Copywrite 2003, Travel Weekly, Secaucus, New Jersey


NEWS - [NEWS HEADLINE] Earning the trust of the disabled (8/25/2003)

By Claudette Covey

In the sixth grade, Connie George was so inspired by Helen Keller's biography that she taught herself the sign language alphabet. She even considered becoming an interpreter for the deaf. Although George, owner of Connie George Travel Associates in Glenolden, Pa., chose a different career path, she has incorporated this affinity for people with disabilities into her business. In fact, about a third of George's clients are disabled. Her agency specializes in planning travel for the deaf, wheelchair users and slow walkers. The other two-thirds of her business are cruises, resort packages and tours to nondisabled clients.

Ninety percent of the business George books for travelers with disabilities is cruise-related because ships do the best job in catering to this market segment, she said.

Although George plans some destination trips for clients, she believes that agents can't guarantee the same level of satisfaction with special-needs travel. "We can't know the accessibility details of every place in the world," George said. "We handle a few land destinations, but we'd have to reinvent the wheel by spending many hours of research each time we handle a new area -- often for a one-time-only booking."

The home-based George, who does about $1 million in volume, employs six outside agents who are based in Colorado, Minnesota, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas.

She has steadily increased her share of this market over the years by actually getting to know people with disabilities -- and thereby understanding the dynamics of the market. For instance, in the 1990s, George served as staff member for a disabled traveler section of CompuServe's Travel Forum.

What she found was that travelers with disabilities have needs that are not altogether different from other travelers. George notes that agents working with this market should begin the sales process in the same way they would with any other client.

"Agents think they have to start with what [the disabled client] can do," said George. "Start with what they want to do. Qualify clients first with their interests, and then [move on to] their abilities or limitations."

The next part of the qualification process is when the agent must pay painstaking attention to detail.

"For instance, if the client has a mobility impairment, we ask what the specific disability is -- paraplegia, fibromyalgia, post-polio or muscular dystrophy, etc.," noted George. "We need to know if they use a scooter, power wheelchair, manual wheelchair or walker, or if they just can't walk a distance. We need to know if they are a full-time conveyance user -- the term 'wheelchair bound' is a no-no -- or if not, how far or how long they can comfortably walk."

There are also questions about such items as transfer lifts -- the equipment that helps those with limited mobility move from their wheelchair to the bed. Agents need to determine whether a client needs to rent or bring a transfer lift, and if the cruise cabin or hotel room can accommodate the lift. "We make sure that the bed is on an open frame, because part of the transfer lift's stand sits under the bed," George said. "In hotels, that sometimes requires a box frame to be placed on cement blocks. We also need to verify the height of toilets and beds in case they need to be adjusted."

Those agents interested in building heavy volume from the travelers with disabilities market should look elsewhere, George said. "We've accepted that we can't work on sheer volume," she said. "The bookings are time-intensive and detailed."

Agents should also figure they are going to become an activist for the client. In some cases, said George, suppliers don't understand the needs of travelers with disabilities. "You have to educate suppliers," she said.

In the end, teaching suppliers and paying attention to myriad details is well worth the effort, said George. "A major plus [with the travelers with disability market] is the loyalty of the client. But you've really got to earn their trust."