Travel Agent Side Hustle Pushed by Influencers Draws Fee Criticism
PlanNet Marketing recruits independent travel agents via social media influencers, but participants say the fees outweigh any earnings.
A travel-based side hustle promoted by reality TV personalities and social media influencers is facing scrutiny over its fee structure, with recruits reporting they earned little to nothing after signing up. The business model pairs PlanNet Marketing, which handles recruitment, with US-based InteleTravel, which registers participants as independent travel agents.
Influencers including former Love Island contestant Yasmin Hadlow and ex-Geordie Shore star Vicky Pattison have promoted the opportunity online, urging followers to message them for details and promising a lifestyle built around travel and passive income. Hadlow, 23, told viewers they could "catch flights and get paid mid-air," according to The Guardian's reporting.
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Critics of the arrangement argue that the marketing language obscures the reality facing many participants, who say membership and associated fees consume whatever commissions they generate. One recruit described the outcome bluntly: "I was making no money." The structure, in which existing members are incentivized to recruit new paying participants, has drawn comparisons to multi-level marketing models that regulators and consumer advocates have long cautioned the public about.
The use of celebrity reach to drive enrollment raises additional questions about disclosure obligations and the responsibilities influencers bear when endorsing income-generating schemes to large, often younger audiences. Neither the specific fee amounts charged by PlanNet Marketing nor InteleTravel's response to the criticism were detailed fully in the available reporting.
Continue reading at Business | The Guardian.
