Agents and airline ticket buyers, pay attention: There’s money to be made for agents and there are deals to be had for ticket-buying passengers.
“Ten years ago most leisure travel sellers gave up on the idea of making money on air tickets. Although most continued to sell air, and some began charging fees, few believed there would ever be money to make in air again,” writes Dori Saltzman in Travel Market Report. She adds:
“Suddenly, there’s a whole lot of airline money on the table for leisure agencies.”
In addition to agents, these deals can benefit tickers buyers who may get even better prices.
Companies launching air programs include American Marketing Group, Vacation.com and Ensemble Travel Group, she says.
Airline programs operated by agency marketing groups almost always have agreements in place with a varying number of international carriers. These programs usually provide upfront commissions to member agencies booking with partner airlines.
Some programs, such as Ensemble Group Travel’s also provide net rates.
Bruce Bishins. CEO of ARTA Canada, said that it is a real challenge to get travel agents to change their behavior when it comes to booking airlines, particularly because air more than any other travel product is often determined by clients and geographic routing.
According to research by the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA), approximately 25 percent of an average agency’s total volume comes from booking air.
By David Wilkening
