How It Works
Host-agency placement, Specialist status and our leads program — and exactly who does what.
From Application to Your First Leads
- Apply for your pathChoose Additional Income (part-time) or the Career Fast Track (full-time) and tell us your goals.
- We match your host agencyFrom the leading host agencies we partner with, we choose the one that fits what you want to sell and how you want to work.
- Your host trains youYour host agency provides your training, services your bookings and pays your commissions.
- Earn Specialist statusComplete the training and certification offered by one or more major travel suppliers or destinations.
- Receive leadsAs a Specialist, you can receive leads from our network of travel websites.
Host-Agency Placement
We place every agent with a major host agency — not with us. You are an independent agent working under your host, which services your bookings, pays your commissions and provides your training.
No single host agency is best for every new agent. Some suit cruise sellers; some suit people who want to sell tours, resorts or groups; they differ in training and in how they support newcomers. Peter Coloyan has owned a host agency, so we know which host fits which goals. You don’t have to compare them — we’ve done that.
Who Provides What
Your host agency provides
- Servicing of your bookings
- Your commission payments
- Your training
We provide
- Matching you with the right host agency
- Leads from our network once you are a Specialist
- A free listing on our consumer travel directories
- Guidance from a 52-year industry veteran
Career Fast Track adds
- A personalized domain and an established website with traffic
- Your host’s first-year fees
- A Showcase listing on every one of our consumer directories
- A full year of personal assistance from Peter
Specialist Status
Travel suppliers and destinations offer training and certification programs for travel agents. Completing one or more of them earns you “Specialist” status — proof that you know the product you are selling.
Specialist status is the key to our leads program. Travelers who contact our websites deserve an agent who knows their cruise line, their resort or their destination, so leads go to Specialists.
Every designation is verified. Tell us you’re a Seabourn expert, and we’ll ask you to show us — and we may confirm it with Seabourn. Leads in a product area go only to agents verified as Specialists in that area.
Why it matters: a win-win-win. In our experience, a Specialist closes a lead up to six to seven times more often than a generalist — which means six to seven times the income for you. An expert on the product makes a happier customer, and more happy customers make a happier supplier.
Our Leads Program
In a single year, our network generated more than 68,000 cruise leads and more than 30,000 other travel leads — all-inclusive resorts, tours and escorted tours, and business- and first-class airfare.
Those inquiries come from our network of travel websites — cruise sites, river-cruise sites, destination guides, travel-planning sites and directories. See the full network »
Commissions: Keep 80% on Your Own Bookings
Agents placed through our program are on an 80% commission plan with their host agency. In plain terms: keep 80% of the commission on your own bookings; leads we send you are shared.
- Your own clients: in your first year, you keep the full 80% on bookings you generate yourself.
- Leads we send you: you keep 50%, we receive 30% and your host receives 20%. Our 30% lead share stays the same after your first year.
- Inquiries from your own directory listing: they come straight to you, with no lead share — you earn your full commission.
- Career Fast Track: your host agency’s first-year fees are covered as part of the package.
These terms apply to agents placed through our program with our partner host agencies.
How It Works — Questions
Will I be working for you?
No. We place every agent with a major, established host agency — one of the leading host agencies we partner with. The host agency services your bookings, pays your commissions and provides your training. We match you with the right host, give you access to our leads program once you qualify, and guide you along the way.
What is a host agency?
A host agency is an established travel agency that independent agents work under. It handles the business side of your bookings, pays your commissions and trains you, so you can focus on your clients. Nearly every new independent travel agent starts with a host.
How does the leads program work?
Once you earn “Specialist” status — completing the training and certification offered by one or more major travel suppliers or destinations — you become eligible to receive leads from our network of travel websites. In a single year, our network generated more than 68,000 cruise leads and more than 30,000 other travel leads — all-inclusive resorts, tours and escorted tours, and business- and first-class airfare.
How are commissions shared?
Agents placed through our program are on an 80% commission plan with their host agency. In your first year, you keep the full 80% on bookings you generate yourself. On bookings from leads we send you, you keep 50%, we receive 30% and your host receives 20%. Our 30% share of lead bookings continues after your first year. For Career Fast Track agents, the host agency’s first-year fees are covered.
Choose your path
Part-time extra income or a full-time career — both start with the right host agency.
Career Fast Track »