Independent Travel Agents To Grow At A 30 Percent Clip In 2007

Global Travel International, the originator of the independent market when it launched in 1994, today boasts agents in 50 states and 85 countries with a 30% anticipated rate increase in 2007.
Among agents who attended Global Travel International's (GTI) annual meeting held in Las Vegas last week were Kathleen Rundell, of Las Vegas, Marguerite Boyd from Fairfield, Calif., and Gigi Lewis from Warren, Mich.
Rundell has worked as a Global Travel International (GTI) agent for 16 months. A married mother of three grown children and one grandchild, Rundell said she appreciates the mobility of her business.
I usually work from home, Rundell said. With a laptop computer, it's very easy to make this a portable' business.
Saving money in travel fees and the ability to earn commissions attracted Rundell to Global Travel International's independent travel agent program.
I became interested in working with GTI after going on an Alaskan Cruise, said Rundell, My girlfriend is a Global Travel International agent and booked the cruise for me. I saw how GTI saved me money compared to other travel agencies, learned about commissions, and decided I could save money by becoming an agent with GTI.
Boyd is a home-based agent who has three children and two grandchildren and has worked under the GTI Agent system for three years. She said she was always arranging travel for herself and friends much like GTI founders, Randall Warren and Michael Gross -- so she decided to work as an agent with a company that offered training and support.
I love that when a deal comes out and I have a client I know would be interested in the location or package, I can let them know about it, said Boyd, who also maintains her job at a local hospital. I work with a company that offers fantastic help, support and service and the most knowledgeable and friendly call center staff.
Lewis said that she considers herself a home-based agent with the benefits of a large travel agency.
The most gratifying part of being a GTI rep is knowing that I can book my customers worry free' vacations that they deserve and that if they have any questions that I can't answer, I have GTI's support and travel expertise at hand. This type of customer service helps in retaining repeat customers.
Rundell said that while saving money is important to her, the training provided by Global Travel International has been instrumental in making her a more marketable agent. Among the training tools that Global Travel provides are GTI University, which includes the Global Tutor Program and Getting Started Workshop, teleconferences, CruiseCollege', Familiarization (FAM) Trips and webinars.
National Trainer, Katrina May, said that when she first joined the staff at GTI in 2000, agents were primarily consumers who traveled and wanted to save by earning commissions. With 15 years of corporate travel industry experience as a guide, she revised the training program and how it was marketed.
Before long, the training program attracted agents that wanted to earn money by selling travel to others, May, who resides in Apopka, Fla., said. So a class that used to be heavy with consumers is now just the opposite. Now I get agents who are hungry for training and their sales are proving the program's value.

About Global Travel International

Global Travel International is a 12-year-old privately owned, Orlando, Florida-based travel company that provides necessary resources to become an Independent Travel Agent. Serving the leisure and business travel markets, GTI provides professional travel agents and those who are beginning full-time or part-time travel careers with the training and tools they need to succeed. GTI has surpassed $125 million in annual sales.