HAR's Travel Agent Chatter | Friday 15 Steph Lee | Travel Industry Veteran, Founder Host Agency Reviews

In episode 152 Steph co-hosts with the one and only Jenn of TPI and the chat on TPI’s new franchise, Vacation Planners!

1. What is your view on terms and conditions? I see so much talk about them but do I need to invest in getting custom terms and conditions for my agency? That seems crazy to me. —Anonymous

2. Hi Steph! I signed up for a host agency on your site and he asked me to Venmo over the payment to get started. He seems legitimate but it just has me worried. Is sending Venmo to a host agency normal? —Anonymous

3. First I would like to say how helpful your website and podcasts are. I listen to Spotify, watch YouTube videos and read all the articles every chance I can. Everything is SO HELPFUL! Thank you so much.
I am still in the process of finding the best host to join and here's my question: I am a Brazilian and US resident and I was wondering if I could have customers from other countries as Brazilians would be a huge network of clients for me visiting the US. Do host agencies accept that or does it depend on the agency?
Do their software of payments accept international credit cards/currency exchange? I would still be a US-based TA under a US-based host agency. Thank you! --Camila S.



TODAY’S RESOURCES:

https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/seller-travel-laws-service-fees (Tom Carpenter explaining how charging service fees interacts with seller of travel registrations)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-industry-lawyer-list (List of travel industry attorneys)
https://asta.org (ASTA provides free T&C templates to members. Use TPI50 for $50 off ASTA membership.)

https://travelindustrysolutions.com/ (Legal templates for travel agencies with membership)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/hosts (List of host agencies.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tips-on-how-to-find-the-best-travel-host-agency (Advice on how to find the best host agency.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/independent-travel-agent-contracts (Things to look for in your contract with your host agency)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/hosts/travel-planners-international (TPI’s profile on HAR)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fiercelyforwardtraveladvisors/ (Fiercely Forward FB group for all advisors. Doesn’t need to be a part of TPI)
jennl@tpionline.com (Jenn’s email)
https://vacationplannersfranchise.com/ (Vacation Planners’ website to get on the franchise waitlist)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/franchises/vacation-planners (Vacation Planners’ HAR profile)

In episode 151 Steph tackles some great questions with co-host Henley Vazquez from Fora!

1. I have my agency set up after going through your 7 Day Set Up program but now I’m lost on how to find clients and start advertising. I know there is no one way to do things, but what would you recommend for next steps once my agency has opened? I sent an email to my friends and family about my new agency and also set up social profiles. –Anonymous

2. I am looking for a host agency and I have never had one before. I have compared a ton on your site and I am feeling overwhelmed. What are the main things I should be looking for in a good host agency? Or should I start my own? ---Judi N.

3. I was just invited on my first fam trip! Do you have any advice on how to make the most of it or tips for a new travel agent going on their first fam? Thanks! ---Anonymous




TODAY’S RESOURCES:

https://hostagencyreviews.com/7DS-lite (HAR’s 7 Day Setup LITE is a free online course that helps you start your agency. It does not have support and takes you through resources to help you make things happen)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/7DS-accelerator (HAR’s 7 Day Setup Accelerator course with 70+ easily digestible videos, 48 exclusive resources, monthly live meetups with HAR team and others for support and accountability, priority email support)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/hosts (List of host agencies.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tips-on-how-to-find-the-best-travel-host-agency (Advice on how to find the best host agency.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-fam-trip (Travel Agent FAM Trips: What They Are + How to Find Them)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/how-travel-agents-can-make-the-most-of-a-cruise-ship-inspection (How Travel Advisors Can Make the Most of a Cruise Ship Inspection)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/how-travel-agents-can-make-the-most-of-a-cruise-ship-inspection (The Definitive Site Inspection Checklist)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/make-your-travel-conference-count (5 Ways to Make Your Travel Conference Count)

In episode 150 Steph fields some great questions from our good friend Anonymous (ha!) about naming your biz and choosing a HA based on locality. She also breaks down how to become a travel agent in some handy steps!

1. I am just stepping into starting a travel agency at the very early stages and still working on what it would look like for me. When considering a niche and a business name, I suspect having the niche in the business name can help, but would it cause issues if I wanted to pivot or expand to a different niche at some point in the future and possibly require a business name change and rebranding challenges. Do you have any advice or should I just worry about the future. –Anonymous

2. How important is it to join a local host agency? —Anonymous

3. I know there isn’t one set answer for this, but how would you break down the steps on how to become a travel agent? —Anonymous





TODAY’S RESOURCES:

https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/find-a-travel-niche (Guide to choosing a travel niche)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tips-for-choosing-travel-agency-names (Tips for choosing travel agency names + examples)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/7DS-lite (HAR’s 7 Day Setup LITE is a free online course that helps you start your agency. It does not have support and takes you through resources to help you make things happen)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/7DS-accelerator (HAR’s 7 Day Setup Accelerator course with 70+ easily digestible videos, 48 exclusive resources, monthly live meetups with HAR team and others for support and accountability, priority email support)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/hosts (Find a map of host agencies on our host agency list.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/how-to-become-a-travel-agent (All you need to know to become a travel agent)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/page/travel-advisor-research-reports/ (Travel agent survey data on employee travel agents and self-employed travel agents.)

In episode 149 Steph co-hosts with April Swales of Uniglobe. Here are the questions they’ll cover. Got some fun ones this week! 

1. How do HAR courses differ from an IATA course or something offered through a host agency? –Anonymous

2. Hello HAR and team! I have a question about commissions. For travel agents based in Europe, as far as I know most airlines do not pay any commission. But it seems to me that this is not the case for TAs based elsewhere. I am asking this because I just got my IATA accreditation, and my business is mostly flight consulting. But I do this for clients based worldwide.

3. Most travel agents where I am from have to add a ticketing fee to their customers, and if they sell flight only then their only revenue will be that fee. In the end, if I don't get any commission from airlines, what is my benefit in using a GDS?

TODAY’S RESOURCES:

https://uniglobetravelcenter.com/mentor-u (UTC’s 3 month mentoring program)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/become-corporate-travel-agent (List of trainings specific to corporate advisors, including IATA)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-training-travel-agent-education (List of other travel agent training opportunities)
https://har.news/roadmap (HAR’s course through ASTA. The Roadmap to Becoming a Travel Advisor.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/7DS-lite (HAR’s 7 Day Setup LITE is a free online course that helps you start your agency. It does not have support and takes you through resources to help you make things happen)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/7DS-accelerator (HAR’s 7 Day Setup Accelerator course with 70+ easily digestible videos, 48 exclusive resources, monthly live meetups with HAR team and others for support and accountability, priority email support)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-industry-terms (HAR’s travel industry glossary)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-commissions (All about travel agent commissions, including airline commissions.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-accreditation (A list of the different travel agent accreditation options.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-gds (An article on what the GDS is)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/airline-fare-types (All about airline fare types)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-debit-memo (What is a travel agency debit memo?)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/3-ways-travel-agents-save-you-money (3 ways travel agents save you money that OTAs can’t)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/page/travel-advisor-research-reports/ (Travel agent survey data on fee charging practices: what they charge for, how much, fee structures and more.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-gds (In-depth information on what the GDS, global distribution system, is and which travel advisors use it.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/become-corporate-travel-agent (Tips on how to become a corporate travel agent.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatter/travel-agent-chatter-vol-5-karen-hurlbut-hurlbut-travel (Podcast episode with a corporate travel agent that does meetings and corporate travel management.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatter/lary-neron-airfare-consultant (Podcast episode with an advisor who books air only and charges $50-500 fees per ticket.)
https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agents-guide-to-charging-fees (Travel agent guide to charging fees.)

****** Transcript + Show Notes: https://har.news/vol29

Special thanks to today’s sponsor: Caffeine

Today’s guest is a former professional fundraiser who put those skills to work and went from travel being a part time job on the side in 2017 to full time in June 2018.

Here’s the thing to know though. Even with $2.5M in sales, that’s not the metric our guest watches. This travel advisor has niched down into groups—both destination weddings and celebrations groups—with a minimum of 10 rooms and an average spend of $500-1000 per guest, per day.

The metric she does watch is the steady income that comes from her group booking fee of $5,000 per group and the 18 clients that are in her VIP club where there is a $6.5k a year annual retainer that has a minimum annual travel spend of $50k, and that doesn’t include air.

For today’s guest, commission is just icing on the cake.

Courtnie Nichols is a study in crafting the business of your dreams by thinking about what you want out of life and reverse engineering your business to fit the lifestyle you want. She only books one destination wedding a month. She takes most of Friday off and focuses on self-care. She lays out who she wants to work with and sticks to it. And December? Forget about it! She and the TravelBash team take the entire month of December off.

So come along for an inspirational conversation with a travel advisor who isn’t afraid to do things differently and by doing so, has found a work-life balance others dream of and a steady income stream that no pandemic or natural disaster can wreak havoc on.

In episode 148 Steph co-hosts with Katie WIlliams of Tern. Here are the questions they tackle this week!

1. I'd like to switch to Tern. We're currently on Axus. Is there an easy way to transfer that data or can you tell me the level of manual work that needs to be done by our team to make the move? –Anonymous

2. I have been diagnosed with ADHD and of course, some of the things I struggle with is creating processes and maintaining focus (among other things ). I'm relatively new and I would like my niche to include ADHD travelers. Any tips and tricks for ADHD advisors to start and keep up with processes and tasks? Thanks so much! –Sandra S.

3. Is there a way to tell if a host agency offers Tern on their HAR profile? –Anonymous


TODAY’S RESOURCES:

katie@tern.travel (Katie’s email — anonymous, reach out!)

https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/best-travel-itinerary-builders (Tern, Axus and other travel itinerary builder comparison chart)

https://hostagencyreviews.com/hosts (Look on a host’s profile for more details)