Yeck’s Cruise & Travel — The year gone by… | Travel Research Online

Just like the last five weeks of the Travel Agent Diaries in which each agent has summed up their year, reflected on their successes and regressions; it is now my turn to conclude this year’s series of articles and elaborate about how my business has grown and what I have learned about my agency and myself

In my world, the year is considered to have two halves and each one is vastly different, both in terms of anticipation and expectation.  The first half– January to June is a long trudging busy time for me in which I find a good portion of my business is centered around spring break and summer vacations.  This past year though, I was able to branch out to sell some travel destinations that have eluded me in the past and have quickly elevated my experience and knowledge by stepping out of the norm and challenging myself in these areas. Quite simply; once you start to gain that invaluable experience, you will begin to intrinsically want to sell it again and again and in result, gain more confidence.  Because of this, I was able to see my largest six-month increase in sales since I have been in business.

The second half of the year traditionally goes by faster than a chilidog can wreak havoc on one’s digestive system.  It is that fast!  Although business has been almost as good as the first half; it just seems that it is not as active as it usually is in the earlier part of the year.  I also have to look at it realistically because there are a lot of outside influences that are fighting for my attention and honestly; I kind of let them win.  A weakness of mine is football; and between watching, attending both pro and college and being a head coach for youth football, my time gets whittled away and the business suffers somewhat because of it. Additionally, the holidays, my kid’s school activities and the need to wrap up the year all take its toll on my focus as I arrive at the final seconds of the year.

So this is where I learned a lesson from writing these articles.  I have learned where the core audience of my business comes from and what interests them the most.  I have learned that they do not always want the same product and look to me to provide other options because I have provided great service, and they trust me even though I might not be experienced in their potential destinations.  And I have learned that if I want to make the second half of the year as strong as the first half, I need to continue to focus on my clients and maybe a little less time on football.  Well except for coaching youth football.  As I have mentioned in my last article; it is a passion of mine and a great source of inspiration!

Thank you to all who have taken the time to read my articles and I hope you found them either entertaining or inspiring as I have when writing them.  To Richard Earls and John Frenaye; thank you for the opportunity, support and confidence and I look forward to continue to write in the future.  This has been a great experience and hopefully will be able to participate in something such as this in the future.  Till then…so long!

Vincent Yeck, CTA, DS is the owner and agent of Yeck’s Cruise & Travel in Lake Worth, Florida.  He is a “Destination Specialist” for the Caribbean and specializes in cruises, family travel and groups; including youth sports fundraising.  He also is the OSSN Chapter Director for Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast, a travel industry trade association representing and supporting the Independent Travel Agent, Home Based Travel Agency, and the Outside Sales Travel Agent.  He can be reached via email at vyeck@yecks.com or his website at www.yecks.com.