Become a Home-Based Travel Agent: an Interview with Andi Mysza

by Tom Ogg

Back in the 1970s when I worked for Aloha Airlines, I was the Sales Manager for the Southwest for a period of time based in Los Angeles. Montrose Travel was a key account then and I got to know them as they were a huge Hawaii producer. In the 1980s when Joanie and I owned and operated a regional wholesale Hawaii tour company (Windansea Vacations) Montrose was one of our largest accounts. Montrose Travel has a rich history of outstanding performance and I am glad to see them working with independent travel agents and would highly recommend them.

I caught up with Andi Mysza and asked her a few questions regarding Montrose Travel’s independent travel agent programs.

Andi, How Long has Montrose Travel Been In Business?
Our company was established in 1956.

What is the Annual Volume for Montrose Travel?
It is about $110 million dollars.

How Long has Montrose Travel Been Hosting Independent Agents?
We’ve been hosting independent contractors since the early 1970’s.

How Many Independent Agents are You Currently Hosting?
Approximately 300.

Is There a Fee to Join Montrose Travel?
Yes. We offer 3 programs (no monthly fees):

• Inexperienced Agents - $299/yr 1 to join (annual renewal $259)
• Experienced Agents - $399/yr 1 to join (annual renewal $359)
• Established Agents - $499/yr 1 to join (annual renewal $459). Minimum $10,000 in commissions (must show proof of volume via 1099 or check stubs)

What is the Commission Split for Your Programs?

1. Inexperienced Agents - 50%
2. Experienced Agents - 70%
3. Established Agents - 80%

Do You Offer Any Overrides?
We figure our commission split based on the total upfront commission generated (including overrides). Back end overrides are not shared.

Do You Offer any Preferred Suppliers?
http://join.mtravel.com/about-us/preferred-suppliers
Key cruise suppliers include, Princess, Carnival, RCCL, NCL, Silversea, Oceania, Holland America, Disney, Celebrity, Crystal Key land suppliers include - Classic Custom Vacations, Pleasant Holidays, Gogo, Globus

We also have numerous air contracts for Apollo users, access to thousands of corporate hotel rates worldwide and relationships with the key car rental companies. We can service the leisure, corporate and group agent with our product mix. This is a key differentiator for us.

Does Montrose Travel Offer any Automation?
Montrose Travel has worked with and supported Independent Contractors since it’s inception. We understand the needs of Independent Contractors and Home Based Agents and continuously develop market-leading products to increase your chances of success. By providing the right tools, products, technology and discounted net rate content our agents need to capture a larger share of the vacation market and better service their customers, nobody offers you more comprehensive technology and support than MTravel.com.

Without a doubt, our private labeled consumer websites with online booking capabilities are the most superior in the host agency market. Let our team of programmers and designers worry about keeping the content fresh and professional looking. (If you’ve ever attempted to keep a website up to date with the volumes of supplier deals available every hour, you know this is an impossible task that would take you away from your primary goal of maximizing profit). Our booking engines allow you and your customers to book cruise, air, car, hotel, and dynamic packages. This is available at no additional cost.

The MTravel.com Agent Connex Support Site contains hundreds of pages of content designed to provide you with everything from procedures to training, marketing to group ideas and support, commission tracking to blast email tools and FAQ’s. It also includes some fabulous travel industry tech tools such as destination guides, objective hotel reviews, and more. It’s so comprehensive that you’ll spend hours discovering its potential for you.

In addition:

1. Apollo - optional $15/mo
2. Cornerstone - QC software (included)
3. iBank Reports for corporate agent accounts (add’l cost)
4. CRM (included)
5. Email marketing tools (included)
6. Star Service Online (included)
7. Weissmann Travel Reports (included)

Do You Offer any Sales Leads?
No. We used to offer group leads. However, we found that many of the email leads that are generated online are price shopping consumers and have been time wasters for our agents.

The most loyal customers are people who are already acquainted with the agent. Assuming a superior customer service experience, ultimately, an agent’s business will be 80% repeat and referral business. It behooves an agent to focus on this potential to grow their own client base.

Do You Accept New Agents at Montrose Travel?
Absolutely.

Is There a Minimum Amount of Revenue an Agent Must Acheive?
Not for the Experienced/Inexperienced Agent levels. No volume requirement. Established Agent level - minimum $10,000/year in total commissions

What Qualities Does Montrose Travel Look For in an Independent Agent?
We are primarily looking for people who are motivated to build their own travel business under their own company name.

For experienced agents, we love those who are seasoned with established clientele. These people can definitely take advantage of all we have to offer.

For inexperienced agents, we want to know that someone is actively working to build their business, is hungry to learn and not solely looking to take advantage of travel benefits.

What Special Qualities Does Montrose Travel Offer?
I believe our key differentiators are:

1. Established 1956
2. Hosting since 1973
3. Family owned and managed (hands on)
4. Top 5 host agency - Large size (150 employees) and buying power ($110MM volume), with the small town touch - we get to know our agents as individuals (personal business coaching)
5. Financial stability - no debt on our balance sheet
6. Leisure, corporate and group products
7. One of the top consumer websites with online booking technology available from a host
8. Top producer nationwide with most of our core preferred suppliers

Who Should Agents Contact For More Information?
Andi Mysza
800-870-5799
andi@montrosetravel.com

Any Thing Else You Would Like to Share?
Yes, Andi Mysza is also the current President of PATH (Professional Association of Travel Hosts).

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 27th, 2008 at 3:37 pm and is filed under home-based-agent-news. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.