Last week, Avoya Travel, the industry’s most innovative travel agency, hosted its second annual Million Dollar Showcase, an event to which only the top earners are invited – those who will realize at least $1 million in travel this year.
The Showcase serves several purposes: It recognizes the remarkable efforts of these Avoya network Independent Agencies (IAs), rewards their exceptional achievements, and provides a forum for further learning and networking with supplier partners.
81 IAs were present, along with representatives from 43 preferred suppliers, 16 Avoya executives and employees, and select media representatives. The program consisted of several general sessions where suppliers presented their products, one-on-one meetings between consultants and suppliers, and professional development workshops.
What it takes
We had the opportunity to speak to some of Avoya’s top producers to find out how the company paves their path to success and what they do to achieve their enviable status as some of the best sellers.
One of them is David Locke, who, along with his wife Cindy, owns Seize the Seas, Avoya’s top-grossing independent agency, which has brought in $6.4 million in revenue so far this year. We asked him what he attributes to his huge success and what it takes to get to the top.
His surprising answer was: “Nothing special. You take the cues that Avoya provides. I didn’t do any marketing. I can spend all my time on sales and service because I don’t have to spend time on marketing, accounting or anything like that… I outsourced all the marketing, all the accounting, all the advertising to Avoya and I do what I do best – my only thing – sales and service. And that’s the secret to success.”
Locke stressed that aspiring IAs must have a talent for building relationships. “Understand that they gave you the client, and you can do whatever you want with it,” he said. “But if you’re good, consistent, persistent and polite, and you build a relationship… you give them what they ask for, you give them a good price, you serve them well, and that’s all I do.” He reiterated, “Just do your job well, and they’ll come back… There’s no secret, there’s no special ingredient.”
He also explained that you have to be willing to live the lifestyle that the role requires, which can be flexible but also quite demanding. “You don’t have to work 24 hours a day, but you have to be available 24 hours a day,” Locke said during an on-stage Q&A with Phil Cappelli, Avoya’s chief sales officer. He later told us, “If someone says I want to work nine to five, that’s not the job for them.” He elaborated, “There are no secrets. We take the lead, we work hard, we do long hours, but we don’t work 24/7. We’re available 24/7, we say.
Locke has been self-employed for 20 years and said that despite the sometimes unpredictable hours, he wouldn’t trade his job for anything in the world. “I’ve never worked in a job for so long in my life… because it just works, it’s perfect.” He gushed: “We work from home. I work in my pajamas. I don’t have a boss. We’re independent and make a lot of money and then we get invited to travel. It’s just a great job!”
Not quite as long in the business but rising to the top relatively quickly is Robyn Jacobs, owner of Orca Travel in Dallas. She attributes her success in large part to her personality, which has always been inclined to connect and build bonds with her clients.
“I think I’ve always been in sales. When I was little, I made crafts and sold them in the neighborhood. When I was in high school, I worked for a telemarketing agent,” she said. “I was actually a professional matchmaker for nine years. I used to match people with their loved ones, and now I’m setting them up with the perfect vacation.”
Jacobs said of the factors that make an IA a success, “I think you have to have a sales mindset because just because you get a lead doesn’t mean the lead is going to book. You have to work at it… you have to have drive, you have to have a mission.” She added, “You have to build those relationships. Don’t be afraid to ask for the sale.”
Why Avoya?
Jacobs also credits the Avoya Live Leads program with helping her get her business off the ground and getting to a point where she can focus on growing her own client base. “I started over seven years ago and I didn’t even know what a host agency was,” she revealed. “I wouldn’t be where I am today without the lead system because it gives you confidence.” She added, “If no one is in the industry yet, this is the best place to start.”
Both of these top-earning IAs stressed the importance of making quality connections – not just with their clients, but with suppliers, their IA colleagues and Avoya staff. And those opportunities were plentiful at the Million Dollar Showcase. “It’s about building those relationships… That way, if you have a customer issue, you have someone you can contact,” Jacobs said. “If you’ve met someone in person and you need something, it’s really hard for them to say no,” Jacobs laughed, a benefit that Locke was also quick to point out.
But the other component to maintaining her edge in travel sales is ongoing education, another element Avoya offered during the Million Dollar Showcase. Jacobs said she’s “always trying to learn something new. I mean, this business changes every day, the rules, the regulations, the policies, the procedures.”
She said Avoya really stands out in that regard. “If you have a question, there are webinars you can watch online anytime, there’s training – they’re always offering network extensions to educate us – and support. I mean, you have a question and you send a support request and it gets answered so quickly or someone gets back to you. And then of course, if I need anything, I can reach out to anyone and they’ll help me and walk me through the process,” Jacobs raved.
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