Home Based Travel Agent - June 2008 - (Page 27)

From left: Liz Fisher of SeaMaster Cruises; Bonnie Schwarz of Travelwbon; Pam Forrester of The Magic for Less Travel; and Susan Kelly of Travel Magic uments in a creative way can be an unforgettable event for clients. “When I give documents to my clients in person, I make sure they are packed in a memorable way,” says Bonnie Schwarz, owner, Travelwbon (www.travelwbon.com), a home-based agency in Orlando, FL. She says it’s all about customer service from start to finish. She often ties a bow around the documents and presents them with a bottle of wine, or she encloses the documents in a small basket with wine, cheese, crackers and other goodies. Surprise baskets are highly popular with clients and offer flexibility in what agents do. Buy the baskets cheaply at a craft or discount store. Trim with streamers or other colorful decorations. Tie on your business card. Fill the baskets with supplier giveaways, brochures from tourism offices and a few gifts, customized for the client’s specific trip. Some ideas for what to include are an onboard cruise credit, a spa treatment voucher or a beach towel. But many trips don’t have “documents” to present, right? It’s true that many suppliers have adopted electronic documents. That doesn’t mean you can’t present edoc receipts, an updated itinerary or other perks to send off the client in style. Consider delivering your creative gift basket by courier to the client’s workplace. It creates a “buzz” as other employees can’t wait to see what’s been sent. And think out of the box. “Once I was able to find a ship made out of cardboard that I used to de- liver the documents in,” says Schwarz. “My customer really appreciated the extra step.” Putting Magic Together Although presentation is important, so is the quality of information. As a homebased agent specializing in Disney, Susan Kelly, owner, Travel Magic (www. travel magic.com), Basking Ridge, NJ, says Disney’s product is excellent but multifaceted, which can overwhelm some clients. She takes pride in weeding through all the details, simplifying and explaining all the pieces of their Disney vacation. “We pull it all together in a final customized, pocket-size booklet that’s designed to provide more answers than questions,” Kelly says. She makes sure clients know what the park hours are, what to do in each park, what rides may be closed for renovation during the client’s vacation and information on deals or special events. Also selling Disney, as well as other vacation products, is Pam Forrester, coowner, The Magic for Less Travel (www. themagicforless.com) in Pittsburgh, a home-based agency with 40 home-based affiliate agents and a sizable Internet presence. For Disney packages, her agents create mini-packs or luxury pixie-dust packs; the latter might include a Disney gift card, a choice of a subscription to a vacation planning service called Tour Guide Mike or one of the Disney guidebooks. She also fills her final document packs with Mickey-shaped confetti. It’s a small thing, but she says clients love it. Fun for All For a creative group sale, Fisher takes a poster and cuts out puzzle pieces. Then the client who is buying a cruise for their entire family can send each person a letter with one puzzle piece and set a time and place to put the pieces together. When the pieces begin to reveal a cruise ship, Fisher says the group becomes frenetic and gleeful as family members realize they’re going on a cruise; then the client presents each family member with cruise documents. Whatever you do, recognize that document presentation is just one step along the timeline of a booking. By staying in touch, you build future business. “I try to keep the clients excited from the moment they book until they leave,” says Forrester, who does that by sending an e-card or e-mailing an itinerary feature, a link to a good article or details about a restaurant. And when it comes time for final documents or a trip send-off, agents say: Create HB a presentation that wows! JUNE 2008 Home-BasedTravelAgent 27 http://www.travelwbon.com http://www.travelmagic.com http://www.travelmagic.com http://www.themagicforless.com http://www.themagicforless.com

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Home Based Travel Agent - June 2008 Contents Editor's Note Publisher's Note Your Lifeline Agent Spotlight New Technology Industry News Hot Deals Indentifying Agents Delivering Documents Culinary Vacations Pacific Northwest Cover Story: Cruising Scandinavia Agent Access New Products

Home Based Travel Agent - June 2008

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