Ask-an-Advisor: What Makes You Loyal to a Travel Supplier?

This is 2025’s fifth edition of TMR’s Ask an Advisor series, a regular column where a team of travel advisors tackles questions from others in the industry. All questions from this series have been submitted by readers and vetted by the TMR editorial team. This question comes from an advisor wondering about loyalty to travel suppliers.

Dear Ask-an-Advisor,
What makes you loyal to a travel supplier? I know being part of a preferred partner program with your host agency can influence the decision, but I’m curious about the other factors you consider. Is it about the support and training they offer? The quality of the product itself? Or is it more about the commissions, incentives, and perks?

As a travel advisor trying to build stronger relationships with suppliers, I’d love to hear your thoughts on what tips the scale when choosing who to work with again and again.

Jessica Parker, Founder of Trip Whisperer

“This is a great one. It’s a combination of things. Great communication, and doing what they say they are going to do is the foundation. When I put something in writing to a client, I consider that a contract unless there’s a reasonable reason why not, so I expect the same. If you’re behind on getting me a quote, let me know. It’s all about giving me the chance to relay to my client and being informed, so clients know that I’m on top of things with their best interest. 

Also any partner that really honors and protects the advisor’s reputation and relationships with our clients. When people know that our word is on the line and fully invested in both of us looking like rockstars, it’s such a win win. Also, who doesn’t love happy clients who run around telling everyone that their trip was amazing because of both of us? This is a team effort. It shows that any time I plan something I have a whole roster of amazing people, anywhere they want to go in the world. 

Yes, a solid commission would be great to compensate us as well. At this point, it’s pretty standard across hotels and partners. It’s also another reason why I charge for my time and expertise with a planning fee, so commission isn’t the focus, and I’m paid upfront for my efforts. In what other industry do you work for a year or longer on a trip, then don’t get paid until 60 days after it’s over!? It’s not ok and we should set the tone that our work is a professional service. 

Another thing is remitting payment as soon as we’re in the nonrefundable period would be ideal. It’s drastically behind and different with every supplier. Those that make a point to let you know when they’ve paid or when they as a standard do is great. Honestly, that should be on their presentations and messaging to advisors. I rarely hear that and it should be a standard practice. 

Being able to try the hotel and experience the DMC definitely helps me sell them with more authority and passion of course. Most partners are pretty good about offering decent rates or FAMs but I’m very selective. I don’t go on group FAMs and ask individually when it works for my schedule or I feel passionate about getting to know a destination better for example. 

There’s a lot of ‘suppliers’ but really, I have a lot that I consider friends. They are wonderful to work with. A blast when they come to town for sales calls. Or comrades at after parties at conferences. We work in a pretty fantastic industry with some genuine, fun and caring people. If it doesn’t serve you, then let it go because there are so many others to work with.

Jessica Parker, Founder of Trip Whisperer, is a luxury travel advisor known for creating magazine-worthy journeys shaped by her two decades of experience. Her background includes working with top travel editors, organizing press trips worldwide, and gaining valuable insights from her time in-house at hotels. Fun fact: Jessica earned her RYA certification in barge school and dreams of retiring on her own hotel barge in France.

Sarah Bonsall, Founder of Latitude 21 Travel

That’s a fantastic question—and one I think many travel professionals wrestle with, especially when trying to build meaningful, long-term relationships in the industry.

For me, being aligned with a preferred supplier through my consortia brings definite advantages; however, loyalty extends far beyond just commission structures or booking incentives. At the heart of it, it’s about relationships. Over the years, I’ve built personal connections with specific suppliers, and those relationships foster a genuine desire to support one another. When you know someone on the other end is cheering you on and will go to bat for you and your client, it makes a world of difference.

That said, loyalty is earned through more than friendship. I assess whether a supplier genuinely supports me as a business owner: Are their systems easy to use? Do they step up when things go sideways?  Do they offer training opportunities, business-building tools, or even social media content I can share? Can I meet one-on-one with my Business Development Manager (BDM) to strategize and grow?

Of course, the most important factor is always the client. Sometimes the best choice for a traveler may not be the supplier I typically work with, and that’s okay. But when a supplier consistently helps me deliver an exceptional client experience and makes my job smoother behind the scenes, that’s when I keep coming back.

In short, support, efficiency, and a relationship built on mutual respect consistently tip the scale.

Sarah Bonsall, Founder of Latitude 21 Travel, is a seasoned travel advisor with nearly three decades of industry experience. Her background spans airline ticketing, government travel management, and call center operations, giving her unique insights into travel services. Sarah now uses that expertise to craft personalized travel experiences through her award-winning agency.

Anna Harrison, Owner & Travel Advisor of Travel Observations 

I love to sing my partners’ praises, and thinking about my favorites it’s easy to come up with a list of why I choose to work with them again and again:

1. Destination knowledge – they offer feedback on your clients’ itinerary requests and educate you as well.   They suggest alternatives to elevate the client experience or explain why something may not work if you have suggested an initial itinerary.  They are not just “order takers”,  they pride themselves in offering the best destination experience for their partners and travelers. 
2. Easy communication – they are quick to reply by email or phone and understand a North American business culture.  
3. Booking process – it’s easy to receive a proposal and it’s clear what the next steps to confirm and reserve are.  There aren’t any surprises like credit card fee penalties or unfair terms/conditions.  
4. Pre-travel:  They share knowledge to help my client prepare for their trip,  such as packing lists or culture tips.  They don’t mind responding to questions my client may have before her departure. 
5. In-destination support:  If my clients have issues,  the partner is quick to respond and take care of anything.  They take responsibility for mistakes and make sure their travelers are happy. 
6. Client satisfaction:  My travelers consistently rave about their experiences when they travel with this supplier. 
7. Decent commission:  The commission level is fair and allows me to be compensated adequately.  Commission is paid quickly and accurately. 

Take a step back and see which of your current partners fulfill this criteria.  Once you have a working rapport with a partner,  I suggest staying loyal to them unless they aren’t the right fit for a specific client. I would rather do 8 trips all with the same supplier and build that relationship rather than search for 8 different suppliers each time – don’t keep bouncing around between suppliers just because of “shiny object syndrome”.   Also, don’t be afraid to be honest with your host if you feel you are not getting what you need from their current preferred partners and be sure to share feedback if you feel your current partners don’t meet the above criteria.  

Finally, take a moment to really evaluate which partners you have enjoyed working with this year,  and see what you can do to increase your business working with these partners over the next year! Don’t forget the power of positivity in relationship building.  Send a thank you note to the BDM saying how much you enjoyed working with a specific sales agent on a recent booking,  or sent a DMC a client’s recent positive feedback to thank them for taking care of your clients.  Turning your business relationships into true partnerships rather than transactions can be so fulfilling!

A travel advisor for 10 years and a Conde Nast travel specialist, Anna Harrison is part of the Top Producers Club at Gifted Travel Network and also gives back to the agent community through their mentorship program. She lives in Pittsburgh, enjoying parks, farmers’ markets, and sharing her passion for travel.