YTB vs Traverus - Whats the difference you ask?

Hello again,

Well as you know by now, I switched recently from YTB in which I had no downline and was only an "REFERRING" Travel AGent.

I want you to understand, it is not that YTB or any other opportunity is not a good opportunity, most still are! Sometimes there is just a better opportunity,and
We have to go where the best opportunity for us and our group is!

Here is is...as promised just a FEW examples:

1. YTB pays 60% travel commission
2. Traverus pays 70% travel commission, 80% after $5000.00
3. YTB pays $50.00 on a $449.00 start up cost
4. Traverus pays $50.00 on a $119.00 start up cost
5. YTB pays a 50% matching bonus after you enroll three people
6. Traverus pays 150% matching coded bonus on your first two enrollment's then 100% from the third on.
7. YTB pays $2.00 per month residual income per person from your 7th person on that are coded (power team & Dream team) to you!
8. Traverus pays you $5.00 per month residual from your 3rd person and on all people coded to you from those enrollments.
9. YTB pays $2.00 per month residual in your dream team first generation then progressively less
10. Traverus pays pays in a forced matrix bonus in addition to the $5.00 coded residual bonus, they pay $6.00 per month 2nd generation $10.00 a month 3rd generation $5.00 month 4th generation $4.00 a month 5th & 6th generation and more on the same people!
11. TRAVERUS is INTERNATIONAL
12. TRAVERUS websites are also now in SPANISH too
    

TRAVERUS is working on a BRAND NEW site. So with all of this, you cant just ignore....the facts

Ask yourself, DO YOU REALLY WANT TO MAKE MONEY?

Feel free to contact me...

Anna@onlinetravelguru.com or visit onlinetravelguru.com for more information

Changes and NEW things on the Horizon: Traverus too

Folks, its been so long since I written. For those of you who have checked out this blog I apologize.

PLEASE COME BACK!!!!

In either case, lets do this in fast forward.

Back in April 2007, I moved location from Virginia Beach, VA to the Denver Area, Colorado. And it was the 2nd best move I had made. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT OUT HERE.

So after taking time to get settled in, you can imagine I needed ways to make a few quick bucks, I spent so much time on moving but none on business. I got a job for the Local rape crisis center for a very brief time, thinking I could help the community out. I then delivered some phone books to get out of the house while I was waiting on job opportunities that I applied for to come thru. It gave me a chance to see more of CO. Both jobs did actually. LOVE IT.

Finally, got an amazing contractor position. Love the company, love my boss, love the freedom.

Then there is my online Travel biz. Yes It suffered alittle, well not entirely folks, because you know what? Those commissions that I made came in right when I really needed some cash. Some of you know before I moved I had given up a cushion job with a fortune 500 company and took a year sabbatical.

Anyway, I started getting back on track right after my TEAM lead called and told me she left YTB and got up with Traverus. So ...after explaining the benefits, even tho I had money put in to YTB, I had nothing to lose, she offered me an excellent deal.

You see in YTB I never created a team, was only interested in selling travel at the time and I was still only an RTA, although I went thru training I had to pay another $149 to become a CTA. The offer my Team lead made me brought me in as Certified Travel Agent (CTA).

So that leads me here, only after hmm maybe 2 or 3 months, I have 3 people on my team, I am also a CTA and I took my clients with me as well. They never know the difference anyway, since its all back office stuff.

I will write another blog about the differences in YTB and Traverus and why I made the choice.

Well thats it for now, I will be posting some great pics of my recent adventures here soon.

You can also always check out my
myspace: at Online Travel Guru.com

Thanks for reading....

YAY - Business is Busy

Hello everyone,
Its been a while since I have had time to write. Thought I would come by and give a quick update on how business is.

Business is BUSY!!! WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!~

This past week I had at least a booking a day! Im so excited, I hardly have time to come and write. So much going on, but for now a great shout out to my clients. I thank you for your trust in me and my services.

I took on this business with the mindset that it would take at least a year to build clientelle. It seems that there is more a need of personal assistance with booking vacations than I ever realized. In todays day and age of technology, there are still many people who do prefer a personal touch. And that is one of the perks I provide. I can do the research necessary that saves my clients a lot of time.

This truly is a great business and I cant wait for things to come...

Another one of the reasons, I have not pushed out this business to other people was that I first wanted to work my business and see how possible it is. With some effort it can truly become a great business. Now I feel totally confident, that anyone interested in this home oppertunity can create income too. Contact me, if you have questions, Id be happy to explain my business to you.

~~The ONline Travel Guru

Do I need Travel Insurance...

Think you or your clients don’t need insurance. Think again. These are some typical situations all covered by various policies. Without insurance, what would your clients do?

• It’s 10PM and your family arrives at the airport for a connecting flight only to find that the flight has been cancelled. How do you get your family home?

• Your traveling companion’s bag was lost with his insulin inside. He needs help to locate his bag as soon as possible and his emergency prescription filled. Who do you call?

• Your first trip to Europe, and your passport and wallet are stolen. Where do you turn for emergency cash, and how will you get your passport replaced?

• Your spouse is involved in an accident and adequate medical treatment is not available. Who will help arrange and pay for a medical evacuation?

• Your cruise line, airline or tour operator goes bankrupt. Who will pay for your non-refundable expenses? Who will help get you to your destination?

• If your sister-in-law becomes seriously ill and you choose to cancel your trip, what happens to your non-refundable deposits or pre-payments?

• Three weeks before your scheduled arrival, a terrorist incident occurs in the city you are planning to visit. Who will pay if you want to cancel your trip?

• You are at a beach resort in North Carolina, and are forced to evacuate due to an approaching hurricane. Who will help you evacuate and who will reimburse your lost vacation?

Selecting the right type of travel insurance can cover all of these situations.

If you are like most of us, you don’t just look forward to your vacations, you need them. Protect your vacation investment. Missing a vacation is bad enough. Losing the money you paid for a vacation is even worse.

Why Use a Travel Agent - "Without a travel agent, you're on your own"

Recently, I was approached by a potential customer who said, "You know I usually book all my travel by myself online. Nowadays its easy and I can research, why would someone want to use a travel agent?" That was a great question, which I actually never had to answer yet since I'm still new in the business, so I wasn't prepared, however, my recent experiences gave me several GREAT reasons to tell her.

One was the problems my customer would have encountered if she made the name mistake on the ticket on her own. There's probably no a very slim chance the airline would have worked with her.

Two was the booking of a hotel I did for my client at the last minute, within 24 hours. After booking it, I did some follow up ....And read some info on Trip advisor on the hotel and wow, every single review basically stated this need to change immediately. However, most hotels also have strict cancellation policies, this one in particular, you had to give 48 hour notice and some of those reviews I read said that the guests could not get their money back, that the hotel was very difficult. I was able to cancel the reservation without the penalty of a one night stay.

So I offered some of those suggestions to my prospective client who was impressed with my response and said she never thought of those things....This lead me to looking up and finding more info...

heresy a few more reasons...

"Without a travel agent, you're on your own"

• Good Reasons to Use a Travel Agent Read More

• 'I bought my ticket cheaper on the internet' has become a common catch-cry amongst travelers. But, how does a person ever know, for sure, that they truly did pay the lowest price for the itinerary that they wanted? They don't! Read More

• Travel Agents - Obsolete or Essential? Read more

PS...
Today I got a box of chocolate goodies in the mail as a thank you gift from one of my new clients. She was so impressed with the time I put into her trip. Wow, that was wonderful. Initially, she wanted to go to Aruba with her son. So I did comparative research for her and after all the work, I happened to mention in the email about keeping her son busy. I was keeping him in mind, which prompted her into deciding to change the whole trip to somewhere else where her son would enjoy the trip and not ask her if she's finished tanning yet...(smiles).

Contact me....for help booking your next trip. I'll do everything I can to make it a great trip!
www.onlinetravelguru.com

Family Vacation Hot Spots!

Disney World and Universal Studios - Orlando, Florida

Yellowstone National Park - Yellowstone, Wyoming

Jellystone Campgrounds - Greater Midwest

Six Flags Fiesta - San Antonio, Texas

Wisconsin Dells and Noah's Ark - Madison, Wisconsin

Legoland - San Diego, California

Pikes Peak - Colorado Springs, Colorado

Carlsbad Caverns - Carlsbad, New Mexico

Hershey’s Chocolate World - Hershey, Pennsylvania

My Favorite:
10. Atlantis - Paradise Island, Bahamas
Offers best if both worlds, Beach for the parents and water rides for kids. This resort also has a club for teens.

Feel free to leave a comment and let me know if you went to any of these places or of other great places. Thanks for visiting.

Name Change on Airline Tickets

Well, I surely am learning many lessons with my first 3 customers alone. I assisted one of my customers by booking a vacation package for her 16 year old son and herself. AFter doing research and many conversations she decided on a wonderful trip to Atlantis on Paradise Island, in the Bahamas. (Im jealous) Anyway, I booked the vacation as a package thru my site for her. I have noticed some clients prefer it that way. They have very busy schedules and feel confident in my ability to do so for them.

Today, two weeks before the trip she called me and notified me that the name for her son was incorrect on the itinerary. RUT ROH! Not a good thing. I booked her son with her last name, however he has his fathers last name. Not only will this present a problem, but the fact that it is an international flight was even more trouble.

She called the airlines they said to call the vendor. She called me, and I called our vendor being travelocity. Travelocity, by policy can not make name changes to airline tickets. I even researched it on the net via google. I read so many articles of people having problems making name changes. I was dreading calling the airline, Continential.

The service person I was speaking with kept me on hold for quite a while and finally came back and said she tried everything she could, but normally they don't do name changes. My heart was growing more and more nervous, but I kept keeping a positive and polite attitude, making sure to thank the rep very much for her help. She then said she was transferring me to executive group..something or other. I asked her did she think I had a chance, and she then went on to say...they "sometimes" made exceptions. I got Richard (another rep) on the line, and was expecting to have to have a very long drawn out conversation. I explained my mistake, and that the boy was only 16 years old and the correct spelling of his name was on his ONEPASS (miles program I entered during booking). I also mentioned that I was a travel rep with YTB.

I was put on hold for a short while, and Richard and I small talked for a bit, found out that was a special line for agents only. Finally he came back and said, OKAY, his name is now changed!

HOLYYYYYYYYYYY cow..I did not expect that much and was so grateful, I couldnt stop telling Richard how grateful I was almost to a tear, I spent a lot of time and was succesful. I called my client and they were so pleased and understanding of the initial mistake.

Lessons Learned: Always make sure the names of all parties ARE CORRECT and confirm tickets immediately. I was told that if the name problem was caught within a few days that the trip was orginally booked, it would have been easier to change.

Also another lesson learned: Make sure all Cancellation policies are read prior to booking and the information is explained to clients.

Another Happy ending!
Need help booking a trip, call the GURU!
www.onlinetravelguru.com

The Online Travel Guru's - Agent Firsts

Hello everyone,
I had a good weekend. Although, I am extremely busy packing and getting ready for my move, I still found moments to work. I'm on my way...

Congratulations are in order. I had my first sale last evening. Yay me. A friend from online in CA was having a heck of a time trying to book a multi-destination flight which was costly. I spent some extra time helping get the best rate and she purchased the ticket with me. I thought It would be nice idea to send a little thank you gift with a personal note for being my first client. Hope she likes it and her flight goes smoothly.

Also this weekend, I was so excited because it was my first time using my Travel Agent card and I received 1/2 admission into Busch Gardens, Hallowscream in Williamsburg, Virginia. I had a blast and will be posting some pictures of the day as soon as I get a free moment. Here's one to show off for now.