Should I be upset

[DesertDogs]

I booked the pre-cruise hotel, found my flights & times, & then paid her to book them. Your thoughts Please

 

I don't understand why you would do all the work and pay her to book them?? What did you pay her for?? I don't get it?? :confused:

[G'ma]

I don't understand why you would do all the work and pay her to book them?? What did you pay her for?? I don't get it?? :confused:

 

I'm with you. I don't understand why the OP is so upset, nor do I understand what her reasoning is for doing all the footwork and then paying an agent to do the booking.

 

In my opinion, the whole thing is simply a non-issue.

[ehfl]

If you are doing most of the work yourself and not getting any service from the travel agency, then why would you even want to use them again? Why not just book direclty through the cruise line?

[julieanne]

I did not want a thank you. I wanted at least an e-mail acknowledging that they had booked a trip for me. (even tho I am the one who did 90%-95% of the work) My main problem is that I had hoped they would let me know in some way that they wanted my repeat business, by sending me information on up-coming cruise deals. Also a small survey on what I liked about their service & what I didn't.

Thanks, You are all very helpful to me. I wish I could ask friends & family, but we are the travelers in our circle of family & friends. I booked the pre-cruise hotel, found my flights & times, & then paid her to book them. The cruise was 2 weeks, we were gone for 20 days. I used a travel because I felt that IF something went wrong I would be able in better shape to get it fixed then if I did not use a travel agent. Your thoughts Please

I agree with you. Good sales people always do follow up. Being a travel agent is a sales position. You sell yourself and the services you provide. Having satisfied clients is good business practice and a good business would ask for feedback from a first time client. I have had good and bad agents. My good agents have always followed up with an e-mail or phone call. The difference with us? We consider our t/a's friends, so I do not mind when they follow up after a trip. AR, I would definitely find a different agent or use a cruise planner directly with the cruiseline and do the booking yourself :)

[forensic]

We booked a 2 week cruise thur a local travel agency. I did most of the work, because I wanted to make sure I received the most for my money. I don't mind this. What I am a little upset about is that I never heard from the travel agency again. The cruise was last Oct into Nov. I feel I should have received an e-mail, a phone call or a note, asking if my husband & I enjoyed our trip. I was waiting for some contact from them to see if we were ready to plan another trip. I was hoping that they wanted our business again.

I can't ask friends or family for their thoughts, we are the travelers in our family & group of friends.

How do you know if you have a good travel agent. (see comment above)

 

I am a TA that is still trying to get started in this business. I have a nice group of clients but I would like to have more. When I was thinking about starting this business I gave a lot of thought to what I would do and what I would offer to my clients. My number one philosophy is that I want each and every one of my clients to know how much I appreciate them. Some of my clients are like you and have already made most of the decisions before they ever call and/or email me. Some of my clients are still deciding if they even want to go on a cruise and I do a lot more work for those clients. It does not matter, I enjoy each and every client I have - and appreciate all of them equally.

 

I try very hard to speak to each client before they sail to wish them a great trip and I always call or write to ask how they enjoyed their cruise.

I always take notes about what they enjoyed the most and anything that the did not like. That way maybe I can help them make the next cruise even better.

 

I give EVERY client a gift, usually an OBC. And I always sell below the cruise line cost.

 

Many TA's work for large companies and do not have to freedom to make decisions on their own about pricing or gifts, but I agree that lack of follow up shows lack of interest in a client. They probably do not care.

 

Many TA's have business's that are large enough that they may not care if they lose a client or two. I do not understand that philosophy.

 

I think if your TA does not treat you right you need to keep looking.

[lady_cruiser]

My TA is very good but I would never expect him to call me to see how I liked my trip. It would be nice but if he spent all his time calling back customers he would not have time to help the people who are in the planning stages of planning their cruises. He knows that if I had a problem that I would contact him and let him know. Just don't take in personal.

[RetireeWannabee]

If more customer service is what you want, keep shopping, as this TA isn't going to provide it.

 

I would not be upset but I can't tell you that you should not be.