Ask the experts


PAULA NUTTALL managing director, The Holiday Village “Don’t be the best- kept secret. Being visible, both locally and on social media, is so important. Good-quality marketing material around your town, networking with local businesses, working in partnership with local charities, a steady flow of social offers and looking after your customers throughout their booking journey – all this will guarantee repeat business and word-of-mouth recommendations.”


Heaton says: “Find an area, ideally a room, where


you can create a professional office area.” Witt advises homeworkers to create an office they


“want to be in”, using inspirational travel pictures, maps or family photos.


STEP THREE: GENERATE LEADS What stage homeworkers reach after six months will depend on the time and effort put into the job. “You’ll get out of it what you put in,” says Milburn. Handley-Hughes believes training is key for


travel newcomers. “Allocate your training hours as a discipline,” she says. Teaming up with local businesses such as wedding


✆


Hays Travel Homeworking has three models agents can join, based on experience, their client database and whether they need leads


travelweekly.co.uk Applicants must have


two years’ experience and be able to come up with their own sales leads at Personal Holiday Advisors


venues for joint promotions and building a social media ‘shop window’ is key early on. Cookes says: “Start with one social media platform


and get that right, rather than launching on all of them at once.” Marketing can be cheap, even free, by networking with businesses, sports teams or special-interest groups, but acquiring customers is likely to take up much of a homeworker’s time in the first few months. Agents should aim to have a contacts database and be making daily sales, says Witt. “Everyone you speak to is a potential customer,” he adds. Heaton says product knowledge, being


comfortable selling and offering the “right fit” for ➢


EMMA DIAMOND Travel Counsellors “My top tip is to ensure clients know you can speak outside working hours. Becoming a homeworker during the pandemic gave me flexibility to be available at evenings and weekends. Not only will it help with the initial booking, but clients’ first-hand experience of your service will instil confidence that you’ll be there when needed.”


ABBIE HEATON sales manager, Personal Travel Consultants “Finding a


homeworking company that fits you and your customers’ needs is paramount to your business’s success. Receiving upfront commission can really help smooth out the transition, so don’t be afraid to explore your options. Focus on your customer’s needs, and give them amazing, memorable service to ensure they come back to you time after time.”


28 OCTOBER 2021


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PICTURES: Shutterstock/Halfpoint; James Paisley Chapman; Charles Gervais, Both Hemispheres Photography


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