Robust documentation and compliance solution has empowered independent travel advisors and agency owners to focus on growth,
despite a global pandemic.
MAILAND, FL – This month, Travel Industry Solutions, a leading developer of business, operations, and legal solutions for the travel industry, is celebrating the one-year anniversary of its launch as the industry’s first complete solution to assist travel professionals in remaining compliant with industry standards and systematically grow their businesses with proven and field-tested tools.
As the travel industry is still reeling from the impacts of the global pandemic and agency owners are struggling to stay on top of changing regulations and the necessity to work longer hours on their clients’ trips, TIS has become a trusted resource to help advisors navigate these challenging times.
Just one year ago, TIS introduced a concept that was a first for travel advisors throughout the United States—a warrantied legal contract solution backed by a billion-dollar insurance giant.
OutsideAgents.com’s Co-owner Chad Burt found this to be a game-changer for his members. “Ensuring our agent partners are legally protected is critical,” he said. “With TIS, we’re able to deliver to our partners travel-specific legal contracts and business solutions they couldn’t afford on their own. More importantly, TIS solutions provide insights and guidance to foster a business mindset which eliminates costly problems and increases profits for our agents. Bar none, it’s the best business solution we’ve ever offered our agents to help them grow and protect their agency!”
TIS Founder Sheila Folk combined an experienced team of legal, compliance, and regulatory experts with her proven and trench-tested solutions and business expertise to help travel advisors in all aspects of their businesses. When Folk launched TIS in the fall of 2020, she filled significant resource gaps within the industry.
TIS client, Trova Travel Group Owner Leah Iudice, discovered TIS shortly after starting her travel agency in 2020. She recently commented, “By implementing the solutions TIS provides, I was able to eliminate guesswork and stress by setting up my business processes the right way and implementing efficiencies and effectiveness in my operations from the start. But there’s something that’s been equally important to me, personally, and that’s the guidance that TIS Founder and CEO Sheila Folk has provided through her webinars and guidance.” Iudice goes on to explain that Folk has been one of the best mentors she’s had, saying, “Sheila actually has taught me how to look at, set up, and run my business through a different lens.”
Folk emphasizes the CEO mindset that she says is essential to travel business success, saying, “Somehow, most people who enter this industry do so without taking into consideration the role good business practices play in their success. That’s unfortunate because it is the deciding factor between success and failure.” She explains that, when she began her own agency, she already had the business acumen she needed to make a go of it. What she didn’t have—or find in the industry—were the practical resources she needed. She developed them herself, and as a result, grew her agency to $8M in two years. “It dawned on me that other agents and owners could greatly benefit from everything I’d developed. And, since the launch, the demand for our practical and proven solutions has continued to grow.”
As a TIS partner, Nexion Travel Group President Jackie Friedman views TIS as an ideal conduit to success for those she serves. "TIS provides highly specialized solutions that make travel advisors and agency owners better businesspeople by improving both their productivity and profitability,” says Friedman.
Gifted Travel Network (GTN) Co-founder/CEO Jen Cochran added, “We signed on with TIS because we saw a need for the tools and guidance that TIS provides for advisors, particularly with respect to basic legal documents. They are offering a solution for an issue that is a true pain point for the industry. Sheila is a great partner who, like GTN, is truly passionate about inspiring advisors to be the best they can be, as well as empowering them with solutions and guidance to make it happen.”
OutsideAgents.com’s Burt also talks about the driving force behind TIS. “I’ve been in the travel industry for decades,” he says, “and I can count on one hand those who are as naturally gifted as an entrepreneur as Sheila Folk.”
These sentiments are echoed throughout the industry. When riverboat guide author and owner of MGA Travel, Michael Graham became a TIS client, he was relieved to have the legal burden taken off his plate. “I was frustrated by all the time and expense it took to keep up with the changing legal landscape. And once I dove deeper into the other solutions TIS offers, I was delighted to also find an expansive list of great tools to help me increase efficiencies, manage details, and build better relationships,” he says.
TIS will soon be rolling out game changing product enhancements, in-depth training, and important practical guidance on critical challenges for its subscribers.
Tatiana is the news coordinator for TravelDailyNews Media Network (traveldailynews.gr, traveldailynews.com and traveldailynews.asia). Her role includes monitoring the hundreds of news sources of TravelDailyNews Media Network and skimming the most important according to our strategy.
She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.
