Hey Steph, Bridget or Mary…or whoever is reading this,
First of all, THANK YOU for your website. I have been exploring it for the last two hours.
I was googling MLM and travel and found your article. Right now I have one question. I have been burned before by an MLM, but I have a friend who wants me to work with her in a travel one, which is something I have always wanted to do. I am a retired life insurance agent. “Sales” is my thing. Not to mention the fact that my Vedic astrologer told me I would be successful as a travel agent.
So back to my one question. I really like the idea of working with my friend. And really don’t want to work with an MLM. Her MLM is Plannet and the travel part of their business is Inteletravel. Would it make sense to start an agency with Inteletravel and just leave off the Plannet part of the business? I know they are a Host Agency. Do you see a downside to this?
I just signed up for your 7-Day Setup! Thank you for that too.
I wish the 3 of you all SUCCESS…your website and DOGS are adorable…love it all!
Warmest Regards,
Katie Koller
Hi Katie,
I’m so glad you asked this, because it’s been a really hot topic lately. In fact, it’s been such a big topic that I am just now updating our MLM (multi-level marketing) article to address InteleTravel and the MLM-affiliating host agency model in general.
InteleTravel is really tricky because they are not technically an MLM. However, you must register through a PlanNet Marketing representative (their MLM branch) to sign up. When I emailed InteleTravel to see if people are able to sign up through them directly and bypass their MLM branch, they wrote, “Currently, registration to become an Independent InteleTravel Agent is closed. After 25 years in business we are pleased to have reached our optimum size as a travel sales network and are not accepting any more applications.”
There’s no way to sign up directly through InteleTravel. There have been handfuls of InteleTravel agents on the 7 Day Setup who mention they only sell travel and don’t work on the MLM side. However, even that gets complicated because when you sign up for InteleTravel through your PlanNet Marketing rep, there’s fine print stating you must sign up for your PlanNet Marketing membership first, then you can sign on to InteleTravel.
Whether or not you are pressured to also sell InteleTravel agencies through PlanNet Marketing depends on the rep who referred (in this case your friend) you and how much they pressure you.
The important thing to know is that when you sign up for InteleTravel, you’ll be a part of someone’s downline whether your personally participate in the MLM side of things or not. Even though InteleTravel is not technically an MLM, it raises red flags due to their reliance on an MLM marketing branch.
I hope that helps you make the best choice for yourself!
Take Care,
Mary
Mary Stein joined Host Agency Reviews in 2016 as its editor. She’s passionate about supporting aspiring travel agents to turn their dreams into their livelihood.
A writer by trade, she can be found working on her novel and teaching creative writing workshops when she’s not tooling around on Host Agency Reviews writing articles and newsletters.
She has received awards for her writing from the Minnesota State Arts Board, the Jerome Foundation and the Loft Literary Center. She lives in Minneapolis, and loves hiking, camping, and traveling (of course!).
3 thoughts on “MLM-Affiliated Host Agencies”
Hi Katie!
I was in a position similar to yours several months ago. I was very interested in travel but had been burned by MLM companies in the past. Luckily I was able to find a company that let me do that. Xstream Travel is the host agency and Traverus Global is the MLM side. You don’t have to do both. I completely enjoying being a Travel Agent, without the pressure of MLM.
Hello. I’m an agent with InteleTravel. While you do have to have a rep from PlanNet sign you, you DO NOT have to join that side of the business. In fact, the only reason I kept that side is because so many people were reaching out to me for me to train them in travel.
The majority of my partners do not belong to PlanNet at all. They focus on their travel business. Im a trainer by profession and I love helping people so I’m glad I’m able to sign people up and mentor them. In fact, in other host agencies, you can refer other people to your host and you get a referral fee. I view this as something similar.
InteleTravel has an awesome training program and support. Not to mention the marketing we have because of Ensemble, it makes our agency look big and very professional.
So let your friend know that you don’t want to sign up for PlanNet but you would love to start your travel business. Good luck and happy booking.
quote “However, even that gets complicated because when you sign up for InteleTravel through your PlanNet Marketing rep, there’s fine print stating you must sign up for your PlanNet Marketing membership first, then you can sign on to InteleTravel.”
ACTUALLY, this is not true. I am an InteleTravel Agent AND a PlanNet Marketing rep. I’m happy to provide my contract for you to peruse. There is no requirement to sign up for PN before purchasing your Independent Travel Agency from InteleTravel.