Home Based Cruise Agents
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is a "HOME BASED CRUISE AGENT"?
Basically, a home based cruise agent is someone involved in the marketing and selling of cruise & travel products from a home office.
The term "Home Based Cruise Agent" (HBCA) refers to someone who works out of their home office as an outside sales representative for a bonded, accredited CLIA cruise agency - the "host" agency.
For most, this is the first venture into owning your own business. We want to congratulate you for your entrepreneurial spirit, but we want to make sure you understand "THIS IS A REAL BUSINESS".
This opportunity is a complete business opportunity that allows YOU to operate a full service cruise company. Because you work with the support of Absolute Best Cruises and use our credentials, we are very selective in the people we invite to join our Team.
All the tools and resources are available for you to achieve success in cruise sales. We know of many who have succeeded, but YOUR success depends on you!
To achieve the success you are seeking, whether you operate your business part-time or full-time, you will have to work at it. Cruise sales is a service industry and providing good service will reward you time and time again. This IS NOT an order taking position. Agents coming from a call center will not fare as well as those coming from a full service agency environment.
Because of our high volume of cruise sales, you will be able to provide your clients the very best in cruise services at exceptional values.
This is one of the many benefits of working with Absolute Best Cruises, but exceptional values do not mean a thing if you are not providing the level of service your clients deserve and expect.
Finding your clients is easy. Keeping your clients is your key to success!
Many people are attracted to the cruise and travel industry because of the benefits. Travel Industry benefits are indeed wonderful, but it can be much more fulfilling as a part time or full time business, earning you not only an income, but a feeling of self reliance and self worth.
Success in cruise sales takes all the hard work and dedication of any successful business. If you are sincerely ready to make that commitment, you should consider becoming a HBCA for Absolute Best Cruises.
The HBCA finds, qualifies, books and services the customer; the host agency processes the reservations, provides billing support and serves as the conduit between the HBCA and the travel suppliers whose products the HBCA is selling.
The HBCA and the host agency share the commissions paid by travel suppliers according to a percentage split. By definition (and by contract), the HBCA is an independent contractor.
HBCAs can work either full-time or part-time. That's because the very nature of being an independent contractor is that no one can tell you when to work, how to work, or how hard to work.
There are home based cruise agents who earn pocket change, those who earn a nice part time income, some who earn a significant full time income, and even those who earn six figure incomes.
Virtually anyone can be a home based cruise agent, on their own terms and at their own pace, creating the type of home based cruise marketing business that is best for them.
Why not just open a travel agency - why be an HBCA?
The average retail cruise & travel agency pays an average of 6% of sales towards their overhead and operating expenses. The HBCA program allows you to make more than the retail travel agency!
EXAMPLE: Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, one of the largest cruise lines in the world, pays any travel agency a 10% commission.
Let's say, for our example, that a retail cruise agency sells a Royal Caribbean Cruise to a couple totaling $3000. The agency would receive a commission of $300.
After paying 6% of the sale in costs and overhead ( 6% X $3000 = $ 180 ) the agency nets $120.
What would happen if you sold that very same cruise as an HBCA?
First of all, Absolute Best Cruises does a tremendous volume of business with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. Royal Caribbean may pay us a 16% commission on that very same cruise sale, or $480.00. As an HBCA, you receive 75% of that commission ( $360.00 ), and with the exception of your telephone costs and perhaps some insurance or licensing, you have none of the standard overhead expenses attributable to a retail cruise & travel agency.
And on large groups with many Cruise Lines, they may pay up to 20% commissions to Absolute Best Cruises, which results in even larger profits.
In any business it is not how much you make, but rather how much you keep.
Retail Cruise & Travel Agency = $120.00...... OR ...... Home Based Cruise Agent = $336.00
WHICH WOULD YOU CHOOSE?
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WHY DOES THIS WORK?
When was the last time you worked or visited a retail travel agency? If you have, you know.. more than 90% of all travel reservations are done by phone!
Check out the ads in any travel section of any newspaper. Most ads list only a telephone number and not an address. If you were interested in a cruise and called the agency, you could be calling anywhere! Sometimes you are calling a large retail agency, and sometimes you are not. Sometimes you are calling another city, or state, and sometimes you are calling locally.
The truth is, that call could be to you! Remember, you can offer all the services that may be offered in those newspaper ads. As an HBCA, you can do anything that any retail travel agency can do. Most cruise & travel agencies use a TOLL FREE number.
You can have a TOLL FREE number right in your home. We have arranged discount TOLL FREE and long distance rates - currently at 4.5¢ per minute.
Most people make their cruise and vacation plans while at home in the evenings and on the weekends. When they need assistance or are ready to make a purchase, most cruise & travel agencies are closed.
WHO HAS THE ADVANTAGE?
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INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS AGREEMENT
Your Agreement with Absolute Best Cruises places your Cruise Business under the license and bonds of one of the largest growing groups of Independent Cruise Agents in the country.
With our tremendous buying power, one of the following will usually happen:
- You
will market the same cruise & travel packages as your competitors
at a lower price
....OR...
- You will market the same cruise & travel packages as your competitors and receive a higher commission.
We will provide the printing and distribution ( either to you or your clients ) of all cruise, tour and other travel documents required for your client to travel. We will provide all necessary Agency/Supplier accounting and commission tracking for all your commission eligible bookings.
Your "agency"
will utilize the CLIA number for Absolute Best Cruises.
Remember, travel suppliers can only pay commissions to an authorized agency
number.
With Absolute Best Cruises, all the documentation necessary will be provided
to allow the commissions to be paid on all the travel you book. We will
collect commissions paid by suppliers for travel by your clients and distribute
your commissions to you (SEE: Whe do I get paid?).
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Have a
question?
E-mail us with any question, and
we will try to answer it and, perhaps, include it in our FAQ's.
Check out the agreement to become a home based cruise agent for Absolute Best Cruises. See complete agreement HERE.
Absolute
Best Cruises
Home Based Cruise Agent Program
1128 Royal Palm Beach Blvd., #471
Royal Palm Beach, FL 33411
Questions? Call 1-866-546-2929 or send e-mail sail@1cruises.com to begin your at home business. HOME
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