Leads
How travel agents get customer requests from the Idea Holiday marketplace
By Idea Holiday team · Updated 26 Oct 2026 · 3 min read
Customers who visit ideaholiday.com describe the trip they want, and travel agents compete to plan it. This guide explains how those customer requests reach agents, so you know what to expect and how to be chosen.
Where requests come from
A customer fills in a trip request on the website, or talks to the website's chat assistant, which can also work through WhatsApp. Each request gets its own code. If the customer has no account, one is created so that they can claim it and see the quotes that arrive.
How requests are matched to agents
The marketplace ranks agents for each request, using signals such as:
- Destination expertise: an exact destination counts most.
- The trip type and the products the agent handles, such as flights, visa, cruise or luxury.
- Budget fit: the request's budget per person against the agent's usual range.
- Reviews, how fast the agent first responds, and how often their quotes are won.
- Current workload and the agent's city.
The best-ranked agents are offered the request. One place can go to a good new agent, so that newcomers get a chance, and agents who do not accept in time are replaced by the next best match.
What an accepting agent gets
Accepting a request opens the quote builder, the itinerary, notes and the chat with the customer. The customer compares the quotes, accepts one and pays through Idea Holiday.
How it is paid
Marketplace requests work on commission rules, not on a plan fee. Your own customers are different: they stay on a plan, and Idea Holiday takes no commission on them.
How to be chosen more often
- Fill in your destinations and specialities honestly.
- Reply fast. First-response time is part of the ranking.
- Collect reviews from completed trips.
- Keep your workload at a level where you can accept new requests.
Common questions
- Can a new agent get requests?
- Yes. One place on a request can go to the best new agent, and new agents start with a neutral rating until they have reviews.
- Does every request go to every agent?
- No. A request is offered to the best-ranked agents, and replaced by the next best if they do not accept in time.
- Is there a commission on my own customers?
- No. Idea Holiday charges a plan fee on your own customers, and no commission.