If you are a travel advisor, you are probably able to take a bit of a breather right about now. With the busy winter season behind you and summer bookings in place, things are settling down a bit and the summer months can be a slower period for many travel advisors.
Which also makes it the ideal time to take stock of your situation and to ask yourself “Should I launch my own home-based business?”
In fact, now would be the perfect time to do that. The busy winter and spring booking sessions are drawing to a close and the Fall season is a few months away.
You will need time to learn a new system and get set up with your marketing and accounting and get your own website.
This would have you ready by the Fall for the lucrative winter bookings!
Home based agents are now in the majority in Canada!
If you need some convincing, you should know that large numbers of travel advisors moved to home based since 2020 according to an independent survey. The pandemic was a big factor in this shift but we now see that more and more advisors are choosing the home- based model, including advisors who are new to the industry.
This year’s survey revealed a significant rise in home-based travel agents, with nearly 80% of respondents identifying as home-based—almost double the 43% recorded in last year’s survey.
Home based agents report earning more
And best of all, majority of home based agents say they earn more! The majority of home based agents who moved from either a bricks and mortar location or call centre said that they earned more once they became home based.
Year over year, the survey continues to highlight a significant income advantage for home-based travel agents, who earn over 31% more in commission than their non-home-based counterparts.
That is something worth paying attention to!
Home based agents sell higher margin product
Here’s another interesting fact — home based agents are selling more high-margin product than their bricks and mortar or call centre counterparts.
The shift to higher margin products from package tours, hotels and flights might explain the survey finding that a majority of home based agents are earning more since going home based.
This is likely because they are not mandated to sell ITC or other mainstream products as they now are their own boss!
Choose the right host agency
As a home based agent, you will need to choose a host agency to support your business. Be very careful that you are comparing apples to apples.
Ask how much commission you get to keep. Ask about monthly fees. Ask if there’s a charge for marketing. Ask about the contract and how you can exit if you want.
Choosing the right agency will become a big part of your future success as an independent agent!
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