onventional wisdom has it that the
upscale travel market is less vulnerable to the vagaries of the
economy than other groups and is therefore a safe bet for agencies
looking to specialize.
Not necessarily so, said Ron Hersh, president of 25-year-old
World of Travel in Columbus, Ohio, and a member of the Virtuoso
network of travel agencies specializing in upscale leisure
travel.
"Actually, the
opposite is true," said Hersh. "The upscale travel market yo-yos
along with the stock market, and if you see a dive in the market,
you also will see an immediate slowing in travel bookings.
"Most of the people we deal with aren't afraid of losing their
jobs [in an economic downturn], but it's a question of how rich
they feel," Hersh said.
Noting that nonessential travel is the first thing people cut
out of their budgets, he said: "If you were going to spend $20,000
on a trip, you might decide to wait and see what happens with the
economy first."
So how does Hersh weather the economic storms that affect that
part of his business?
"Upscale leisure travel is only a small percentage of our
market," he said, noting that World of Travel has a breakdown of
about 50% groups, meetings and incentives; 25% corporate, and 25%
upscale leisure.
Hersh touted the strength of the groups and meetings markets,
which he said "don't generally fall apart" even when the economy is
tight.
As to corporations: "They might cut back on business travel, but
it is still fairly steady."
Hersh is a big believer in cross-marketing and makes sure his
corporate clients receive targeted mailings about the company's
private-label leisure offerings.
In addition to having an even mix, what can agents do to
withstand economic bumps and turns?
The answer, according to Hersh, is probably not that different
from the advice of grandparents everywhere.
"Make hay while you can, but if you are making good money, put
some aside for a rainy day," he said.
In addition to saving, Hersh urged agents to be conservative
when they do their annual projections so that they don't end up
with inflated overhead.
"What happens is that everyone is geared up [in boom times], but
[when the economy goes south] your expenses don't change," he
said.
-- Felicity Long
Treasure your staff
ne reason to keep your head
during times of high profits is that in the event of an economic
downturn "it's hard to save on overhead unless you start getting
rid of people," said Ron Hersh, president of World of Travel, based
in Columbus, Ohio.
"But you don't want to do that because it is so hard to get good
people in the first place, and if they do leave, they take clients
with them," he said.
World of
Travel employs 30 agents, all but one of whom -- a recent travel
school graduate -- is a veteran with at least nine years'
experience, Hersh said.
Referring to the staff as "gold," Hersh said he works to keep
the office environment inviting and offers a "generous travel
policy."
"Our connection with Virtuosity means that our agents are
offered more significant and exotic trips than are available to
most other agents," Hersh said, adding that he believes in the old
adage that agents need to travel in order to sell travel
effectively.
He also promotes open communication between his agents from one
department to another, which is especially important when corporate
clients cross into leisure bookings.
"If you displease a corporate decision-maker, you can lose an
entire account, so if one of our leisure agents also treats him or
her like a king, that solidifies the corporate account," Hersh
said.
Think positive
peak with any sociologist,
child psychologist or human resources expert and they usually agree
with the following: If you want to motivate people, positive
reinforcement is a requirement.
And if you combine positive reinforcement with perceived or real
benefits, motivation is given a boost.
Hyatt
Resorts has introduced a specialist course that is chock-full of
positive reinforcement.
For starters, and in my mind the most important consideration,
you earn five continuing education units (CEU) with the Institute
of Certified Travel Agents.
Now might be a good time to think about becoming a certified
travel associate or a certified travel counselor, but even if you
don't need the CEUs, education is never wasted.
The course explains how selling resort vacations will help you
make money.
It covers Hyatt Resorts' 19 properties in the Caribbean, the
continental U.S. and Hawaii.
Topics covered include golf, spas, families and romance.
Key selling benefits of the resorts will give you the tools
necessary to sell each one as an individual vacation
experience.
In addition to other benefits, every specialist will have a
dedicated Hyatt Resorts regional sales manager.
This ties in with cooperative advertising dollars, based on
approval.
Hyatt will supply free advertising templates for you to use to
help you design an ad.
Graduates also will receive 12% commission on all Hyatt
Vacations bookings for 2001.
Whenever we attend sales seminars, we are always told to stress
benefits.
Features are important but the resulting benefit is more
relevant to the client.
As clients of suppliers, why are we any different?
A supplier with a good and reputable product is a feature that
is in our clients' best interest.
Paying commissions in a timely manner is a necessary feature.
But how many suppliers provide benefits to both our clients and to
the agencies that sell their product?
Features are fine but agencies need to see more concrete
benefits.
We need suppliers that are willing to develop programs that
enable us to learn about their product and match that product to
the appropriate client.
We need suppliers that offer sales and advertising support and
additional revenue when we commit to learning and selling their
product.
A company that is committed to offering an agency relevant
benefits, not just a product to sell, is a true partner.
Lucy Hirleman, CTC, MCC, owns Berkshire Travel in
Newfoundland, N.J. Contact her at [email protected]; fax: (973) 208-1204.