The Professional and Experienced Travel Agent

Not everyone reads “Women’s Day” magazine, thank goodness, but one of the contributors to that publication really raised a verbal firestorm among travel agents.  Anne Roderique-Jones article was titled “Ten Things Travel Agents Won’t Tell You”, and after some serious conversations it was changed to “Nine Things. . .”.  Still after that, there have been over 1500 comments posted to that article and the overwhelming majority of the comments were written by travel agents, travel agents organizations, or clients correcting some of the misconceptions in the article.

As one would expect, the American Society of Travel Agents came quickly to the defense of travel agents.  The vice-president, John Pittman, published an article entitled “8 Reasons Why Booking with a Travel Professional Creates Value”.  Among his “reasons” were:  

1. Customer advocacy:  if you have a problem with a particular part of your travel experience, the agent is there to act on your behalf to see that restitution is made.  My editorial comment is that most on-line operators don’t give a rip about your travel problems.

2. Expert guidance:  travel agents, unlike instructions on a Web page, are experts in understanding and deciphering the myriad of travel information and codes out there.  It is what they do every day.

3. Personalized service:  instead of an impersonal voice thousands of miles away, travel agents are your neighbors.  They have interviewed you and know what you want and what you value in a travel experience.

4. Professional advice:  travel agents are there to make sure you get where you want to go, when you want to go, and for the best value that suits your budget.

5. Time:  a travel agent has all the information at their fingertips, or knows by experience where to get it in a timely manner and that relieves the client of spending hours in research with still a huge degree of uncertainty.

6. Unbiased information:  agents work for their client, not for a travel supplier.  They want you back,  so they recommend the supplier that will provide the best value for your vacation needs. Our mantra is that we save you time and money!!

7. First-Hand experience;  many agents have been where a client wants to go or has had clients who have “been there”, so their advice is invaluable in helping clients decide on the best vacation that fits their wants and pocketbook.

These are all the reasons I have room for, but all the points validate the value of the professional travel agent.  There are four of us here at The Travel Factory with a combined 100+ years of service.  Contact us at 698-1421 or toll-free 800-760-4040.