Survey Finds Home Based Travel Agents Are Profitable

Today's North America home based travel agents earned profits last year and expect an even better year ahead in 2007. They sell more cruises than any other travel product, and more than half have their own websites. They attend travel agent shows, but they want even more training opportunities.

That's a snapshot of the findings in the 2006 year-end survey of home based travel agents in North America conducted by the Outside Sales Support Network (OSSN). Distributed by OSSN and Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) , the survey attracted 1,826 respondents, making it the largest annual study of the home based travel agent market.

Here's a quick rundown of the survey results:
Home based agents have matured into a very established travel distribution channel. Two in five respondents (41.5 percent) have operated as home based travel sellers for at least five years, and more than half (52.6 percent) reported that selling travel is a full-time job.

Nearly half (45.9 percent) ended 2006 with sales of more than $100,000, and one in four (25.4 percent) broke through the quarter-million-dollar mark. Nearly a third (29.3 percent) said their sales increased by more than 20 percent last year over their 2005 totals.

In the end, more than seven in 10 home-based agents (76 percent) reported that they "enjoyed the travel industry more" in 2006 than the previous year. At-home agents focus on travel products and niches that generate higher earnings. Three out of four respondents (76.1 percent) have developed cruise sales as a niche for their businesses. Other popular sales areas include tours (31.6 percent), family travel (27.4 percent), senior travel (14.9 percent) and hotel reservations (13.0 percent).

Three in five agents (60.4 percent) said they earn more profits from selling cruises than from selling tours. At-home agents also are focused on growing their home based travel businesses: Nearly eight in 10 respondents (77.2 percent) have set new goals for 2007 and attended trade shows in 2006 to hone their skills (78.6 percent).

Home based travel agents have grown savvier in their sales and marketing efforts, but they want even more training and support from suppliers and host agencys. Three out of five surveyed agents (60 percent) now have their own websites. Four out of five surveyed agents (83 percent) believe that most travel suppliers have added resources and support programs to help home-based travel businesses succeed. However, 24 percent said they still need more training opportunities, and 54.4 percent identified other types of training and marketing support they wish to see from suppliers in 2007