Being a travel advisor doesn’t always simply mean selling travel. The role encompasses several different tasks in addition to planning vacations for clients.
Those clients need to come from somewhere, which means marketing is a huge aspect of the job—which also means figuring out which marketing works the best for your potential clientele. Is it email blasts, social media outreach, direct mail pieces, all of the above?
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The travel industry is also constantly changing, which means training and keeping up with the latest updates is key. This means agents need to figure out where to find convenient training courses and events to participate in.
Almost everyone has heard the popular phrase “time equals money”, but not everyone lets it sink in. When agents break their day down, there is a good chance a lot of time is spent on doing things outside of selling travel, things that don’t bring in a profit.
When it’s put into perspective, having a franchise might end up being a less expensive route to take in the travel selling world. With Cruise Planners, travel advisors are given the tools and resources they need to save time and focus more on selling travel in order to take their business to the next level.
Michelle Fee, Cruise Planners Founder and CEO, explains, “At Cruise Planners, we do all the heavy lifting, so our travel advisors can have more time to sell. And when our advisors have more time to sell, they can earn more profits for their business.”
Top-Notch Technology
Cruise Planners provides its travel advisors with powerful, but also simple-to-use, technology, so they can keep the main focus on working with their clients.
For example, CP Maxx is an all-in-one CRM and booking engine that allows agents to book and sync reservations with major cruise lines and tour operators; search and compare hundreds of all-inclusive resorts to find the ideal option for their client; view insights such as suggestions for clients based on their purchase history; set goals and track progress and more.
CP Maxx is also completely mobile, so agents can run their businesses from anywhere.
Included Marketing
In addition to providing top-notch technology, Cruise Planners sets travel advisors up with ideal marketing in order to send the right message to the right person at the right time, all without hefty marketing fees.
Some of these marketing techniques include customized direct mail pieces, weekly e-blasts, luxury-focused e-newsletters for select clients, a social media management program, client segmentation data and a beautifully produced magazine.
Cruise Planners also recently launched its Where2Next virtual travel series as a way to introduce destinations to advisors’ clients. By partnering with major travel suppliers, the company provides virtual events that feature destinations around the world. Not only does Cruise Planners’ software search the database to invite the most ideal clients via email, but both a reminder email sequence and post-event follow up series are automatically conducted as well without the agent lifting a finger.
Training and Personalized Coaching
It’s not always easy to start out in the travel industry or come up with a game plan, but Cruise Planners’ advisors are set up with a business development coach who works with them to set goals and create a personalized plan for growing the business.
Carolyn Rybnikar, a Cruise Planners Millionaires Club Member, reflects on the experience with her coach: “At my previous franchise, I felt a little alone and isolated. But with Cruise Planners I have a dedicated coach who understands my personal goals, has helped me develop my business plan, and has been a big part of helping me grow my business.”
The Home Office also hosts six to eight live webinars each week, and Cruisitude Academy houses hundreds of hours of online learning modules. This is in addition to virtual forums and a yearly convention.
Cruise Planners is not just a travel franchise to be a part of, it’s a family. Travel advisors are provided with endless amounts of resources and support to grow their travel businesses, all while building friendships along the way.
To learn more about this travel franchise, explore Your Guide to Cruise Planners.