Almost everyone enjoys traveling. The majority of us, however, dislike the protracted planning, booking, and research that must be done because it can occasionally feel as though it takes longer than the actual trip. The $35 billion US travel agency market has been rising recently for precisely this reason, and it presents a great opportunity for the businessperson with a passion for travel.
You can relieve passengers’ stress and burdens by opening your own online travel agency, allowing them to enjoy their vacation while you turn a healthy profit. It’s also an excellent time to start traveling because of the post-pandemic boom.
It goes without saying that opening a travel agency won’t be a vacation; it will require perseverance, good leadership, and diligence. Thankfully, you’ve found the correct spot since this step-by-step gives you all the knowledge you need to create and establish your new travel business and jumpstart your entrepreneurial career.
Step 1: Find Out if this is the Right Business for You?
Positives Vs Negatives
| Flexibility — You can work from any location, even while you’re on the go! Obtain accreditation online with little training. Discounts on travel – Travel brokers receive special offers and lower rates | Work is demanding and requires you to be available 24/7 for clients all around the world. There is fierce competition amongst the best travel websites, travel networks, advisers, and others. |
Industry Trends
- Industry size and historical growth: In 2022, market research firm IBISWorld expects the industry to be worth close to $48 billion[3].
- Travel agent employment is likely to increase by 5% annually through 2030, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which indicates that the business will continue to expand. [4]
- The number of companies – In the US, there are more than 73,000 travel agencies.[5]
- Approximately 250,000 individuals are employed in the sector. [6]
Cost of Starting Travel Agency Business
Approximately $2,000 to $10,000, on average $6,000, is needed to launch a travel business. In order to minimize costs, you might easily manage your internet travel agency from your house instead of renting office space and spending more money on marketing.
Is Travel Agency Business Profitable?
In general, travel suppliers like airlines and hotels give a commission of around 10% to travel agencies. A small consulting fee, usually between $30 and $50, is also sometimes charged by some travel brokers for each reservation. Your two revenue sources will be those two.
A week of domestic travel typically costs $1,500 per person. A home-based travel company often makes a profit margin of 80% or so. Your margin would most likely decrease to roughly 30% if you have an office and employees.
Five two-person holidays may be sold per week while working from home in your first year or two. This equates to $78,000 in yearly revenue at a 10% fee. With an 80% margin, you would have a profit of about $62,000.
Sales of 1,000 two-person getaways annually may increase as your business becomes more well-known. Initially, your profit margin would be 30%. Later, you would rent an office and hire personnel. You would earn roughly $90,000 with a $300,000 yearly revenue expectation.
Entry Barriers
- Large and small online businesses compete with self-booking passengers.
- Obtaining Customers – Establishing a reputation will take time and promotion.
Step 2: Create a Strategy
Identify a Gap
Finding a means to set oneself apart from the competition is important for travel agencies. While keeping an eye out for anything that might be missing, investigate online travel agencies and booking services to examine their offerings and costs. Maybe you could develop a niche in travel to underserved areas like Southeast Asia and create a network of useful vendors. Alternately, you might concentrate on locating the most amazing homestay rentals at the most competitive rates for tourists. Family getaways, business retreats, or honeymoons can be your area of expertise. In the travel industry, there are practically countless possible niches.
Solutions
Along with booking flights, hotels, and rental cars, travel can include many different aspects that you can manage in part or in full. One of them is possibly:
- scheduling excursions and tours
- a reservation or suggestions for a restaurant
- Insurance for travel
- both emergency services and visas
Pricing
The commission paid to travel brokers by travel suppliers, such as lodging establishments, airlines, and vehicle rental agencies, is typically around 10% of the booking. Turkish Airlines will pay you, the travel agent, a $120 commission if you arrange a $1,200 flight for a customer.
As a result, purchasing tickets through a travel agency can occasionally cost the traveler a little bit more than doing so directly through the airlines or a travel website like Expedia or Orbitz. Discounted vacation packages are therefore used by travel agents to draw clients and increase sales.
An individual could pay $1,000 or more if they buy directly, for example, a round-trip ticket from Chicago to Cancun and a 6-day stay at a four-star all-inclusive resort, plus ground transportation. However, since travel agencies place large orders with vendors and receive big discounts, you might sell this vacation as a package for $599.
When a traveler uses your services rather than making their own reservations, they still save money even after paying your commission. And remember that as you gain experience as an agent, the discounts provided by vendors are probably going to rise. From tour operators and excursion providers, you can also be able to bargain commissions.
Target Market
The theme you’ve picked for your agency will affect your target market. Parents will be your primary market if you opt to focus exclusively on family getaways. Instead of Instagram or TikTok, you might find them on websites like LinkedIn or Facebook.
Location
- You can prefer to operate your company from home in the beginning to save money. However, when your company expands, you could need to rent an office space and may need to hire personnel. On Craigslist, Crexi, and Commercial Cafe, you can locate rental office space in your neighborhood.
- You might want to abide by these general guidelines while selecting a commercial space:
- accessible by public transportation in a central location
- With plenty of natural light and ventilation
- As your firm expands, your lease might be made more accommodating.
- a space that is ready to use and doesn’t require any substantial upgrades or repairs
Step 3: Write a Business Plan
Every company needs to have a plan. This will act as a guide to help your startup go through the launch process while maintaining attention on your main goals. A business plan also aids partners and investors in understanding your organization’s goals:
- When the business strategy is complete, a concise executive summary should be created.
- A summary of the vision, mission, ownership, and objectives of the business is provided in the business overview.
- What you have to offer is clearly stated in your product and service descriptions.
- SWOT analysis of the market should be performed, and market trends including variations in demand and future development prospects should be assessed.
- Outline the advantages of your services and compare them to your main rivals’ strengths and weaknesses.
- When creating sales, marketing, and promotional campaigns, take your company’s USPs into account.
- Organizational chart for the company as well as a description of the management team’s roles and backgrounds.
- Logistics, office location, key resources, and equipment are all included in your company’s operational strategy.
- A three-year financial plan that includes balance sheet, cash flow, profit and loss estimates, break-even analysis, and startup costs.
- Add any additional financial or business documentation to the appendix.
Step 4: Create a Marketing Plan
You still need to invest money on digital marketing even though some of your clients will come from the internet! For new companies, word-of-mouth marketing is essential to building customer and brand recognition.
Once your website is up and running, link your social media accounts to it. It’s an excellent tool for business promotion because you can create engaging posts that advertise your products on social media:
- Facebook is an excellent tool for paid advertising since it lets you focus on specific demographics, such men under 50 in the Cleveland area.
- With a different audience on Instagram, Facebook-like benefits.
- Website: SEO will help your website move up the relevant search results rankings, which is crucial for increasing sales. The calls to action on your website should be optimized. Try different combinations of text, color, size, and location for calls to action like “Buy Now,” as doing so can greatly improve sales.
- Google and Yelp: Businesses that rely on local customers may find that having a listing on Google My Business and Yelp is crucial for boosting exposure and luring new customers.
Kickstart Marketing
Utilize your website, social media platforms, and in-person interactions to spread the word about your products and develop your brand. Several ideas are:
- Competitions and giveaways – Create interest by giving away prizes to clients who carry out a specific action, such meal credits if you book within a specific time frame.
- Use eye-catching signage on your website and in-store locations.
- By handing out flyers in your community and at professional gatherings.
- Sales in Person – Present your products at trade events.
- Events that are related to your target market can be sponsored for a fee.
- Make a video and upload it to your website. If you use comedy, it might become famous.
- Send consumers and prospects regular emails as part of your email marketing and newsletter strategy. Personalize them.
- Blog creation: Create a blog and post frequently. Share on many websites and vary your content.
- Publish press releases on novel travel deals, etc.
- Paid social media advertisements: Use sites that can help you contact your target audience and run focused ads.
- Use Google AdWords for pay-per-click marketing to rank higher in search results. Do some keyword research beforehand.
- Share client testimonials describing how your services benefited them.
- Create infographics and post them, then use them in your content.