Travel Agent of the Day Friday November 23rd, 2007 - Patricia Baker
11/23/2007 01:11 p.m.
Patricia Baker
Destination Specialist (DS), Recommend Destination Specialist
Patricia joined the Tripology network in June of 2007 and has already planned some great vacations for travelers she found through Tripology.com.
How long have you been in the business?
"20 years"
What inspired you to become a travel agent?
"I wanted to help people in a positive way and I love to travel."
Do you have a passion for travel?
"Yes, yes, Yes! I love what I do."
Did you do anything else before becoming a travel agent?
"Full time mother and wife."
Are there any great perks that come with working in this business?
"Yes"
What are some of the perks? Any great discounts?
"Discount cruises...$50 per day per person, free airline tickets etc..."
What about upgrades?
"Sometimes I get upgraded to first class based on the industry."
What is the best free vacation you have ever had?
"I won a trip to the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, located on Knob Hill overlooking the San Francisco Bridge."
Do you take a lot of vacations?
"Yes"
Do you go alone or do your friends and family tag along?
"Both, I have traveled alone and with family, friends, and clients."
Favorite getaways to head off to on your own?
"Mexico, Caribbean, and cruises"
Do you inadvertently work a lot when you are on vacation? - scouting hotels, activities, tours and sites?
"Usually."
How else do you review hotels that you may not have been to?
"I try to contact other travel agents who have been there or research it in my system or on the web."
How many clients do you have right now?
"A lot. I am pretty quick at qualifying clients and putting trips together."
Do you work with a partner?
"No partner, but I have a couple of independent contractors that work for the agency."
Office or home?
"Home office"
Do you limit how many clients you can work with at one time?
"Not really. I do a lot of groups, so I am used to multi-tasking several clients at one time."
Websites such as, Orbitz, Expedia, and Travelocity have given the opportunity to travelers to book trips without a travel agent. Have you found this to be a problem for you? What are you doing to convince travelers that a travel agent is a better option?
"I have been in the travel industry longer than Orbitz, Expedia, and Travelocity put together have been in existence. My expertise and experience is what makes me a good travel agent."
If a traveler asks you, "Why should I use a travel agent," how do you respond?
"We have the experience and knowledge of the industry to share."
Have any travelers given you any horror stories of experiences they had trying to book a trip on their own?
"Yes, especially during 911 and hurricane evacuations."
Do you have any tips for the listening travel community?
"Many of us don't charge agency fees for our knowledge and experience, so put our skills to work."
What's the most exciting trip to book right now for you?
"Tahiti"
What would you say is your most popular destination request right now?
"Honeymoons and Destination Weddings are my specialty. Especially, since I was married back in Amstetten, Austria back in the day."
There's a lot of buzz about specialization these days, and how destination expertise is still a great value proposition for travelers. Why do you think agent specialization is important to have when travelers are trying to book the trip?
"I specialize in Honeymoons and Destination Weddings. It really helps that I have the experience myself. I think it's wise to book with someone who specializes in what you're looking for. They are experts in what you are doing and can help you through it."
What does it mean to be specialized to you? Is it focusing on only 1 thing and traveling there every year?
"No, I book other trips and groups as well as requested."
Do travelers ask a lot if you have been to where they are trying to book their trip?
"Yes, most of the time. And, most of the time I have been to where they are going ~from my travels around the world in my many years in this industry."
How specialized is too specialized? Is this possible?
"If that's all you know, that's all you will do. I like knowing everything and then choosing what I wanted to specialize in."
A popular trip request lately has been requests for flight only quotes. Do you believe that a good agent can turn these requests into full trips?
"Sure that's the idea..."
How would you go about doing this?
"By convincing the client that the package price is better in price and value than trying to book it all separately (which it is). Sort of like buying a suite in lieu of the shirt, vest, jacket, and pants separately."
If someone were to call you and ask for a once in a lifetime vacation idea, what would you suggest?
"I would have to qualify the client first, so that I can help them find the vacation of their dreams."
Funniest thing you have ever been asked?
"Are there cruise cabins under the water."
Tags: travel agents of the day
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