01/02/2023
My sweet friend Sandy had an awesome post with some great info on how this job works. I know a lot of people just really donât KNOW how it works so hereâs some inside info for you đ
Others POV: âBeing a Travel Agent looks so fun and easy! You get to travel for free and have fun!â
⨠I wish I traveled for free! I donât. I pay out of pocket just like you!
⨠This is SALES. Iâm not paid hourly or salary. So if you have me run 10 quotes and donât book, I donât get paid for that time. And sometimes it takes a lot of time! Sometimes clients donât know what they want which requires my help to narrow it down. If we work together for 1.5 years planning your vacay and you cancel, I donât get paid. I only get paid for travel that occurs and I am paid 1-2 months AFTER youâve traveled. Some months itâs a lot of work and nothing to show for it.
⨠Iâm not allowed to charge planning fees so yes, I am completely FREE to you. There is no catch!
⨠I donât have business hours because I want to be available to my clients all the time. That sometimes means people are texting me or emailing me at all hours the day when sleeping, working, and spending time with my family. It can be a lot to manage!
⨠Spending hours on hold for clients? It happens! A lot. But itâs part of the services I provide to help make my clientâs planning experience more enjoyable.
â¨Getting to talk about Disney and earn a little $ was a win-win so I came up with the idea of being an independent travel agent. This has been the most rewarding 5 1/2 years with a lot of happiness, fulfillment and repeat clients. However the sting of rejection doesnât get any easier. Iâm sensitive and itâs hard to not take it personally. You booked on your own? Ouch. You had me run a ton of quotes then used someone else and didnât tell me? Double ouch.
⨠Thereâs a ton of people becoming agents recently and I think itâs because of how it looks from the outside. It looks fun and easy and you can do it from home but that isnât always the case. Iâll be putting quotes together while I am waiting for my daughter to perform. Calling a client while my family is waiting for me to go to dinner. Booking dining reservations while on my own vacation. I put a lot of dedication into my business because itâs something I truly love and is a big part of my life. I didnât just go to Disney one day and decide I want to do this. I wanted to help people. This job takes lots of personal experience if you want the best of the best. I hope you will continue to book with me to see why I am different from all the others! This is a career thatâs takes a LOT of hard work, dedication, effort, consistency and it challenges your comfort zones.
Thank you to everyone who has booked with me! I hope I can continue to assist your family in planning the magic for many more years to come đ