Personal Travel Agents at Co-operative Travel launched its Commission Builder initiative for its 160 homeworkers last year, which allows them to increase their “core” commission rate from the standard 60% up to a maximum of 75%, based on the number of bookings they make in a year.
The homeworking division announced that it had increased sales by 10% year-on-year during 2017-18, while profit also rose by 12% – a new record for the division, which has been operating for six years.
The figures were revealed at the brand’s annual conference in Majorca last week, and Sheena Whittle, head of Personal Travel Agents at Co-operative Travel, told TTG that 25% of agents had already seen their rate of commission increase through Commission Builder.
“It was hugely influential in driving sales in the last quarter of the year,” she added.
This year’s conference was held at Sentido Cala Vinas resort and attracted more than 140 delegates, including 100 homeworkers.
“It’s the biggest conference we’ve had so far, and we had great support from our Personal Travel Agents and sponsors,” said Whittle.
She added that this was the first conference in which homeworkers could set their own agenda through the use of an app, allowing them to choose which sessions they attended and suppliers they wanted to meet.
“We let them personalise their own agenda this year, as they all specialise in different areas,” said Whittle. “We’re not a one-size-fits-all organisation – it’s about supporting individuals.”
She added the group had increased the number of homeworkers by around 20 in the last year.
“We are focused on the quality of the homeworkers,” she said. “We have targets for our overall sales and profitability growth. We recruit on the quality of the Personal Travel Agents and focus on supporting them.”
She added that bookings via social media activities had grown by 45% year-on-year for homeworkers, while referrals were up 18% and sales through networking rose by 36%.
Plans for later this year include a new app with links to homeworkers’ details, which will be rolled out by the end of June, while top-performing agents will enjoy a fam trip to Ischia, Italy, in October.
