Travel Counsellors Blog

Berkshire-based Travel Counsellor Sally Murray joined us in January 2018 on our Return to Travel programme. We caught up with Sally to find out why she decided to start her own home-based travel business.

The benefits of becoming a business owner are certainly appealing but building your own business from scratch is no easy feat. Franchising provides an attractive option to achieve that dream without doing it alone.

The main reason I became a Travel Counsellor is my love of travel and organisation. I spend time putting together trips for friends and family, and after taking voluntary redundancy I wanted to go back to doing something I love.

No longer is work defined by the daily commute into the office before retreating into a room for eight hours, only emerging for a coffee break and lunch. Instead, we’re seeing a shift in mindset, one that embraces remote working and flexible hours.

Today, every Facebook news feed is full of videos, and that’s not without good reason. A post containing a video receives, on average, 135% more reach than a post with photos.

Each year we invite our Travel Counsellors and our Manchester head office support staff to a Family Day, and 2018 was no different. Little ones – the youngest being just five weeks old – and big kids – yes, including Mums and Dads.

“I’m a firm believer in investing time outside of your businesses to attend these fun events as it helps it to grow - attaining product knowledge allows me to provide the best possible service to my customers.

Our corporate travel sector has played a crucial role in the success of Travel Counsellors throughout the first six months of 2018. The revenue generated from first-half bookings has topped £328 million – an increase in 12% from the same period in 2017.

“I would say the friendships are one of the best things about being a Travel Counsellor, along with higher earnings which lead to fantastic opportunities and a better life for my family.”