This my second "beware" article. It's not my intent to create a series, and I certainly don't want to make a habit out of bad-mouthing my fellow travel agents. However, I can't help but feel a little disappointed in some of the company I keep. After all, it only makes it harder for the good advisers when they have to counteract all the less desirables.
With that, I would just like to remind my fellow travelers that you are paying good money for the vacation of your dreams. Don't accept anything less. I've been to countless industry events that have left me disgusted at the other travel "consultants." In most cases, they are nothing more than glorified, middle-aged Mary Kay-like salesmen pushing you to the highest return-on-investment (for themselves) product with little regard to what's the right trip for YOU. Don't settle for this, demand your "Dream Vacation." If your agent is not listening to you and tries to talk you out of your opinion on a certain travel style... find a new agent, quickly!
To be fair, I totally get it. It's hard to remain competitive in this industry when discounters like Cosco and Groupon are willing to sacrifice commissions (and service) in favor of volume. Add to that the fact the, aside from cruises, commissions are generally low and many host agencies have high royalties. Given the option of getting a 7% commission on a hotel and air package or a 17% commission on a cruise, it's no wonder why many have attributed the comeback of the travel agent to the cruise industry. When doing my due diligence prior to purchasing my Dream Vacations franchise, I even had one agent tell me that I would not be suited for this line work because my travel experience is not with cruises and tour buses. How sad, and ultimately... how wrong! Since purchasing my franchise, I have noticed that much of the training we are encouraged to take from both internal and external sources, tend to include some component of how to change our clients' opinions of cruising or group tours.
Just today I was reviewing the comments on a professional social media post that I am now involuntarily subscribed to as a result of having posted a comment to the thread. The initial conversation started with a question: "have you ever cruised before?" It was posted by another travel agent and ended up getting some 35 comments ranging from "no, never will" to "hundreds." It also sparked a comment from a third agent who [rather blatantly] took the opportunity to promote his own agency. True, I admit that I commented as well, but I at least had the tact to recognize the original agent was trying to create some social media buzz for her business so I never explicitly mentioned I was an agent (I figured my profile description did that for me). Anyways, the original agent's response to the third agent made me cringe even more than the tackiness in the third agent's hijacking of the thread for his own personal gain.
The third agent made a general solicitation to help anyone with their next cruise booking, to which the original agent replied: "considering that I am a travel agent - and a master cruise counselor - I think I will pass. Thanks anyways." Clearly, she was offended at his post and wanted to lift her pedestal higher than his. Of course, I know that anyone willing to shovel out the bucks for the classes, sponsored by the Cruise Line International Association, can get that certification. The classes take about an hour or so each to complete and the tests are pretty short and pretty easy. That is to say, it's not that impressive of a certification. I can get for a highly reduced rate thanks to my affiliation but since cruises are not my bread and butter, I see no rush.
Still, I found those two posts to be comical at best. What really offended me, however, was her response to those that said they would never cruise for various reasons. She invariable responded to all such posts with a comment along the lines of 'I understand why you might feel that way. Cruising really isn't like that. You should give it a try. Of course, there's nothing wrong with resorts/tours/etc. Give me a call when you're ready.' I paraphrase, obviously, but you get the point. Sure she made some attempt to "hear" what these potential clients were saying about their travel preferences, but not before discounting their preferences and trying to steer them toward the higher profit margin, regardless of whether or not it's the best fit for them. Appalling!
Not too long ago I was in a meeting with a potential business partner. At the end of the meeting he felt it necessary to mention to met that I am not the first agent with whom he has spoken. He said they all come to excited to sell his dive trips, but then he never hears from them again. Once again, I found myself having to apologize for my fellow agents. While the scenarios are different, these cases exhibit a common thread of agents who want to focus on the low-hanging but highly rewarding fruit of cruises and, to a lesser extent, tour buses. If they have to do too much work for the client, they will either forfeit the sale or try to steer the client toward a profitable route.
Maybe I'll never be a million dollar agent who wins all the industry rewards. I'm fine with that. I didn't get into this business to make a million dollars. God knows there better businesses to buy into for that. I got into this business because I know how to travel, not tour, but travel. And I have. And I want to help other people have some of the great, life changing experiences that I have. In some cases, that may mean a cruise or tour (to each their own). Call me crazy, but if my client tells me they hate the idea of cruising and prefer to stay in one place longer and see more stuff, then maybe my job is to help them make that possible and not encourage them to change their mind about cruising.
