The Travel Agent Guide
The Travel Agent Guide is a podcast created for travel advisors at every stage of their journey.
Each episode shares practical tips, real-world experiences, and honest conversations about building a successful travel advisor business—from client boundaries and workflows to marketing, growth, and sustainability.
Whether you’re new to the industry or looking to refine how you work, this podcast is here to help you work smarter, feel more confident, and grow with intention.
The Travel Agent Guide
How to get every client to pay your fee
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Why do some travel advisors confidently charge consultation fees while others struggle to get clients to say yes?
The answer isn't simply how you present your fee—it's everything you do before you ever ask for it.
In this episode of The Travel Agent Guide Podcast, Byrd and Haley share the strategies they use to build trust before the consultation, create meaningful client connections, communicate their process with confidence, and position themselves as trusted travel advisors clients are excited to invest in. From pre-consultation preparation to explaining your value, they reveal practical techniques that can dramatically increase client confidence and make paying your fee feel like a natural next step.
Whether you're just starting to charge consultation fees or looking to improve your consultation process, this episode is packed with actionable strategies you can implement immediately.
⏱️ Timestamps
00:00 Introduction
01:08 Why Clients Pay Consultation Fees
03:26 Building Trust Before the Consultation
07:23 Why Video Calls Build Stronger Client Relationships
10:43 Creating Repeat Clients Through Personalization
12:21 Preparing for Every Consultation
14:19 Building Trust During the First Few Minutes
17:42 Explaining Your Planning Process
21:55 Leveraging Your Team to Build Credibility
24:12 How to Introduce Consultation Fees
26:16 Explaining How Travel Advisors Get Paid
29:01 Setting Clear Next Steps for Better Conversions
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What we're what we're gonna dive in today, everybody, is really about how to strategically build trust with the client. So when you pitch the fee, they're like, oh my God, Haley knows everything about Italy. I've got to pay this woman her $300, right? Um, and Haley, you typically do charge a pretty high fee between like $250, $350. Is that about normal for you?
SPEAKER_00It's it depends it on how many people there are. There's so many different factors, but I've charged fees upwards of a thousand. So it just really depends on the the circumstance, the trip.
SPEAKER_01You guys, I I almost never go over like 150. I I feel a little differently about it, and it's because for me it's simply like a gatekeep. I want to charge just enough to where you uh I get away all the tire kickers, but not more than enough where you double think it at all.
SPEAKER_00Welcome to the travel agent guide, the podcast pulling back the curtain and what it really takes to be a travel agent. We're talking real life, the challenges, the wins, the money, the mistakes, and the growth. Whether you've been in the travel industry for years or are new to it, we're in this together and you're exactly where you need to be.
SPEAKER_01Good morning, everybody. This week we're talking about the one thing that I think every travel agent struggles with at some point in their career, and that is exactly how to make sure people not only are willing but excited to pay your fee. So this is not going to be how to pitch a fee. This is not gonna be what to say. This is going to be how to ensure that they're ready to do it when you pitch it. Um, I think the actual getting a client to pay a fee starts long before you actually say, by the way, this is what I cost, right? Um, Haley, talk to me a little bit about it. I you pitch a fee to absolutely everybody. What percentage of people do you think typically end up paying the fee at the end of the day? Versus how many people say, oh, I can't do that. I'm not gonna not gonna make it happen.
SPEAKER_00I'd probably say like at this point, a hundred. I don't know. I it's a very high percentage. It's if they're not willing to pay my fee, that is not the that's not the reason that they're telling me, right? So it's hard to kind of put that into perspective. But I would definitely say their percentage is really high up there, 98%. Um, if that. So yeah, it's really high.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's been a while since I've had someone that wasn't willing to pay the fee. What I find more than anything is something changed in the plans. And maybe I should read under that a bit and be like, well, maybe it was different. But what we're what we're gonna dive in today, everybody, is really about how to strategically build trust with the client. So when you pitch the fee, they're like, oh my God, Haley knows everything about Italy. I've got to pay this woman her $300, right? Um, and Haley, you typically do charge a pretty high fee between like $250, $350. Is that about normal for you?
SPEAKER_00It's it depends it on how many people there are. There's so many different factors, but I've charged fees upwards of a thousand. So it just really depends on the the circumstance, the trip.
SPEAKER_01You guys, I I almost never go over like 150. I I feel a little differently about it. And it's because for me, it's simply like a gatekeep. I want to charge just enough to where you uh I get away all the tire kickers, but not more than enough where you double think it at all. That being said, I tend to add on commission on the back end. So that's a different conversation for a different time. But when we talk about building trust, I think it is such a unique process because Haley and I go about it um very thoughtfully. It's not just like, let's get on the consultation and talk to this person and pitch a fee. There's a lot of work that goes into before you start the consultation. Um, this is where I may or may not lose a couple of you, but I'm gonna give my first tip on before I start the consultation. Um, if it's someone I don't know, if it's a referral from a current client, if it's a website lead, whatever it might be, I will go in and do some research on that person. So I go to social media, I look them up, I go to LinkedIn, I look them up, and I do 10 minutes, you guys, like tops. It this should not be a long process. What I am looking for is a um like a bullseye on what we have in common before I get on the call. So I'm looking to see does she have kids? Do her kids play sports? Are where is she from? Where does she visit recently? What does she do for work? I'm just trying to find something where I can say, like, this is what it is. So when I get on the call with, I'm saying her, our our target client is a female, and over 80% of our clients are female, our primary travelers are female. So I'm not being sexist here. But when I get on the call with her, what I'm trying to do is maneuver the conversation quickly to the thing I already know we have in common. It's not an authentic, you know, I still want to talk to this person and connect with them. But how easy is it to be like, oh yeah, I'm so excited this weekend. My daughter has her first soccer game of the season. This is gonna be awesome. I already know her kid plays soccer. I saw that picture on Facebook. I know she's gonna be like, oh, my kids play soccer too. Oh my gosh, isn't it fun? And you kind of start this relationship on um even ground. When you can find something to be have in common with somebody, I think it makes all the difference in the world. Um, Haley, tell me a little bit about what you do to set yourself up for success before you even get into the consultation.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I think you're right. It truly depends on who the client is, right? Do you know them? What's the connection prior? Obviously, having that connection with a referral who you know somebody, um, you both know the same person. That's a helpful start to the consultation. But you're absolutely right. I mean, I don't spend tons of time of looking for the client on so on social media. Maybe I should know. Um, but I definitely hop onto the call and I'm doing a Zoom so I can kind of see like, oh, are you working from home today? Like, what do you do for work? And that's always one of the questions I kind of dive into and just kind of go from there. So I get into the conversation and just ask a few questions. Of course, once we dive into one of my first questions is who's traveling on the ship? Oh, your kids are awesome. How old are they? What are their names? I get that information right then and there. And then I can be like, oh my goodness, my kid just graduated college too. I know exactly the boat you're in. And, you know, you kind of go from there. So you're looking for those similarities in your conversation to always highlight to remind them that, hey, me and you are the same person. I, you know what I mean? And and people love it, right? You have to find that connection. It's really important to do early on in the consultation. That's how you're gonna gain your client's trust.
SPEAKER_01Oh, absolutely. And you guys, Haley is cheating. She has a child in college and she has a three-year-old. She's gonna be able to correlate to literally anybody.
SPEAKER_00Yep, basically. Yep.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely cheating. Um, all right. So I think that's one of the most important steps is figuring out how you can connect with the person on just a standard level, not this is why I'm an expert in Italy and let me tell you everything I know about Italy. Because I think that comes across like too much, and you're not there yet. You need to gain permission from the client to move into the next step of actually doing the consultation. And I think until you get to know them a little bit, it it's not the right move. Um, the other big thing Haley and I both feel very aggressive about um is seeing the client on video. Whether you use Zoom or Teams or whatever it is, everyone and their grandma knows how to use Zoom at this point in time. And the reality is so much of our communication is nonverbal. You want to see did their eyes light up when they talked about one specific request they made? Or were they kind of just like, yeah, that'd be nice. It makes all the difference in the world, right? And and you're not gonna know just from getting on a phone call with them. And you're sure as hell not gonna know from an email.
SPEAKER_00Right. Absolutely not.
SPEAKER_01So I don't even ask people. I do what I like to call assume the Zoom. I just say, hey, when's a good time to chat? And they say, Oh, are you available tomorrow at two? And I go, Yeah, absolutely. Send me your email and I'm gonna send over an invite. Like, I don't ever say it's a video call. This what no, I just this is how it's done. And they just go along with it. Like, Haley, do you have anyone that doesn't? I've had one person in six years that was like, I'm not getting on a Zoom call. I don't want to be on video with you. No, I have had people log in and then not turn on their camera. That's their own prerogative, but they see my face and they see my excitement. And I still believe that that helps build trust.
SPEAKER_00Exactly.
SPEAKER_01Is there ever a time that you've had people say, I'm not doing it?
SPEAKER_00No, never. I mean, exactly like you said, here what is your email? Send over the Zoom link right away, get on. I've never had a client tell me I don't want to show my. I mean, I have had clients get on and leave the screen off. So that is extremely awkward. Um, I always say, Oh, are you turning on your screen today? And then I hate talking to just myself on Zoom. So I try to encourage them to turn on the Zoom call, which usually after a couple of minutes, I can get them to feel comfortable to do it. Um, I always say judgment free zone, like I don't care if you are not dressed today, it's not a big deal. Um, I said I just threw myself together in a couple minutes, so you're good to go. So just always finding that connection. Then, you know, the Zoom comes on, and again, it's a mom who's like, oh, okay, you're you're super cool. Thank you. Like, I appreciate it. And yeah, it's it's the only time it happens is when a client is struggling with the technology. That's kind of where you dive into it. I have, if not, I FaceTime people. Okay, so you have an Apple phone. I will pick up and FaceTime my 75-year-old client just to say hi. And she loves it. She uh absolutely loves it getting on a FaceTime with me.
SPEAKER_01So the only people that FaceTime are you and her grandkids.
SPEAKER_00Like it's fantastic. Yeah, she loves it. I mean, I can only see like half of her face, but I know she's care, right? So I think it's just diving into it and really showing the your clients that you care. You want to see their face, you want to get to know them. And in every consultation, I tell my client that. I I my exact words to them are I'm in this for the long run. So my goal for after this conversation is not only to book this trip, but for the rest of your life, as long as you're traveling, I want to be the person that you come to. Is that what you're looking for? So yeah, I dive into that piece, but I'm starting with, hey, this is who I am. Take it or leave it.
SPEAKER_02Haley proposes on your first date.
SPEAKER_00I go all in. Exactly. All in. Like, are you with me forever?
SPEAKER_01Okay, so what does this have to do with the fee? Again, going back, I just want to reiterate our conversation today is not how to pitch a fee, it's how to get them to pay the fee. And I just feel so aggressive about the fact of that relationship is what makes them excited to pay the fee. When you guys have repeats come back and they don't even like question it, it's amazing. The one thing that I do a little bit differently with a repeat is if they gave me some feedback on the welcome home call about oh, next time we really want to make sure we splurge for first class flights. So flights were awful, or next time we really want to do a private tour or whatever. I will typically start the call with that information. So it might have been six or nine months, but I've got a CRM, as you better, if you're listening to this podcast. So when I get off that welcome home call, I just type in, Janet's got long legs, wants an upgrade on our flights next time, right? So then before the consult, I get in, I check out my CRM. Did I write anything important? I did. And I'll come back and I'll start that call with like Janet, I'm so excited. I don't know, I've never had a client named Janet. I don't know why I'm using that. I'm so excited to talk to you today. Hey, I remember last time we talked, you really wanted to upgrade your flight. So I've already got that in my head for when we talk about budget and all the things. Um, was there anything else you want to start with to make sure we didn't forget and we kind of frame the conversation? And Janet just starts going, Oh wow, I was listened to. She remembered, meaning she cares. Like those are big, big things that are gonna build that relationship. And she's gonna see my face and know how excited I am, right?
SPEAKER_00Exactly.
SPEAKER_01Okay, so I typically uh I don't typically, I will always do some research, five, 10 minutes of understanding either what they did last time or who they are in general. Uh I will always send a Zoom link. My other thing is I will always I I typically we have it now set up where it's an automated thing, but I typically text them about 30 minutes before just saying, like, hey, don't forget our call. I get so personally offended when I get stood up on a consultation call. And I just know that text like 30 minutes in advance has made all the difference in the world. Um, Haley, is there anything else you do to kind of make sure you're setting yourself up like before you even get to the call for success?
SPEAKER_00No, I think you you nailed it. It's reconfirm with the client shortly before just to make sure um people forget clients get busy and that's normal. Other than that, you're right. Just get in, check their profile, make sure you're understanding. Once your clients become your repeat client for two or three times, it gets easier. You start to remember. And, you know, for example, I am booking a trip right now for clients who just came home less than a month ago. So everything about them is so fresh in my head, and that is obviously an easier process, but I think just really truly re knowing your clients, right? Just taking the time to know them and go into it perfectly.
SPEAKER_01I love that. I I will say there's one other thing I'll do. If it's a referral or someone I don't know, um I will also send, I have this like templated bio email that's just like, hey, here's a little bit about me so they understand who they're talking to before they get into it. I think it just humanizes me a little bit. Um, again, it might also help them say, like, oh, I also, yeah, I also grew up in New Orleans. I'll bring that up on the call or whatever it is, so I can easily just connect with them. I think they want to know who you are as much as you want to know who they are. Okay, so we've got this relationship research FaceTime thing going before we even get on the call. But when we get on the call, what does that trust building look like for you? I I think we can be strategic in how we handle those first couple of minutes of the call as well. What do you do?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so the first couple of minutes for me is truly just diving in to get to know the client and understanding who's gonna be traveling. So, you know, it's getting to know them as a person, I guess, in that short three-minute window and making that connection. I think that is going to be the first couple minutes that really truly make or break your consult. Take, take a few minutes, dive into that, um, then get into business, right? You're on the call for a purpose. I typically dive into hearing about their trip. And I know we've talked about this part of kind of the series of events and how you approach it. And I think it's dependent on the client and you know, the fee, the how the conversation's going of how you kind of take it off from there. But then I start diving into their trip and I want to truly understand, okay, let's just dive in so I can hear about your trip and what your expectations are and what you're truly looking for. And then I let them talk. I want them to tell me everything that they're imagining. I throw in some basic questions, right? So I'll get into, you know, if we're talking about Italy, I'll get into, you know, areas that they want to um, what did you see on TikTok, right? I know you're going to Italy because you saw something and diving into understanding what they're truly looking for.
SPEAKER_01Well, and I think the the one piece of that that I want to say is if for some reason it's a destination that you're just not super comfortable with as the advisor, one thing that I want to say is absolutely never feel uncomfortable to say, I don't know, let me do some more research on that. Your job is to research, and they need to understand that. You can't know everything about the whole world. But I would also say if it's a I've never planned this location before kind of moment, which we've all had, everybody has it for the first time, right? Um, I just did a group trip to Madagascar, and my goodness, let me tell you, I was out of my water for sure. Um, but do even 10, 15 minutes of Googling. One of my favorite things to do, honestly, and this is such a JV way to use AI, but go on Chat GPT and say, I'm a travel agent and I'm planning this trip for the first time. What are 15 things I should know about this country before I get on this consultation call? That's one of my like favorite little templates because it's going to typically give you like, here's how much time you should spend in each city, here's the time of year that you need to go there, here's how much it should cost. It's gonna give you the things that they're gonna ask. So just please go into the consultation slightly armed. I I think where most people get the most uncomfortable is when the client's like, I don't know where I want to go. And then they land on a destination you have no clue about and you have to fumble your way through. But honestly, the easiest way to continue to build that trust is number one, appear to be the expert. But number two, if you're truly not, just ask as many questions as possible. Oh, you want to go to Guatemala? Great. Tell me more about why you want to do that. Help me understand what you're excited to experience in Guatemala. And in your head, you're like, I don't know what the hell to do in Guatemala. Like, that's okay. Let them lead that conversation. Um, Haley, did you talk about the other thing that I do right in the beginning after the kind of get to know you stuff is truly make sure they understand what the process is for planning and when to lock it in and those sort of things. How do you explain that to your clients?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I always start off with, have you worked with a travel agent before? I think it's a great opener to say, okay, they have or they have not, right? So what does that look like? Have you worked with a travel agent? No, we never have. I said, okay, well, let me take a minute and kind of tell you about me and what I'm about and how I work and make sure we're aligned, right? Okay, but if they have worked with a travel agent, do you skip this part? No, I do the same exact thing. If they worked with a travel agent, I say, Well, can I ask you what happened? Like, is there a reason you're not working with that travel agent again? Nine out of 10 times they tell me that the travel agent retired, which means that, you know, it for whatever reason, the travel agent isn't working anymore. Welcome to our industry. Yeah, but then there's another big part of it that is, oh, I just I started working with the travel agent, but they told me that they can't do X, Y, and Z and they're limiting me. So that happens as well. But, anyways, I I find out there what that's like, right? And I realize everybody works different. But then I'm like, okay, if they have worked with the travel agent at the end of this call, it's gonna be like, you know, what did I do differently that they're gonna be excited to work with me? So then I just get a general understanding of where they are with the process and and what it looks like. So yeah, that's definitely one of my first questions before I dive into the process.
SPEAKER_01Well, and I like to make sure with the process, like one of the things we're talking about here is building up trust because people are willing to open up their pocketbook if they trust you, right? And the piece of it that kills trust is if there's some uncertainty in what is happening. So I think it's really, really important. And most travel agents that I've ever coached, and Haley, you can attest to this as well, they never take the time to say, this is step one, two, and three. And this is when you're gonna pay me money, and this is where I control versus where you control. And those are the pieces. I mean, think about it, right? Americans don't, it's not like every American out there is using a travel agent. Most don't. So if you're getting these people, especially first timers that have never used one, you want to take the time. But I think it's even more important for people that have used a travel agent. So I can say, I don't care what she did. This is what I do because I need you to stay on my page. So my my little spiel is simple. I basically say, this is a consultation. I'm gonna get to know you and really understand the trips and any um any parameters we need to work with in. I'm gonna go back then and really dive deep into all the research. My job is to come back to you with the best options within the best price with whatever budget you give me to work with. We're gonna come back together and I'm gonna present those options to you. But this is a workshop. Like we work together to decide, okay, I want option A here. Over here, I want option C, over here I want option B, right? And we're gonna design this together. And at the end of that, we're gonna lock in that trip because I'm gonna come with pricing that's ready that day. So I'm going to wait to do the proposal until you're actually ready to lock it in. After that, I'm the one that's still here. I do all the hand holding. So I have a team that's gonna help you book dinner reservations and spa appointments and really put the icing on the cake. Is that kind of the experience you're hoping for? Two things I did not mention there. I did not mention that I am going to answer your phone at two in the morning when something goes wrong on your trip during travel because I am not that travel agent, I'm not gonna do it. So I don't mention that. We do talk about it extensively on the let me ask you a question.
SPEAKER_00If your client says to you in the consultation, oh, if something goes wrong while we're in destination, do you are you there to help us? How do you answer that?
SPEAKER_01Absolutely. Because what's gonna happen then is I'm gonna make sure they have the right budget to use a DMC. They'll be like, if that's required and you want um boots on the ground, what I'm gonna do is I'm actually gonna partner with a company that has uh people in destination that will be able to help you if anything happens.
SPEAKER_00Beautiful.
SPEAKER_01Right? Like I'm not gonna say I'm gonna hang you out to try, but most people it's not important to because most things that go wrong during travel are things that they can fix. You know, they may not want to, but they can fix. If your train got canceled, go talk to the guy at the information desk to figure out when the next trade is. I'm gonna do the same thing you're gonna do. So we talk a lot on the pre departure call, and we'll go into that in another podcast about exactly how I frame it. But I don't talk about that when I say my process. The other thing that I talk about or make sure I kind of lightly mention is my team. I think it's important for them to understand I'm not a solo agent. And anybody that's with us at Sava Travel, you guys all have the option to book into our guest experience team. It doesn't, they work with multiple of our advisors. So they're not just assigned to you, but there's no upfront cost to it. Basically, you pay a percentage of your commission. But what happens is this person kind of does all of those little client requests. So they come in and they do the dinner reservations, the spa appointments, but also, hey, what's the dress code here? Hey, it's Johnny's birthday. Can we have balloons in the room? Whatever it is that comes up, that's just like on them to handle. I think it's important to mention a team because then it shows the client. Again, we're all we're talking about building trust. It shows the client that I'm successful enough and so many other people trusted me enough that I have a team. I think that's a really important aspect, even if it's truly just kind of like a part-time something in the back. I think it's an important aspect to mention. Um, and if you're an advisor out there that doesn't have a team, absolutely understandable in the in the early days, that's normal. But once you start really getting some leads coming in the door, pass off that admin work to someone else so you can continue to build. If you're sitting here doing these kind of nitty-gritty things and or not offering those services because you don't want to do it, you're you're costing yourself additional business. So I feel very strongly about it. I will get off my soapbox. Um, but is there anything else when we talk about like actually setting up here's what the process is that you make sure to mention?
SPEAKER_00I think, I think you covered it, Bern. Honestly, I go into it with the same kind of mindset, exactly the same. I tell my client um right away about team. I think the team aspect is huge. And I do tell Sava advisors all the time, use it. When we dive into the fee part of it, I always tell them too, if you're nervous at first to tell your client about a fee, blame it on the company, blame it on your team. Like this is yeah, we charge a hundred dollar fee per person at Sava and whatever that looks like. So I think by using that to build yourself up, that's completely fine. Um, so yeah, I think that's perfect.
SPEAKER_01Okay, what about how you get paid? Because I think that's the last piece of uncertainty that that a client, especially one that's never used a travel agent, they're always a little worried. Do you address how you get paid ever? And if you do, is it the beginning or the end of the content?
SPEAKER_00I address how I get paid when I pitch my fee. So it it goes hand in hand. So basically, towards the end is when I go into my process. After I've understood the trip, I'm understanding how much work are we doing a multi-destination trip. What does this look like? So I can understand the fee that I want to pitch prior. So I'll go into it and I said, okay, I just want to take a couple minutes. We're gonna now go over my process. I'm gonna, you know, map it out clear as day, and and then I dive into it. And I tell them from here, I'm gonna send over forms right away for you. Um, you're gonna go ahead and get those, fill them out. From there, I'm gonna charge my research and design fee. So my fee for this trip is gonna be $400, $200 per person. Um, I go ahead and charge that at first. And once I collect that fee, then I get to work and I dive into your trip. And then I stop and I say, Do you have any questions about that at all? And some clients will have a question, right? And they'll come back and be like, okay, so do you charge a fee? Like, does that go towards my trip? That's a question I hear often. And I explain to them, I'm like, no, it does not. I said, that's actually going to compensate me for my time to design your trip and curate it specifically to you folks to get on a call with you. We're gonna walk through our workshop and then I dive more in depth to my process of what that's gonna look like. Then they're like, oh, okay, that makes sense. Do I spend a lot of time talking about how I earn commission on the back end? I don't. I, you know what I mean? I just kind of focus on that there. Um, if clients do ask, like, how do you get paid? Then I'll bring it up. I said a lot of times we don't get paid until six to eight weeks after we trap after you actually travel, right? So I think it's a bit more.
SPEAKER_01I like mentioning it when you do the fee as well, but I tend to I tend to encourage people that I coach to bring it up. And I only do it in a sense of like, don't take the proposal and book it yourself. So the way that I word it to where it doesn't sound like an asshole is I basically say, like, oh no, you know, the the research and design fee is to compensate me. If for some reason you decide you don't want to travel, you don't want to book the trip. But truly, the mass majority of my compensation comes from me actually booking the trip. So hotels will pay out commission to me directly when I book with them. It doesn't cost you any extra. If you go on Marriott.com and book or if I go on Marriott.com and book and put my little special number in, it's the same price. So you're not worried about that necessarily. But just so you understand, so I don't give you this proposal, we work through everything and then you take it and book it yourself. That's actually the research and design fee is a very small portion of my income. So it's important to me that if you move forward and you travel, you book through me. Can we agree that that's how that's gonna work? I've just been burned a handful of times by people and it just eats me alive. And I make sure to take the 30 seconds and be like, if you do it, I just needed to know that you knew you were being an asshole. That's all I need, right? Like clients still do it. I'm sure it happens, right? But at the same time, I want to walk away being like, but they knew versus me giving them the benefit of the doubt, being like, well, they don't really know how it works. Like, no, I'm not gonna play that game. I want you to know how it works. I think it's important to me. And again, just taking away some of the how this industry is so mystified to so many people. I want there to be clear certainty in what we're doing here and how we're working together.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. And I think that's really important, Bird, for advisors who don't charge fees and never will charge fee. If you're not pitching a fee, it's very important to talk to your client about not getting paid until after they travel. That's gonna put a lot of perspective into place for them. And if a client now, now you've made this connection, now they already feel emotionally attached to you. If you tell them that you're not gonna get paid until 10 months when they actually travel, they're gonna be like, oh shit. One, do I want to waste her time if I know I'm penny pitching? And then two, you know, I have to commit to her because this is she's not gonna get paid, right? So that absolutely makes sense. And I think there are a lot of advisors who will never implement fees, and that's completely fine. But make sure you're having those conversations with your client.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I agree. I mean, even when you pitch a fee, I think some people say, like, well, I paid you $200. That should cover everything. And it's like, no, no, girl. Like, I make more than $200 on a trip, right?
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01Okay, so we've kind of worked through. If you notice, we were skipping the actual like part of the consultation where you're asking questions about which questions to ask. Cause I think most people know how to fumble through that, right? They know how to say, like, tell me more about the hotel and tell me some of those things. But I think there's a way to end the consultation that's extremely important. One of the things that I want to make sure we talk about is setting up. So we've pitched the fee and they've agreed to it in theory. But what we really need from them is the agreement on the full process. So we've said the process. Is that the experience you want? Yes. But then we need to help them understand what the next steps are. So I always kind of end the consultation call with explaining what's going to happen on the proposal call. Haley, how do you explain that? Or do you take the time to do that?
SPEAKER_00Oh, absolutely. Yeah. So I give very clear direction on every step that needs to be in your sales process if you want to close the deal. If you get off that call and you didn't set up a proposal, you didn't give them clear expectations of when you were going to send a quote or whatever that looks like, they're going to have no idea, right? So it's important you tell them. So I basically roll into from here, I'm going to send over the forms, I'm going to collect your fee. Then from there, we're going to schedule a proposal call or workshop. I explain in depth what that workshop is. I also am very mindful to make sure that they have the money to spend by the time we're getting on that proposal. So that's important as well. Dive into that. And you're setting expectations that when you are done that proposal or that workshop, they are going to be giving you your money, um, their money so you can get the deposit down. So just reiterating that, explaining to them.
SPEAKER_01Dive into that. Give us the wording so it doesn't come across as awkward.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. So I just basically say, let me explain my entire process from here. When I get into that, I tell them we're gonna hop into a workshop. I just want to make sure that your deposit, we typically are looking from anywhere to 20 to 30 percent. We don't know what flights are gonna be. So until we get there, but I just want to make sure that you're ready to move forward with this now because when we hop on the workshop, I expect to get off that workshop. I clear my calendar for that following afternoon to get in and get the deposit down. So I just want to make sure that makes sense and we're ready to rock. And yes, nine out of 10 times, and that right there is gonna help me. One, they're gonna come back and say, you know what, Haley, actually, I'm waiting for a bonus and I'm not gonna get it for another three months. So is that okay if we wait until then? Perfect. Absolutely, that's no problem at all. I, you know, fix my CRM. I know to reach back out in three months. If they're like, yep, we're ready to go, I want to get deposit down, then we just move right into the next step and we're on the same page. If I'm not asking that question, then I have no idea. I do not want to spend five, six hours getting together a workshop, getting on a call, then they tell me they're not getting a bonus for three months. And then what? You know what's gonna happen? The prices are gonna get crazy, flights are gonna change. It's just gonna be a completely different trip than what it is three months later, depending on destination. So those conversations, you have to have them with your clients.
SPEAKER_01I love it. I love it. I think it's one of the most important pieces of it because even if they've kind of agreed to the fee, please remember they haven't paid it yet, right? Like on the call, they're like, Yes, Haley, I'm happy to pay it. But then you have people that don't, right? I mean, at the end of the day, you send them the forms, they don't fill it out, they completely ghost you, and it's so frustrating. And you're like, but they said they were gonna pay it. What went wrong? What went wrong is typically they don't truly have confidence in what the next steps are and confidence in you to actually make it happen. So I think taking that last little chunk of it and making sure there's just pure clarity around everything is extremely important. So the client feels like, okay, now it's on me. Here's what's happening. And I love that you take the time to say, I'm going to take your deposit on that day so that there's no back and forth wishy-washy. Let me talk to my husband. It's like, no, your husband needs to be on the call because we're going to make decisions on the call, right? Um, again, not being sexist, just being realistic for our business. But um, I swear the only husbands I've ever, or the only men I've ever worked with, are always the guy where it's like the guy's planning the honeymoon and the wife's planning the wedding. Like, that's the only time that the guy is taking primary.
SPEAKER_00I honestly, Bird, like if we talk about clients, I work with a lot of men. Like a lot of my clients are the men's direct. And it's it we'll dive into that in another podcast.
SPEAKER_01I'm attracting, I'm attracting all the ladies for sure. Cause it's almost all me. Like, very rarely am I even doing a honeymoon. It's almost like millennial moms, here's our kid. And it's not even like friends, it's just that's who I tend to attract. Um, you get what you put out into the world, I guess is true. Okay, so I I I want to reiterate though that clarity piece is important. So the big kind of takeaways that I'm hearing from this are number one, make sure that you're kind of creating that relationship early on in the game. Number two, make sure that early on, meaning like doing your research, but also just taking a beat to not dive right into the consultation and really get to know them as a person. Um, number two, you're creating as much clarity as possible before pitching the fee and after pitching the fee. So just really, really clear on all the steps that go into it, what they need to know and that sort of thing. Um, and number three, we hadn't really talked about is truly just presenting yourself as an expert on the destination that they're going. Um, I think that's the third reason that somebody might not want to pay a fee or might ghost you is they're like, she told me she's never been to Italy. So why do I want to hire her if that's the case? How do you overcome that piece of it? How do you make sure that you at the end of the day really present yourself as an expert no matter what the destination is?
SPEAKER_00I just basically go into it as I have booked dozens of trips. So I think it's important when you're diving in and you have that little piece in time to talk about the destination. You just throw out there that I have sent clients here several times. I'm very excited to work on this. I have great relationships with in partners and destination. I can't, you know what I mean? Throwing out those pieces of it versus, okay, I've never been to Croatia, but I'm gonna book your hundred thousand dollar trip, right?
SPEAKER_01And I think it's definitely you've booked hundreds of trips. I don't know if you need me to pull the math here, but it's more than dozens.
SPEAKER_00Right. So I think I don't oftentimes I have had clients say to me, like, oh, well, when you went to Venice, how was it? I'm like, I've actually been to Italy, but I didn't get the opportunity to go to Venice, just FYI. I know enough about it to not worry about it, right? And I dive into that conversation. And I've never had somebody come back and say, like, oh, so you haven't been. I think there will definitely be clients who are like that. I have seen clients who have specifically asked. I had a client once who said, I want, I want somebody who lives there. And I'm like, Well, we don't have an advisor who lives there. So I'm kind of unsure, however, our partners do, but I think educating your client on the partnerships that you have of in destination support, that changes everything. That changes their mindset of feeling like, oh, okay, well, I need somebody who's lived and breathed there for five years to understand it. Um, so yeah.
SPEAKER_01So that's that's kind of the last piece that I want to make sure that we help advisors listening to this understand is you don't have to be there. You don't have to have ever stepped foot there. But a client also isn't gonna know what a DMC is. So that's gonna come across a little shaky. I think you can massage your words and um, I wouldn't, I guess we it's a white lie at the end of the day. I should be honest with myself with what it is, but clients don't know what a destination management company is. So I tend to rely on the term the tourism boards because they do know that those exist and they do know that that's something that knows exactly what they're talking about. And the way that I explain it is like anytime that we need uh exact recommendations on what to do in the area or what operators to use or what that looks like, we have really close partnerships with the tourism boards and they will come in and tell us exactly what we need to use, exactly what's happening. And the great part about it is because I use their services, you're going to be able to call them any time of day that you need to if something goes wrong on your trip because they do live in destination and they can help you there. So for me, it's really important for this trip since it sounds like you really do want like the extra level of touch that we work directly with those in-destination companies to make sure you're taken care of. So, yes, I haven't personally stepped foot there, but that's why I'm so grateful. I can't go to every country in the world. And even if I went 10 years ago, things change, right? So for me in my business, the most important thing for me is to have those really close relationships with people that are our in-destination. Um, and lucky for you, this particular destination, I've got fantastic relationships with them. So I can't wait to dive into this trip. It's gonna be amazing, right? That that immediately flips the conversation from Haley's never stepped foot into Venice into like Haley knows half of Venice. So she's gonna be fine. And I think it's an important kind of differentiation that a lot of advisors feel uncomfortable with. Um, if you feel uncomfortable saying tourism words, feel free to describe what a destination management company is. But I think it just adds confusion to an already confusing industry and an already confusing sales process. So I like to keep it out of there. Haley, do you use different words? Is there some other way to describe what?
SPEAKER_00No, I just say partners. I think really it's just our partners, right? Um so yeah, I don't use DMC because you're absolutely right. Nobody knows what a DMC is and I don't want to explain it to them. So I just use partners.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's fair. Absolutely. Our partners that we work with in destination, just so you know, I do have in destination partners. That's how we do this. Da-da-da. Like, I think that's fine as well. Um, I like to throw out if I have someone like really questioning me, I had a guy a couple of months back and it it got under my skin. Um, but he was really questioning me. And I I just like to throw out destinations that are a little more far-flung so they can understand, be like, sir, just so you understand, like realistically, I I've never been to Sri Lanka. Like there's going to be countries that I'm not gonna get to step foot in. As much as I can't wait to go to Nepal, I haven't been there yet, but I can't operate a business like I do, just not planning destinations I've never been. So what I've done is just really leaned on those partnerships and created really strong partnerships with people that I know are really knowledgeable about the destination and do live there and do da-da-da-da-da. So the idea is if you're not the expert and you don't feel comfortable, just have something to pull out of your back pocket that still makes you come across as the expert. Cause I I find advisors have struggled with that a bit in the past.
SPEAKER_00Oh, yeah. I mean, one of my biggest destinations I book Japan often. Um, it's a destination that I think you've booked plenty of times as well. And I I feel like Japan is the one place where people always say, Well, how was it when you won? And I'm like, I'm gonna be honest with you guys. Unfortunately, I've been raising my kids for the past 20 years. I have not had any desire to get them on a plane to Japan. And if you even go into it with something like that, then they're like, oh, that completely makes sense. I wouldn't either. And they're like, it doesn't really bother people. As long as you're explaining again your partnerships and how often you've booked it and you have clients um there all the time. That's another thing I always say is our at our agency, we probably have somebody in Japan 300 days out of the year, right? Whatever that looks like. So we're very familiar with the destination and it's just how you approach it. And oh, perfect. That sounds good. That's all I needed to hear, right?
SPEAKER_01Okay. The last little thing I do on that same note of coming across as the expert on the destination. I told you guys I'm very reliant on AI for all my little questions, especially if I've never booked that destination. I like to also say, give me five fun facts about Venice, whatever it is. And they'll give me five fun facts and I just kind of pick one and I like to drop it randomly in the conversation. Number one, I just fucking love fun facts. I think it's enjoyable for me to know. But it's also really great because they're like, wow, she really does know a lot. You know, she really does understand this place. She really does know.
SPEAKER_00And you have your notes pulled up right here on your other screen and you're ready to go. Um, as long as you're prepared, you shouldn't have a problem.
SPEAKER_01I love it. Okay. My big key takeaways then are create that relationship, but do it purposely. Make sure you're genuinely setting time aside to create that relationship. I would say, secondly, make sure you take all of the confusion out of the process and steps and what's going to happen. So create complete clarity in what you're doing. And number three, find a way if you are not the expert to come across as the expert. And if you are the expert, just don't come across smug, but come across as the expert. Make sure they understand, you know, if you have truly been there five or six times, talk about it. Make sure they hear that from you because that alone will help someone go, yeah, this woman's definitely worth two, three, four, five hundred dollars, however much Haley spends now. Um we will have a whole different episode about what your fee should be. But number one, in my heart of hearts, please charge a fee. It makes all of the difference in the world. There's not a professional industry out there that isn't out there charging fees. So please take the time into it and do these steps to make sure that they are going to pay the fee after you are so uncomfortable pitching it because we know it all sucks. Haley, any other key takeaways that I kind of missed there or last-minute advice that we might have uh glazed over that you want to highlight?
SPEAKER_00Last minute advice is really just go at it confident, get to the fee part, pitch it. If you haven't done it before, just get used to doing it and start really low. If it's $50, it's $50. Who cares? And then that's gonna just start boosting your excitement around fees. I, you know, talked to an advisor yesterday who threw everything in to go in all full-time. And we had a nice long conversation around fees. And it's really fees are gonna help you get to that point of making a faster income so you can do this job full-time. So if that's kind of the direction you're headed, do charge a fee, right?
SPEAKER_01Charge that's a great point to make. If you're struggling going full time, uh, the fee is kind of your key to unlock that. Even if you're charging, let's say $250 uh per trip, you know, the first couple of months, you may only be planning four or five trips a month. Well, that's still an extra $1,000 in your pocket that can make all the difference in the world to get you to payday, especially when you see how crazy up and down our payments are. You know, our payments for July and August are literally $5,6x what our payments in January tend to be. So um, if you're going full time, fees make all the difference in the world. All right, guys, good luck out there in making that happen and charging that. We can't wait to hear. Comment, let us know if the plan's working for you or if you have any advice we didn't highlight here. We'd love to hear about it. All righty. Um, last but not least, we are doing and have officially launched our event on November 6th. We cannot wait to see people in person. This is going to be a full-day workshop where we're actually working with you on how to build your business in 27. It's very hands-on, so come prepare to actually get in, roll up your sleeves, and do the work. It will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina. Um, we officially have uh have tickets for sale on the travelagent guide.com slash events. Can't wait to see you guys soon.
SPEAKER_00Well, that's a wrap for this week's episode of the Travel Agent Guide Podcast. If you found value from today's conversation, do me a favor, hit subscribe, leave a review, and share it with another travel advisor.