I am an agent and I can say that the only Disney vets who use me are friends who want to see me get the commission that Disney builds into every trip whether you use an agent or not. Where I am really useful, though, is Disney Rookies.
I take the time to explain
MDE, ME, FP+, EMH, ETC. You know, all those letters that everyone here on the boards understand but newbies don't know about. I keep them on schedule and make sure that they know about making dining reservations 180 days out. I send them reminders, I make restaurant recommendations and, if they want me to, I make reservations.
I had one newbie who, despite my countdown to 60 days, didn't make any FP+ reservations. I kept an eye on his MDE account and managed to snag him some good FP+.
I stay on top of trip planning boards, rumors ect so my clients don't have to and I rebook trips to take advantage of newly advertised discounts and promotions. I have literally spent 3 hours on hold to grab a promotion.
I have had a client call me from a line at an attraction in a panic because he was going to be late for his dining reservation and needed to know if there was a grace period.
I'm not telling you this to grab business because this is
Dreams Unlimited's board and it would be rude of me to do that. I am just trying to show why travel agents can be useful - especially to the rookie Disney traveler.