Let’s dive into the successful journey of Shelby Frenette, a remarkable travel advisor and the cheerful trailblazer behind Boca Raton-based TravelFun.Biz.
Hearken back to the iconic TV program ‘The Love Boat,’ as her fascinating transition from a cruise director to a successful travel advisor is symbolic of the real-life equivalent of the series’ vibrant cruise director, Julie McCoy!
Shelby Frenette – From Cruise Deck to a Travel Desk
Some may inquire about Shelby Frenette’s entry into the travel advisory field, to which she often reminisces about her role as a Cruise Director, an entity integral to a cruise ship’s atmosphere of camaraderie and merriment. On more than 500 cruises, she’s hosted singles voyages, resulting in lasting travel friendships and countless marriages.
Subsequent to eight exciting years serving as a cruise director, Frenette spearheaded the singles travel division for a significant travel company, assembling vacation experiences for the group. Her profuse passion eventually spurred her to establish TravelFun.Biz, a platform facilitating meaningful connections for singles while enabling her to coach other cruise directors and broaden her clientele.
Building A Business with a Marketing Lens
A stark differentiator of Frenette’s venture is her heavy emphasis on social media training as a cornerstone of their travel advisor training regime. She effectively sidesteps the quintessential ‘post-and-pray’ approach. Instead, she instills an authentic, curiosity and value-driven strategy, with a staunch belief that anyone can be trained to realize success in travel sales and supplier education.
For Frenette, the crux of a flourishing agency resides in sales proficiency. She empowers her agents to leverage lean social media marketing curiosity campaigns to pivot their approach from pressure sales to nurturing gentle connections while highlighting their distinctive value as advisors in the travel industry.
Traits of a Successful Advisor
While the requisites remain organizational prowess, due diligence, follow-up strategies, and commitment to service, Shelby attributes her success to her knack for establishing relationships via social media. She ensures her clients always remember her travel expertise and is ready to offer assistance when they turn to her.
Navigating the Tides of Challenge and Success
The COVID-19 pandemic posed an unprecedented challenge, causing an unanticipated grand halt in the industry. Nevertheless, the team is diligently striving to counterbalance the loss.
On the triumph side, Frenette proudly shares her accolades which include securing a spot on the panel of her company’s largest training cruise and manifesting a well-received incentive program for the agents. Collaboratively, these achievements are a testament to her dedication, innovative thoughts, and inspiring leadership, ending in TravelFun.Biz celebrating its first $1 million sales year!
Pro Tips for New Entrants
For those embarking on their travel industry journey, Shelby advocates not to underestimate the potency of social media training by industry veterans. She’s observed a supposed ‘time-saving system’ promoting a ‘post-and-pray’ approach but sees these as inauthentic aids. Instead, she recommends hiring a social media strategist with a deep understanding of the industry and a successful sales record.
Frenette notes that authentic travel influencers significantly shape travel behavior, rather than simply posting beautiful photos for likes. She firmly believes that logo-embellished generic ads aren’t enough- the travel industry is a vast sea of hidden treasure, and a well-devised strategy is required to sail successfully.
