by Norma Rodriguez
Business Solutions Manager, Southeast
Travel Leaders Network

Travel agencies of all sizes have one thing in common: they need to stay profitable. This ever-growing demand affects every aspect of their businesses, and it should. Turning your agency into a growing profit-center takes a 360-degree, holistic approach that cohesively engages your staff, your consortia, and your business goals. Here are key steps you can take to get profits soaring.

BECOME ORGANIZED

Implement business tools and programs that help simplify and streamline your processes. Office Accounting and Client Relationship Managers (CRM) tools help keep you on track and pave the path to accurate invoicing, bookkeeping and an updated client database that will facilitate your marketing initiatives.

LEVERAGE YOUR MEMBERSHIP BY USING PREFERRED SUPPLIERS

If you belong to an agency group, then you have strong relationships with a certain set of suppliers. These suppliers demonstrate their commitment by offering improved commission tier levels, exclusive offers and promotions. At Travel Leaders Network, our suppliers also deliver special value-add programs (such as Distinctive Voyages, Amenity Departure Date, Culinary Collection, Private Car & Driver), and they also fund for personalized direct mail pieces and email marketing initiatives through our Engagement program, where contacting your agency is the only call to action.

MAKE YOUR PRESENCE KNOWN

In addition to taking advantage of consistent marketing tactics, which helps keep you top of mind with your clients, take the steps to find a lead generation program that works. Travel Leaders Network members attract new business through lead generation by publishing an attractive and effective profile via Agent Profiler on our consumer website, Travelleaders.com.

STAY AHEAD OF THE COMPETITION

Keep up with preferred supplier product information, become a Certified Travel Specialist in a niche market, and take educational and familiarization trips. These educational efforts take time, but it’s time well spent, because they help differentiate your services from your competitors.

OFFER EXCLUSIVE SERVICES

Take advantage of any exclusive program your agency group provides to set your services apart even more. For example, through Travel Leaders Network’s Apex program, created in collaboration with American Express®. After approval and training, participants can become an authorized Membership Rewards® Pay with Points agent, earn incentives for referring new American Express Card Members, and access value added amenities from The Travel Collection for their clients.

by Bernadette Stark
Vice President, Conference and Events
Travel Leaders Group

We hear it often. Why should I attend your event? I understand how hesitant some travel advisors and independent travel advisors can be about leaving the office for four-to-seven days in order to attend a travel agent conference. Being away that long may seem challenging to tend to your business and watch over your clients.

After being in the travel industry since 1986, planning events for travel advisors and suppliers, I can wholeheartedly say that you should attend one industry event at least once a year. Every second you spend at a well-organized conference is time well spent and an investment in your business, as long as that event has all of the necessary ingredients to maximize your time.

At Travel Leaders Network, we named our yearly conference EDGE: Education, Discover, Gather, Evolve. These are the necessary ingredients needed to enhance your ROI.  Each one plays an important part in the success of a valuable industry event.

It begins with educational and training opportunities. A travel conference provides a unique opportunity for you to dive in and learn about a myriad of topics, from up-and-coming destinations and software to sales strategies and social media. Many events design tracks around certain aspects, such as experience level, technology or even for those who are new to travel. These tracks group several classes together, making it easy for you to focus on what you need most.

Next, a quality conference gives you the chance to discover new ideas, new suppliers and new products. Most events include keynote speakers who are eager to share their wisdom, whether they’re cruise line CEOs or motivational speakers. Most events also include a trade show component that allows you to meet face-to-face with suppliers you never would have thought of, learning how their unique products could benefit you and your clients.

That trade show highlights another key element to conferences: networking. At one event, you’ll find yourself standing next to supplier partners, sales reps, CEOs, VPs and key staff from your consortia who are all excited to talk to you. More importantly, you’ll spend valuable days meeting some of the best travel advisors in the game, sharing experiences, learning best practices and becoming life-long friends.

All of these factors feed into the last, and most important, outcome of any travel event: they give you the chance to evolve. Travel is an ever-changing industry, especially now that technology and social media are constantly rewriting the rules. It’s imperative for advisors like you to evolve with the industry in order to stay one step ahead and be best in class! THE best way to do that is to leave your office for four-to-seven days and attend a well-organized and highly sought-after travel agent conference.

by Jim Nathan
Vice President, Loyalty Marketing
Travel Leaders Network

When you are attempting to drive to a new destination, you use a map. Modern mobile map apps give you clear, executable steps to reach your destination—turn right at exit 41, turn left on Main Street.

But what if your destination is not a city or town, but a business goal? For example, if your agency wanted to reach Successville, USA, you’d need a different kind of map than Mapquest can provide—you need a travel agency marketing plan. A marketing plan is a map of your agency’s plan for success, complete with clear, executable steps and goals to get you to your destination.

Travel Leaders Network is first and foremost a marketing organization, (which would explain all of those awards we receive for marketing innovation). As such, we stress the importance of our members having a year-round travel agency marketing plan because it gives them the best chance to succeed.

Some view a marketing plan as a calendar with, for example, a multi-channel promotion for Europe Cruising in March or Australia in August. While this is one very small component of your agency’s marketing plan you must be sure you have the fundamentals down first. What do you sell, what makes you different, who are your target clients? When you are all done with the “meaty” issues you need to decide you can build your strategically designed detailed plan.

The Six Ps of Marketing

Most marketing books only mention the famous four Ps of marketing: Product, Price, Place and Promotion. To that list, I tell our travel agency members to add two more: People, aka your target market; and Value Proposition, which helps you differentiate your services in the minds of consumers.

Product – the services, travel types and suppliers you sell; Price—how to balance profits, service fees, markups and revenues goals; Place—where your clients interact with you: those are all easy concepts to understand as you consider your travel agency marketing plan. Here, I’d like to focus on the other three.

Promotion, Promotion, Promotion

There are four key components to promoting your services effectively: advertising, personal selling, sales promotions and public relations. They key here is to mix these elements together to communicate your message as simply, frequently and as powerfully as possible—in a fashion that smartly reaches your core target clientele

Who your targets are is a big driver of what media you use to reach them, whether it’s billboards, paid search results, travel shows, local radio or cable TC, newspapers and social media. Direct mail, email and social media generally work most effectively for our members since we know how to target each promotion to the recipient. If you belong to a travel marketing organization, I hope you’re incorporating their consumer marketing solutions in your travel agency marketing plan.

While direct mail and email are effective at reaching a large target audience, personal selling is the most powerful promotional tool you have in your arsenal. Speaking one-on-one with a potential client gives you the best opportunity to showcase your skills and experiences, something a website cannot do.

For sales promotions, always provide an incentive to the customer to act quickly, and make it super simple for them to understand how to act. And last, don’t forget about public relations as a component of your travel agency marketing plan. Clients love experts, regardless of industry, so the more you speak at events, community gatherings or are quoted in the local newspaper, the more people will view you as the expert you are.

People – Find Your Tribe

When it comes to nailing down your target market—such as young families, adventure seekers, honeymooners—think small. If you try to be everything to everyone, you won’t be anything to anyone. The finer you narrow down your search, the more effectively you can communicate with them.

Clients with niche interests are less price sensitive, because they know exactly what they want. If they recognize you as being the best person to deliver what they want, then you’re all set. Plus, as you become more of an expert in any given niche, your clients will begin referring you to their friends who share their travel passions and referrals are a terrific no cost source of new business

Value Proposition – Why You?

However, wherever, to whomever you market your services to, the essence of your message must be your personal Value Proposition. The Value Proposition is your own unique answer to this question: Why should a client buy from you rather than any of your competitors?

The more provable and concrete you answer is to that question, the stronger your Value Prop will be. If you’ve won tons of awards, visited a particular destination 18 times, are known by your clients for being reachable at any time or place they need you, have a five-star rating on Yelp, those are all important elements to build upon in defining “why you?” Once you have your Value Prop down, turn it into a 30-second elevator pitch that you have committed to memory and say with such sincerity and conviction that potential clients immediately know you’re the one!

Las Vegas (June 14, 2018) – With more training courses and certification opportunities, added technology offerings, expanded marketing and lead generation programs, and a myriad of networking options, Travel Leaders Network is cementing its competitive position as the travel agent network of choice. More than 40,000 travel agents within the U.S., Canada and internationally are now part of Travel Leaders Network and are reaping the advantages of the organization’s huge array of benefits, programs and negotiating power. Additionally, Travel Leaders’ new relationship with American Express further heightens agents’ opportunities to earn more and provide an expanded menu of services to their customers. All of these announcements, highlights and more are being showcased during the organization’s 2018 international conference, EDGE (Educate, Discover, Gather, Evolve), which takes place through June 16 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

 

“We’re intent on providing our members with a competitive edge, and that includes having the right tools, training, support and strategic relationships, combined with our scale and scope, to position them for the greatest possible success,” said John Lovell, President of Travel Leaders Network and Leisure Group.

 

“The past year has been marked by expansion in many areas that will improve the competitive position of our members and increase their opportunities to make money,” said Roger Block, President of Travel Leaders Network. “We’re raising the bar to help our agencies succeed and ensure they are better equipped to serve their customers and gain new ones.”

 

Throughout the year, there has been significant growth and success for Travel Leaders Network. Here’s a look at Travel Leaders Network by the numbers:

 

Training
The number of Travel Leaders Network agents actively involved in the organization’s six specialist programs has risen to 1,612 and increases each month. Those programs range from leisure travel, business travel, group travel, luxury travel, honeymoon and destination weddings, and active and adventure. More than 374 agents have graduated from the programs. Overall, the network offers over 500 training opportunities to its member agents throughout the year.

 

“Our specialist programs are truly unique and immersive. They involve a two-year study program within six key areas,” said Lovell. “Aside from Certified Travel Specialist Programs, we offer on-demand lessons, webinars, and workshops throughout the year both virtually and in person as a way to connect and create an interactive experience for learning. We truly believe our training and education programs are exceptional within the industry and our dedicated training team helps set our members up for success with a variety of learning options.”

 

Lead Generation
Within Agent Profiler, which is a free benefit for Travel Leaders Network agents that provides consumers direct access to travel professionals via TravelLeaders.com, nearly 5,500 agents are now displaying online, representing expertise in 135,000 destinations and 53,000 interests. Through the end of May, organic traffic to TravelLeaders.com was up 45 percent year over year and leads flowing through Agent Profiler continue to grow significantly. Driven in large part by the company’s unique content management and Search Engine Optimization strategy, an estimated 140,000 leads are anticipated for the full year 2018. The average sale on leads generated through Agent Profiler is currently in excess of $5,000.

 

Agent Profiler 2.0, introduced earlier this year, enables agents to very effectively hone and promote their specialties and areas of expertise, including certifications, and also showcases photos, client testimonials and blog posts. Travel professionals using Agent Profiler 2.0 are typically receiving three times more leads than agents using the basic version of the tool. Additionally, agents with at least one certification, typically receive two times the leads versus those with no certifications.

 

“Agent Profiler is truly a standout benefit available to our members that delivers qualified leads right to their doorstep,” said Block. “We are investing heavily as a company to drive leads to Agent Profiler and our agents are reaping the benefits.”

 

Perks at Sea
Travel Leaders Network is offering more than 300 hosted sailings this year across nine premium and luxury suppliers as part of its Distinctive Voyages program. Each of these cruises features a host, private cocktail reception, and complimentary shore excursion. Additionally, within Distinctive Voyages is the Car & Driver program, which was first introduced last year and has proven hugely popular. The number of participating cruise lines has doubled to six. These luxury cruises feature the use of a private car and driver in a port of call.

 

Also, in 2018, Travel Leaders Network is offering approximately 100 cruises as part of its Culinary Collection, many of which feature all the benefits of Distinctive Voyages along with a special culinary feature such as a meal in a specialty dining venue or a wine package. Beyond those programs, there are an additional 3,500 cruises available through Travel Leaders in 2018 that offer special amenities such as a shipboard credit, pre-paid gratuities, specialty restaurant meal or wine package. There are now 17 different cruise lines partnering on the program, ranging from contemporary, premium and luxury to river cruises and adventure voyages.

 

Hotels Online
A new website, selecthotelsresorts.com, recently launched for the Travel Leaders SELECT Hotel program, features hundreds of hotels and resorts that provide VIP amenities to clients of Travel Leaders agents. The new site showcases each property’s amenities, description, photos and other details. Other highlights include:

• A new “filter” feature to help review properties with specific qualities, from romantic to family friendly to pre/post cruise
• A clear list of the exclusive “perks” offered to Travel Leaders guests
• A single site with both an agent view (including important agent-only information) and a consumer view

“For 2018, we are focused on increasing our members’ profitability and helping our members grow their business further,” said Block. “The overall goal with the hotel program is to build the industry’s most robust offering and showcase some of the most prestigious properties in the world where our agents can book their clients.”

 

Introduction of Agency Buying/Selling Website
Travel Leaders also recently introduced a new website www.buymytravelagency.com that matches owners who are interested in purchasing other agencies with prospective sellers. Potential agency buyers can purchase a display ad describing their existing business, the types of agencies they’d like to acquire, geographical parameters and other requirements. Selling parties can review the ads and connect via the website with potential purchasers.

 

“The creation of an online vehicle such as this that connects prospective agency buyers and sellers was long overdue and this website is going to serve a valuable purpose for our industry,” said Block.

For travel agencies interested in learning more about the award-winning programs and diverse offerings that Travel Leaders Network offers agencies in leisure and luxury travel, business travel, honeymoon and destination weddings – as well as active and adventure travel – visit TravelLeadersNetwork.com.

by Jared Braunstein
Vice President, Strategic Accounts
Travel Leaders Network

Running a successful travel agency can be quite challenging. There are numerous details to focus on, which is why agencies join a travel marketing group to help them across the board. Here are three tips to master those big picture items that all travel agencies must keep in sight in order to improve daily, generate more sales and grow.

Tip #1: Planning and Implementation
It’s crucial to have a marketing plan in place for your agency. Putting your name in front of your customer through vehicles such as direct mail or email and building brand awareness is so important in today’s marketplace. Travel Leaders Network’s Engagement direct mail and email marketing solution is a fantastic benefit that you can take advantage of and utilize as a marketing plan for your agency. If you don’t have a marketing plan, this program will easily fulfill this need; and if you have a marketing plan, I suggest you supplement your current plan with the Engagement tool for a powerful one-two punch.

Tip #2: Knowledge and Focus
Always continue to educate yourself and take advantage of every type of training available to you. Whether it’s with a local sales rep to update you on their product, live training events or recorded webinars, training is an invaluable tool that will provide you with more knowledge to pass on to your clients. At Travel Leaders Network, we place a high priority on training, which is why we provide a wide range of learning opportunities to our members, from live and recorded webinars to regional events and our national meeting. The more you learn, the more you earn. Plain and simple.

Tip #3: Productivity and Adaption
Embrace technology! There are so many useful tools in today’s marketplace that allow for an agency to be more efficient and drive more sales. Technology tools can serve numerous functions: they can be booking tools that keep you one step ahead of the internet; or they can be promotional solutions that gain you more visibility to new clients. Those who do not embrace technology get left behind, and we don’t want that to happen to you!

Las Vegas (June 13, 2018) – Today, Travel Leaders Network – one of America’s largest retail travel agency organizations – honored the top Affiliate Member agencies in the United States with its 12^thannual “Power of the Partnership” (POP) Awards. The award winners were celebrated on stage during the organization’s annual international conference, EDGE (Educate, Discover, Gather, Evolve), at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

“Travel Leaders Network is proud to honor and recognize some of our most outstanding members for their excellence, service, and achievements over the past year,” said John Lovell, President of Travel Leaders Network and Leisure Group. “These successful agencies continue to expand their businesses while providing exceptional customer service and encouraging clients to see the world.”

“These winners clearly demonstrate that, in partnership with Travel Leaders Network, travel agencies can very successfully thrive and grow within the rapidly expanding travel industry,” said Roger Block, President of Travel Leaders Network. “Each of our member winners have excelled in their profit-making ability and quality of care and has worked diligently to earn this distinction.”

The Chairman’s Awards were presented to the Affiliate Member agencies with the highest supplier sales in 2017, while recipients of Travel Leaders Network’s President’s Award are those Affiliate Member agencies with the largest supplier sales growth in 2017. The winners include:

2018 Chairman’s Award

• Chairman’s Pinnacle Award – Vacations To Go; Emerson Hankamer (Houston, TX)
• Chairman’s Elite Award – Pavlus Travel & Cruise Inc.; Craig Pavlus (Albuquerque, NM)
• Chairman’s Host Award – Cruises & Tours Unlimited; Steve Muraca & Chad Burt (Jacksonville, FL)

2018 President’s Award

• KHM Travel Group; Rick Zimmerman (Brunswick, OH)
• Cruises-N-More; Pat and Tiffany Neidhardt (Lake Mary, FL)
• Foxmoor Travel; Maria Matthews (Robbinsville, NJ)

2018 CruisePRO Booking Agency – Travel Leaders Network also recognized the Affiliate Member agency with the most sales using the organization’s exclusive cruise booking tool, CruisePRO. The winner is:

• Vacations To Go; Emerson Hankamer (Houston, TX)

2018 Top Worldwide Hotel Program Booking Agency – In addition, Travel Leaders Network honored the Affiliate Member agency with the highest level of bookings in the Worldwide Hotel program – which is Travel Leaders Group’s comprehensive hotel program offering the best available rates, added amenities and guaranteed commissions at over 33,000 global hotel brands and independent properties.

• Cain Travel; Jan Walden (Boulder, CO)

2018 Top Newcomer Member of the Year – The Top Newcomer Member of the Year award is given to the Affiliate Member agency that immediately demonstrated the highest level of support for the organization by adopting its programs, embracing its supplier partners, giving valuable feedback and attending key events.

• Preferred Travel; Olja Muursepp (Phoenix, AZ)

2018 Top Distinctive Voyages Booking Agency – Travel Leaders Network also presented an award to its top member agency utilizing Travel Leaders Group’s “Distinctive Voyages” program, which features hundreds of sailings throughout the world that include exclusive, complimentary amenities.

• Cruise.com; Jeanne Wyndrum (Dania Beach, FL)

2018 Distinctive Voyager Award – The Distinctive Voyager Award recognizes a Distinctive Voyages Host who exhibits exceptional professionalism, passion and service within his or her role as a cruise host and goes above and beyond in supporting the program.

• KVI Travel, Phil Doyle (Kelowna, BC)

For travel agencies interested in learning more about the award-winning programs and diverse offerings that Travel Leaders Network offers agencies in leisure and luxury travel, business travel, honeymoon and destination weddings – as well as active and adventure travel – visit TravelLeadersNetwork.com.

by Brittany Nasifoglu
Digital Media Strategist
Travel Leaders Network

To help promote the value of travel agents, Travel Leaders Network has declared 2018 the Year of The Travel Agent. This national campaign includes “The 12 Tenets of Travel Agents,” which distills your importance to travelers in 12 short, powerful sentences.

Each month, Travel Leaders Network will be featuring one of the 12 tenets on social media and through many other forms of communication. The Year of The Travel Agent gives travel agents the perfect opportunity to celebrate themselves, to share why they do what they do, and to talk about why they are passionate about travel. The ways to promote and talk about this on social media are endless!

We have laid it all out for Travel Leaders Network members within the Social Media Studio with Media Kits, including images to use on all social media channels, copy ideas and video content.

Other agents can participate in the Year of The Travel Agent by using the hashtag #YearOfTheTravelAgent on social media and getting your clients to share their travel agent stories. Use existing client reviews that positively connect to one of the 12 tenets and share them on social media.

Whenever you professionally use social media, explain how you help before, during and after the journey. Share photos of happy clients, write a short summary on what a client can expect, and ask your clients to comment on how you have helped them during the planning process.

Another fun option is to create a video or share photos of “behind the scenes” content that describes a day in the life of a travel agent. Switch it up month to month and see which option your clients respond to best.

By participating in the Year of The Travel Agent, you can market yourself in alignment with a national campaign, interact with your current clients and engage with prospective clients.

DOWNLOAD the “12 Tenets of Travel Agents here.

Las Vegas, NV (June 12, 2018) – More than 2,000 travel industry professionals from across the U.S. and Canada are gathering this week at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas for the annual international conference hosted by Travel Leaders Network, one of North America’s largest retail travel agency organizations.  The five-day EDGE (Educate, Discover, Gather, Evolve) conference runs from June 12-16 and features scores of educational workshops and professional development sessions, technology showcases and captivating guest speakers.

“Our 2018 EDGE conference is going to be the most compelling, productive and enjoyable travel industry gathering of the year,” said John Lovell, CTC, President of Travel Leaders Network and Leisure Group. “We have packed an incredible amount of learning, professional development and networking opportunities into the next several days, along with some exciting entertainment and thought-provoking guest speakers.” He added, “2018 is the Year of the Travel Agent and that will be in full evidence throughout this extraordinary event.”

New this year is a Luxury Forum, where travel agents who are luxury specialists have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with luxury suppliers. Also new is the Hotel Marketplace, a specialty trade show where agents can interact with a huge array of hotel properties and gain in-depth knowledge on their features and latest offerings.

More than 200 workshops during the conference range from topics such as marketing honeymoons and destination weddings, selling active and adventure travel, and making money selling air travel, to targeted advertising strategies for social media, effective management and leadership, and organizing successful consumer events. Among the guest speakers is Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, who will deliver the conference keynote, as well as motivational guru Stuart L. Cohen, and sales, marketing and business author Mike Marchev.

Several supplier forums during the conference will focus on topics ranging from evolving group sales through multi-generational/family travel, selling within the romance market, and tools for business and corporate travel sales, among many others. Forum panelists will feature executives from tour operator companies, travel insurance providers, cruise lines, airlines, hotels and others. The sold-out trade show will feature nearly 200 exhibitors spanning a wide array of companies ranging from cruise lines, hotels, rental car and transportation companies to tourism boards, visitors bureaus and tour operators.

The entertainment highlight of the conference will be a special performance of select songs from Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, the Tony and Grammy-award winning musical based on the true story of composer and singer-songwriter Carole King. Additionally, all conference attendees will be treated to a spectacular off-site evening event taking place at the Park Theater, a stunning, three-level venue within the recently unveiled MGM Park Resort.

“Our annual conference is a unique opportunity for our agents to network with the most prestigious suppliers, tour operators and companies serving the travel industry as well as share best practices in one can’t miss event,” said Roger E. Block, CTC, President of Travel Leaders Network, which has approximately 6,800 travel agency locations in North America.  “EDGE is one of the many advantages of being a member of Travel Leaders Network and the participation we receive from supplier partners and others speaks volumes to the scale of business our travel agents generate and the vitality of the travel agency profession.”

by Pam Jarvis, MCC
Director, Cruise Programs
Travel Leaders Network

The relationship a travel agent has with their clients is not that much different from the ones you have with your family, friends or romantic partners. The key to any successful relationship is making the other side feel special. For family and friends, that can be as simple as sending flowers or having a good heart-to-heart conversation.

For your clients, the key is making them feel like VIPs. One thing we do really well here at Travel Leaders Network is provide the tools for agents to do exactly that. Through multiple cruise and hotel programs, our agents can provide unique bonus amenities and custom-tailored experiences, all of which add up to making their clients feel unique and special.

Our private tours program is growing fast—both in popularity among our agents and their clients—and with good reason. These personalized experiences can be completely tailored to the client, including such moments as a private winery tour, cooking demonstration by a local chef, private art gallery tour, or even VIP tickets to a special event, like Wimbledon or the Monte Carlo Grand Prix.

These tours are popular with clients not because they cater to all price points (which they do), and not because they include all the logistics, from safe, comfortable transportation to local guides and translators (which they also do). They’re popular because they make clients feel extra special, knowing their travel agent went above and beyond to craft these amazing experiences.

And they are amazing, because I’ve experienced quite a few. Last summer on a cruise, we stopped in Malaga, Spain, where we enjoyed a private tour of the Picasso Museum. After walking past the queues of people waiting to enter the museum, our tour began. To be honest, his abstract paintings didn’t make any sense to me. But our guide walked us through Picasso’s life, while explaining the significance of the paintings. After two hours, I had a whole new appreciation for the artist! This was something I would never have done on my own, but now I tell everyone not to miss this amazing museum.

Another memory is from a private tour in Tuscany. I was with a good size group and had arranged for a private tour of a winery. After learning about their wine-making process, we enjoyed a seven-course meal that was paired with wines made on the estate as well as some of the best balsamic vinegar I’ve ever tasted. That experience took place eight years ago, and I still look back on it fondly.

That is what your clients should do—they should look back fondly at the journeys you crafted for them. And with private tours, they will.

by Lea Diele, CTIE
Senior Manager, Independent Contractor Program
Travel Leaders Network

Joining the right Host Agency is the most important decision an Independent Contractor (IC) can make. In the wrong situation, your sales stagnate and you can lose your passion.  But in the right situation, every facet of your business improves, and your desire to show your clients the world grows more every day.

At Travel Leaders Network, we work hard to match ICs with the right Host Agency, making sure that both sides benefit from the relationship. For ICs trying to play matchmaker by themselves, here are the questions you should be asking your potential host agency:

1. Do you offer programs that give me a competitive advantage?

Look for programs that help your clients save, create customized experiences or that provide value-added bonus amenities for client retention.

2. Who are your strongest vendor partnerships with?

Hopefully, the answer will be the same vendors you already use and book daily.

3. Do you have a lead generation program?

Good leads are essential to growth. Most agencies offer one, but find out how successful it is before signing on the dotted line.

4. What kind of booking tools do you provide?

Aim for those that are easy to use and that simplify the booking process thus creating more time for you to meet with    clients to gain more in sales.

 5. What are the average commission levels your agency receives from your preferred suppliers?

Smaller agencies can still earn bigtime commissions when they belong to the right consortia.  You can benefit from   this in multiple ways.

6. Do you offer specific Independent Contractor business coaching, classes or workshops?

The more you know, the more you can build your business and your earnings.  Having access to a business coach offers    you the best scenario to meet your goals.

7. Do you offer ICs educational travel opportunities or FAM trips?

You want to partner with an agency that’s ready to invest in your future.

8. Do you actively promote your ICs to attend regional meetings or national conferences?

Knowing your resources will help you grow your business even more.

9. How involved are the agency owners?
The best Hosts want to know you and will take the time to learn about your goals and objectives.

10. How professional is the agency’s in-house staff?

The Host Agency becomes your business family, so this is your time to align yourself with high-quality professionals who are eager to assist and mentor you, when needed.