Anybody heard about Your Travel Biz opp?

Has anybody heard about YTB Travel? I close friend of mine from the Amway days, 1994, says this is the best program and his wife is making lost of money selling travel packages. Of course he brags that that his upline is taking care of him and he won't say how much he's making or he'll get kicked out. I get leery when people edify their upline like their God. Amway people brainwashed us and I see him getting caught up in YTB trap. We haven't talked in about six months since I didn't join his team. Somebody give me some info about this MLM. Peace.

I sure have. It is one of the greatest business opportunities out there. If you would like to chat sometime, feel free to call me (919) 598-1167

Henton

Hello. A family friend presented YTB to me yesterday. Even though my current business generates more income faster, YTB seems interesting.

Thanks for the info! I"m going to check it out

Quoting: Engineer2EntrepreneurHello. A family friend presented YTB to me yesterday. Even though my current business generates more income faster, YTB seems interesting.


what biz would that be?

We joined a month ago and so far are very impressed. Their training workbook gives a lot of good information and there are weekly conference calls on various topics on different days/times. I listened to the first one this week and was surprised at the amount of useful data. Of course, you can always find negatives on any of these on-line business opportunities on blogs but I didn't find a lot. We also own StoresOnline websites and the quality of the YTB information and training so far is much better than Storesonline, which just leaves you on your own pretty much except for online help.

This is the the Better Business Bureau is saying about them... Better Business Bureau Advertising Review: Your Travel Biz
BUSINESS LINK - July 2005


In its continuing review of advertising companies use to market their products and services, the Better Business Bureau challenges claims that appear to be misleading and publishes the results of its review. One of its most recent reviews was of the advertising of Your Travel Biz, also known as yourtravelbiznet.com and YTB Net.com, as well as various other names of individuals who are representatives of the company.



This company offers a marketing opportunity selling online travel agencies at several levels via a multi-marketing plan. Independent Marketing Representatives (IMRs) sell online agencies, enroll Referring Travel Agents (RTAs), and sponsor other representatives. They cannot sell travel, nor do they receive travel credentials. RTAs are required to pay $49.95 a month to maintain a travel website. They refer people to their own website to book travel and can earn commissions from travel booked through their personalized site or by direct referral.



According to the company, you reach maximum earning potential by developing three teams. The "First Team" is complete when three representatives have been personally sponsored and six online travel agencies activated. The IMR earns 50 percent commission from all sales. Once the First Team's requirements have been met, IMRs qualify to advance to the next level, the "Power Team." This team includes the first team of every representative in your Power Team. When one of that Power Team starts a Power Team, that team becomes a first generation "Dream Team" to the original IMR. This building can continue through six generations of Power Teams.



We consider this company's advertising to be misleading because of its website claims about the ease and ability to earn money using the company's methods and marketing techniques. One page offers the opportunity to earn bonuses such as a choice of vehicle valued at up to $50,000 and a $100,000 bonus.



The company also claims that travel agents will receive perks of upgrades, familiarization (fam) trips, discounts and "specials." Testimonials tell of free hotel upgrades and huge discounts obtained just by presenting travel agent credentials from the company.



We believe the earnings claims are exaggerated and we consider testimonials to be invalid as evidence of the truth of the company's advertising.



We believe this company may be engaged in a pyramid marketing plan because of their apparent emphasis on recruiting rather than selling travel. Those who buy into the company's team become legally responsible for the claims they make about their company, its product, and the business opportunities it offers. That is true even if the claims are presented in a company brochure or advertising flyer.

THIS IS A BIG BUZZ AROUND MY PART OF TOWN RIGHT ABOUT NOW HOWEVRER I JUST LEARNED OF ANOTHER COMPANY THAT DOES THE SAME THING CALLED (GTI) GLOBAL TRAVEL INTERNATIONAL. IM CURIOUS TO KNOW A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THEM AS WELL WHAT DOES THE BETTER BUSINESS BEUREAU SAY ABOUT THEM. GTI SEEMS CHEAPER TO JOIN WITH FREE WEBSITE HOSTING. WHERES THE INFO. SOME ONE PLEASE GIVE US THE INFO. WE NEED INFO.

I joined in March and have had a steady increase in income since then. Legitimate and professional. About 2 minutes after you join, your website goes live and you can begin making money immediately. Some additional info concerning the company ....

http://press.arrivenet.com/business/article.php/677129.html

hope it is helpful!

If you are interested in a business in travel, there are much more lucrative ways to do it... just booking travel simply doesn't make much money anymore. Not since 911. They cancelled all commissions on domestic airfare after 911, which was most agents bread and butter.

I have tried to make money as a travel agent, even before 911, and it was really tough. I would encourage you to check out other travel-related businesses. You can make better money elsewhere.

But if you really have your heart set on being a travel agent, I know a program you can sign up in that is not MLM, and costs less than $70. You can have an IATA number and be up and running in less than a week. If you're interested, let me know. But it's really more a labor of love... you just can't make big money that way anymore unless you are focusing on cruises or corporate travel.

Just my 2 cents.

--Steph

My sister is with YTB and I joined to help her out. She seems very happy with it, however, as an outsider, I see many drawbacks. I do a fair amount of travel so I'm familiar with booking via the internet. here are the pitfalls to ytb as I see it:

1. the travel website: ytb travel portals use priceline.com. i have found much lower airfares and better deals, not to mention a greater variety of flight times and carriers, on other travel websites like expedia and orbitz. i paid about $100 more for a recent trip by booking with my sister's site rather than a competitor, and that's only because i knew i'd never hear the end of it if i booked on cheaper site. also, the site has been down more often than not, it loads slow (and I have a fast connection) and it's cumbersome to use. you cannot save iteneraries (like expedia) or get alerts for fare changes (like travelocity). for a busy person on a budget, this is not very pratical.

2. the monthly fee. personally, the only justification for me having $49.95 withdrawn from my account every month is that my sister needs me to keep my website active in order for her to maintain her team and get her bonuses. i don't mind this much, but what am i getting in exchange for my 50 bucks? if were getting some product or some additional training or mailers in exchange, then i'd be satisfied. but it seems there really is no product that is sold, just a website that connects to slow-as-heck priceline! which brings me to my next point...

3. the marketing plan. it really seems that the only way to truly make money is thru recruiting, not the selling of flights via your website. and when your recruits begin to realize that they aren't making money via their websites, how long will they stay? it just doesn't seem very stable.

4. the cost. it costs $300 to sign up and you get a box of training. then it's $49.95 a month to maintain your site. that's about $900 a year. and you don't have any product to show for it, just a web presence.

5. the training. another reason I joined was to get discount airfare. but the certification to become an RTA costs money. yes, the training is free, but the certificate that says you completed the training isn't.

I think any travel-based marketing business is a bit iffy

I was also curious about Your Travel Biz, so I signed up as a rep. I've been a rep for about a week now. It has been slow for me as a Your Travel Biz rep to sell travel agencies and enroll RTAs. I give this business opportunity a few more months. I enrolled as a rep first to get my feet wet beofre I invest in the $449.00 fee to purchase my own travel agency online. I want to know if this business opportunity is really legitimate.

I'm going to a presentation today as a gesture of support for my beautician. I appreciate all the information this site has provided and it has really helped me to make a sound decision about joing the YTB club. I figured it was a pyramid scheme just as the EXCEL pyramid scheme used years ago. I knew that was a bunch of crock from the jump. Needless to say, the friends that invited me only realized the set up after the fact. Again. Thanks for the insight. I will attend the presentation with an open mind, but the start up and monthly maintainance fee is enough for me to pass on the "extra income" opportunity this go round.

I joined YTB July 11,2006. Due to family obligations, I was not able to get started until late August. Now,all I can say is wow! I am doing very well with the business and have set up 15 folks all over the USA. I am estatic with the results. After, I booked six, they started reimbursing me the $49 monthly fee. I am very pleased with the earning which come weekly. The bonuses are are awesome. The best $449.00 investment I ever made. By the way,the travel discounts are great even down to the upgrades I just got on my car rental. I paid for an economy car, showed myy YTB card, and got a luxury vehicle. I cannot even begin to talk about the tax-breaks from a home base biz. The training is phenomenal. I am very pleased with the experience thus far and will keep you posted!

I recently attended a recruitment meeting and am intriqued by the possibilities. I am, however, struggling with the fact that the emphasis is on recruiting rather than selling. The "commission" checks are derived from the new sign ups, I think. The premise that one will realize significant savings by purchasing at wholesale is hard to validate. Can someone detail the exact sequence of events? On the surface YTB has the mark of pyramid scheme and the only way to success it by recruiting others...all hoping to travel at steep discounted rates.

The answer is simple. If it is not for you, don't join. I happen to spend about $6,000 to $10,000 per year on personal travel. With this home business, it is a tax deduction and well worth the entry and monthly fees. I have many friends that book their travel on websites. I ask them to compare my site and if it is cheaper, please book their travel on my site, and if they do, and I get a commission. Not bad for not doing anything but come up with a business name, print cards and hand them out.

The fact is that if you don't want to recruit anyone, you are not obligated, but like me, there are others that also spend enough on travel that the tax benefits alone pays the fees back, so they sign up too. I happen to get paid a 30% commission for the travel that is booked on their sites too. Not just the travel they book, but their friends and family that book on their site. This is known as multi-level marketing. Guess what? Almost every company in the world that sells a product is a MLM. If a salesperson sells the product, he gets paid, the sales manager gets paid, the sales VP gets paid, etc. There is nothing wrong with that. It is how business is done.

I hear all this pyramid talk. Look up the definition before you point at the company and say it is a pyramid scheme. It isn't. Pyramids are selling useless products. This is selling travel (a $7 Trillion business.)

As far as paying for recruiting, I work for a VERY large global company. If I refer someone to them, I get a $1,000 referral fee. With YTB, I only get $100. It takes 10 referrals to YTB to match.

YTB wants to be the largest internet travel company. How can they do that? By getting as many people to buy on their site as possible. Their only advertisement is through word of mouth. Instead of paying $5 Million per week in advertising as some of the highly advertised sites, they use the money to pay their people. I for one and happy they do.

I too was very skeptical so I did my research. Before you sign up, make sure it makes good business sense to you. Like I said before, if it doesn't make sense, don't join.

Sophie -

Everybody has their own sales pitch on YTB. I personally don't put any pressure on anyone to sign up. I give them the facts, show them how it works and if it makes sense, then help them get started. All of my recruits are excited about the business and I mentor them to make it a success.

It isn't for everyone. I suggest that you should look at it for the travel business perspective and when you talk to others, it may make good business and tax sense for them to join too.

Remember that the reason you get paid for a referral is that YTB wants to be the biggest on-line travel company and the way to do that is to get everyone to either be an RTA or have their friends and family buy their travel from YTB sites. Paying referral fees is not uncommon in the business world.

You should figure out if you will get a tax benefit from having the business and receive commissions to cover your upfront and monthly fees. If you can justify it, I can tell you that it is worth it.

Good Luck. If you have any questions, you can contact me @ [email protected].

Hi, My name is Carrie and I have been approached to join YTB. I had gone to school to be a TA and got out of the business. I am now thinking of re-entering the field but am not really sure where to start. Any ideas?

My name is Robyn. I too am a trained TA and have been in the industry since 1998 in Canada. The industry seems to be taking a big hit and I promote healthproducts on the side because that is a special interest I have. I think that one company I market for has an excelent comp plan that is doable for most people. The question I have is whether to sink more advertising money into the business or try something new like YTB. I am cautious about it. It offers little for Canadians as far as products go. I know someone who is in it now and seems to think its great but is not an agent. I hesitate to undermine the industry any further. I still fel it is a specialized field and cannot be properly done by just anyone. Wondering how much money poeple are making with YBT and how it is once in it? Thanks.