Can This Trip Be Saved? Deciphering ‘Trip Guarantees’
by John Hawks

Question: I’ve been very fortunate in building a steady, dependable local client base that generates a wonderful amount of business for me every year since I became a home-based agent in 1998. This year, though, several clients have asked me why I don’t offer a “trip guarantee” like the Travelocity Guarantee that’s promoted in the online travel site’s ads and commercials. Basically, Travelocity says it will take care of any problems that arise on a customer’s next trip. How can I counter these questions?

Answer: Actually, you’ve offered that very same guarantee to your local clients since the day you launched your home-based travel business!</p>

We should take our hats off to Travelocity (and to others like Orbitz, with its “TLC” promotion) for an excellent marketing campaign -- but the truth is that Travelocity is late to the party. Home-based travel agents have always promised that very same level of support to their clients since Day One.

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