

to sell. That means looking for new customers, finding out what their travel needs are, presenting them with attractive options, answering their questions, dealing with their objections, and, above all, asking them to part with their hard-earned money.

I happen to have a background in sales and marketing. In fact, over the years I have trained hundreds of salespeople in a variety of industries. I know from experience that selling is a skill and that like any skill it can be learned.

I also know from experience that not everyone is cut out for selling. It’s not so much that they can’t, it’s just that, for whatever reason, they find out they don’t enjoy it that much. You may be one of those people.

Secret #9: They Do Their HomeworkIf you are not already a home-based agent, the very fact that you are reading this

ebook suggests that you like to arm yourself with all the information available before making a foolish error.

Good for you! I regularly hear from agents who signed up with the first agency that caught their eye.

Now they regret it and wonder if I can point them in the right direction. I explain to them (hopefully with a certain amount of patience) that I cannot make decisions for them.

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The host agency that’s right for me might be wrong for them. And vice versa. You see, part of doing your homework is doing it yourself, not having someone else do it for you.

The thing many beginners (especially those with no real experience of being in business for themselves) fail to understand is that the sellers of business opportunities are just that — sellers.

Just as the car dealer won’t volunteer that the car you have your eye on sits at the bottom of the “Consumer Reports” safety rankings, the ads for a host agency offer won’t volunteer the downsides of their offer or reveal that a better deal is being offered by someone else.

Please understand, I am not saying these people are being dishonest. They are simply putting the best face on what they have to offer.

That’s what sellers do. When you start selling travel, you’ll do it too. I’m sure that if you are considering starting a home travel agency you have

visited at least a few sites offering such business opportunities and I’m also sure you understand what I’m talking about.

My approach is fundamentally different. I do not sell a business opportunity. That leaves me free to speak my mind and provide unfiltered and unbiased

information about how the business really works and the many, many different avenues open to you.

For example, very few host agencies go out of their way to point out that in many cases you do not have to share commissions with them.

I am free to tell you that and to explain when it’s appropriate to deal directly with suppliers and how to go about doing it. And whatever the topic I try to be evenhanded in explaining the pros and the cons of pursuing any particular strategy.

If you do your homework properly, you will be in a far better position to make informed decisions about how to set up and grow your business.

Of course, you can always do what I did: learn by trial and error. Take it from me, losing a few thousand dollars by making a “dumb beginner’s”

mistake is a powerful incentive to do it right next time! DO YOUR HOMEWORK!

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Secret # 10: They Go Into Business With Their Eyes OpenIf you do your homework, or if you invest in a solid training course, you will start

your home travel agency business with few illusions.Another problem beginners have is that all the pretty pictures in the host agency

ads dazzle them. “Be a travel agent,” they seem to say, “and you’ll spend your life strolling on a white

sand beach with your significant other.” Well, maybe. Sometimes. I like to go out of my way to let people in on the dirty little secrets of being a home-

based travel agent. It’s a business. It’s a job. It means actually doing some (brace yourself) work!Yes, those great deals and those special moments exist. I have cruised for free to

exotic ports and I have stayed in luxury hotels for motel prices. I also show people how to do the same sort of thing (it’s surprisingly easy).But to paraphrase the old TV ad, “Home-based travel agents get their perks the

old-fashioned way: They earn them!”Successful home-based travel agents are realistic about this. But they keep their

eyes on the prize. Travel is a great repeat business and every sales you make this year, probably

means another sale (or two!) to that person next year, and the year after that.It’s like compound interest! As you gain more customers, you gain more repeat

business, more bookings, more money, more free or ultra-low-cost travel!

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Secret #11: They SpecializeYou are what you eat, they say. Well you are also what you sell. If you wind up selling a lot of cheap airfare, that’s

what you’ll get a reputation for doing, whether you like it or not.“Go with the flow” may sound nice, but the flow can take you into backwaters

where you’ll find yourself stuck.So plan your business before it plans you!I have noticed that successful home-based travel agents go into the business with

a clear idea of what they want their business to look like. This mostly has to do with specialization in all of its various forms.

The home-based agent who says, “I offer high-end diving expeditions to the Caribbean” is more likely to make a go of it than the agent who says “I sell travel; where do you want to go?”

Students of my home study course have specialized in a surprising number of ways, with focusing on cruises being only the most obvious example.

One student built on her love of Walt Disney World to create, first, a successful home-based agent business and then her own Disney specialty agency, employing her own small army of home-based agents.

Another student sells nothing but a particular brand of upscale all-inclusive resorts. And she sells only to honeymooners!

Limiting? Not for her. She is that resort’s biggest producer of bookings and she does very well indeed.

Still another student sells a bit of everything, but only at the high end of the market. His specialty is luxury travel.

There can probably be almost as many specialties as there are home-based agents.

So what’s your specialty going to be?

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Secret #12: The Biggest “Secret” Of All!Being a home-based travel agent means representing and marketing travel

products that are created by someone else.You are not going to start your own airline, or go out and buy a cruise ship, or

build a chain of all-inclusive resorts. (If that’s your plan, you’ve downloaded the wrong ebook!)

That’s why you so often hear home-based travel agents referred to as “outside sales representatives” because they do not work in the office of the company whose products they represent.

Whether you deal directly with a travel supplier or through a middleman (usually a host agency), it’s important to remember that you are not an employee, either of the host agency or the ultimate travel supplier. (Another reason for the term “outside.”)

Because you are not an employee, you do not receive a salary or any of the benefits — and hassles — that go along with being an employee.

You make your money (“get paid”) through commissions on what you sell. You negotiate your commission level with either the host agency or the travel

supplier. Sell a lot, make a lot. Sell a little, make a little. You are what the IRS (and many others in the business world) call an “independent

contractor,” which is another, legally precise way of saying you are not an employee.So what’s the biggest “secret”?It’s not that you work “outside” (although that’s important).It’s not that you represent other people’s products (although that’s important).It’s not that you are a salesperson (although that’s very important).It’s not that you are not an employee (although that’s extremely important).The key concept is that you are INDEPENDENT.Think about that for a moment. It means that you are your own boss. No one

can tell you what to do or how to do it. You control your own destiny. Your success (or failure) is entirely your responsibility.If that scares you . . . well, maybe having your own business isn’t for you. If that

excites you, congratulations! You have what it takes to be a success as a home-based travel agent.

But to maximize your success you must acquire the knowledge of the most successful home-based agents. Either through hard-won and sometimes bitter experience, like I did . . .

Or by learning from those who have been there before you and are willing to give you the benefit of their experience.

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Secret #13: They Avoid The Biggest Mistake Beginners MakeAlthough you are independent and on your own, you are never alone as a home-

based travel agent. You must constantly work with others to provide service to your clients.

Virtually every home-based travel agent (at least when they are starting out) must form a relationship with a host agency. And your success hinges on your understanding of this relationship.

(Of course, home-based agents also have relationships with travel suppliers with whom they deal directly. But my comments here are concerned mostly with host agencies.)

There are many ways to connect with a host agency.You can do it for free (if you know how) or you can pay a fee.You may have to sell yourself to an agency. Or several agencies may compete in

offering you the “best deal” to sign up with them. Regardless of how it happens, once you’ve hooked up with a host agency, a

commitment has been made. If money has changed hands then a certain “investment” has been made.

Even though it is possible to work with more than one host agency at the same time, it is far more convenient to work with just one, so a certain sense of loyalty tends to develop.

It can be a hassle to switch host agencies, so inertia sets in.Perhaps for these reasons, many home-based travel agents start to think that they

work for this host agency. They may know, intellectually, that this is not the case. But they act as if it is.

Because the host agency has a certain way of doing things, they start to think that this is the only way of doing things. Again, on an intellectual level, they may know this is not the case, but they behave as if it is.

They are thinking like employees. They gradually start thinking that their destiny, their success, is wrapped up with

the destiny of the host agency. This is a mistake, but an easily corrected one. However, it is not the biggest mistake beginners make.No, the biggest mistake newcomers to the home-based travel agent profession

make is that they think they are customers of the host agency. This is especially true if they paid a fee to get set up as an outside agent with that

agency.This kind of thinking is very dangerous.Thanks to numerous “consumer advocates,” Consumer Reports magazine, legions

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of product liability lawyers, and the growth of concepts like Total Quality Management and Total Customer Service, we live in the Age of the Customer.

Most of us have grown up hearing the phrase, “The Customer Is Always Right.” In fact, some highly successful merchants have those words literally carved in stone at their entrances!

If we order something from Land’s End or Nordstrom and don’t like it, we can send it back, no questions asked.

We don’t even have to exercise plain old common sense. If we buy a cup of piping hot coffee from the McDonalds drive-thru and are stupid enough to stick it between our legs as we drive off, then McDonalds owes us a couple of million if we get burned.

But the fact of the matter is, the host agency is not Land’s End or Nordstrom or McDonalds.

You are not your host agency’s customer.You and the host agency are two separate and independent business entities

that have freely entered into a purely business relationship, because each party has independently decided that there’s something in it for them.

In the business-to-consumer model there is an unspoken assumption that the business is smarter and more powerful and that the customer is less knowledgeable and less powerful.

Therefore, the reasoning goes, the customer’s interests must be protected.In the business-to-business model there is an unspoken assumption that the

parties involved are equally capable. On top of that, there is a general recognition that the interests of the two parties

might be fundamentally different. In other words, what’s best for you might not be best for the host agency and vice versa.

Oh sure, if you have a problem with a host agency you can always sue. And maybe you’ll prevail in court. But the court will apply very different standards than it would if you were suing McDonalds because you spilled hot coffee on yourself.

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that host agencies are crooks, who are out to get you.

And I’m not saying that they don’t give two hoots about you or your best interests. Of course that’s not true.

But what is true is that every host agency is a business seeking to do business with another business. You, the independent contractor home-based travel agent, are that other business.

Each of you has your own agenda and your own best interests at heart. Each of you is “in business.”

Business is like a poker game. It can be fair and it can be honest and it can

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certainly be a lot of fun. But success in the game depends on keeping your cards to yourself and not giving away your secrets.

Do you think the people who want to set you up — working for them — in your own home-based travel business are going to say:

“Oh, by the way, I’m charging you $495, but you can get a better deal from someone else without paying anything.”

Of course not!Are they going to tell you:

“I’ll give you 50 percent of the commission, but other agencies will give you 60 percent or 70 percent.”

Of course not!Are they going to say:

“I’d like you to give me all your business, but of course you can deal directly with many travel suppliers and keep the entire commission for

yourself, without sharing it with me.”Of course not!The point is, they only tell you what they have to tell you to get you to sign up with

them. Sometimes for hundreds or thousands of dollars! They don’t have any obligation to take you by the hand and explain the facts of

business life to you. They don’t have to show you how the cards are stacked in their favor. They don’t have to tell you that the only one who can lose money in this deal is

you.They are not charitable institutions.But I will tell you all this, because I don’t want you to work for me.My business model only works when I tell you everything and reveal all the

secrets. That is why I created the Complete Home-Based Travel Agent Home Study

Course. (If you’re going to earn at home, you might as well learn at home.)

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Secret #14: They Take ActionSomeone calls it “the paralysis of analysis,” the danger that you’ll spend so much

time thinking and planning that you’ll never actually do anything.At some point (and as screamingly obvious as it sounds), you have to do

something to enjoy success. If you are already up and running as an agent, that could mean making the leap of

faith to promote that pricey African safari without being �00% sure you can pull it off. To be successful you can’t be afraid of failure! You must do your homework (see above) and do everything you can to ensure

success, but ultimately every promotion carries some risk of failure. Chances are that even if you don’t fill up all the slots, you’ll fill some. And suppliers

know that not every promotion succeeds. If they see that you are actively doing the right things, they will be supportive and

willing to work with you again.If you are just starting out, that leap of faith could be ordering my home study

course and arming yourself with information that could take you years to amass otherwise.

Whatever your decision, do something — TODAY!

Success comes from taking the initiative and following up... persisting... eloquently expressing the depth of your love. What simple

action could you take today to produce a new momentum toward success in your life?

— Tony Robbins

Order the Complete Home Study Course For Home-Based Travel Agents CLICK HERE

http://www.hometravelagency.com/succeed.html

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