Travel Advisors Make the Best Couples... and Business Partners
Every once in a while, you meet a couple that has managed to work and live together … successfully and happily for the long-term. Most of us wonder how they do it, spending untold hours together, day in and day out. But when it works, it’s a dream come true.
beplay客服旅行市场报告与三位杰出的旅行顾问夫妇进行了交谈,他们在崎bump乱的水域中航行,并在平静的海洋中晒太阳,共同经营一家业务 - 他们正在蓬勃发展。这是他们的一些秘密。
您是如何一起工作的?
Often, it turns out, couples end up in business together as a result of a work milestone for one or both partners. For instance, Steve Leichner, of PSL Travel, in Southern Florida, was in the process of closing his previous business; and his wife Penny was getting ready to retire from her full-time job in the travel industry. “She knew I had always wanted to own an agency, and since the dynamics of starting a travel agency have changed, and the cost of entry is so inexpensive, she suggested I start one and that she would help, with her decades of travel experience,” he said.
史蒂夫(Steve)和潘妮(Penny)于1972年9月在纽约皇后学院(Queens College)见面。从那以后,他们一直一起环游世界。他们在1970年代在欧洲背包旅行。几十年来,他们都以各种风格的风格旅行。旅行一直是他们的激情。然后,他们终于在2012年8月诞生了自己的旅行社。“这是一个梦想退休,”史蒂夫说。
What's the best part about working together?
“We are able to share our passion of travel by working together doing what we love to do. Traveling was a large part of my previous career and I was out of town almost every week. Now, we are able to share creating travel experiences for other people,” said Jim Moll, who also works daily side-by-side his bride and business partner, Dedra (DeDe) Moll at DeDe’s Travel, in Kansas City, Missouri. They’ve been “married for 40 wonderful years,” and have been working together for the last 14 years.
What's one of your secrets to being great business partners?
莱希纳斯说:“我们是已婚合作伙伴,其次是业务伙伴。”“因此,我们设定了共同的目标,并根据优势和劣势理解责任的划分。”
他们说,最重要的是,他们的婚姻和家庭是第一个。“如果您发现共同努力正在影响您的关系,请记住您的优先事项。对我们来说,作为旅行顾问一起工作很有趣。当它不再有趣时,我们有一个退出策略。当您将其视为全职家族企业时,您是否有退出策略?如果您想关闭商店怎么办?那您的客户呢?那你的收入呢?所有事情都要提前考虑。”
在我们与代理商的聊天中,彼此尊重和欣赏是重要的组成部分和一个共同的主题。Dede Moll说:“我们每个人都有不同的优势,这给桌子带来了很多。我喜欢认为我们相互补充。我们彼此分享我们的想法和想法,通常会想出另一个没有的东西。”
Janet and Jeff Blackwell, who met on a blind date 36 years ago and now own Bel Air, Maryland-based Tidewater Cruise and Travel, were in complete agreement about their secret to success. Janet quipped: “I'm always right! No, seriously, if I had to pick one, I would say it is that we respect each other as partners, both in business and in life. Jeff said: “Janet is always right. Really. And solid communication skills. Janet and I have vastly different styles of communicating, but we've figured it out over 35 years of marriage. Bringing that strength into the business is one of our secrets to being great business partners. There are still plenty of times we end up on different wavelengths, but when that happens, we know from experience to keep at it until we figure things out.”
What happens if you have different opinions on an important business issue? How do you break the tie?
由于吉姆·莫尔(Jim Moll)的妻子的名字以其代理商的名义,Dede的旅行,因此她通常对商业问题有最终决定权。他们进行建设性冲突以解决业务问题。而且,他们经常达成共识。但是,如果那没有发生,吉姆说:“即使你们中只有两个人,也必须有人成为老板。如果没有,您将永远不会做任何事情。”
Janet and Jeff Blackwell operate their business using a similar set-up, with Janet having the final say.
你们每个人都在代理机构中有特定的角色吗?您如何决定谁会做什么?
布莱克韦尔在其业务中具有特定的角色,这些角色围绕各自的优势发展。珍妮特(Janet)喜欢巡游,所以当她创办业务时,她的利基市场正在出售巡航。但是,她说:“杰夫在一艘绑在码头的船上晕船了,尽管他可以打开scopolamine patch并与我一起享受巡游,但克鲁斯并不是他的销售驾驶室。”因此,珍妮特(Janet)专注于巡航,全库,集体旅行和一些土地旅行的销售方面。以及簿记。杰夫专注于合身,冒险旅行和航空预订销售;他做了所有的写作和社交媒体。
At DeDe’s Travel, DeDe is usually the contact person, while Jim is more behind-the-scenes. “I often find out what our clients are looking for and then we discuss the details,” said DeDe Moll. “Jim is excellent at researching specific locations and ‘don’t miss’ things to see and do. He sends me suggested itineraries and options that I present to the client.” It’s a match made in Heaven.
您如何将业务时间与个人时间分开?
这通常是旅行顾问夫妇面临的最大问题。吉姆·莫尔(Jim Moll)说:“随着手机和社交媒体的兴起,每个人都希望立即进行旅行信息。”“与客户建立界限,以免阻碍我们的个人时间,这可能是我们处理的最关键问题之一。我们了解到,人们想在有空闲时间,晚上,周末和假期与我们联系 - 这就是业务的本质。
“我们俩都在以前的生活中销售,我们对平衡工作和个人时间有健康的了解。基本上,如果您不在合理的时间内接听电话或电子邮件,那么您可能不会进行销售。我们很好地利用了自己的个人时间,但是了解销售过程在建立良好的关系方面有很长的路要走。”
The Blackwells honestly admitted that they could do better at separating business and personal time. They made the decision this year to have set office hours, And, although they let their clients and prospective clients know they can work outside of those hours upon request, they make that the exception rather than the rule. They are also making it a point to claim one day over the weekend to themselves. That is challenging in the era of worldwide 24/7 connectivity, and for them, it is a work in progress.
您花了很多时间一起工作和一起玩,您会遇到什么障碍?
“Although we enjoy working together, it’s important to give each other a bit of space! We work from home and have separate offices,” said DeDe Moll. “We generally start our day over coffee together and discuss what we each plan to work on that day. Of course, this can change instantly when the phone rings or an urgent email comes through. We enjoy different hobbies and support each other in those things.”
布莱克韦尔同意。珍妮特(Janet)解释说:“我们有一个单独的办公室,彼此之间的大厅里有门,因此我们可以独立工作,但在我们想要的时候进行交谈。这些办公室还可以在感觉到需要时可以关闭的门。现在,我们几乎花了几乎所有的时间在一起,我指出要找到一些“我”的时间。我喜欢和朋友一起吃午餐或其他社交活动,然后让杰夫跑办公室。杰夫仍在为自己弄清楚。我认为他今年夏天可能会钓鱼。”
What's something that you would caution travel advisors about in running a business?
“Don't work tired,” said Janet Blackwell. “Just about all of my mistakes have come about because I worked past the point when I should have called it a day.”
她还指出,必须保持meticulous records - keeping track of final payment dates; summarizing phone calls with suppliers (including the date/time and name of person you spoke with); keeping email correspondence and summarizing phone calls with clients; keeping copies (electronic or paper copies) of confirmations from suppliers. “The list is endless. You never know when there might be a glitch, and having meticulous records can be very beneficial.”
史蒂夫·Leichner小企业consultant in his previous career, said that one of the most important things is to make sure you are adequately funded. If you are starting up as a full-time business, you need to have reserves to carry you until you start receiving commissions. Even if you book a million dollars of revenue the first day, you will not receive a commission until final payment or after the travel date. “Selling travel is easy,” he said, “but making certain that all of your payments are on time, your accounting records are up-to-date, and you are achieving your business goals short-term and long-term is hard. He cautioned to make sure that you develop good bookkeeping and business management skills.
Also, always put your important client communications in writing - such as agreed-upon services and rates, ability to charge a client’s credit card, and if they rejected travel protection.
对于想创办自己的代理机构(自己还是与他人)的其他旅行顾问,您最好的建议是什么?
“You can't just wake up one morning and decide to be a travel advisor. To be successful as a travel advisor, you have to invest time and money in learning the trade,” said Janet Blackwell. She recommends taking industry trainings and finding an experienced travel agent to work with. Also, find a niche that you’re comfortable with; and learn well how to qualify clients so you can make good matches between travel products and clients.
Steve Leichner said to take the time to create a business plan together with your partner, to make sure you share the same goals. And, he noted that having a host agency definitely helped him and his wife to have quick success.
DEDE MOLL将网络和培训作为首要任务。“您永远无法从其他旅行顾问,供应商,供应商,演讲者等方面学到足够的知识。…寻找您必须成长的任何机会。参加会议,与您可能无法自行收到的供应商直接联系。这使您可以与主要供应商建立关系,这些供应商有助于发展成功的业务。”
现在,您已经听到了这三个出色的旅行顾问夫妇的一些重要见解,您将做什么?如果您正在考虑以自己的爱进行业务,请考虑吉姆·莫尔(Jim Moll)的这些分开的建议:“没有什么比共享和经营业务的经验。当您发现自己都充满热情的业务时,它确实不起作用。您可以提供一项服务的感觉,人们实际上会付钱给您。”
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