This weekend my daughter came to visit and while we were hanging out and chatting, she said “Mom, I could turn your living space around and give you more room”. Having no talent in this area, and anxious for more room; I said sure. In fifteen minutes she had my husband and hers pulling out the furniture, end tables, and even the piano. The end result was a better look, a cohesive and cozy look, and much more room. When I exclaimed on the transformation, she cut her eyes at me and smiled “it’s what I do!” She is a professional interior designer so maybe I shouldn’t have been so surprised?
Another thing that surprises me is when intelligent, busy executives try to book their own travel. I’m the first to admit there are plenty of click and pay sites out there that make it easy to do. My question is why? We don’t cut our own hair or change our own oil; everything is very specialized these days. We all do what we are good at and hire out what we aren’t good at. Like my hodge-podge of decorating styles, people blunder their way thru vacation and business travel hoping everything comes out making sense. But again, is this the best way to leverage one’s time?I think people have two misconceptions that lead them to try to book their own travel. One is the old description of “travel agent” which leads them to believe they are paying the agent on top of the trip cost. So in an effort to save money, they try to do it themselves—often missing out on good deals and information that the modern day travel advisor could help them with. In reality, most travel advisors are paid by the resort, hotel, cruise line, etc. that they book with. This is not always true, so be sure to ask; but largely the advisor’s commission is not paid by the client.
Secondly, I have found clients assume using a travel advisor takes more time. This is just not true; in fact, using an advisor takes less time as they do the searching, evaluating, and compiling of information. You will need to “meet” with your advisor initially in person, by phone, or email and outline what your needs are. She will ask questions such as time frame, budget, likes, dislikes, health issues, and other considerations. I usually narrow down my proposal to the client to 3 choices, often breaking it down from a multitude of sources, giving the best fit for each client. I pride myself in giving personalized and specialized information that will meet the needs of my people with as little intrusion into their time as possible.Yes, I am a travel advisor—it’s what I DO! Let me help you utilize and manage YOUR time as well as get you the best price and fit for your travel needs!
Happy travels,
Sandy
Sandy, the diva cruiser, is actually Sandy Wheeler, an outside agent for Connie George Travel Associates. Email her for questions about this or any of my blogs and follow her on Twitter @thedivacruiser, or on her website: www.SandyWheelerTravel.com.
