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INDUSTRY
I'm five months into my journey with Outside Agents. I chose them because they were the best value as far as I could tell, and the woman who inspired me to pursue this career recommended them after doing her research after having started with another company that was an MLM that she doesn't want to be affiliated with. I'm taking her to lunch tomorrow in appreciation for the recommendation, I feel like OA was a good fit for me. So far they've been pretty hands off with me, but that's kind of what I wanted while I got the business parts completed ... setting up the business, figuring out how to organize things, getting the inital training done and getting familiar with everything, getting my website set up, the whole nine yards, dang no wonder I'm tired, lol. I kid. Not really but OA made it so much better than it could have been. They will not hold your hand, don't expect that, I didn't even want that and suspect you don't either. But as you have questions, they will answer the ones related to their business. If it's related to YOUR business, that's all you. You are assigned a mentor after your initial training and because I'm still pretty early, I'm trying to get a feel for how that works. It's pretty incredible what a great system they have set up, for so many agents from so many backgrounds with such different levels of knowlege and experience. And they make it work. Oh, you need to know, they have a great system for handling pretty much any question you have that you can't find yourself. MOST of it is already documented and it's pretty easy to find your way around after you get the hang of it. But when you can't find the answer or you need something, you just submit an SOS ticket. Their SOS team is on top of it, they're quick with a response! I'm coming from a corporate background and am super impressed with their SOS team in comparison to the responses I've seen in the corporate world. I'm super early in and will come back and update later on. My advice so far would be to bet on OA and go for it!
My daughter and I decided to start a home-based agency together. We spent many months researching the best host agency to work with. (Thank you HAR for all the great information!) After creating many spreadsheets, contacting various hosts, webinars, etc. we selected OA and we are glad we did.
First, it is very cost-effective. We are at the most expensive level (with a sub-agent). The fee includes a high quality website, CRM, and most of all, LOTS of training. Their contract allows you drop at any time. There are no big upfront fees like with many other hosts. The commission structure is much better than many other agencies.
Second,the owners and staff are available. They have a good system for submitting questions and concerns--I usually get a response within hours. (once was on a Sunday from one of the owners!)
Third, Learning.There is a robust community of agents helping one another. There are a zillion hours of training on-line. There are reasonably priced face-to-face training. They have a mentor program.
Fourth, technology. Their CRM is easy to learn. The free website is beautiful and customizable. They have a great free group and booking genie option. They have a weekly email promotion program that you can choose to have sent to your clients (or not. They are continually updating and upgrading--a new online booking engine is coming soon.
Many new people like us feel overwhelmed at first--there is so much. But don't plan to make much, if any, money at first. It takes time. Plug away at learning and building relationships. There are some great posts in their forums from veteran successful agents.
We are extremely happy we chose OA.
I have been with OA for a short 8 months and it has been business changing! I have been with other agencies with little to no support and having to fight for commission on every booking. To this day my previous host owes me a significant amount of commission.
I researched for several months before making the leap to OA and when I say it was business changing I am not kidding. I met my 2018 Goal in the first 5 months and had to re-assess those goals.
I just returned from a life and again business changing week of training. When I say they have your back they are not kidding. I was struggling with a few features in the CRM and those were resolved within minutes of asking for personal help.
I have spoken to the owners Steve and Chad and the Sales manager Dan on multiple occations via email or phone prior to my training event with them. Dan has responded to emails at 11:30pm on a couple of instances, you can't beat that kind of support!
I wish I had made this change years ago! Thank you OA for being real and wanting each person under your host to succeed!
I had another host agency early on in my career and it was not a good experience at all for me.
I am so happy that a couple of months ago I decided to give the host agency route another try. I can not praise OA highly enough.
When I needed some "coaching" on how to go about making a group "work" (since it was my first cruise group that I had booked after being with OA), I reached out to Dan Crutchfield via email and he called me the same day, spending quite some time on the phone with me helping me understand the details of making this group work the way I needed it to. I never felt rushed or got the sense that he had better things to do (even though I'm sure he had a million other things he needed to be doing!)
Their training is above and beyond anything I ever expected. They are so much more than "just a host agency".
I truly feel that I have a partnership with OA, and I feel like a valued partner.
The experience I had in the past has always been positive. I was frustrated last week when I went to reactivate and was told no. I have spoken to one of the owners Steve today and there was some miscommunication on both sides. I am happy that they reached out to me and we got everything straightened out. I have some upcoming trips and really needed a host agency and since I never had any issues before with OA, I reactivated and am excited to move forward and book through OA.
As a travel agent with over 20 years of experience I am thrilled to be working with OA. I moved over about 4 years ago and its been a great relationship. The team at OA is constantly improving processes and technologies. It seems like my CRM wishlist just keeps materializing. They pay commissions promptly, answer questions on a dime and are always very pleasant to work with. I highly recommend signing up with OA! Looking forward to many more years!
I have been a Travel Agent for 5 years now and since signing up with Outside Agents a little over a year ago my business has doubled. They are a wonderful, supportive agency offering top commission & assistance for your business. Their technology is top of the line & gives you more time to focus on selling & marketing. The owners are very responsive & hands on; my emails are always addressed very quickly. The entire agency is wonderful & I'm lucky to be a part of the team. Although they are a large agency, I always feel important & respected.
While my rating is not related to the quality of platform offered I feel that I need to share my story. I signed up for a $21/month membership but shortly I realized it was not what I was looking for. In less than 2 hours after I signed up, I sent an email and requested the membership cancellation and asked my card not to be charged. The transaction was already pending (of course)
The charge was made on my CC and no confirmation of the receipt of my request was ever sent to me. i called today spoke with Kaitlin and asked why my card was still charged --- she said they need 30 days notice in advance for cancellation. While I totally understand the cancellation policy, I know that with any other business if you send cancellation request within the first 24 hours you can cancel any agreement. Even a car lease can be cancelled within the first 24 hours!!!!!
Hi,
I'm sorry to hear that your experience wasn't what you wanted.
To be clear, you replied within 24 hours, not 2 hours. Regardless, let me explain why we don't offer a refund if an agent cancels within 24 hours.
When an agent signs up with us, automation kicks in so that we can get the agent up and running quickly. Part of this automation is the setup of 3rd party services for which we are billed automatically and for which we cannot get a refund even if we canceled within seconds. In fact, it costs us $39.80 to set up every agent that signs up.
So, clearly we invest in the opportunity to partner with our agents. It should also be equally clear as to why we cannot offer refunds as we state on our website during your registration process.
I hope this clears the matter for you.
As always, if you need anything at all, please don't hesitate to reach out.
I'm a newbie to the travel industry and researched many host agencies before deciding on OA. I really was a little wary, as I was waiting to find out what "the catch" was. It honestly sounds too good to be true. I have just returned from Boot Camp and am pleased to report, THERE IS NO CATCH!!! Fees are low and up front. Training is limitless. Support is outstanding. The only surprise for me was that there are NO surprises. I really feel like I made a good decision choosing OA and am excited to get things rolling.
This agency is amazing. They are always there to support and help you grow your business. Every one right down to the owners are so friendly and helpful. I could not ask for a better host agency to be affiliated with. I look forward to many more years working with them. if you are looking for a great host agency i highly recommend you sign up with Outside agents. You will not be disappointed.
Great technology and excellent upper level affiliations TravelLeaders/Vacation.com. I've been able to work my travel business part-time over the past two years with very little out-of-pocket cost and I've still learned a lot about the travel industry. Starting full-time this week and I couldn't be happier than to be hosted by Outside Agents.
~Alfred