If you’re someone who spends their days scanning flights, loves hotel rewards points, and in general, is a fervent traveler, you’ve probably wondered how to become a travel agent. And while it’s true that living in the age of Expedia means travel agents are not as vital as they once were, people use travel agents a lot more than you might think. Just because travelers aren’t calling up an agent every time they need to book a quick flight doesn’t mean they don’t want to consult an expert for a big trip. Especially when it comes to honeymoons or bucket-list trips that have a lot of moving parts — coordinating tour companies, translators, or multiple resort stays, for example— and it’s often easier to leave the logistics to someone else: travel agents.
Travel Agent Duties & Responsibilities
The main responsibility for travel agents is to book all aspects of travel for their clients, from airline tickets to hotel and car rental reservations, and more. The job involves other details as well. Travel agents typically will handle deposits and payments, and the payments they receive from clients will cover these expenses. This means travel agents need to manage their money well and be sure to stay within the budgets of their clients.
What to Think About When You Become a Travel Agent
Once you’ve secured work as a travel agent, you’ll want to think about how you can earn more money and distinguish yourself from other agents. Here are three things to consider as you start your career:
Making commissions. If you’re working for a larger travel agency as an independent contractor, how do commissions work? Make sure you have this conversation early on before accepting the position. When you’re starting out, you want to make sure the commission rate you’re receiving is similar to the industry standard.
Growing your client base. How do you make more money as a travel agent? Clients, clients, clients. You want happy customers who will return to you every time they want to book a travel experience. You’ll want to work at keeping your clients happy by finding them great deals, curating unbelievable experiences for them, and just being great to work with.
Establishing a niche. This is by no means a requirement for how to become a travel agent, but as you establish your career, you may want to consider focusing on a specific niche. For example, maybe you’re someone who focuses on honeymoon travel, luxury travel, or adventure travel. Your niche can help you attract clients, and it can be whatever you want it to be in the travel realm, as long as there’s a need for it.
A parting thought One successful travel advisor had this to say: “Becoming a travel agent is not a job, but rather starting your own business. The selling comes easy with time, experience and passion. But it will take time, strategy and perseverance. Most importantly, enjoy the fun and rewarding ride.”
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