In an exclusive interview with Heraldnigeria.com, Ms Gloria Joseph, a final year Tourism and Hotel Management student and founder of Gloria International Education Network took us on a tour on how it all started for her, how she is balancing business with personal life and school life and what we should expect from her in the future.
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Read excerpts from the interview below.
HN: What is your name?
Gloria: Good day herald Nigeria, my name is Gloria Joseph, i am a Nigerian, currently residing in Northern Cyprus where i’m pursuing my education in Tourism and Hotel Management. This is my last semester and i am also an international agent.
HN:What service(s) do you offer?
Gloria: The services we offer are many, first, we process admission in different countries around the world, these visas includes tourist visas, student visas, invitations and so on. Secondly, we do tour packages to different countries around the world, we have one coming up January, it’s a Dubai group tour we are organizing, we also process holiday and personal tours.
HN:What is the name of your business?
Gloria: The name of my business has my name in it actually, it is called Gloria International Education Network, registered with the Nigerian corporate affairs commission.
HN:How did you come up with the name for your business?
Gloria: As you know, the name is beautiful and it is very prophetic. I’m not trying to be religious but in my dream i saw myself having so many company abroad and i keep seeing my name attached to it. So, i sat down with one of my friend and we wrote down some list of names with Gloria in it as the first name. Eventually, we ended up picking Gloria International Education Network and that was how i came up with the name.
HN:How do you promote your business? How are people aware of your business?
Gloria: Well, the number one marketing tool today is the internet, without internet we really cannot do much. We use social medias like instagram, Facebook, Whatsapp, Snapchat and we also have a website. We don’t totally rely on social media because we have people who are not yet on social media, so, what we do is that we made hand flyers which we give out to people on the street and it helps create awareness for us too.
HN:What challenge(s) have you faced in your business?
Gloria: You know when you deal with people from different backgrounds, country and race, there will be challenges. They are clients that gave me hard time especially when they are been denied visas. If i tell you i haven’t had visa denier, i will be lying to you. I have had at least two visa denier since i started my business four years ago. He was actually at fault. He went to the embassy with his friends without actually listening and doing everything i listed, His friend got their visas but he didn’t and i have to deal with him and his whole family. You know, customers are always right, i had to be patient with him and his family and kept on pleading until we resolved the issues and at the end of the day i applied for visa for him again and he got his visa. Through him i have gotten so many students. Patience is the only way i have overcome many challenges i have faced.
HN:What makes your business unique?
Gloria: My business is unique, nobody needs to tell me this one because i know how much effort i put, i’m not trying to brag or nag. You know, over here in Northern Cyprus ‘everyone is an agent’…. laughter…. My business is unique in a sense that there is nothing you will ask me to do that i will not be able to do. Whatever i do, i do it perfectly. Some agents limit themselves to only Northern Cyprus and Turkey, but for me i stretch out to other countries in Asia, America, and Europe to see how we can get admission for people.
HN:Have you ever turned down a client?
Gloria: Well, i can’t really say it’s a direct turn down, but they is a way you will talk to someone and the person will understand that those area he or she is trying to enter is a no go area. They are sometimes clients are extremely rude but what can we do?. We have to still keep up with them. They are some in situations that i just have to tell them that if they want me to work for them, they have to do it my own way but if they feel they know it too much more than me the agent then it’s okay they can do it on their own way, but if things go wrong, i always tell them not to blame me. There was a time i had a client like that who gave me some issues and i am like, i’m no longer interest and i let him go. After some months he came back and told me he applied through another agent and his visa was denied. I have to start all over and at the end i was able to help him out.
HN:What are the fear factors in your business and how do you manage it?
Gloria: My greatest fear factor is thinking about a client telling to do something and i am not able to do it. It make feels i am working less. How i manage these fears is that i make online research that will help me manage those fears.
HN:Do you know who your competitors are?
Gloria: I can not really point out anyone because mostly i just look at them as everyone is trying to make a living and i have not seen anyone who is at my level yet. So, i just see them as my motivators.
HN:How do the social, economic, environmental, technological, legal and political environments impact your business?
Gloria: The social life have really impacted my life in a positive way because the more you socialise, the more you get to talk about what you do and the more they become aware of what you do. There’s no way i will meet someone for the first time without talking about my business. On the economic, it’s a bit of a problem and also a good impact. In some countries their economic condition is not really okay, so it affects some people who are actually average and want to stretch out of their comfort zone and try to pursue their education abroad. When a country economy is bad, it actually affects we the agents but when a country economy is flourishing, we the agents benefit a lot. On the environments, we have some challenges with some countries environment because they are not really conducive for studying and working at the same time and most clients wants a place where they can be studying at the same time working. I don’t hide the truth from my clients when they ask me about a particular country, i tell them everything they want to know and the one they need to know. For instance, in some countries you can study and still work, but if they can not do those things i will also tell you, there’s no point of me lying to a client because my reputation is at stake. Regarding technological, legal and political environments, in some countries they will tell you that these are the rules and regulations you must obey as a student, So, as an agent we make sure we can work around there without breaking these rules and regulations. There was a time we had some issues with some countries because our clients were denied visas because of political conflicts going on at that time.
HN:How has technology, such as computers and the internet, impacted on how you conduct business?
Gloria: I don’t think our generation can live without the internet. Most of our application if not all requires computer and internet and with the availability of these, it makes our work easier. so i will say it have impacted me positively.
HN:What has been your most satisfying moment in business?
Gloria: The most satisfying moment for me in my business is when i get a positive feedback from my clients and potential clients.
HN:How do you balance your business with your personal life?
Gloria: It is the hardest thing to do, trust me i won’ even lie. Sometimes i don’t even get to sleep because even a midnight i still receive calls and i am like; who calls someone at midnight to discuss business. Inasmuch my business is important, i try to balance it with my personal life and sometimes they get mixed up.
HN:What should we expect in the nearest future?
Gloria: I will tell you to expect much, especially in 2019 which i am sure i will be able to meet up with 95 percent of request i will get for any type of visa. So, i am asking you all to keep your expectations high and i promise i will do my best not to disappoint you.
HN: If you had one piece of advice to someone who wants to follow your footsteps, what would it be?
Gloria:For anyone who want to follow my footsteps, firstly, businesswise, i like to encourage you to try as much as you can to be transparent, be someone people can trust that no matter what they hear outside they will not believe it unless they hear from you. When it comes to your personal life, don’t let business take over you whole life, don’t do more than what you can control because you want to be higher than the other person. Life is not a competition, there will be difficulties but my advice is never give up. Always put your relationship with God before anything else because God is the center of everything.
HN: What do you have to say to all your followers and clients?
Gloria: Compliment of the season to everyone, Christmas is coming and i wish you all happy new year in advance. To my followers, clients, potential clients, my friends and families i really appreciate all of you because without you they won’t be me. I would also love to thank Heraldnigeria.com for this opportunity to talk about my business. To all those who have supported my business in one way or the other i really appreciate you guys. Then i have one more person who is the most important person in this business and that person is none other than Ms Gloria, without her they will be no Gloria International Education Network, so, i would love to say thank you to myself for been so strong, hardworking, trustworthy and having a heart for people, thank you.
Follow Gloria on Social media via:
Instagram: Gloriaedunetwork
Website: www.gloriaedunetwork.com