How One Advisor Earned $100,000 on a Group Cruise (& How You Can Too)
byMarilee Crocker/
When it comes to amplifying profits on international group travel, Nadia Sparkle Henry is a pro. Her best earnings on a single trip to date came in 2019, when Henry grossed more than $100,000 on a seven-night Barcelona cruise on MSC’s Bellissima. And she anticipates hitting that $100K high-water mark again on a trip she’s planning for 2023.
现在,在新泽西州W. Orange的Travel With Sparkle的所有者Henry正在准备教其他顾问如何通过小组旅行复制她的成功。她正在开发一门名为6位数旅行学院的在线课程,并计划在今年晚些时候启动。(网站已经开始。)
同时,亨利与旅行市场报告读者分享了她的经验和建议。beplay客服她说:“在预订集体旅行时,您可以做很多事情来最大化利润,即使不是巡航。”
Henry’s four main tips for earning top dollar on group trips are:
- Don’t leave any money on the table.
- 确保您加注。
- Create your own excursions.
- 为您的小组带来价值。
以下是亨利(Henry)在2019年巴塞罗那巡游(Barcelona Cruise)中如何获得100,000美元的票房,她将其销售为一年一度的“朋友和家人”旅行之一。
不要专注于小组规模,而是最大化人均利润。
Henry booked just 185 passengers in 85 cabins on her money-making Barcelona cruise. “You don’t have to get 500 people on a ship. You can get half that, then make a profit by adding on. There are so many creative ways to make a profit with just 150 to 200 people.”
向上销售,教育客户,然后再销售更多。
Henry connects personally with every customer who puts down an online deposit for one of her group trips and uses the conversations to upsell. She’s not just upselling to higher cabin or room categories, but also suggesting add-on excursions and services.
“我educate the client on what the benefits are if they upgrade or add another service, why they might want to pay a little more. You need to qualify them, ‘What would you like to do? Is this something you would like?’ That’s where I get a little personal with them.”
预订空气并提供付款计划。
在联合国锁定机票70个席位后,亨利为团体成员提供了早日购买机票的机会,并增加了四个安装付款计划的便利。她为这项服务收费150美元。
“我告诉人们,即使您可能会发现它便宜,但您可以选择立即购买并制定付款计划。”这有助于使中产阶级客户的成本可管理。亨利的底线:增加收入为10,500美元。
创建自定义游览和体验。
亨利(Henry)提供了她自己设计的两次定制海岸游览,其中包括一家意大利小葡萄园,她在Fam Trip时遇到了她的主人。(亨利喜欢策划自己的经验,部分原因是与当地供应商建立关系。)
She booked 40 people on each of the two excursions and charged $25 above cost, generating an additional $2,000 in income.
Enhance the trip with add-ons.
Henry’s optional add-ons for the Barcelona cruise also included:
- Three-night pre-cruise stay at the AC Hotel Barcelona. Henry negotiated a favorable rate for about 50 rooms, including daily breakfast. The negotiated rate allowed her to mark up the hotel by about $100 per person. That brought in more than $10,000 in earnings, on top of her 7% commission. (She packages trip components together, so clients do not see the pricing breakdown.)
- Ground transportation & tour package.向亨利(Henry)飞往纽瓦克(Newark)(或同时分别抵达)的小组成员获得了往返地面运输套餐。该套餐包括在抵达当天的巴塞罗那城市巡回演唱会,因为酒店登记入住直到下午3点。大约80个旅行者预订了包裹。亨利估计,她在该组件上赚了约2,000美元。
- 额外的学前体验。亨利在巴塞罗那提供的经历中有一次参观蒙特塞拉特的黑麦当娜。亨利(Henry)与当地的一家公交公司安排了这次巡回演出,并聘请了当地导游。
- 一晚的灌木丛后酒店住宿,为需要或想要额外的夜晚的旅行者留下,然后才能乘飞机回家。
Look for supplier opportunities to boost commission earnings.
“当我考虑进行这次巡游时,我想看看邮轮给了我莫st. I took a chance with MSC. They were just coming to the U.S. market and wanted more travel agents to use their brand.” Henry was able to negotiate a 20% commission, plus MSC paid commission on its shore excursions.
“我的时机很棒。这就是您必须考虑的 - 任何开放的新酒店,它们的价格都会降低。您必须看,必须进行谈判。”
通过添加个人风格使旅行“值得一看”。
It’s not just curating experiences that makes a Travel With Spark group trip special. Henry travels with her groups, engaging with participants to deliver a trip that is upbeat, entertaining, and memorable. “I’m not just on the bus – I have fun with them. I do karaoke. I do parties and fun things that we all participate in, ice breakers for us to get to know each other. I encourage people to start up conversations.
“You have to have the right personality to escort groups like this. That’s what wins them over,” said Henry (who is in the process of hiring ambassadors to escort some of her groups).
创建一个有趣的体验有助于出售旅行。“我always say, ‘I guarantee you are going to have a great time and you’re going to ask by the end of the trip, what are we doing next year?’”
Market to like-minded travelers.
While Henry markets her “friends and family” trips to a primarily African American clientele, she emphasized that there are all kinds of market opportunities for group trips.
“我t can be sports groups, church groups, hobby groups, dance clubs. You can promote it the way I promote mine – ‘You’re going to have fun. You’re going to be with like-minded people. If you don’t want to travel alone, come with us; you will find someone to have fun with.’”
超越巡游。
亨利说,顾问可以使用相同的型号来增强他们在团体旅行中的收入,包括度假胜地假期和旅行社旅行。例如,在集体旅行中,她计划在今年夏天为全包墨西哥度假胜地,亨利(Henry)提供可选的私人游览。
“您可以使用旅行社做同样的事情。将它们用作基础,然后在其上添加其他扭曲,添加其他内容。如果我使用旅游运营商,并且发现一家不在行程中的餐厅,我会打电话给餐厅,要求提供Prix Fixe菜单,并为晚餐预订收取10美元。我会说,‘猜猜是什么,我有一辆面包车来接我们。有人感兴趣吗?’”
Be bold & get support.
Travel advisors too often let fear or a lack of confidence get in their way, Henry said. She urged her advisor colleagues to take chances. “Take that leap of faith to put it all together yourself.”
If you’re new to creating groups, take a course, then find a mentor, a coach or accountability partner who can answer your questions and be your cheerleader, she advised.