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Pied Pipers and other Strategies for Group Success

We all enjoy reading and hearing stories about successful people in the travel industry. These are agents who are selling hundreds and thousands of clients per year to various destinations worldwide. These motivated agents are well respected by their peers, attract higher overrides from their vendors and, of course, earn top dollar for themselves. In addition, their well-deserved reputations continue to attract additional clients, making each year's new goals far easier to attain. So the big question is, how can a beginning travel agent enter this coveted arena?

What steps are necessary to attain the additional revenues; happy, repeat clients, and, of course, highaccolades from the office owner and the vendor? By following these suggestions, you can easily join theranks of top producing agents. You may not even need to accomplish all the steps; just be willing to givethem a try and the end results will be most satisfying. Here are five steps that could improve your success:

1) Concentrate on Group Bookings It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that the commissions from 10people are far greater than from two clients. Selling 25 people on a cruise far beats a single sale. And sellinghundreds will place a permanent smile on your face.

2) Use Pied Pipers to promote your groups These well-known celebrity types will act as a magnet for you,attracting more and more clients. Reading your local newspaper or city magazine should give you ideas ofwell-known locals who may be willing to promote your group and departure in exchange for a free vacationfor themselves. As an added bonus offer to take a spouse or significant other for each additional 10 or 15passengers sold. Some Pied Piper possibilities are garden club presidents, popular ministers, rabbis, discjokeys, sports figures, authors, musicians or any leader of an organization with the means (time and money)to travel.

3) Carefully plan the promotion of your group Spell out the exact steps that the Pied Piper is going toperform for the publicity of the group. If he or she is in a position to do mailings, then specify how many andhow far apart. If radio or TV is being used as an advertising vehicle, then who is going to handle the extracosts of production, etc.? If the church bulletin is being used, ask to proof the announcments and offer to doinformation socials so that interested parties can have their questions answered. Enlist the Pied Piper as apartner, stressing the importance of team effort in the success of the group departure.

4) Stress the activities involved in this group travel as an added bonus for the participants. If your Pied Piperis a golf pro, then use it to your publicity advantage. Say something like, "All participants will learntechniques for knocking 10 strokes from their game." If the Pied Piper is a celebrity, then plan a specialconcert, talk or other personal encounter just for the group. Remember that we all like to feel special, andbeing able to socialize with a renowned personality is fun.

5) Lastly, push the "fun" aspects of this departure. Most of us want to enjoy life and we love havingsomebody plan special events that include opportunities for laughter, socialzing and interesting experiences.Advertise the sizzle first. Remember this business rule: Happy salespeople are successful salespeople.