KHM Travel Group wrapped up its 2016 live event program with last week’s New Travel Agent Boot Camp session, held November 3-5. Our staff hosted 32 home-based travel agents from around the country for three days of education, discussion and workshops.

Knowing your Preferred Suppliers and which suppliers to use is one of the most important parts of establishing a travel agency. Agents kicked off Day 1 with an introduction to our Supplier Relations team and a presentation to help them choose their best supplier.

Marie, our National Training Director, giving a quick intro to our live events and the Crystal Conference and Awards.

Thursday’s lunch was sponsored by Apple Vacations, and afterwards our agents heard the latest in Apple’s products from our BDM, Tina Tiano. Our team then got agents thinking like entrepreneurs, with sessions on building a brand and developing a business mindset.

“I think it will help me step out of my comfort zone and get my business going in the right direction with marketing and networking,” said Laura G. from Ohio.

Days 1 and 2, agents left with a little bit of homework to work on in the evenings. For Friday morning, they were asked to put together a 30-second commercial that they can use when talking about their agencies.

Agents practicing and getting feedback on their 30-second commercials

The catered lunch on Friday was sponsored by Norwegian Cruise Lines, and was followed by a presentation and Q & A session with our NCL Business Development Manager Linda Thompson. Having the opportunity to develop relationships with suppliers early on as a travel agent is another perk of attending Boot Camp!

Friday afternoon was devoted to hands-on workshops in which our team walked agents through our myTravelCRM system to become familiar with its commissions and client management functions.

The final day began with an introduction to Vacation.com and Agent Universe, which is Vacation.com’s member portal for travel agents. This is an important source for our travel agents, both in terms of booking and for promoting themselves!

“I knew nothing about Vacation.com and I am super excited to learn that site!” said Candace M. of Oklahoma.

The learning continued on Saturday with more on the sales process, compliance, social media and elevating the client experience. We applaud and thank the agents that attended for their enthusiasm and engagement over the course of these three jam-packed days!

“Every new agent needs to make this a priority! Meeting the staff face to face and being able to make new friends and learn so much about the travel business. Information gained at Boot Camp is invaluable!” added Twila H., of Georgia.

Agents writing down responses during one of the Boot Camp sessions.

View more photos of the fun from our November Boot Camp in our Flickr album!

This was also our last Boot Camp of the year – but if you haven’t made it to a session, not to worry. We will be rolling out our live training schedule for 2017 shortly on our event website, TravelAgentMeeting.com.

Our New Agent Boot Camp is just one of the many opportunities KHM Travel offers its agents. We invest our time into developing the best travel agent education, tools and support to give travel agents the knowledge and confidence needed to build successful businesses.

For more information on how to start your own home-based travel agency, fill out the form on the right or call 1-888-611-1220.