I’ve worked in several different industries throughout my adult life. I spent the vast majority of that time in the radio industry from the early 80′s to the mid 90′s. I also spent time in the Golf industry, and later in the Security and Home Automation industry before I found YTB. I quickly realized that each industry has it’s share of bickering and finger pointing. Every industry has it’s share of people who do nothing but start rumors either to discredit or get a leg up on the competition.

If you combine all the years I spent in the other industries, it doesn’t hold a candle to what I’ve seen in the Travel Industry in the 4 years I’ve been involved with YTB. The backstabbing, the ranting and raving, and the accusations that are thrown around in this industry is like nothing I’ve ever experienced.

I have to hand it to the Traditional Travel Agents, they are an extremely passionate group. Please don’t take that as any form of admiration however. Any type of admiration turns very sour when the passion is as misguided and so dysfunctional that you see grown adults belittle and scorn each other in public forums. Because all they do is bicker the industry is left fragmented and unorganized. Travel MLM’s have come and gone for over a decade now. The industry has been outraged over the MLM model and Card Mills, but because nobody can agree with one another, Travel MLM’s are not only still around, they’ve gained considerable traction in the industry.

I was looking over the data I have on how people find this blog earlier in the week. Several search terms popped out at me for consideration for an article. Before I had an opportunity to research the story, a “Google Alert” came last night that put all the pieces together in one very well written article in Travel Agent Central.

In the article Peter Stilphen, an industry advocate, seems to be convinced that OSSN (Outside Sales Support Network) now caters to the MLM industry and has said so publicly in an open letter. OSSN of course denies the allegation and is going to great lengths to shut Mr. Stilphen up. OSSN has even gotten legal counsel involved to contact Mr. Stilphen numerous times to confirm the allegations with documentation and facts. Typical of most critics however, Stilphen has ignored the request for verification. What this has boiled down to is nothing more than an “Am not” – “Are too” type of argument that once again is being played out in the open for everyone to see.

Why am I not appalled over this type of conduct? Because I’m sorry to say it’s more the norm than it is the exception. Once again, instead of promoting solutions, benefits, or guidelines that have been a real sore in this industry for well over a decade now, we have more bickering and finger pointing.

Once again…we have to ask…”How’s that working for you so far?”

I’ve read numerous times that Travel MLM’s give professionals a black eye. When you look at something like this, you have to wonder why some don’t look in the mirror and realize that professionals are doing a fine job of punching themselves and providing plenty of back eyes of thier own.

I’m not a member of OSSN, but I have gotten updates and e-mails from this organization for years. They’ve been beneficial to me in as much as to provide information about industry trade shows and supplier training that educate and enable me to be more productive in the travel industry. While there have been many offers to join the organization, thier policies prohibit anyone involved in MLM’s from joining. While they do offer a “TRUE” credential, I can’t justify switching to anther host simply to carry a “TRUE” card. For someone like myself, CLIA offers the best training and accreditation now that they’ve upgraded and enhanced thier program. As we’ve learned however, even an organization like CLIA isn’t immune to the fighting and bickering going on between “professionals”.

The last time I wrote about Peter Stilphen was well over a year and a half ago when Royal Caribbean decided to pull the plug on YTB. At the time Peter was on the Board of Directors of an association called PATH. With Peter’s urging, PATH convinced Royal Caribbean that they needed to terminate it’s relationships with Travel MLM’s and Card Mills. To this day, we’ve only been able to verify two agencies that have ever been terminated by RCL while over a dozen other Travel MLM’s are still in good standing and booking with the cruise line. One of the agencies terminated being Joystar and the other being YTB.

Worked out well, don’t you think?

Although Peter has been a very outspoken critic of both Joystar and YTB over the years, I really don’t pay much attention to him personally. He’s simply lumped into the mix of outspoken critics who buys into the social “meme” I wrote about on Wednesday. He is however, one of the longest tenured critics surrounding Travel MLM’s that I know of. He and Bill Alverson (CEO of the now bankrupt Joystar) started the rumblings over a decade ago when Bill started the first Travel MLM called TravelMax. (Also long gone.)

Back in March I picked up another open letter to the industry from Paul Henderson of ProTravel Network, who has also grown tired of finger pointing and the bickering in the industry which adds further proof that the industry has no clue how to resolve the issue of industry credentials. Because the industry hasn’t been able to come up with guidelines, anyone associated in the industry is fair game when it comes to pointing fingers. Peters most recent crusade to eliminate “cards” has him yelling at OSSN now, an association that’s promoted by PATH by the way.

I honestly can’t tell you if the industry is ever going to get along with each other. I find it a real shame that an industry which evokes so many good memories and emotions for it’s clients in the form of vacations and exotic locations, has such a difficult time finding it’s “happy place” when it comes to communicating and getting along with each other. I’ve never seen such enormous ego’s, and so many experts in all my life. For me, it’s another reason why I stick with YTB.

You would think that some of these old dogs would wake up and learn some new tricks after so much time spent doing what they do with no answers or resolutions in sight. Unfortunaly that’s not my call or within my control. Because of the suppliers and clients I spend most of my time with, the professionals end up being a nessasary evil in the industry that I simply endure while learning, growing, and making my own way in the travel industry.

PS - If you're involved with YTB, sign up for our FREE Newsletter. As a Website Owner or Website Seller, we'll keep you up to date with all the latest news, acquisitions, and developments with YTB.

PPS - Subscribe to the Just Picture It Now RSS feed, (including e-mail) for all the latest posts and updates found right here!

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Do You ZamZuu?

I wanted to post something on Friday concerning Travel Weekly’s Preview 2009 and one presentation in particular. Before I did however, I wanted to make sure that what I thought I heard and my notes from the presentation were in fact accurate. So I decided to hold off until I could listen in again with the On Demand feature which is available for the next 90 days.

It shouldn’t be that big of a guess that the one presentation I was interested in was Thursday’s “What Proves You are a Travel Pro”. Questions were asked by agent groups looking for answers from association heads about – you guessed it, “credentials” as they explored just who should be recognized as a travel agent, and who shouldn’t be.

The presentation was kicked off with a brief presentation by Bob Sharak from CLIA, Kelly Chiusano from OSSN, Scott Koepf from NACTA, and Bert Rivero from IATA as they clarified their roles in the industry.

After the overview presentations, the Q&A started with Kim Sorensen who asked the first question to the panel. The question can be summarized in two parts:

With the industry in “a perfect storm” with agents and agencies closing down, what are these associations doing to not only attract but train new blood that enters the industry? Secondly, what type of training, qualifications and documentation should an agency provide for the new blood in order to guide them to obtaining the roll as “Travel Professional”?

We’ve documented here before, fairly recently as a matter of fact, that the industry as it stands is struggling. I’ve written about Liberty Travel closing a number of its locations, and Cruise Value Center closing overnight without warning. Those that are left have resorted to embezzlement, and defrauding airlines to make ends meet. Even the current leader in the Travel Industry is looking for a $3.5 Billion bailout.

Based on what we’ve seen in recent weeks, any illusion that the traditional industry is doing well, is just that; an illusion.

There’s no question in my mind that the industry is in dire need of attracting not only new blood but new ideas into this industry. To be fair, it’s not that the industry hasn’t changed, although it appears to be with a considerable amount of resistance. The industry does eventually adapt. (As I suspect it will with MLM’s.) Scott Koepf did a great job in summarizing all the changes with the age of internet bookings, cruise only agents, and home based agents who were at first frowned upon and met with resistance. Today, these entities are not only accepted, but respected.

The face of the industry has also changed from being viewed as an “Agency” to that of an “Agent”. I’m often asked by Traditional Agents how I maintain any type of bookings with all the negativity critics produce about YTB. The answer is simple; the relationship is with me, not YTB. When clients look to make a booking, they look at me, not my host agency. Pricing, service, and professionalism are a direct reflection on me, not my agency. You might want to read Chris Andersons, “The Long Tail” for better clarification on how our entire capital structure is changing in this way. Another reason why I believe YTB and Network Marketing is on the right track.

Even with this shift in capitalism, Agents and Associations look to be more concerned with complaining and how companies like YTB make them look. More importantly as we’ve heard time and time again, is their illusion that we only get involved to take advantage of industry without giving back in the form of travel sales. The solution for them of course doesn’t rest on their shoulders, but on the suppliers themselves. It’s suppliers who ultimately decide just who they want to do business to produce income and gain market share.

Especially with the current economic conditions.

So how do these Associations help the new person who wants to get involved in the industry?

Bert Rivero (IATA) wouldn’t take any responsibility to ensure agents are trained properly. IATA is designed for those who have already acquired not only the knowledge, but skill set to sell a minimum amount of travel in a calendar year. IATA seems to be more interested in educating suppliers on how much money they’re loosing because of “card mills”.

Bert may need to take a lesson from Gerry Cahill with Carnival, who produced a very sound solution that was brought to light almost a year ago to curb this perceived problem of “card mills” taking advantage of FAM’s without giving back to the supplier. Of course, the relationship between YTB and Carnival has flourished, even with the new requirements, which doesn’t match IATA or the Travel Industry agenda.

Kelly Chiusano was much the same, in that OSSN really doesn’t have a current structure in place to guide, train or educate the new person who enters the industry. It’s up to the host to provide this type of training and education. She did mention that the larger host agencies did have training and education in place to help bring them into the fold and help them become a professional.

It wasn’t until we heard from Scott Koepf from NACTA who I think was the first to really understand the question in its entirety, and does provide both training and continuing education for those of us who aspire to become professionals in the industry. It looks as if YTB may be on the right track now that it has an entry level with Affiliates, Referring Travel Agent, and Travel Agent program in place. Each of the YTB levels produce a better understanding, better commission splits, and enhanced privileges within the industry.

CLIA, was by far the best equipped to answer this question, and Bob Sharak did an exceptional job of explaining how their association works hand in hand with host agencies and individuals to educate and train both the new recruit, but the seasoned professional in the industry. Not only does CLIA provide various training experiences, from on line to more intimate classroom training. CLIA provides various levels of qualifications starting with a brand new Associate Cruise Degree (ACD) along with various Cruise Counselor levels which stars with Accredited (ACC), to Master, (MCC) and even Elite (ECC) levels.

Like Carnival back in January, CLIA has come up with its own solution to the Agent ID cards with new requirements that include training and minimum booking requirements in order to obtain the privilege of carrying their credentials.

Instead of complimenting and giving CLIA credit for these new requirements, critics (as they always do) tend to twist and create problems within a solution, and are now obsessing over a loophole they claim to have found. Instead of highlighting the loophole from our critics, I would instead suggest that you chime into YTB who will be providing an overview of these new requirements with CLIA on tonight’s “Getting Started Call” with Jeannie Sharpless. This way you’ll be guided with an overview of how to qualify the right way. (If you miss the call, you can find it archived in your back office.)

By following the guidance of both CLIA and YTB, who knows, you too could qualify for that elusive roll as a “Travel Pro”.

PS - If you're involved with YTB, sign up for our FREE Newsletter. As a Website Owner or Website Seller, we'll keep you up to date with all the latest news, acquisitions, and developments with YTB.

PPS - Subscribe to the Just Picture It Now RSS feed, (including e-mail) for all the latest posts and updates found right here!

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Do You ZamZuu?