For those of you who have a bit more experience but are looking to further enhance your sales knowledge, the Certified Travel Associate (CTA) program will deep-dive into each of these steps, as well as into communication and service. Be sure to check it out. The following tip is taken from the Sales component of The TRIPKIT: Good salespeople often follow an eight-step structure called The Sales Cycle. We are going to cover the first four steps for you. Step One: Identify Customers This involves two activities: finding new customers and assessing their buying characteristics. There is no limit to the ways you can help your agency attract new customers. But reviewing your existing database, asking for referrals from satisfied customers and using social media to get your name out there can bring results. Step Two: Build Trust This begins when you first communicate with your travelers. Thus, you must practice interpersonal communication skills—all the verbal and nonverbal behaviors that allow you to interact effectively with other people. Doing so will create a perception of you as competent, confident, trustworthy, and credible. In today’s world, this step sometimes comes before identifying customers. Why? Because if you are positioning yourself as an expert in different areas through social media and other venues, you will start to influence your prospective clients to trust your knowledge…before they even call you. Step Three: Identify Needs You must ask thoughtful questions to determine what travel experiences your customers need. This step is called qualifying, but it means more than conducting a quick question-and-answer session. Successful salespeople know how to formulate clear, concise, and well-chosen questions to encourage customers to reveal more information about themselves. Consequently, more of your time should be spent listening rather than talking. All steps in the sales cycle work in harmony, but if we had to choose one particular step to focus on, this would be it. Being able to fully understand your clients needs will give you the ability to continue to the next steps with much more ease and confidence. A great way to end this step is by summarizing what the clients tell you and by asking for their confirmation to make sure you’re on the right track. If they disagree with something you said, ask more questions to further identify their needs. Otherwise, their confirmation or agreement paves the way to closing the sale. Step Four: Select Products This step can be viewed as the fun step, or the hard step! To find products that meet your clients’ requirements, you need to know the products you sell. This is where travel advisors spend most of their time when it comes to planning a client’s vacation. It is also where advisors spend most of their learning. There are many ways to learn about the products you want to sell: consult with supplier representatives, complete specific supplier programs, attend trade shows and other events, go on familiarization (FAM) trips, talk with your colleagues, and attend your consortium’s and host agency’s webinars and events. But, before you recommend something, be sure you understand what your clients need. If you fully complete Step Three, this step becomes much easier. We hope you enjoyed these four steps of the eight-step sales cycle. Selling is fun but sometimes really hard. Having fun during all the steps will make your job easier. But what will make you successful is your full understanding and practice of each of these steps. For continued knowledge of the sales cycle, enroll in the TRIPKIT or in the CTA certification program. | 
