Travel News Weekly - 16 June 2010

Page 1

Southern Africa’s Travel News Weekly

June 16 2010 I No. 2111

! # # "

" " #

"

" $ ! "

INSIDE

TRAVEL NEWS WEEKLY

TNW3947SD

See TNW’s ITC feature on page 4

News

feature

GAUTRAIN OPENS

Airline Alliances

Hard times drive airline consolidation

World-class transport for SA Page 2

Page 9

An ITC explosion! Natalia Thomson

M

ETEORIC growth – that’s how the expansion of the home-based retail agency model, or Independent Travel Consultant (ITC) model can only be described. A recent survey released by the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) shows that the homebased model is the only area where retail travel is experiencing growth in the United States. According to the report, the percentage of home-based agencies in the US grew by 312% from 2003 to 2010. This is in comparison with the 27% decline in retail location agencies and 6% decline in number of office location agencies during the same period. In SA, while there are no figures indicating how fast this part of the retail sector is growing, their high enquiry-to-sales conversion rates, experience and entrepreneurial spirit have prompted suppliers to take notice of their contribution to their bottom line, giving them access to great rates. In an exclusive TNW ITC survey run recently, most of the ITCs polled said they had been consulting for more than 13 years. Some 30% actually said they had 20 years or more experience. “ITCs certainly have vast knowledge about travel and their clients’ needs. They have a following of loyal clients

TNW3855SD

who believe they are the best person for the job,� says Qantas manager Africa, Michi Messner. Air Holidays’ David Wood agrees. “I often find ITCs more knowledgeable as they are senior consultants with experience.� It is this knowledge, says Robyn Christie, Asata ceo, that makes them ideal to use as mentors and trainers in the industry. Robyn admits ITCs are an “important part� of the supply chain but says efforts to incorporate them under the Asata umbrella have been fraught with “complexities�. “We object to the current situation where head offices attain Asata membership and share Asata resources and information with their ITCs when these are not Asata members. “This is why we have introduced a model specifically for ITCs so Asata is working with ITC host companies to resolve the situation.�

Experience spells success

Sealing the deal appears to be no problem for South African ITCs. Some 43% of ITCs polled in the TNW ITC survey say their conversion rate from enquiries to sales is between 81% and 100%. A further 30% claim they have a conversion rate of 61% to 80%. This, says Will Puk, director Travel Counsellors South Africa, is because ITCs’ interaction with their clients is not transactional. Rather their interactions are

based on their relationship with clients. “Once they get to this relationship level, they tend to get better conversion rates.â€? ITCs have a set customer base, adds Jonathan Gerber, Travel Assignment Group md. “Their customers are typically not phoning around to get the best price. They know they’re going to buy travel from their ITC.â€? ASTA’s recent research shows that many small to mid-sized agencies are either moving to a home-based model or considering it for financial savings. “The term ITC could refer as effectively to ‘Independent Travel Consultant’ as it can to ‘Independent Travel Company’,â€? says Jonathan. ITCs typically make the move from a traditional retail environment as they’re looking for flexible working hours and the opportunity to work for themselves. At least 47% of those consultants polled also said they wanted to earn a better salary. But choosing to move is not a decision taken lightly. Some 32% of consultants polled said they were concerned they wouldn’t be able to pay the bills and 20% were worried they wouldn’t have any clients. David Bradshaw, Travel Vision sales and marketing director, believes the ITC model in South Africa will continue to grow: “ITCs are passionate about their work. We see more consultants taking the ITC route.â€? â–

Bitten by the 2010 bug! Never a dull moment at Pentravel Garden Route while 2010 football fever is in the air. Strutting their soccer stuff are (back from left)Â Ursula Marais, Mardi Barnard and Schanel Chomse with (front from left) Nicole Coetzer and Janene Britz

New Mozambique security tax introduced Kate Els THE Mozambique Airports Authority (MAA) has introduced a new security tax for passengers departing from Mozambique, with immediate effect.

The tax is charged at US$3/R31 per person on the VNX-Johannesburg routing. Security tax is already being charged on all island flights as well, in addition to the standard domestic departure taxes. â–


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.