Home Based Travel Agent - November 2008 - (Page 16)

AGENT Spotlight AGENT BIO 30 minutes, they would give me a cruise,” she recalls. “My husband and I went, listened, got the cruise and I got a new occupation.” Although Bannister admits that the company gave her a great education, she later found out it was a card mill. After that, she found the Outside Sales Support Network (OSSN), which showed her how to own her own agency. Six years later, Bannister owns Bannister Travel and has 17 independent contractors who work for her. When working with suppliers, Bannister opts for the phone or Internet. She also has a one-on-one relationship with many of her district sales managers because of OSSN meetings, which she attends each month. (She is the Memphis and North Mississippi director and southeastern regional manager for OSSN.) Bannister is a specialist in selling Hawaii, destination weddings, all the major cruise lines and a few other destinations. “I found that as the owner of an agency with independent contractors, I have to have a higher knowledge than I did as an individual independent agent,” she says. To stay educated on the industry, Bannister attends trade shows, takes on- FOR THE AGENT Patricia Bannister This home-based agent offers Caribbean flair in Mississippi Not to say that most home-based agents’ home offices are uninspired, but the spaces usually aren’t anything to write home about either. However, we might throw that idea out the window after hearing about Patricia Bannister’s office. The owner of Bannister Travel in Senatobia, MS, lives in a converted old country store. If that wasn’t unconventional enough, her office, which is another building on the property, is decorated outside like a Caribbean beach. Although Bannister’s office exudes Caribbean flair, her earliest childhood memories of travel are less exotic. “I remember going camping from an early age, but always went traveling with my family,” Bannister says. “We did a lot of weekend trips. I can remember going to Arkansas in a car with no air conditioning, and my mother had a dishpan in the floorboard with hot ice… We never went anywhere on an airplane, and my first flight was when I graduated from high school. I flew from Memphis to Omaha to see my older sister.” Getting Into the Business A surprise phone call got Bannister started in the business. “I got a phone call one day that said if I would listen to them for PATRICIA BANNISTER Agency: Bannister Travel Title: Owner Location: 7696 Hwy 4 West Senatobia, MS 38668 Tel.: 662-560-6085 www.bannistertravel.com E-mail: patricia@bannistertravel.com Accomplishments: Member of OSSN and NEST Sales Volume: For 2008, so far, sales are right at $407,000 “I found that as an owner of an agency with independent contractors, I have to have a higher knowledge than I did as an individual independent agent.” —Patricia Bannister, Bannister Travel 16 line exams to keep clued into what’s happening in the industry and reads travel trade magazines, including HomeBased Travel Agent. As far as personal travels are concerned, “I love to cruise,” she says. “My favorite destinations have to be Mykonos and Santorini, Greece.” Based on Bannister’s office, it is no surprise she places two Caribbean properties on her list of favorite hotels. “If I had to go to a resort, I would want to go to Grand Lido Negril or Grand Lido Braco in Jamaica. They are absolutely beautiful.” —Mackenzie Allison Home-BasedTravelAgent NOV EMBE R 2008 http://www.bannistertravel.com

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Home Based Travel Agent - November 2008 Contents Editor’s Note Publisher’s Note Your Lifeline Agent Spotlight New Technology Industry News Hot Deals Cultural Tourism Luxury Hotels For the Traveler: Luxury For the Agent: Luxury For the Traveler: Latin America For the Agent: Latin America Hawaii For the Traveler: Provence For the Agent: Provence For the Traveler: Florida For the Agent: Florida Home-Based Agent Expo New Products

Home Based Travel Agent - November 2008

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