Be Obsolete Proof

What are you doing to get hired? After your client has paid in full, you’re fired. Unless you are paid a retainer, you may soon be reapplying for the very same travel agent position. This may not be because you let them down. More than likely it is because you are not keeping up.

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Competition is fiercer than ever. You are up against many other agents, websites and suppliers vying for the same job. Dreadful headlines, such as “Travel Agents Are a Dying Breed,” do not help your cause. If your resume is the same as it’s always been, now is the time to feed it to the shredder before your business declines.

Even if you achieve abundant client loyalty, it is time to massage your resume to ensure those clients keep coming back for more. I am sure the Internet has begun to impact how your most loyal clients do business with you. As part of my Obsolete Proof series, I have outlined eight critical messages that must be fundamental themes in your new resume. They will ensure you keep up.

Understanding what your competition’s resume looks like will help you rewrite your own resume. Accept that they do some things better than you. Delight in all the ways you do some things better than them. Don’t pretend to be them (they don’t try being you). Leverage their weaknesses to your favor.

What’s even more important is that your resume doesn’t get you “do-it-yourself” jobs. That’s where many agents get into trouble. Attempting to convince consumers that they should hire you to book the simple stuff is futile. Your value is diminished because they can perform the same task with no prior training.

Abundant loyalty or not, on a growth track or not, I suggest you recompose your resume to get the jobs that you truly want, as well as those that truly require your services. Most importantly, you need to convey the certain core competencies you offer that your biggest competitors, the Internet and the direct sellers, can’t.

Here are the eight critical messages to include when you redo your resume:

I reduce stress: I make sure that you relax while on vacation and relax during the months and weeks prior. I take the worry out of booking the wrong services from the get-go. I know what things might cause stress while you’re away and I can eliminate them now.

I increase convenience: You can put time back into your day because I do the legwork and the paperwork. Got a question or a suggestion? I am a text away. Plus, I set things up in advance so they’re done when you get there.

I add value: I get the most for your dollar. I know how to create special packages tailored to your particular needs. I will include much more than you’d ever expect.

I validate things you already know: I value your past travel experience and want to hear all about them. I value the research you have done. I encourage you to send me articles you find online. I confirm what is fact and what is fiction. I am your personal reality detector.

I remind you of things you forgot: Rest assured that I will always have a longer “to-do” list than you. That’s my job. Hire me to remember everything so you don’t have to. Focus on your family and your work today while I prepare your vacation.

I offer you things you never knew existed: No matter how well traveled you are or how many Internet articles you consume, I can provide you with wonderful things that can transform a vacation from good to great. My great experience is to your advantage.

I increase satisfaction: Your happiness is my business. Everything we plan together, plus all the things I plan behind the scenes, will result in a vacation you will talk about forever. I am personally interested in you and the people you travel with.

I plan awesome group trips: No website and nobody else plans groups like me. What groups are you in? I meticulously create amazing trips for families and organizations.

The time is now to create an Obsolete-Proof business model. Tomorrow is too late. That’s why my personal 2015 resume is all about helping ambitious travel companies grow. If you have not yet mastered the group business model, sign up for my free group. It may be the reboot you and your resume needs urgently!