Dear Travel Agents/Advisors,

We are all hoping that the number of bookings will increase because of the new rules about mask requirements on airports, airplanes and cruises. With the changes, travel agents/advisors must feel a lot of empathy for clients’ needs and fears, anxieties and expectations. Many times, we expect that ALL clients will respond the same way to news about the masks. This can create a false sense of reality. Being ready to explain to some clients how they can feel “protected against Covid” in this new environment demonstrates the real knowledge and expertise of the TA.

Knowledge comes from dedication in learning about a location(s) but the nuances and details come from personal experience. Offering empathy is a skill that is not teachable, but inheritable. It doesn’t matter your sex, political or religion affiliations, it probably comes from your DNA. This whole combo of knowledge and empathy translates into a powerful tool that makes you an awesome Travel Advisor, ready to go the extra mile for each and every client. Clients will be sure to tell family and friends about you, and in a couple of years your business becomes a great success.

I highly recommend that you eventually become a mentor to new agents and/or to others who struggle with any issue in the business. Use your empathy to understand where others are lacking. With your knowledge, you can guide the other person how to succeed. If all of us can focus on growing and helping others to do the same, we can build a better tomorrow for us all.

As my mom used to say, when you just give a fish it will help with only one meal. Teaching someone how to fish helps them forever.

For all the great minds out there, pay it forward!

Follow me at:
Facebook @travelwithrosana
Instagram @travelwithrosana
Blogs @ http://www.travelwithrosana.com

 

Dear Travel Agents/Advisors,

There are many attributes that make a good Travel Agent/Advisor, and knowledge is a very important one. Caring is another. But your expertise in sales will seal the deal. How you go about it and your timing can make or break the sale.

If your client/prospective client feels pushed or rushed, it can backfire. When your response takes too long, the client could feel neglected and move on to another agent. Despite all your knowledge, if the client doesn’t feel convinced or enthusiastic, things can also backfire.

Some people are naturals at sales. It feels like they would sell their family members if they could, just for fun. Others, however, feel like they “unsell.”  For example, if you go to a specific store ready to buy a product and the salesperson “sells” you a reason not to buy it. You leave the store without the product asking yourself why you changed your mind when you were so ready to buy it?

Confidence shows in the voice and also on the skin. It is the same as for insecurity and fear – what people project can be felt and even “sensed” by the person on the receiving end.  The good news is that people can learn, and with practice and dedication can become as good (many times even better) than the natural salespeople. That is because they learn new techniques yet have also experienced rejection.

When I had my tour operator business for many years one of my areas of expertise was to teach my agents. I loved walking around the office listening to how they interacted on the phone.

Feel free to pick my brain. For me, sales is like playing my favorite sport, tennis. You need to stay on your toes for flexibility and pay attention so the ball does not hit you in the face!

Cheering for you!

Follow me at:
Facebook @travelwithrosana
Instagram @travelwithrosana
Blogs @ http://www.travelwithrosana.com

 

 

Dear Travel Agents/Advisors,

I hope you were able to take advantage of the tools I provided last week, or at least they made sense and you can soon start using them.

Another important piece of advice is to always be yourself, and to continually try to improve to be the best self you possibly can be. It’s like playing a game or a sport, some people are just naturals, and some need a little more coaching. Eventually, when we put in the amount of dedication required, we all come out on top – it is just a matter of time. Clients appreciate this and can see who we are, and how much we care. That comes through right from the beginning, and even later in the “game.”

“Eat, live, love travel!”  Make travel a conversation piece wherever you go. For example, have a T-shirt with a picture of a beach with a saying, “Life is better on the beach.” Do the same for a purse or backpack, hat, or anything you wear that others can see. My suggestion is to introduce yourself slowly, like the new kid in town – so, I wouldn’t use the name of my company or my phone number. I would let people recognize me and approach me to talk about what they see. Just to have a chat, and when they ask what I do or if I sell travel, then I smile and say yes.

A travel seller can become like the popular kid in school that all the other kids want to hang out with and exchange phone numbers with. It’s different than with the pushy kid that tries to give everyone their phone number, LOL!

This plan is great for seeing people at church, grocery shopping, association clubs, at the pharmacy, in the neighborhood, especially when you have just started out, or decided to focus more on selling travel. It is also great for those who are selling travel on the side while having a full-time job.

Having a Specialty:  I usually recommend that a TA eventually find an area that he/she likes and feels most comfortable selling. Some people love to sell the Caribbean and cruises, others like to specialize in adventures, some like Asia, and others do river cruises and Europe. If you decide to sell the Caribbean and cruises as your specialty and someone approaches you and wants to visit the UAE, you can easily use your specialization and sell a cruise to that client, starting or ending in Dubai.

It is important to remember that by being a Travel Agent/Advisor you have the experience and expertise and you are sitting in the driver’s seat. Show your client a great vacation and you will have them for life!

Cheers to you!

Follow me at:
Facebook @travelwithrosana
Instagram @travelwithrosana
Blogs @ http://www.travelwithrosana.com

 

Dear Travel Agents/Advisors,

How many requests from clients/prospective ones do you receive a week? How many proposals do you send? And how many of them turn out to become a sale?

What if I can give you some tools that can help you turn most of these into a sale?

Ready?

TAs, I understand that the most common practice is to use the basic questions: when, where, how many people, and budget. Most of the communication is done by email with itineraries back and forth, follow up, and sometimes they end up becoming a sale. Others don’t.

Before I start giving you some of the tools, let’s think about a woman going to buy a dress for a very special occasion. She has a light blue dress in mind, and her budget is $300. She gets a salesperson who talks to her and understands how important this event is to her. Even though the salesperson understands the budget and color, based on her experience and expertise, she recommends a lavender colored dress, for which the price is $100 more. After the woman tries it on (a bit reluctantly) she feels like a princess and falls in love with the dress.

Even though your client/prospective one comes with a budget for a vacation and some other ideas in mind, they need the guidance, experience and expertise of a TA to have the PERFECT vacation. One that can make them feel special in the same way the lavender dress did in the example above.

One common “mistake” is using only emails to communicate with the client/prospective one to send proposals. It is sterile and lacks a personal touch, and the TA loses an opportunity to show their experience and expertise.

Another common “mistake” is to think that if the client/prospective outlines their preferences and/or budget they are not open to other ideas. Don’t be afraid to offer your expert opinion on what might suit them better. If they haven’t been to their preferred destination before, or if they are not familiar with the destination, the TA can and should guide them to something more appropriate by learning a bit more about the clients.

For example, a family of 5 (2 adults and 3 young kids) want to do a cruise on Azamara. Well, they may not know that Azamara doesn’t have ANY kid’s programs, so they will be miserable. Offer a cruise that is more kid friendly! It is definitely easier to explain this by phone than through proposals by email.

Next week I will bring you more tools. Don’t miss it! Meanwhile, feel free to reach out with any questions.

Follow me at:
Facebook @travelwithrosana
Instagram @travelwithrosana
Blogs @ http://www.travelwithrosana.com