Avoya Travel

I've been in the travel industry for over 15 years now and absolutely love it. I started off working in travel agencies, until I really wanted to work from home. After researching many online agencies I found that Avoya Travel was for me. I loved the live lead program, and all of the marketing and support I received from Avoya. After 3 years with Avoya my husband retired and we both decided to travel for 2 years. When we came back to the states I decided that I would try to make it a go with my own business......Jenn's Adventure Travel, LLC. After months of trying to market for new clients, and money down the drain I knew it was time to go back to what worked, and that was Avoya. For the short time that I was gone until I came back, Avoya had gone over and above what I remembered. Their marketing is absolutely unbelievable.....I don't need to spend my own money because Avoya does everything for me. Avoya has done a tremendous job in giving their Independent Agencies the tools that they need to succeed. The support team Avoya has is there to help in every step of the way. The training is incredible! I'm not sure if there's one day of the week that Avoya isn't offering some type of training. Because it's only been since July 2016 that I came back to Avoya it's still a building process. But in a little over 2 short months my sales are at the $200,000.00 mark. For those of you that need a little extra help, guidance, support, training, and a business model that WORKS I highly recommend Avoya Travel!

I have been hosted by Avoya Travel since 2008 and believe they are a wonderful company with all of the tools and opportunities agents need to build a successful business. I have met some incredible people who work for Avoya Travel and who are hosted by Avoya Travel. Their network is incredibly rewarding in so many ways.

I have been in the travel industry for 19 years and with Avoya Travel for 12 years.

My decision to partner with Avoya as my Host Agency was influenced foremost by the integrity and reputation of the Anderson family followed by Avoya's advanced technology that is now patented and their Live Leads program. This program provides me with qualified new customers with suppliers that I'm a specialist with.

Avoya's Mastermind program has helped me hone my business and sales skills allowing my business to grow year-after-year, earning greater commissions, which, in turn, allow me to travel more, improve my lifestyle and enjoy life to the fullest.

It's not a job, it's being part of a family that cares while having fun working at something you enjoy doing for a living.

Avoya is an amazing company to work with. The support and education they supply can't be beat. I'm so thrilled to be a part of their organization.

I joined Avoya Travel 9 years ago and have never looked back. I have been in the Travel industry for 50 years and know the ins and outs of how Travel has progressed. I love Avoya Travel! Why because this company has provided me with everything I need to function and become a member of the $1,000,000.00 + club.

I started out as an independent agency within the company and have progressed to becoming a sole proprietor by owning my own "Explore the World with Joanne, LLC". How does this happen?

*I am Still affiliated with Avoya as a host agency.

*Avoya provides a melting pot of Live Leads on a daily basis

*The support team at Avoya Travel is always there and willing to assist you in everything you may need.

*The ongoing educational experience is never ending from internal webinars, to meetings with top vendors, to weekly meetings with the executive team, to the Celebrated Mastermind Program which keeps education and communication at its best. The Mastermind Program has become one of the Industries Pied Piper programs that is way beyond anything I have experience in my career in Travel. Also the Avoya University where you will find anything and everything you need for success!

Oh by the way I forgot to tell you about the Marketing advantages at Avoya Travel...I guess you will just have to check that one out yourself. I know the cost of marketing myself, I must say Avoya is generous in doing Marketing as well.

I am a seasoned professional in another field, but travel business is new for me and is my passion. I had one goal in mind, it was to teach customers that given the proper planning that anyone can afford to travel. After completing travel agent training, I was wondering what was next. What I did know, is that I wanted to start my own business. A consultation with the school’s counselor led me to researching Host Agency. I researched several different host agencies and finally decided to join Avoyatravel Host Agency. There were a few factors that led me to that decision, all of which was because I was extremely new to the business.
The first factor was familiarity – They were an American Express Travel Representative and that spoke volume for me because of the massive reputation of American Express.
The second factor mandatory training program - As I was researching host agencies, I talked with other host agencies that required the attendance of a costly training program prior to joining. Since I was new and just completed a travel agent program, I did not think that was the direction I wanted to go. What I needed was hands on training with live customers, not really another year of training at that point. Avoyatravel accepted my training program.
The third factor was the lead program - This was important to me because I did not have a customer base and needed to build one. However, more importantly I needed additional training in dealing with live customers and planning different types of travel. I knew that their lead program would offer the training that I needed and allow me to work with customers out of the gate. Marketing a business and learning at the same time would have been very challenging and may have become too cumbersome for me to continue in the business.
Here I am celebrating my third year in the travel business, all of which with one Host Agency -Avoyatravel. I can honestly say that today, I am glad I made the decision to join Avoyatravel. My only expectation with joining Avoyatravel was to learn the travel business and to work with customers. I accomplished that and much more. I will start off with their education program.
Education - First, I think that education is a priority for Avoyatravel. Their educational programs are exceptional and are first rate. I had the opportunity to participate in their Mastermind program, which is a program that help build the skills for new and seasoned travel agents. The program is much more than an education program; to me it is also a mentoring program. This program provided training that focused on building your business and improving your travel skills. Additionally, they provided one on one training that is helpful because it allows you to improve your weakness, while enhancing your strengths. This program on more than one occasion has been a life saver, it is almost like a life line, which I think is so beneficial for newly travel agent. However, Avoyatravel does not stop with just the Mastermind program, they have invested in so many educational programs that are free to all independent travel agents. They offer training on different vendors and educational programs on horning your business skills.
The Lead Program - This was key for me and tipped the scale when deciding on a host agency. The one stand out feature was the ability to work with customers as I learn the business. Like any business there are peak times and then there are times when business is slower, the travel business is no different. However, the lead program was instrumental for me because it helped me build a customer base and taught me very important skills. This is a great program, especially for new agents. After three years, I am building a loyal customer base, which I think is important for the travel business. The lead program is a major investment for Avoyatravel, I can tell because during the bi-weekly meetings you hear how much effort they put into building the program. The opportunity to participate in the lead program has been great for my new business and a wonderful opportunity.
I will close my review with these notes. Working with Avoyatravel is a wonderful experience. I think they genuinely care about the success of your business and their customers. I realize that having a profitable business is the main goal for most business owners, but for me it is building a strong business so that it is profitable. Moreover, professional relationships, such as professional development and education are paramount. Customers have so many options today, I know because I hear it from the customers, but the best feeling is when they say I decided to come back because of the pricing and customer service. I would have not had those customers, had I not joined Avoyatravel. I would highly recommend them as Host Agency. I read some of the reviews where some stated issues with customer support. In the three years, I have been with Avoyatravel, not one time did I have a bad experience with customer support or any personnel at Avoyatravel. I will share this, which I forget to mention when selecting a host agency. When I first joined I was assigned an individual that was available to me for a few months as I learned the ropes. I was able to reach out to the individual whenever I needed assistance. Even today, that same individual will still reach out to me and check on me once in a while. Not just that individual, also instructors of the Mastermind program and leadership will do the same. If you are seeking a host agent that really care about you and your business, then Avoyatravel should be your first choice.

First I want to assure everyone that I am a real person, I am not employed by Avoya Travel, I own an agency that is affiliated with Avoya Travel, meaning I am definitely an independent contractor.

I joined Avoya about 3 years after jumping feet first into the deep end of the pool with another host agency. Technically I am still with that host agency too. I joined Avoya because I came to know my strengths and while selling travel is way up there, finding clients is certainly not. I hated the marketing aspect. My plan was to sell the live leads through Avoya and sell my own clients through the other host. Why? Simple, my commission split was higher with the other host. I quickly found though, that it wasn’t really the best value, for my clients or even for me.

What I found was that not only does Avoya provide leads, they also have some of the top industry offers available. This is fabulous when you need something to push a client over that tipping point. There are lots of clients out there who aren’t savvy, who take your word for a good deal, but there are tons more who know what they are doing, who have done their own research and who want a bit extra. Avoya helps provide that. I have since started booking all clients, and even my own reservations through Avoya. The tradeoff for the small percentage difference I make on personal clients is more than made up by the volume I’m able to close with the perks offered. I am not talking about rebating either. I am not a fan of that at all. Simplifying down to one host has made things much more streamlined and saves me ton of time- and there’s no confusion about which log in to which vendor and where the info is stored.

Lots of people have talked about the live leads- here’s my take. Some are crap. Some are awesome. You know what, I feel the same way about personal clients and even friends and family. Not every travel inquiry they come up with is gold.

One thing I haven’t read a lot about in reading other reviews is the incredible system they have. Agent Power is AMAZING. I really can’t stress this enough. It is an all one booking engine for cruises, CRM, really, it is my own personal assistant. The calendar, messaging system, email program… I could go on and on. This program right here is worth the cost of admission, even if you weren’t interested in leads. I searched and searched and searched for CRM’s before joining Avoya, I tried them all. The really good one’s cost more than it does to join Avoya and don’t have half the features that Avoya’s provides.

The last thing I want to talk about is the support and educational offerings. As an independent contractor, none of these are required. They are strictly voluntary. They also have no added cost, so if you are trying to improve anything it is crazy not to at least check them out. First there is the “Avoya University”. This is your fast track into learning Agent Power and the booking engine. Some of it was fun, it was all useful, some of it was boring but necessary. A relatively new program they offer is called “University Live”. These are live webinars that are offered on various subjects. Again, totally optional. I have done a couple of them on things I needed help understanding or on because I wanted to get more out of something. Then there is the Mastermind Program. The MM program has different levels based on your sales and where you are in the program. It is set for smaller groups and designed to get you deep info quickly. What you get out of the program directly coincides with what you are willing to put into it. This program is no joke. I just recently took a “Mastermind Academy @ Sea” cruise and I learned so much I’m still processing it all. This program wasn’t about Avoya, not really. This program was about me. How I work and how I sell. Then it helped me figure out ways to work smarter, how to best use my selling style with varying buying styles and how to improve things I was already doing well to bring them to the next level.

Just like when you are trying to find the right cruise line fit for your client, finding the right host for you is important, and it’s not one size fits all. Avoya is not for everyone. But it is definitely right for me. They give you the tools (first class tools!) but it is up to you to use them.

I joined Avoya Travel as an Independent Affiliate in April of 2016.
I was an employee of Avoya Travel and when I made the decision to become a business owner and open my own travel agency, I was given nothing but support from Avoya Travel and all of the members in the various departments.
I was provided information on a Travel Agent school which they recommended.
I completed a very thorough training with that school, obtained an LLC and "opened my doors" so to speak for business.
I then went through Avoya University, a very comprehensive training program that Avoya offers at no charge.
Support from the Avoya Team is responsive in a timely manner and they are very patient with "newbies" such as myself.
My commission is such that in my first 6 months that I have never had to pay any monthly fees and do not see paying any in the future either.
The Live Lead program is invaluable to my business and it is actually a challenge to keep up with all of the leads that are available to me!
The relationship that Avoya has with the Suppliers and the respect that they have garnered from them, insure that my clients are going to get the best deal possible for their vacations.
I highly recommend Agents from all levels of experience who are interested in growing their business, Join Avoya and take advantage of all this company has to offer its Independent Affiliates.

Avoya Travel has been an amazing host agency! Not just because of Avoya University and the educational training they provide, but also because of the support I get as a Independent Agency under their umbrella. I have discovered a wealth of information on the industry and now relish in the stellar reputation they have garnered in the industry! The Live Lead program is also a great way to grow your business! It was the best decision ever to join a winning team!

I have been affiliated with Avoya for almost a year now. I am very pleased with the Agent Support, everyone is always so helpful. What you put into this business is what you will get out of it. I know that the live leads are always out there, and I can work when I want to. There are days I can not be working during the day, but I know I can work that evening if I want to. "The sky is the Limit"

I am very grateful to be hosted by the Avoya Agency!!!