We at Travel Industry Solutions (TIS) take great pleasure in welcoming 2021 with a deep sigh of relief! After a year fraught with unprecedented medical and financial hardships resulting from the global pandemic, we look forward to the opportunities that lie ahead, especially in the travel industry.
We are especially excited about our people, our partners, and our plans for improving all aspects of your operations over the coming year. Whether you are an independent travel advisor or an agency owner with sub-agents, you will find our goals for serving you throughout 2021 to be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based. Our SMART goals will help transform your business with innovative products and services designed to support your success.
This roll-out of our premiere edition of The Bottom Line newsletter is step-one to achieving our first goal for the year. Each month, we will release another edition, filled with industry news, important announcements, how-to tips, and creative ideas to keep you informed, energized, and on track.
Moving forward, our newsletter will include “Sheila’s Straight Talk”—a regular column designed to help you improve efficiency and effectiveness, create client loyalty, support best business practices, concretize a philosophy of excellence, and build a reputation for high standards. Developed by TIS Co-founder Sheila Folk, the column will capitalize on Sheila’s broad industry knowledge, extensive personal experience, and widely recognized business acumen. You’ll quickly find that “Sheila’s Straight Talk” tells it like it is!
Essentially, The Bottom Line will cover anything that could impact your bottom line. We’ll provide guidance that will help you to:
- Examine what’s working and what needs improvement in your business.
- Set the tone at the top for honesty, integrity, and best practices.
- Understand you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.
- Come to terms with terms.
- Value and project professionalism in each and every encounter.
- Avoid the fate of most new travel agencies.
- Calculate your risk tolerance and explore ways to limit your risk exposure.
- Find out how diligence in doing first things first sets the stage for your ultimate success.
- Increase customer service proficiency.
- Leave nothing to chance.
- Decide what you really want to achieve.
- Tackle the details, before they tackle you.
- Do your homework.
- Clarify expectations and set boundaries.
- Design a better listening environment and culture.
- Grow your referral network.
- Hone your communication skills for clarity.
- Establish a customer-centered approach.
- Shift your mindset and business practices from reactive to proactive.
- Be prepared for difficult encounters you might confront.
- Find out what your clients really think about your service.
- Differentiate rolls.
- Ensure you stay at the top of your clients’ minds.
- Address the elephant in the room, though it might be easier to sweep it under the carpet.
- Consider the role attitude plays in your business.
- Tap into tools and information that not only will help your business survive, but also will position it to thrive.
- Earn a reputation for amicably addressing difficult situations.
- Attract the repeat business you desire.
- Manage your time more effectively for greater productivity.
- Protect or neglect your practice.
- Brand your business and live up to your brand.
- Appreciate and promote consistency.
- Face compliance issues with confidence.
- Build an integrity-rich business environment.
- Learn how to do more with less and make the most of your TIS tools.
These are just a few of the ideas we plan to cover in this valuable new client resource! If these topics reflect business issues that concern you, you won’t want to miss a single edition of The Bottom Line.
As you hopefully already know about TIS, we place a great deal of value on good communication. Beginning this month, this newsletter will be one the primary ways we’ll communicate with our stakeholders. To be effective, though, there should be give-and-take through two-way communication. To achieve this second goal, The Bottom Line will provide an opportunity for you to offer feedback, ask questions, express opinions, share stories, and make suggestions. We hope you will accept our invitation to personally engage.
For example, do you have a specific travel industry challenge you need help addressing? Maybe you have a recurring problem with clients, communication, or processes. You might have questions about starting your own agency. Or perhaps you need tips on building your customer base. Whatever your specific need, let us know! We might be able to explore your issue (anonymously, of course) and suggest solutions in a future edition of The Bottom Line. After all, we ARE Travel Industry Solutions, and we are committed to working hard every day to live up to our name!