Travel Agent Chatter | Starting And Growing Your Travel Agency

This week on Friday 15 Maureen chats about switching host agencies, finding a host agency, and which host offer adventure travel!Here's a list of helpful resources for today’s episode: Independent Travel Agent Contracts How to Choose a HostHow to Find the Best Host AgencyHost Agency MapHow to Find a Travel Niche Travel Preferred SupplierA Travel Agent Guide to Researching & Qualifying SuppliersAdventure Travel Trade AssociationMake your Travel Conference CountWe do this every week! If you have travel industry questions, HAR likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips! If you found the video helpful, we'd love it if you could give it a like, drop us a comment! Listen to our PodcastTravel Agent Chatter: https://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatter Travel Agent Think Tank FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/TravelAgentThinkTank ______________________________________________________________Follo

This week on Friday 15, Steph and Maureen chat about going solo and working with suppliers!Here's a list of helpful resources for today’s episode: https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-travel-consortia-travel-coopshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-advisor-guide-researching-qualifying-suppliershttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agents-need-eo-insurancehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/the-100-travel-agency-marketing-planhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-social-mediahttps://www.facebook.com/groups/TravelAgentThinkTank/We do this every week! If you have travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips! If you found the video helpful, we'd love it if you could give it a like, drop us a comment! Listen to our PodcastTravel Agent Chatter: https://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatter Travel Agent Think Tank FB Group: https://www.facebook.co

This week on Friday 15, Steph and Maureen chat about what conferences to attend, type of travel industry jobs, and how to prepare for the return to travel!Here's a list of helpful resources for today’s episode: • https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/host-agency-consortia-education• https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/make-your-travel-conference-count• https://hostagencyreviews.com/events/category/kind_conference• https://www.travelagentforum.com/• https://www.asta.org• https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/new-hosted-travel-agent-report-2020• https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-employee-income-2020• https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/independent-travel-agent-income-report-2020• https://hostagencyreviews.com/7-day-set-up• https://www.facebook.com/groups/7daysetup/• https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agents-guide-building-work-community• https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-preferred-supplier• https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/find-a-travel-niche• https://www.travelweekly.com• https://www.tra

This week on Friday 15, Maureen goes solo and chats about Host Preferred Suppliers, Returning to the Industry, and Host Suppliers Sales Team. Here's a list of helpful resources for today’s episode: https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-travel-consortia-travel-coopshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tagged/choose-a-hosthttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-preferred-supplierhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/7-day-set-up/https://www.facebook.com/groups/7daysetuphttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tips-on-how-to-find-the-best-travel-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/find-a-travel-nichehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-advisor-guide-researching-qualifying-suppliersWe do this every week! If you have travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips! ❤️ If you found the video helpful, we'd love it if you could give it a like, drop us a comment!

Hear from a 26-year travel industry veteran and host of the radio show Traveling Culturati, about how she’s successfully tackled her agency’s multiple brands, created a successful frequent traveler program, and blended her passions together to form a unique niche. We promise you’ll leave with multiple creative ways to grow your agency! Whether through ideas on how to grow your agency through radio/podcast, creating your own frequent traveler program for clients, or planting a seed on how you can marry your passions to create your dream niche, we'll have something for everyone in this episode.What’s Ja'Vonne's niche? This $2M agency has found major success in putting together come-along trips for radio stations, special interest groups that allow her to travel around the world and follow her curiosity and passions, as well as group trips for African American travelers. ****** Transcript + Show Notes: https://har.news/tac20

This week on Friday 15, Steph and Maureen chat about commission overrides, company logos, and budget host agencies. Here's a list of helpful resources for today’s episode: https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/host-agency-commission-plan-comparison-calculatorhttps://www.canva.com/https://99designs.com/https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/why-your-travel-agency-needs-a-style-guidehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/7-day-set-uphttps://www.facebook.com/groups/7daysetuphttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tips-on-how-to-find-the-best-travel-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tips-on-how-to-find-the-best-travel-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-commissionshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM2hnPZeCLUWe do this every week! If you have travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips! If you found the video helpful, we'd love it if you could give it a like, drop

This week on Friday 15, Steph chats about the coveted IATA/ITANA card, more on E&O insurance and if you or your host should hold it, and about active military/veteran host discounts. Here's a short and sweet list of helpful resources for today’s episode:https://hostagencyreviews.com/page/surveyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-a-clia-numberhttps://youtu.be/a3aO4UpZN04https://hostagencyreviews.com/franchiseshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/hosts/kinship-vacationsWe do this every week! If you have travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips! If you found the video helpful, we'd love it if you could give it a like, drop us a comment!Never miss a HAR resource. Join 30,000+ agents and subscribe to our newsletter: https://www.hostagencyreviews.com/newsListen to our Podcast, Travel Agent Chatter: https://hostagencyreviews.com/trave

This week on Friday 15, Steph is going to address the elephant in the room: fake reviews on the site. She’s going to chat on different kinds of fake reviews, why and how they happen, how we respond when one slips through the cracks, and what the HAR crew does to prevent them in the first place (spoiler alert, we do A LOT!). So grab your magnifying glass, put on your fedora, and learn from HAR and you’ll become an amateur fake review sleuth in mere minutes. Steph will also talk about what is a “good” commission split, highlighting one of our most creative site resources: HAR’s Commission Comparison Calculator.) A short and sweet list of helpful resources for today’s episode: HAR’s Review Guidelines: https://hostagencyreviews.com/etiquette-rulesHAR’s Host Agency Commission Plan Comparison Calculator: https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/host-agency-commission-plan-comparison-calculator We do this every week! If you have travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bo

In this week's Friday 15, Steph Lee chats on three key industry issues: What is a Host Agency?Agency with Multiple BrandsDo I Need an LLC if I Buy a Franchise?If you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips!A List of Relevant Resources for Today’s Episode: https://hostagencyreviews.com/surveyASTA Board of Director's Candidate Chat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZ0R3KkPlrA&https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-a-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-franchise-or-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-accreditationhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-mlmsFriday 15 on Travel MLMs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2Ol5dKEsskhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/belonging-to-more-than-one-host-agency

A LIST OF RELEVANT RESOURCES FOR TODAY’S EPISODE:https://hostagencyreviews.com/surveyhttps://har.news/votehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/setting-up-travel-agencys-financialshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/5-best-business-credit-cards-for-travel-agency-rewardshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agents-need-eo-insurancehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatter/travel-agent-chatter-vol-3-be-well-travelhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatter/travel-agent-chatter-volume-7-lu-maggiora-travel-by-luhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatter/valerie-gossett-premier-resources-travel-grouphttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/5-steps-to-finding-groupshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/group-booking-tips-travel-advisors-agentshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/supplier-want-you-know-booking-groups

In our 16th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee chats about Hawaii seller of travel license and you get to meet the whole HAR team!If you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips! A List of Relevant Resources for Today’s Episode: https://hostagencyreviews.com/page/surveyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-licensehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/page/friday15

This previously aired June 18, 2021In our 15th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee chats on three key industry issues:1. Booking with Non-Preferred Suppliers2. How to Start a Travel Agency3. Travel Agent Training (What's available + when to take it)If you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips!A List of Relevant Resources for Today’s Episode: https://hostagencyreviews.com/page/surveyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-preferred-supplierhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/the-dangers-of-independent-contractor-travel-agent-misclassificationhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/7-day-set-uphttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-training-travel-agent-education

In HAR’s lucky 14th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee brain nearly explodes with knowledge about:1. Lead Programs for Travel Agents2. Travel Agents vs. Online Booking3. Belonging to Multiple Host Agencies4. Should Your Niche Be in Your Agency's Name?If you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips!A List of Relevant Resources for This Episode: https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-leadshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/page/feesurveyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/3-ways-travel-agents-save-you-moneyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-vs-booking-onlinehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/the-dangers-of-independent-contractor-travel-agent-misclassificationhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/belonging-to-more-than-one-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/tips-on-how-to-find-the-best-travel-host-agency

In HAR’s lucky 13th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee's brain nearly explodes with knowledge about:1. Non-Local Hosts + BDM Relationships (Does being non-local hurt you?)2. Hosts for Non-US Nationals w/US-based Agency (What are the options?)3. How Can New Advisors Find ClientsIf you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) Har.News/Friday15 and join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips!A List of Relevant Resources for This Episode:https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-accreditationhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-industry-lawyer-listhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-mlmshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/travelagentchatterhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agents-guide-building-work-communityhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/get-more-clients-in-3-easy-stepshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/the-100-travel-agency-marketing-plan

In HAR’s 12th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee imparts critical knowledge on starting and running a travel agent. Here’s what she covers this week:Where to Display Your SOT # (Hosted IC Exemptions)MLMs vs. Host Agencies (What's the Difference?)A List of Relevant Resources: https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-licensehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-a-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-mlmsIf you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) har.news/friday15 Join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips!

In HAR’s 11th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee shares more travel agent tips and tricks, answering the latest travel industry questions that have come across her desk. Here’s what she’ll cover: Going from Hosted to Indie (What should I know?)Paying Yourself a Salary (How to Budget with an LLC)Resources we go over:https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-accreditationhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/what-is-travel-consortia-travel-coopshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-preferred-supplierhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6705806-the-money-book-for-freelancers-part-timers-and-the-self-employedhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/how-much-do-travel-agents-make-travel-agent-salaryhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-business-structureshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/page/incomesurveyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/feesurveyIf you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) har.news/friday15 See you

In HAR’s 10th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee shares more travel agent tips and tricks, answering the latest travel industry questions that have come across her desk. Here’s what she’ll cover:Cruise Ship Tracker App (We've got one!)Storing Clients CC Info (How to do it securely)New Agents: TRIPKIT vs. ASTA Roadmap Course (Which is better?)Join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for a peek into Steph’s brain!If you have a travel industry questions, Steph likely has an answer :) Submit your burning question here (bonus points if you can stump Steph!) har.news/friday15 See you next Friday, 12CST!

In HAR’s 9th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee shares more travel agent tips and tricks, answering the latest travel industry questions that have come across her desk. Here’s what she’ll cover: QuestionIC with a Host vs. Sub Agent (What's the difference?)Travel Agency Business Plan (Do you need one?)Booking FITs Outside Your Host Agency (What to know.)Join us this Friday (and every Friday!) at 12CT for travel agent tips! Resources Covered:https://hostagencyreviews.com/hostshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/free-travel-agency-business-plan-templatehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-startup-costshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-franchise-or-host-agencyhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/franchiseshttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agent-license https://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/canadian-regulations-travel-agencies-nutshellhttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agents-need-eo-insurancehttps://hostagencyreviews.com/blog/travel-agency-accreditation

This week, in our 8th episode of Friday 15, Steph Lee covers a lot of ground in a short time! She shares pearls of wisdom on signing host contract as a personal rep of LLC, how to start charging fees, and do expensive hosts = better hosts?

She came from the world of non-profits with her eyes set on helping people of all abilities travel. Learn how this Indiana agent uses her agency to give back. You’ll walk away with LOADS of knowledge and some actionable tips to help your agency be more comfortable booking accessible travel.Tune in to hear about why she set up a travel accessibility advocacy non-profit (lots of words, I know) alongside her agency. The Greater Go Foundation challenges the boundaries of travel and creates opportunities for all who desire to travel. Plus, WE'RE HIRING! We'd love for you to join the HAR team. Applications due May 3rd, 2021. https://hostagencyreviews.com/travel-jobs