Barry Hyatt, CTC, owner of Air & Marine Travel of Brewster,
N.Y., thought he was in charge of his business for 35 years but now
recognizes that he really hadn't taken charge of it until a few
months ago.
"Last fall, right after the last round of commission cuts, I
went to an ASTA seminar that dealt with taking control of your
business and realized that I wasn't in charge... my clients were. I
was going home at night with dozens of unreturned phone calls.
Things had to change."
Today, the $3.5 million-per- year agency does client
consultations by appointment only.
The agency does leisure only, with about 15% in cruise and most
of the remainder in independent itineraries.
Clients can book a half-hour or a one-hour appointment between
9:30 and 5:30 Tuesdays through Saturdays or at 8 p.m. Tuesdays,
Wednesdays or Thursdays.
"Professional people value their time and they manage it," Hyatt
says. "We stress that our schedule is designed to accommodate our
customers' needs. We remind them that their time is valuable and
that their trip conference will not be interrupted."
The agency has two nationwide 800 numbers. It does 90% of its
conferences by telephone because the bulk of its clients live from
25 to 75 miles away.
Hyatt acknowledges that there was initial resistance from
established clients who were accustomed to the agency's being
available on demand. But they've gotten used to the
appointment-only approach.
"What the heck," he says. "My wife's OB-GYN has a 60-day wait to
schedule an appointment. Making yourself too available diminishes
your worth. When referring their friends, our clients now say, 'Our
agent is available by appointment only. He doesn't do callbacks.'
"
Air & Marine also decided to institute charges for services
for which it is not compensated, such as issuing frequent flyer
tickets ($25 to $35) or arranging visas ($10). Hyatt says clients
are glad to pay the fees.
As for airline tickets, he says, "We never issue tickets we can
buy from a wholesaler or consolidator. This raises our commission
and reduces our workload."
Hyatt says he won't "dignify" the airlines by regarding them as
a threat. "They can't compete with agents. Their allegiance is to
stockholders."
If the airlines aren't a threat, what about self-service booking
on the Internet? Hyatt believes the Internet has proved to be a
valuable resource for research and collateral material. "But who
would deny there are Web sites containing information that is
unsubstantiated or self-serving?" he says.
In the final analysis, Hyatt says, "Professional travel agents
devoting themselves to counseling their clients with accurate,
impartial advice have yet to be replaced as the traveler's best
advocate."