Become a Home Based Travel Agent

Eben Schoeman

An Interview with
Travel Professional Community Member
Eben Schoeman

By Tom Ogg

You will find Eben to be a knowledgeable, fascinating and motivating individual.

How did it start?

I started the business in 2002 after climbing Kilimanjaro with a well-known outfitter at the time. My experience on the mountain did not meet my expectations in terms of safety, porter care, guiding and equipment and on the 14-hour flight back to the USA I decided to start my own trekking business! I knew I could create a trekking experience with an increased focus on safety, the environment, porter care, and comfort especially for older clients. It was time for a new kind of trekking company.

I promptly contacted one of the best guides I met on the mountain and we agreed to work together – I would fund the equipment, do all the sales & marketing and provide guidance in terms of safety and mountain standards.

When we booked our first clients in early 2003 I immediately resigned my corporate job and the rest is history! My wife joined me on a full-time basis in 2005 as VP of Customer Relations and Sales and she recently became a Partner.

In 2004 we expanded our business to include private safaris. Most clients who climb Kilimanjaro want to relax afterwards on safari and this quickly contributed about 40% of our revenue. 

Today we are a multi-million dollar trekking and safari company – known worldwide as one of the top three outfitters on Kilimanjaro!

Why did I start the business?

I started Kiliwarrior Expeditions because I always wanted to have my own international business and I saw an opportunity to compete successfully in a crowded market. At the time I enjoyed my job as Training Development Manager for a very successful software company. Before that I held various management and technical positions at international software companies. As a result, I was looking for an opportunity to combine my technical background with the challenges of running a small business.

In 2002 there were nearly 60 outfitters on Kilimanjaro but it was almost impossible to differentiate between them. We introduced all-inclusive pricing and credit card payments; better trekking routes, portable showers, portable toilets (Porta-Pottis), expedition-type water filters and additional safety equipment such as Automated Defibrillators. We also offered larger sleeping tents and foam mattresses because older clients have a tough time crawling into small 2-person tents! 

More importantly, we were the first to highlight the importance of learning about local cultures while climbing the mountain. Our clients learn Kiswahili while on the trek and about the Maasai, the Chagga, the Meru and other people who live at the foot of Kilimanjaro. By charging more for our treks and limiting our group sizes we were able to pay our porters more money and as a result we quickly assembled the most experienced trekking team on the mountain!

In the safari-side of the business I wanted to place our clients in the best locations at the right time at the right price to see the most wildlife from the comfort of the best-designed safari vehicles! I cannot believe how many people go on safari to the wrong parks at the wrong time of year in jam-packed safari vehicles with inexperienced drivers (not guides) while paying a premium for the experience!

Our success has spawned one unexpected but wonderful result – many of our porters and guides have earned enough money to buy land, build houses and start families! Today our team is an expanded family with young boys aspiring to join their dads and brothers on Kilimanjaro or as safari guides and to be called Kiliwarriors!

How did we become successful?

There is no magic formula to follow. For us was really a combination of different things such as:

a)      Low initial investment. We never borrowed money and were profitable within 3 months!

b)      Having multiple sources of income. We sold a lot of travel insurance, a trekking DVD and now eBooks

c)       Word-of-mouth advertising. We do not advertise. Our past clients sell most of our safaris and treks!

d)      Use of technology. I have a computer science background and it helps a lot!

e)      Focus on our specialty. We built a brand in trekking and safaris. Nowadays I am branching out to do other things in order to meet personal goals and interests!

f)       Delivering what we promise. We claim to be the best on Kilimanjaro and our clients expect nothing less. We deliver!

g)      Having a life. We did not start this business because we love to travel. We started a business in order to escape the rat race. Because we have a successful business we can travel more!

h)      Knowing what our clients want! We offer services that we want ourselves! We cannot afford most our own trips but live it through our clients!

You are currently running your agency from a 40ft. motor home while touring the United States, how is this working out for you?

One of our initial goals was to have the capability to run our business from anywhere in the world without missing a beat! On this current USA trip we plan to be on the road for 5 months while meeting with clients (past and future). We use magnetic signage on our vehicle doors and promote our business wherever we go!

Our RV is outfitted with 50amp power, two offices, satellite TV, high speed internet from different providers, and phone technology from Google, Vonage and Skype. We communicate with our operations staff and clients on a 24/7 basis while sightseeing and doing tourist things! We do have a backup person at our home office who takes care of housekeeping items such as forwarding our mail.

While on the road we are often inspired by the stunning scenery and wildlife. We look at local travel books and brochures to see what capture our interests in terms of cover design and contents. We watch how people react and interact at tourist sights and we try to talk to them about how they make travel decisions, what they like and don’t like while traveling, and where they want to go!

Everything we learn is applied to our business in one form or the other. And it only takes a few new clients every month to cover the costs of our travels!

Can you share your “bucket list” with us?

My wife and I have recently reached the ripe young age of 50 – which is slightly below the average age of our clients! In the coming years we certainly need to increase our nest egg to become completely independent of the uncertainty of social security checks and even our 401K investments which are constantly under pressure from world events that are beyond our control.

At the same time we want to travel more and perform more charitable work – meaning we will need a substantial monthly income even after our retirement. In addition to maintaining the edge in our current day-to-day operations, our “bucket list” looks like this:

a)      Expand our multiple sources of income – we need to produce more travel-related DVDs and books that cover a wider array of travel topics in order to capture a wider audience with increased income.

b)      Mentor local suppliers – we want to represent a few energetic and enterprising young safari suppliers in East Africa and help them market their services to overseas buyers. We feel it is crucial for sustainable tourism that local people understand the importance of travel as well as the careful management of their resources. At the same time travel professionals must be educated about the benefits of engaging local suppliers instead on international suppliers.

c)       Engage the emerging travel giants – we want to partner with outbound suppliers in China and Russia and market our treks and safaris to their upscale clients.

d)      Educate travel professionals – selling safaris and treks can be highly profitable! Unfortunately most travel professionals prefer to sell brochure safaris from international tour operators and in the process they actually deliver less for more to their unsuspecting clients. We are trying to change this mindset. Our website www.go-safari.com is the place to learn more.

e)      Nurture our replacements – in a few years we do not want to be intimately involved with the day-to-day operation of our company. It is time to find one or two people to take over!

What changes do I see coming in the travel industry?

1.       In this age of specialization I actually do not predict the demise of the generalist travel agent! There will always be people who want simple solutions to their travel needs and who shy away from specialist agents because of the fear of having to pay more!  Generalist travel agents will continue to serve this market with varying degrees of success. However, my prediction is most generalist agents will not generate the income needed to maintain full-time businesses and they will continue to battle large internet discounters and other agents who play in the cutthroat budget-oriented travel market.

2.       Suppliers will up the ante with new approaches to harness the benefits of social media. The “like” button on sites such as Facebook and “I am here” features will become two of the most sought-after benefits of having direct relationships with clients. A supplier with only 5 “likes” on Facebook will not be happy if a competitor has 5000!  Suppliers want their clients to promote them directly on social media to friends and family and travel professionals will increasingly find themselves caught in the middle between suppliers and clients.

3.       Magazine articles and printed books are currently two of the most influential sources of information for travelers. This will not change; but eBooks on reading devices will become more popular than printed media as the current limiting e-standards become more flexible and authors can showcase their imagination with spectacular publications to help the traveler.

4.       The turmoil in our government will continue to weaken the USD. Overseas travel will be affected, as well as the increase in competition from overseas specialists who use the internet and social media to compete worldwide. For example, if an agent is based in the US and specializes in Australia then a local Australian travel specialist (based in Australia) will have several advantages such as cheaper rates and better product knowledge (partially because the US-based agent cannot afford frequent trips down under).

5.       Value will drive travel for years to come. The state of our economy will force travelers to look for value even at the top end. Luxury Agents who can offer getaways at reasonable costs without sacrificing quality should experience exponential growth.

6.       Unfortunately things will not get any easier for sellers of travel. In fact, it will get harder as large online companies improve their customer service and booking engines, suppliers engage in direct client relationships on social media such as Facebook, and educated travelers become more demanding in their search for value and fun. Travel professionals will have to step up and meet these challenges.

Advice to agents?

A very large percentage of travel agents are in this business on a part-time basis and it is really hard to gauge if they are aspiring to sell travel full-time or just dabbling in travel for discounted travel and to hopefully pay a few bills. I have nothing to offer the dabblers but here are some thoughts for the full-timers!

If you want financial stability please do not enter this business mainly because you love to travel!

I love to eat but I will never be a successful chef! I love to read Sci-Fi novels but I do not have the imagination to write my own. I love to watch TruTV but I do not have a real desire to wear suits and become a lawyer.

Sell travel because you want to accept the challenge of owning your own business. Then, like any other business, yours can be ordinary or it can be extraordinary. It is perfectly fine to have an ordinary agency – you will join a very large and relatively happy community – but you will be a small fish in a big pond mostly swimming for your life every day.

By all means try to create an extraordinary travel business.

a)      First and foremost, ask yourself who your clients are. Adventurers, cruisers, single women, gay & lesbian, honeymooners, and so on.

b)      Then, decide what you can do for these clients that is extraordinary and relatively unique and not easily matched by your competitors

c)       At all times, think about how to better market and sell your product. This is the most difficult and most necessary part of any business. Think big – travel is an international business and you really must consider reaching out to clients worldwide. Good marketing and solid sales skills are much more important than travel certifications so invest your training money carefully.

d)      When it is time to deliver, blow your clients away with such a good package that they become your sales agents! From day one, focus on word-of-mouth as your number one marketing strategy

e)      And lastly, develop multiple streams of income to increase your bottom line and visibility. Offer travel insurance, lead tours, write travel books, sell travel DVDs, conduct training and speak at motivational events in your community and elsewhere.

The details of every step depend on what you want from your business! If you want to make $500K a year then approach each step with a mindset of maximizing your income. You probably do not want to sell $300 cruises! If you want to see the world and earn just enough money to pay the rent then fewer clients will work better and you may want to focus more on alternative streams of income.

At the end of the day, your business is a reflection of you! Donald Trump and Richard Branson are two iconic yet opposite examples of luxury brands with personalities. One represents classic style and opulence. The other is playful and carefree.

What is your successful brand and style?

What is your website?

http://www.ferrisandschoeman.com