09/19/2022
As a self-employed, home-based travel agent, for The Travel Agent Next Door the last 2 years has certainly taken a ‘beating,’ to say the least, during the most difficult time due to COVID-19. In an industry where we depend 100 per cent on commissions with NO salary being paid, home-based travel agents were on the verge of loosing everything they had worked for this past year.
Specializing in a niche industry, such as destination weddings, honeymoons, wedding planner, group travel etc., requires a lot of pre-planning. It's typically a year or more in advance before I get to work with I clients. I work for clients throughout the year, making phone calls, sending emails and messages, getting them, all booked. I sometimes work for a year, with no income, on a single group.
When a client's trip is done, it's the ‘icing on the top’ for us agents. When clients return, we FINALLY get paid our commission for the work we have done for a year, sometimes longer.
The impact of COVID-19 had on us agents is tremendous. We had groups cancelling every day. Every group we have worked on (plus all individual bookings), with ZERO coming back to us as commission.
So where did that leave me? I was literally sinking, loosing all the hard-earned money I was depending on receiving or have already forecasted for. It was a nightmare for me. I still had to service my clients in the midst of all of it. So, I continue working, KNOWING I wasn’t getting paid for any of my time.
I was on hold for hours upon hours, days upon days, trying to get through to suppliers for questions and cancellations. Two, three, four days of no pay and working way more than a regular eight-hour day.
Remember how important it is to book with a travel agent, because I am here for my clients, day in and day out, to get clients through this time.
I am OPENED for BUSINESS! Specializing in Group Travel, Destination Weddings, Honeymoons, Wedding Planner and All-Inclusive Packages. Thank you for your patience, understanding and encouragement during COVID-19 because this too shall pass!
