The 17-page guide – titled “Want to be a savvy homeworker?” – features a list of questions people must ask themselves before starting their search and an example checklist to complete before deciding which company to join.
The checklist includes questions such as “who will own the customer database?”, “what is the company’s approach to leavers?” and “do you know any member of the travel industry who might be able to endorse the company?”.
In the guide, the Ramsbottom-based agency, which currently has 188 homeworkers, says: “This guide is a way of giving something back. We aim to provide you with practical tools to help you identify the most suitable opportunity for you in what is now a highly competitive and increasingly saturated marketplace.
“Our experience tells us that the most successful homeworkers are those who view their role not as a hobby or simply a job but as a vocation.”
Speaking to TTG, Designer Travel owner and managing director Amanda Matthew stressed the guide is not aimed at hiring more Designer Travel homeworkers.
“We actually turn away more people than we take on,” she said. “The guide is all about the upsides and downsides that you need to be aware of before you change homeworking companies.
“Designer Travel is not the right company for everybody. Sometimes people do not think about the long-term picture of where they want to stay. We’ve tried to remove the smoke and mirrors away from the situation.”
Matthews highlighted how some homeworking agencies use “tactics” to turn a situation to their advantage.
She added: “When we interview people we always say to them do your homework and then you can make an informed decision and it will be the right one.
“It’s a bit like when you’re starting your own company, you’ve got to make sure you’ve got all your ducks in a row, that is what being a homeworker should be about."
Designer Travel co-founders Matthews and Karen Pocock have won numerous TTG Media awards together including Contribution to Luxury Travel at the TTG Luxury Travel Awards in 2022.
To receive an electronic copy of the homeworking guide, email sh@designertravel.co.uk.
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