Some of our franchisees are motivated to start a business with us as a sideline to top up a salary or savings. Others, like Peter, are driven more by passion, adventure and a desire to be their own boss and work flexible hours in an exciting industry.
“I loved my career but over the last five years I fell out of love with it,” says Peter who has worked for 35 years in the advertising business for various media companies and big international brands.
Like most of our franchisees, Peter chose The Travel Franchise because we have a reputation for training and supporting people new to travel – and because people are free work part time, full time or in their spare time. Peter now works only part time as a media consultant and no longer finds work stressful.
“One of the reasons I left big corporate life was to create my own pressure and maintain a healthy work/life balance doing something I enjoy. As a travel consultant, we are not saving lives, but we are generally making a small and positive difference to people. I feel better about what I do now than what I did for 30-odd years: making people want what they don’t perhaps didn’t need.”
While Peter was attracted to The Travel Franchise due to its flexibility and reputation for expert support and training, starting a business in a new industry can be daunting at first.
“I’ve always worked with people in big companies with big teams so it’s quite challenging when you are working for yourself but The Travel Franchise provides that support and teamwork element. I love the concept of a franchise as it allows a little bit of an entrepreneurial spirit but provides a bit of a safety net too.”
Peter found training “impressive” and support from our business development managers (BDMs) “honestly unbelievable”.
Our team of BDMs are veterans of the travel industry and are on call to advise and mentor every consultant. With the best coach-consultant ration in the industry, Peter found them invaluable.
“They really are worth their weight in gold. They are so supportive, passionate, so encouraging. If you are feeling down, they can lift you up. They come up with great ideas when you think you are stuck. They are a great support mechanism and I think without them I would sometimes struggle.”
Like many of our franchisees, Peter runs the travel consultancy part time with another family member. Both he and his wife, Laurelle, who works for a mental health charity, are determined to help customers get the best of their holiday experience.
With over 450 travel suppliers to choose from, The Travel Franchise enables them to tailormake a wide variety of holidays. And like most of our agents, Peter and Laurelle, concentrate on adding value rather than hunting down cheap deals for clients.
“The care and the passion we put into it is key. We get to know our customers really well and we are available by Whatsapp at any time of the day, within reason. It’s that service mentality that sets us apart from the high street.”
Like many new franchisees, they initially found customers by contacting everyone they knew and using social media. And it’s grown organically without any financial investment.
“I’ve now got nearly 300 followers on LinkedIn which is a great place to start and I’m getting a lot more enquiries from people I’ve not done business with for years.”
Just 40 clients can generate around 100 bookings as most people book an average of 2.5 holidays a year. And like most consultants, they’ve seen a huge rise in referrals and repeat business after just 11 months.
Peter’s just booked a £22k trip to Egypt and Jordan via an old business contact that referred him to someone he did not know. With earnings based on commission, big bookings are key, and most of our consultants are seeing a rise in the average client spend.
Peter is continuing to see an uptick in engagement on social media by using our free marketing material. By giving consultants ready-made videos and the ability to tailormake their own using ShoutOut, consultants don’t have to spend any money finding new customers.
“When I posted the new Not Just Travel branded film it resonated well because of my background. I got a lot of good feedback from professionals in the marketplace about the Not Just Travel brand too.”
Like most consultants, Peter continues to learn on the job taking advantage of our free weekly webinars, often hosted by our key trade partners who also provide exclusive deals.
“I am pretty active. I like to learn. Every day is a school day. I do my fair share of webinars diving into the travel partners. There is always something new that you learn.”
He also joined our Cruise Mastery course, a year-long programme of webinars and modules, as well as opportunities to attend tours of new ships, and the option to join us on a cruise with onboard ‘Seminar at Sea’ workshops on how to sell the product.
Cruise is a growing market, with average commissions of 10-15 per cent, so a lucrative market for agents.
“Cruise was something I started from scratch. I’d never been on a cruise, never thought about it. The training has been fantastic. I now feel confident and I know how to sell cruise.”
In the autumn, Peter will attend one of our International Cruise Mastery retreat onboard an MSC cruise ship. He’s also about to travel to Cyprus for our Millionaire’s Retreat, a five-day ‘fam’ trip with tours and workshops.
He also won free hotel stays in Sri Lanka recently by attending a webinar and intends to craft a holiday around them.
“Working for Not Just Travel is providing me with opportunities to see parts of the world I haven’t yet visited”
While Peter travelled all over the world during his previous career – he has visited 36 different countries, including the likes of Ethiopia, China, Barbados, Colombia and Taiwan – he has many more destinations on his bucket list.
“Every year I will go to a different place, there’s so much of the world to see.”
