An overview of key benchmarking data for travel agency business planning.

1. MAKING TOUGH
BUSINESS DECISIONS
Indispensable Research for Measuring
Travel Agency Success
Presented by
2014 Benchmarking Research Highlights
December 2014

2. Table of CONTENTS
1. Introduction: GROWING Your Bottom Line in 2015
Successful travel agents have always been passionate about their
work. But today’s climate demands more than passion. To thrive in
2015, retail travel professionals need to make tough business
decisions based in up-to-the-minute business intelligence.
2. The Bottom Line: PROFITABILITY
3. The PRODUCTIVITY Equation
4. Sales Focus: Where’s your SWEET SPOT?
5. GETTING PAID By Suppliers
6. GETTING SMART About Fees
7. Is SOCIAL MEDIA paying o?
8. Making Money ONLINE: Travel Agency Sales via the Web
9. The COSTS of Doing Business
10. Getting Paid: HOW MUCH Do Agents Earn?
11. GDS Trends: USAGE REVENUES
12. DEFINITIONS Methodology

3. Introduction: GROWING Your Bottom Line in 2015
To support travel agents in their success, Travel Market Report has partnered with ASTA to deliver the
agency industry’s latest, most-relevant research.
We have what no one else has: exclusive, must-have data on what you need to know to be successful.
This report details 10 key business metrics drawn from ASTA’s 2014 Travel Agency Benchmarking Series.
Each benchmark sheds light on a critical aspect of travel agency profitability, including:
1 Agency profit margins 6 Social media ROI
2 Frontline agent productivity 7 Online sales
3 Sales by segment 8 Operating expenses
4 Supplier commission levels 9 Agent compensation
5 Trends in service fees 10 GDS usage and costs
In the pages that follow, you’ll also find links to ASTA tools and resources, along with links to Travel
Market Report stories providing the kind of news and commentary, advice and analysis that you won’t
find anywhere else.
It’s all designed to give travel agents the indispensable tools, insights and information they need to grow
their profits in 2015.
Like most industries today, the travel agency business is dynamic, fast-moving and subject to external
and internal forces that can feel overwhelming.
In this environment, the pathway to continued success is to adopt an eyes-wide-open stance, stay open
to change and maintain a keen focus on the business basics that will drive profits and keep your
customers coming back for more. The information in this report promises to guide you along the way.
Voice of the Travel Professional
About
The Research
A NOTE ABOUT ASTA’S BENCHMARKING SERIES
ASTA’s Travel Agency Benchmarking Series is a collection of detailed
research-based reports available as a benefit of membership. The benchmarking
reports give ASTA agents access to key data that they can use to measure their
business practices and results against those of their peers.
1

4. All
Agencies
Independent
Agent (incl. ICs)
Retail Leisure
Agency (70%+)
Corporate
Agency (70%+)
The Bottom Line: PROFITABILITY
8%
More travel agencies enjoyed solid profit margins in 2014 than in recent
memory. Nearly nine in ten––88%––expect to register a profit when
they crunch the year’s numbers. And most anticipate stronger returns
in 2015. But while agents’ average profit margin will be a healthy 9% in
2014, many agencies still exist on the
edges of profitability. What will you do
in 2015 to grow your agency’s margins
and secure your future?
Learn
More
ASTA
Agency Sales Revenue Trends
Travel Market Report
A Business Action Plan for Your Agency
8 Tips for Building a Profitable Niche
“Most travel agencies have successfully
evaluated their product mix over the past
few years, determined where they excel,
and adjusted their sales focus to maintain
long-term profitability. ASTA members
are bullish about a continued increase in
profits for 2015.”
Zane Kerby, ASTA
Average Agency Profits by Business Model: 2012-2015
2015
Forecast
2014
Projected
2013
Revised
2012
8%
7%
8%
7%
6%
8%
8%
7%
8%
7%
10%
10%
10%
9%
10%
2

5. The PRODUCTIVITY Equation
Average Sales Revenues* per Frontline Agent
$388,684
$47,502
$714,077
$90,717
$1,119,155
$90,713
Running a profitable travel agency requires keeping close tabs on
your sales-to-revenue ratio in addition to total volume. While the
productivity of frontline agents is obviously
key, other factors come into play. In managed
corporate travel, high technology expenses
coupled with the need to contain clients’
travel costs exert downward pressure on
agencies’ bottom lines. For leisure agencies, a
focus on customer service aects agents’
sales productivity, making it essential to
charge appropriate service fees.
“In today’s highly competitive
retail travel arena, success
means much more than simply
making the sale. Top travel
professionals must have a solid
grasp of the business-profit
angle behind every transaction.”
Libbie Rice, Ensemble Travel Group
Footnotes
* Revenues include: commissions, overrides, markups, transaction or service fees, GDS incentives and “other.”
Learn
More
ASTA
Travel Agent's Management Toolkit
Travel Market Report
Want To Boost Sales? Take a Tip from Improv Theater
Restaurants Oer Valuable Lessons on Profitability
Avg Annual Sales
per Fulltime Agent
Avg Annual Revenue
per Fulltime Agent
Independent Agent (incl. ICs) Retail Leisure Agency (70%+) Corporate Agency (70%+)
3

6. Sales Focus: Where’s your SWEET SPOT?
Ever since leisure travel agents stopped focusing on selling air travel,
tours and packages have been their single largest product segment,
followed by cruise. Tour and package sales first surpassed air sales as
a percentage of leisure agents’ business in 2005. For corporate
agents, airlines sales still predominate. The most
successful agencies are deliberate about their
sales focus. They weigh factors such as consumer
demand, changing supplier distribution tactics
and their own passions, then write a business plan
and review it annually. Is your product mix the
most profitable it could be? If not, perhaps it’s
time to update your business plan.
Footnotes
*Other includes travel insurance, services such as passport photos, and merchandising, such as luggage
sales, etc.
Percentages are averages, based on agents’ projected sales for 2014.
Learn
More
ASTA
Business Plans
Sales and Marketing Course
Travel Market Report
Surf Or Turf? Move Into Selling Tours
Cruise Agents Embrace All-Inclusives
Overall
23% 26% 11% 3% 33% 5%
Independent Agent (incl. ICs)
16% 27% 13% 4% 35% 6%
Retail Leisure Agency (70%+)
19% 29% 8% 3% 37% 5%
Corporate Agency (70%+)
61% 8% 15% 6% 9% 1%
Airline Cruise Hotel Car rental Tour/Packages Other*
“Cruise has always been my
bread and butter, but recently
tours have jumped from 5% to
30% of my business. There’s
an explosion of people
wanting in-depth experiences.”
Michelle Duncan, Odyssey Travel
Share of Sales per Segment in 2014
4

7. GETTING PAID By Suppliers
7%
5%
37%
8%
4%
36%
15%
12%
95%
10% 10%
90%
15%
12%
90%
As supplier commission levels fluctuate, agents need to track the
trends, paying close attention to their own commission earnings as
well as to the big picture. What products and services are likely to
yield the highest returns over the long-term? Are certain segments or
suppliers pulling away from the travel agency
distribution channel? Is it time to redirect your
sales eorts? As Nolan Burris of Future Proof
Travel Solutions says, “Agencies must take charge
of their own financial future and not place it in the
hands of a disinterested group of shareholders.”
Learn
More
6%
5%
81%
Average
Commission
Median
Commission
% of Agencies That
Report Receiving
Commissions
“Advisors will choose the
products they represent and
sell more than ever before.
Suppliers are taking note of
that. We are advisors, rather
than agents, and that
distinction grows every day.”
ASTA
Commission Resources in ASTA’s E-Library
Travel Market Report
Selling Cruises: Does It Still Pay?
How to Boost Your Commissions on Cruise Sales
Selling Travel Insurance: A Missed Opportunity for Agents?
Colleen Gillette, New Paltz Travel
Commisson Levels by Segment
5% 5%
56%
20%
21%
86%
Travel Insurance Cruises Tours Hotel Air-Corporate Agencies Air-Leisure Agencies Car Rental Rail
5

8. Tour packages
$41 Cruises
Air- corporate
Air-leisure
Booking ancillary services
Most travel agents stopped giving away their services years ago.
Today the majority of ASTA agents charge fees when booking air and
rail travel and when planning FIT vacations. More than four in ten
charge for hotel-only bookings and for air-inclusive packages. The
most striking recent development is a trend
toward charging fees when booking cruises. More
than one in five agents (21%) now charges an
average of $41 to plan a cruise, and the number of
agents who charge for cruise is growing.
Agents have steadily increased the dollar amount
they charge too—up from a median fee of $25 for
air bookings in 2005 to $38 in 2013.
Agents reserve their highest fees for their FIT
trip-planning services, charging an average $118.
Their lowest average fee is $20 for
car-only bookings.
Learn
More
ASTA
Travel Agency Consultancy Fee Course
Travel Market Report
To Reduce Your Risk, Charge Fees
Don’t Gamble With Your Bottom Line
“Do something worth paying for
and charge for it. If you have
taken the time to get to know
someone as a person—their
likes, dislikes, desires, dreams,
the reasons behind their
trip—you’re doing much more
for them than the booking. Fees
are for all the wonderful things
you do for your customers.”
Nolan Burris, Future Proof Travel Solutions
GETTING SMART About Fees
Average Fee by Travel Type % of Agencies that Charge a Fee
61%
23%
42%
21%
70%
88%
20%
45%
64%
16%
36%
$118
$53
$20
$33
$31
$54
$28
$39
$38
$28
Trip planning (FIT)
Air-inclusive packages
Shore excursions
Accommodations only
Rail tickets
Car only
6

9. % of Agencies Using Social Media
68%
76%
Are you wasting time on social media? Despite steady growth in
travel agents’ social media presence, it’s still tough to see a tangible
ROI. Fully 30% of agents active on social media say they derive zero
revenue from their eorts, and 80% say their time online yields just
five or fewer new client leads monthly. But a
growing number are finding a payo. For 13%,
social media activity now generates upwards of
20% of revenues. You need to have a plan, commit
to spending the time, follow through, then track
your results.
Learn
More
ASTA
Social Media Webinars
Travel Market Report
4 Ways to Avoid Sabotaging Your Social Media Eorts
3 Keys to Measuring ROI on Social Media Marketing
Is Social Media Pulling You O-Course?
“People naturally want to buy
from people they trust. Online
you build trust by answering
questions, networking and
oering valuable information
to your target customers.”
Sophie Bujold, social media strategist
Is SOCIAL MEDIA paying o?
55%
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
Use
Social Media
Do Not Use
Social Media
53%
72%
45%
47%
74%
32%
28% 26%
80% 79%
24%
20% 21%
% of Revenue Derived from Social Media
0%
Revenue
1-4%
Revenue
5-10%
Revenue
10-15%
Revenue
20+%
Revenue
30%
29%
26%
2%
13%
Agency
Breakdown
7

10. Making Money ONLINE: Travel Agency Sales via the Web
Agency Revenue Earned via Online Tools* Online Customer Requests for Assistance
22%
18%
Sales booked via travel agency websites have risen slowly but remain
relatively low. For the 34% of travel agencies that oer an online
booking tool, those tools generate an average 10% of revenues.
Corporate agencies earn the most via
online tools. For service-oriented
leisure agencies and independent
agents, branded websites are more
eective at spurring online requests
for assistance, which agents then
service directly and convert to sales.
These online requests yield 18% of
revenues for independent agents and
16% for retail leisure agencies.
Footnotes
*Base: Agencies with online booking tools
Learn
More
27%
16%
16%
For most agents, online bookings are
not necessarily a big factor, but online
shopping is critical. Website content is
key. A combination of unique content
about the agency’s expertise and value,
plus supplier content and an easy call to
action, provides a robust, content-rich
shopping experience. This is proving to
be a highly successful online and oine
sales scenario.
ASTA
Sales and Marketing Course
Travel Market Report
Building Agency Websites That Work in a 2.0 World
Marilyn Macallair, Passport Online
9%
of
Total Revenue
12%
Total Revenue
of
12%
Total Revenue
of
Retail Leisure Agency (70%+)
Corporate Agency (70%+)
Independent Agent (incl. ICs)
Independent Agent
(incl. ICs)
Retail Leisure Agency
8%
Corporate Agency
(70%+)
% of Total Requests via Agency Website
% of Total Revenue Generated From Online
Requests for Assistance
8

11. 2%
13%
60%
5%
4%
2%
5%
40%
2%
All Respondents Independent Agent (incl. ICs)
2% 2%
Retail Leisure Agency (70%+) Corporate Agency (70%+)
Other*
Oce supplies and equipment
Telephone, fax, Internet
Travel and entertainment
Advertising and promotion
Rent/mortgage
Outside contractors (travel agents)
Salaries and benefits (employees/management)
The COSTS of Doing Business
For all types of travel agencies, labor costs are the single largest
operating expense by far, accounting for 70% of costs. Rent or
mortgage payments constitute agencies’ second-largest expense.
Other categories of expenditures vary by type of agency. For instance,
leisure agencies and independent agents spend more on advertising
and promotion than corporate agencies, while corporate agencies
spend more on salaries. Independent agents spend a significantly
bigger chunk on travel and
entertainment, presumably because
they do not enjoy the supplier perks
available to higher-volume agencies.
For all agencies, keeping a watchful eye
on operating costs is critical.
Learn
More
“In good times and bad, the travel
agencies that survive and prosper are
those that are tenacious about routing
out unnecessary expenditures.”
ASTA
Travel Agent's Management Toolkit
Travel Market Report
5 Business Lessons We Learned in 2013
Put Outsourcing to Work for Your Home-Based Agency
Dr. Robert W. Joselyn, CTC, TAMS
Average % of Operating Expenses
Footnotes
*Other includes non-travel contractors, training, utilities, dues fees, automotive, insurance, rebates, GDS
payments, postage, agent error, bad debt, etc.
10%
15%
10%
2%
7%
11%
7% 7%
5%
1%
2% 10%
2% 2%
2% 2%
17%
12% 11%
55% 74%
9

12. Getting Paid: HOW MUCH Do Agents Earn?
Starting travel agent with
limited experience
Paying competitive salaries has long been a challenge in the travel
agency industry, making it dicult to attract and retain talented travel
sellers. With profit margins thin, owners and managers need to get
creative, providing non-monetary rewards and perks that show
employees they are valued while giving
them opportunities to grow. Some
agencies find that paying a mix of
salary and commission is the best solution.
Learn
More
13% Commission Only
“Compensation is important, but it is not
the only factor in finding the right balance
for employees. Young talent coming into
the industry value flexibility in work
schedules and having access to a strong
mentor. More seasoned talent value work
flexibility more than compensation.”
ASTA
Salary Tool
Travel Market Report
How to Avoid a Stang Crisis
6 Tips for Attracting Retaining Top Leisure Agents
Finding Keeping Young Agents
Nicole Mazza, TRAVELSAVERS
Travel Agent Compensation*
AVERAGE
Corporate Agency
AVERAGE
Retail Leisure Agency
MAXIMUM
All Respondents
Managerial position with
sales responsibilities
AVERAGE
All Respondents
Footnotes
*Compensation includes salaries, commissions
and bonuses for fulltime agents
Agent Pay Packages
30% Salary and Commission Mix
58% Salary Only
Managerial position without
sales responsibilities
$21,915
$40,000
$21,906 $25,643
$42,026
$115,000
$40,528
$56,753
$34,012
$137,527
$32,771
$45,157
$44,970
$175,000
$42,629
$63,671
Travel agent
10

13. GDS Trends: USAGE REVENUES
GDS: Cost Center or Revenue Source? Agency GDS Usage
in 2014
Overall
Independent Agent (incl. ICs)
Retail Leisure Agency (70%+)
Corporate Agency (70%+)
Independent Agent (incl. ICs)
Overall
Retail Leisure Agency (70%+)
Corporate Agency (70%+)
50%
Travel agency usage of GDSs has dropped steadily in the last 15 years,
with much of that decline linked to the growth of independent agents
and ICs. Fully 80% of retail leisure agencies still rely on GDSs, and 100%
of corporate agencies do so. But it’s primarily high-volume corporate
agencies that make money from GDS
incentive payments. For many leisure
agencies, GDSs are an expense. Agents
should take a hard look at their GDS
contracts, negotiate aggressively and
consider all their options.
Learn
More
67% 33%
42% 58%
80% 20%
100%
Use a GDS Do not use a GDS
“The shift away from the GDSs to various
online and app-derived solutions is
clearly seen in the booking trends.”
ASTA
ASTA’s E-Library Content on GDS
Travel Market Report:
GDSs Support New DOT Rules
Looking Back With Travel Market Report, Technology
Richard Eastman, The Eastman Group
Footnotes
Base: GDS Users
*Net equals GDS credits/incentive income minus GDS fees/charges.
7%
14%
54%
43%
39%
27%
25%
29%
16%
5%
9%
4%
15%
10%
4%
6%
6%
8%
14%
17%
$20,000 or more
$10,000 - $19,999
$5,000 - $9,999
$1-$4,999
$0
-$1 or less (owe money)
Net Impact*on Agency: GDS Costs Incentives
11

14. DEFINITIONS Methodology
This report dierentiates among three types of agencies:
• Independent Agent (Including ICs): One-person agency has no employees and may or may not
be hosted.
• Retail Leisure Agency: Agency has employees and derives 70% or more of its sales volume from
leisure travel.
• Corporate Agency: Agency has employees and derives 70% or more of its sales volume from
corporate travel.
The data in this report are drawn from ASTA’s Travel Agency Benchmarking Series, including:
• ASTA Agency – Demographics of ASTA members including sales and type of agents.
• Financial Benchmarking Report – Benchmarking data on sales, revenue sources, revenue by
type of travel, and operational expenses.
• GDS Report – Trends in GDS usage, contract lengths, contract negotiations, and
incentives/penalties and information on non-GDS users.
• Labor and Compensation Report – Detailed data on compensation and benefits by region and
agency size and type, plus turnover rates and hiring practices.
• Service Fee Report – Data on average service fees by travel type, service fee policies, service
fee collections, service fee revenue and consulting fees.
• Supplier-Travel Agent Relationship Marketing Report – Analysis of preferred supplier
relationships, booking channels and eectiveness of incentive programs.
• Technology and Web Usage Report – Examines business practices related to agencies’ Internet
usage, technology usage, agency websites and online bookings.
The Travel Agency Benchmarking reports are based on survey data collected through the ASTA
Research Family. The ASTA Research Family is a panel comprised of a representative sample of ASTA
member travel agency owners and managers. The Research Family reflects ASTA members in key
agency demographics including sales volume, leisure/business mix, number of part-time and full-time
employees and geographic location.
The size of the Research Family ranges from 300 to 465 responses per survey. Survey size varies due to
non-response, agency closings, mergers, and changes in membership status, but is designed to yield a
response representative of all ASTA agency members.
Learn
More
Additional research resources can be found on ASTA’s Research Program page.
Custom breakouts of data are available as a custom research request.
For further information, contact Melissa Teates, Director of Research at ASTA, at
mteates@asta.org.
12

15. www.travelmarketreport.com