Monday, 28 May 2018
Making the change from working in a retail travel agency to running your own home-based business requires a shift in the way you operate, but the rewards make it worthwhile.
Coming from a retail travel background, Travel Counsellor Donna Jones now runs her own business from Shell Cove, a coastal suburb just south of Wollongong in New South Wales.
As a mother of four, Donna found it tricky balancing her personal life with working in retail roles. With retail travel agencies typically requiring staff to work rostered hours, many parents find it difficult to balance the needs of their families with their work.
Despite not having worked in travel for about 10 years, Donna took the leap to becoming a Travel Counsellor and discovered the benefits that come with running a home-based travel business.
Here are some of the keys differences between running your own travel business and working in a retail travel role:
Greater flexibility
Travel Counsellors must commit to working a minimum of 30 hours a week, but unlike at retail stores, the way in which they choose to work those hours is a matter of personal choice.
Some Travel Counsellors are early risers, preferring to start the day at 6am. Others choose to work later into the night. Many schedule their work around their children’s needs, making time for important things like school carnivals, dance classes and school pick up and drop off.
As a Travel Counsellor, there are no set hours, so setting up your own schedule and routine is something agents coming from retail backgrounds have to adjust to. But the payoffs that come with this flexibility are significant.
“I love that I can work my own hours and tailor the job to my family’s needs,” says Donna, who works from her home office when not spending time with her husband and kids.
More Support
Many travel agents working in retail stores lament the fact that they don’t feel supported. While every circumstance is different, the retail store model often leaves agents feeling overworked and under-supported.
Travel Counsellors may run their own business from home, but they are far from alone. With access to a well-resourced local and global head office team, Travel Counsellors can reach out for advice and support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Whether they’re seeking marketing advice, business coaching, assistance with a tricky airfare or technical support for an IT issue, Travel Counsellors have a team of professionals at the ready to help with anything and everything.
Many Travel Counsellors who have come from retail backgrounds are often overwhelmed by the level of support offered to them in comparison to when they worked in a retail store.
“You can’t do it on your own. I love that I have the support of the head office team. I could not do it without them,” says Donna.
Deeper satisfaction
As a Travel Counsellor, you’re able to offer a more personalised, tailored service. With a wide range of quality travel brands and products to sell, Travel Counsellors aren’t locked into selling a particular brand or service.
Agents structure their days as they please, so catching up with a new customer over a coffee or sitting with a client in their lounge room to talk about their upcoming travels is possible. It’s a very different way of working than in a retail travel agency, but one that works.
This personal, bespoke way of selling not only makes for a happier client, but also a happier agent and more profitable business based on repeat customers and increased referral rates.
“The most rewarding part of my job is seeing people when they return. Making people’s dreams come true is what it’s all about,” says Donna.
See how Travel Counsellor Donna balances her business and her family life here:
Think you’ve got what it takes to be a Travel Counsellor? Find out more HERE.
