First off, not all travel agents are unreliable, but
- The good agents only handle calls from new prospects after they are done serving their existing client base. If they’re really good, that might be a long time.
- The bad agents… Well, that’s self-explanatory.
As far as the unreliable agents, I can definitely tell you why you’re not getting calls back in a timely fashion. 9 out of 10 times, here’s is the typical interaction travel agents have to deal with when dealing with new customers.
- Customer has their sights set on [Insert City Here].
- Customer needs to go on a specific dates and has little to no flexibility on those dates.
- Customer searches online and is shocked that they can’t find flights for less than $600.
- Customer calls travel agent thinking agent can find better.
- Agent spends significant time finding $550 fares (because they’re good, but they’re not miracle workers).
- Customer decides $550 is too expensive so they decide not to go and don’t return the agent’s call ever again.
When that happens 9 out of 10 times, travel agents are forced to deal with the most realistic callers first, and everyone else later (if ever). It’s not the best system, but considering the high volumes of people who only call agents with unrealistic expectations – I can’t say I blame them.
By the way – I’m not a travel agent. I find the cheapest 1% of trips on the internet, and share them with my subscribers. As a premium subscriber – you can book those trips directly online without the use of a travel agent (and without commissions).
If you’re uncomfortable booking trips online, I recommend researching on Google or Yelp to find a reputable agent near you. Any good agent should be able to book any trip you find on my website for you if you simply give them the appropriate details. (Be aware that most agents will probably have to charge an additional fee because the majority of fares I find do not pay commissions.)
Questions? Please feel free to comment below.