To capitalize on all that this industry has to offer, you must first educate yourself about the

intricacies of hospitality administration and familiarize yourself with the diverse opportunities

that are available in a wide variety of hospitality fields. In addition to general hotel and

restaurant management, you may want to consider looking into employment options in the

following, often overlooked, areas: • Airline and railway travel • Conferences and conventions centers

• Travel agencies

• Tourist offices and ministries of tourism

• Tour operators

• Spas and wellness centers

• Cruise companies

• Event management • Casinos

• Catering companies

• Bars and private clubs

• Concert and theatre venues

• Museums and other cultural venues

• Theme parks

Fitness clubs and sports organizations (such as gyms, golf clubs, and tennis facilities) • Real estate management companies

• Hotel development and construction

• Manufacturers and suppliers of hospitality equipment

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 1. Need recognition: - The buying process begins when the consumer recognizes a need
which that can be triggered either by internal stimuli (for example previous experience)
or by external stimuli. The individual’s needs and aspirations extends from the well well- known hierarchy of Maslow in 1943, from the basic physical needs, through safety and
social needs to self self-esteem and status needs . Self Self-actualization is the highest
level need which is a more sophisticated need because it is inner inner-directed and it
plays an important role in motivating an individual to travel. Maslow's theory is
popularly used in tourism studies to give an understanding of the human behavior.

 2. Information Search: - In this stage, consumers will try and obtain as much information
about the products and services, they intend to purchase. It is through gathering
information that consumers are able tocan increase their awareness and knowledge about
the product and service they intend to purchase as well as the available choices. The
consumers will obtain information from personal sources (like family, friends, or
acquaintances), from commercial sources (such as advertising, salespeople, or packaging
displays), or from public sources (such as restaurant reviews, consumer rating
organizations. 

3. Evaluation of alternatives:- The consumer has a range of alternatives from which a
decision is made based on what the consumer considers to be acceptable in a given
product or service category. A consumer is likely to select the first acceptable alternative
rather than searching for many more alternatives.

 4. Purchase decision:- Customers is now fully aware of which product best meets their
criteria and they develop a definite decision to purchase the product. The decision to
purchase is directly linked to motivations which that may be influenced through
marketing decisions especially the product design and the ways in which how the
products are presented to prospective purchasers. 

5. Post- purchase evaluation:- This involves appraising the holiday experience which
measures the level of satisfaction/dissatisfaction. The consumers' measures expectations
before the purchase against experiences after the purchase. The larger the gap between
the expectations and experiences, the greater the consumers’ dissatisfaction. This is a
disadvantage to marketers, because dissatisfied customers are not likely to buy the
product again and may discourage friends and family (personal sources) from buying the
product in the future. On the other hand, if a customer is satisfied they are likely to
purchase the product again and these customers may give advice toadvise friends who
may use the information they receive to actually purchase the product.

Tourist as a consumer follows the step by step process called the tourist decision decision- making process.Before further discussion note these three important points:-

  First, the act of purchasing is only one stage in the decision process, which was really
initiated several steps earlier. 

 Second, not all consumer decision decision-making leads to an actual purchase. The
consumer can end the process at any time. 

 Finally, not all purchase decision proceeds through all the stages of the process.

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Useful Tips for Travel Agents

 

Here is a list of things that every agent can do to adapt to and thrive in today's

environment in which clients want personalized attention, good value and the

convenience of the internet.

1.Specialize

Resolve to be an expert in a few destinations or activities. Passengers

now have on-demand access to so much travel information via the

Internet that they have themselves become “generalist travel agents”.

When travelers seek help, they are seeking a true specialist.

2.Personalize

Differentiate yourself from do-it-yourself (DIY), self-service online sol￾utions. Instead give clients highly personalized service, recommen￾dations, etc., starting from your very first interaction with them—whether

online, by phone or in-person.

Many agents advertise deals on their website and send the message that

they can find the best deals. It is tough to beat deals on the Internet, and

will be even tougher going forward. Transform your business and your

message to sell expert advice and personalized service.

3.Develop a repertoire of unique experiences and special access

Offer a unique value to your services for a memorable selling experience.

The more access to special events or people that you can give clients, the

more differentiated you are.

4.Be complex

Travelers really need agents for complex trips (e.g. longer international

trips or cruises). Your energy and specialization should be on these

complex trips because passengers can easily book simple trips them￾selves (e.g. point-to-point trips such as London to Madrid).

5.Go upmarket

Segment the market into two traveler types: those with more money than

time, and those with more time than money. Agents can only compete for

the former segment's business. Travelers with more money than time give

more value to purchasing a travel agent's expertise and ability to handle

every aspect of the trip.

6.Work with net rates rather than take commission

Especially for custom tours, agents should consider getting net rates from

suppliers and marking them up rather than taking commission. This gives

pricing flexibility and better cash flow, and reduces the hassle of collecting

commission.

7.Do a self-check on whether or not you are delivering the best value

The market is dynamic and is constantly changing. Are you getting

competitive rates for all the products and services that you offer? Be sure

to have a variety of strategies to get your clients the most value.

8.Master your pitch

Have you perfected your sales pitch if clients ask: “Tell me about yourself

and your agency,” or “What makes you different from other agents?”

Memorize the top three messages in your pitch to sell your services.

9.Brush up on ‘trusted consultant’ sales skills

It is a consultative sales job. Most agents can sell a lot more if they can be

perceived as a trusted advisor. This means relationship-building and

trust-building skills are needed rather than pushy sales skills.

10. Have a good website Agent websites need three key things: good design + compelling content

+ easy to maintain/update. If you do not have a good web developer, hire

an online graphic design agency that specializes in website design and

business branding.

11. Use a smartphone

Be extremely responsive through voice, email, and social media even

when you are not in the office by using a smartphone. Use online apps or

internet phones to have one number that rings you at your landline,

mobile, or any other number. You can make international and conference

calls and listen in on voicemails.

12. Improve knowledge and process efficiency

Take the opportunity to be more efficient in your operational processes.

For example, streamline the time to develop a custom itinerary, the time

to price a quote and study courses such as this module, etc.

This industry has changed tremendously and the pace of change will only

accelerate. Be a constant student of best practices and be ready to adapt

and adopt new ways of doing things....no matter how many years you

have been in the industry.

13. Engage with social media

Create a Facebook Page for your travel business. Get your clients to be

fans and post reviews of your services. Engage them with insights and

tips. A Facebook page is best used when it is less about selling and more

about engaging with fans and being helpful with your knowledge.

Get yourself or your agency written up in national media or at least your

local newspaper. Get clients to write you endorsements on LinkedIn or

travel blogs. Build your reputation with real traveler reviews on a referral

service.

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 The simple fact is that competition among travel industry suppliers is at an all￾time high, and it's increasing every day. Thousands of hotel rooms are opening

somewhere every day. Thousands of airline seats, hotel beds, cruise berths,

and tour-coach seats are all waiting to be sold, day after day. The travel

industry sells the world's most perishable products: An unsold seat or room is

revenue lost, forever.

The key is to sell those seats, berths, and beds—and to get paid for it.

The industry is very complex, though. Customers and travel industry

companies are very demanding. Expectations are rising as never before.

Everyone wants value for money: The highest quality, the highest standards,

and the highest professionalism at the lowest cost.

Products are becoming complex, too. Just keeping track of frequent-flyer

points, shifts in airline alliances, and the different offers from hotel groups can

make your head spin. There is more: new reservations systems, visa

regulations, fares, and terms and conditions (the fine print) attached to every

product.

Customers are not loyal. There are more suppliers to choose from, most just a

click away on the Internet. Consumers are constantly looking to try different

things, and they frequently change travel product sellers if they can find one

that offers them a lower price.

Things can, and do, go wrong. Weather conditions delay flights, or security

considerations require re-routing of a tour itinerary. Though these problems

seldom occur, sorting them out for demanding clients can take a significant amount of time, money, and resources, particularly for small and medium-sized

travel and tourism businesses.

The professional skills that you can develop will assist you in being prepared to

handle such challenges.

On the business side, the financial pressures of being a small or medium-sized

business operation can be heavy. Many such businesses, unable to manage

the pace of change and unable to compete, are being purchased by larger

global chains, which are themselves joining forces with other chains in order to

improve their negotiating power with airline alliances and global hotel chains.

This is affecting medium-sized travel agencies most. While the giant agency

groups can negotiate the best prices and compete amongst themselves for

market share and volume, based largely on price and diversity of product, the

small agents continue to do business with a select clientele that likes

personalized service and does not mind paying for it.

Medium-sized agencies will have to decide in future which way they wish to head.

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 Business and tourism depend heavily on air transportation. Without air

transportation, it would be difficult to meet with partners and customers, deliver

mail and other goods, explore geography and other cultures or visit friends and

family. No other mode of transportation can offer the same speed and reliability

over long distances. Air transport provides access to global markets and

connects people, countries and cultures.

The airline industry is dependent on external supplier services. Such supplier

services include airport security services, meal caterers, aircraft re-fueling,

maintenance, sales and distribution outlets, including travel agents and tour

operators, aircraft financing and more. These suppliers must all employ people

in order to deliver their services to airlines.

The travel industry's aviation sector contributes to global economies in an

important way through job creation and by generating tax revenues. In addition,

the aviation industry makes it possible for foreigners to visit and make local

purchases that support the local economy.

Airlines carry 2.8 billion passengers annually. The airline industry employs

55 million direct jobs. The air transport sector creates 95 million indirect jobs in

supply-chain businesses that sell their products and services to airlines and

airports. Air transport also contributes to the creation of 18 million indirect jobs

in tourism.

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 The principal sectors of tourism, each with some examples given, are as

follows:

•Transportation (airlines, trains, cruise ships)

•Accommodation (hotels)

•Attractions (museums, cultural sites, theatres, sports and recreation

centers)

•Events and conferences (festivals, trade shows, the Olympic games)

•Food and beverage (restaurants)

•Tourism services centers (tourist information centers, tourism associations)

•Retail travel outlets (tour companies, travel agencies)

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 An Exciting Profession

There are few professions in the world today as exciting as selling travel.

Travel and tourism is an adventure, an education, and an experience all rolled

into one. It is a continuous learning experience. It is both a science and an

art—an “art” in terms of the creative way to sell destinations and cultural

experiences and a “science” in terms of managing the business side of it.

If you enjoy meeting people and being in touch with lifestyles and cultures in

different, exotic parts of the world, there is no better profession to be in.

The following are six reasons why travel professionals love the travel industry.

1. It is a happy business. Travel customers are generally happy. They talk

about their travel plans with excitement. Travel professionals are genuinely

passionate about travel. This recipe or combination makes it pleasant for

travel professionals and travel customers to interact. The travel business is

still very much one defined by personal relationships and the “human

touch” and attracts people who genuinely like to work with people. Travel

agents are motivated to help customers live an experience they will cherish

for a lifetime.

2. It is a helpful industry. Travel professionals provide good advice and share

their knowledge and experience with their customers.

3. Resources and tools are plentiful. Travel professionals do not need to look

hard to find resources to perform their job. There are travel industry forums

4. Incentives and discounts are available. Few other industries offer the

opportunity to see the world at a discount. Travel industry suppliers who

truly support their travel agent distributors go out of their way to incentivize

the agencies and agents who sell them well.

5. Continuous learning and new education opportunities make work

interesting. It is not possible to visit, experience and explore every

destination of the world. But it is possible to learn about new destinations

through the experiences of colleagues, suppliers and even customers.

Travel industry suppliers and tourism offices make training accessible and

easy.

6. Travel suppliers and vendors are supportive. For the most part, travel

suppliers understand and appreciate that they need agents and agenciest topromote and sell their products and services.and associations that provide opportunities to network with other travel

professionals and new suppliers. Technology tools make it possible to sell

a vast number of products and services as well as sell to customers

anywhere in the world.

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