I'm a TA. Here's some info on the business, both working in an agency and being at at-home agent.
I work as a corporate agent for a major medical organization. I'm rather unique in that I actually work for the organization and not an actual
travel agency. But I know the industry, and can give you some info.
First, the pay isn't great. It's not bad, but it's nothing to write home about. I'm fortunate in that I've been at my company so long that I've maxed out my pay grade and do quite well, but most TA's don't make enough to be the sole support of their family. A single adult with no dependants would do okay (I did while I was single, anyway), but I wouldn't want to raise a family on it. It's good as a second income though. Corporate tends to pay more than leisure, and I feel job security is better as well, though being a leisure agent with a big agency is a pretty safe bet too (think Amex, Carlson Wagonlit,
AAA, etc.)
Second, travel benifits. They aren't what they used to be. You have to work full time to get them, and they aren't as generous as they used to be. If you're in it for "free travel" you'll be disapointed, I'm affraid. Don't get me wrong, good deals for TA's do still exist but you won't be globe trotting for pennies on the dollar, either.
How to get started. There are many ways. I got started by taking a certificate course through my local community college. This was in '97, it cost I think around $1600 for a 14 week course. 7 weeks airline system computer training, and 7 weeks classroom training. I felt it was well worth it, I got dedicated training and a real education on the basics of the travel industry. They also had job placement assistance, many of the larger agencies in the area let the teachers know of openings, and they pass those on to the students. There are also private TA schools, they tend to be more expensive though (the one I priced out was double the community college, so my decision was easy!).
Now, you don't have to go to TA school. Some agencies are willing to train new agents. Even if a help wanted ad states "2 years experiance required", still inquire about it, if they like what they see, they may be willing to take the time to train you, since they'd get to pay you less and they won't have to un-train any habits brought over from the last agency you worked for (each agency works a bit differently and habits can be hard to break sometimes). They be looking for someone with with good communications skills, organized, attention to detail, and good customer service skills. Especially for leisure, you need to like "sales", because you do need to sell people on travel products to an extent.
Now, about working at home. I'm lucky in that my company is moving my little travel divison to home offices because they need our space in the building quite badly. So I get all the benifits of working full time for a corportate agency and still get to stay at home. This is unique and I wouldn't recomend that anyone bank on it. Most stay-at-home agents are outside, independent agents. You get access to the computer booking systems and some back office support, but otherwise you are on your own to get clients and make bookings, and you are on straight commission. You split your commision with your host agency, 80/20 (you get the 80) is a common split for a new agent, more experianced agents who need less support from the host usually can negotiate better. There are several downsides to this. First, like I said, you're on straight commission, so you only get paid for the clients who actually book travel, and you don't get paid until they actually take their trip, so for the first 3 to 6 months you may not actually get paid anything at all, until your first bookings start their travel. Also, you are considered self employed, so you have to pay both sides of social security and your income taxes are not withheld so you need to deal with that, too. You get no health, retirement, or any other benifits, you'll either have to get your own or be on your spouses plan through their company. Also, you may have to carry your own Errors and Ommsions insurance, that's like malpractice insurance for travel agents (screw ups can be pricey, and you will eventually make one. I've done this for 10 years and I still make mistakes on occasion). E&O can be expensive, if you can get it at all, I've heard reports that in some areas coverage can be difficult to obtain. Some hosts do offer it to their outside agents, so that's one thing to look for when picking a host.
The good parts of being an outside agent is you work your own hours, as much or as little as you like, you're at home which can make family life easier, you're your own boss and can work in a manner that best suits you. If you work enough to qualify, you can still get the TA discounts. Also you can start up with no training at all (although I do recomend you "self train" by READING AS MUCH AS YOU CAN GET YOUR HANDS ON about the industry and about destinations. There is more to travel than Disney, and you need to know a lot of stuff about a lot of places, and if you don't know it you need to know where to look to find out. When not actively working on a booking, you should be reading something about a destination or about the industry. You know the old saying "if you've got time to lean, you've got time to clean?" Well, in travel, it's "you've got time to research" (as for me, well, DISing is research! )
Well, this is long enough, if you've got specific questions, feel free to ask!
It's good to know that some of the agents do this, and make changes for you while you are already on vacation
The other down side was that I had to drive to the office every other week to pick up the tickets that were issued. My pay was strictly commission, and I think I spent more to operate than I made. As far as education, I completed an eight month course in travel and tourism that covered, pretty much everything. Good luck with with your decision!m Oh, one other thing...CruiseOne is a franchise, so be ready to shell out the big bucks if you go this route.
