Tom Stieghorst
For travel agents, 2018 should be the year of "The Ask."
As wave season kicks off, cruise specialists need to ask clients about extras that carry more commission.
I was reminded of this by the Carnival Cruise Line announcement that it would begin paying commission on wedding packages. It was a small bit of good news on the commission front. Many travel agents are putting in the work to arrange wedding packages as a service for clients booking cabins for their weddings. Now they will get compensated for the effort.
But there are other commission opportunities, and this is the year to propose them. It is time to sell more pre- and post-cruise land stays, more insurance and more excursions through sources that reward agents.
Because if there's any year that clients will consider paying extra for their vacation, this is it. Some years money is tight, the economy not so hot, the budget predetermined. Some years the number is the number.
This year is shaping up as one where the number can be stretched to accommodate those extras you might propose. The economy is in its eighth year of expansion, the unemployment rate is at 4.1%, a 17-year low, and many people (sorry California) will be getting tax cuts, which translate to bigger paychecks in 2018.
The stock market is setting records and benchmark levels are being surpassed with accelerating frequency.
If clients can't afford extras this year, or at least be receptive to a pitch, I don't know when it will happen.
And don't forget to ask about expanding the travel party either. Vicky Freed, senior vice president of sales, trade support and service at Royal Caribbean International, has been saying for at least the past year that agents should ask clients, even as they're closing a sale, "Who else do you know that you'd like to bring along on this cruise?"
This year, that question might be more productive than ever for agents willing to make "The Ask."