Has the internet become a massive threat and possibly the main cause for the decline in travel agencies?
Many travel agents are disapearing and many have ceased trading, could the internet be the main issue...
What's everyones opinions on this?...
Like public telephone boxes have disappeared from the high street with the growth of personal mobile phones, so too we have seen the demise of the high street travel agent now most people can book online!
If customers want a personal service, then they can either ring a given number or e-mail a request, to the said agency. After all, in the main, most book directly or indirectly with the 2 Major Players in the Market Place.
I think the internet is definitely the biggest issue here as there's such a wide array of options and information available...but, there's also a lot of scams, misleading photos, exaggerated descriptions etc which has actually seen a rise in the desire for travel agents. Also, it's particularly hard to book niche travel online as an independent traveller.
I work with travel agents on a daily basis and there is a significant proportion who are still quite reluctant about maximizing their online potential. I think once the education is given and they can appreciate how beneficial the internet can be for them in reaching a wider market and still being able to offer their service, the travel agent (particularly home based) market can maintain, if not improve, their position!
Pity more home-based travel agents do not offer full money back guarantees that state, If your Accommodations Do Not Meet Your Expectations We will Offer A Full Refund 100%..
That way, anyone placing their business with them would be certain that what was offered was delivered! There are always exceptions to the rule! LOL.. Please form an orderley queue!!
Over the last couple of years more and more people seem to be using online agents as as means of narrowing down their property search before contacting owners direct to make a booking. We even had a case of this recently, where a potential client contacted the property owner and told them they knew the property was available because they had originally found the property advertised with availability on our web site! This owner referred the client back to us, but we can be fairly certain that there will also be many owners who will save themselves the commission and accept the booking direct.This doesn't bode well for travel agents, especially those who work in niche markets, who may be becoming not a lot more than a source of verification and free advertising for the properties they represent. Also, in the face of the growing number of internet holiday scams, agents who advertise and actually inspect the properties they represent just give the 'client' that extra feeling of safety when they then approach the owners direct.call me cynical… :)
Any business that can be delivered at home is under threat from the Internet, Taking Tesco as an example of fresh food internet shopping even local shops are under threat of the web.
To put things simply travel is a mix of 2 types of transaction simple and hard.
Simple: Return flight, 2 weeks holiday to the med is prime internet trade and people are using it (until they have problems). When this first happened it was not too bad as an short haul flight cost money for agents to sell, same with cheap deals but as it grown to cover more expensive flights this start to eat into the agents business. Any agent that could not see this struggled.
Hard. Multi Centre, something out the ordinary this is the area most agent's service and can deal with those customers looking for something the next does not provide or are time poor
Nick Broadland.
Providing the split is manage-able..ie;-60/40..perhaps it does not matter 80/20..makes it interesting
90/10..is probably a lost cause!! Another Fact, that is overlooked is this..prior to the net, we only dealt
Regionally, some times Nationally..Now our Clients are International..perhaps in truth, we need to speak several tongues..
There will always be people who want to book on line and when their company goes bust and they can't get through on the phone will come into a high street agent to try and sort it out. The internet is not going away and I feel there is a shift from people booking on line and coming back to the high street. Some may not agree but I work in an agency and we are having a booming year so far!
JimmysWorld.
Good News!! thats encouraging, 1 read that Club Med Bookings are Up, in double digets!!
Certain there will be a role for Both!!
I think the main reason that agents are failing is that they are trying to compete with the internet rather than find ways to combat it. Everywhere you look online are discounts, save X% and 'we are the cheapest'.
Not everyone wants to book with the cheapest and I think it is the wrong message to send, devaluing everything that the agent does.
We too are busier than we have ever been and looking forward to a great year.
Full Circle Travel
Club Med & Specialist Agents
Good comments. I agree with linzi - agents are in competition with the internet per se, but with certain price-focused players that use it. It has potential for businesses with a service proposition, especially now networks and real-time interaction feature so prominently.
@fctravel, I've just started following you on Twitter. Are you finding it any use in that respect?
Nathan Midgley Web editor, Travel Weekly
Add all this to report that agent market share is up as reported in the Travelweekly.
Agents are about service and trust. So as soon as there are problems agents are still top of the list.
The other point I like to make is "direct" bookings. I ask around people I know who book direct in every case they had not. Use a Travel Agents or Brokers website. Having looked though 5 bookings, 4 where travel agent and one was though a Trade Hotel broker {client though was booking direct with hotel}. I would have expected some to Tour Ops websites and think this was just chance I did not find any. So not really direct and that seems to hold out in surveys. Every single one of these people where shocked one even got me to look at the booking he made before (though an agent).
But we are busy as are most agents I know so we all must be doing something right.
The internet goes so far - but it does not cope with the complexities of individuals and the result is that you can spend a huge amount of time searching to find what you are looking for. And often search criteria simply don't fit with your requirements.
I have just released a beta test site aimed at trying to address some of this - see www.TravelQn.com
Any feedback on the concept/site would be much appreciated.
Toby
PS apologies - realised I'd posted this reply on the wrong 'conversation'
Some interesting points. I agree both have their place. As an agent and homeworker I believe you have to build trust with your clients and highlight your reasons for them spending their money with you. (Financial protection, expertise, experience, product knowledge, no call centres, old fashioned customer service etc) if price is the only issue with the client and they are not bothered about risk or lack of service etc. You move on and concentrate on your loyal clients. Believe in your self worth and see the Internet as a competitor. If you are up for the challenge you will succeed.
I worked for a well known travel agency between 2002-2005- the start of the Internet phenomon, where agents started to compete with the internet. Competing with online providers with price is not a sustainable business model for travel agencies to survive. Service and promoting more reasons to book is the way forward.
I now work on the other side of the fence by enabling travel agencies and tour operators to provide an insurance service to their travellers. Ancilliary products are one of the key factors for enhancing agents propositions. If agents are able to provide something that is tailored to their packages and cannot be found elsewhere including the internet, this could be one of the factors as to why a customer would choose to book with them.
Yes, of course, the internet is a threat to agents (didn't we all agree on that about 10 years ago?).
However, it's clearly not a threat to all agents - only those that have been unable to adapt to the new marketplace. Some agents are making shed loads of cash, though I agree these are mainly the low-cost price-focussed players.
The interesting development in the past few years is in trust. @Nickbroadland says agents are about trust, but the web has given people new ways of developing relationships of trust. You might trust a blogger, your friends on Facebook or an aggregation of 100s of reviews on a site like TripAdvisor.
As Google integrates recommendations from people in your online social circle into its regular search results, you may be able to get travel advice from people you already know and trust. That represents a new threat to agents.
I agree that the proliferation of information online will make many people turn the other way and seek trusted advice. It would be a mistake, however, for high street agents to assume that they will benefit from this. It could a new generation of websites that does this more effectively while maintaining a price advantage.
The Internet is a great source of information. In just a short period of time you can find hundreds of options for your trip. Whether you are looking for a small comfortable chalet in a ski resort or want to book a respectable five-star hotel in the heart of a European capital, you can find them online.
When you are using a travel agent, you will likely pay a little more for your trip. However, you can take advantage of their services which include knowledge of the location, actual accommodation, popular or widespread attractions and up-to-day deals. Plus, they have to inform you of details in the fine print which you may miss if you are booking your trip online.
travel agents have been the key intermediary between travel suppliers and consumers, with information as their primary stock in trade. However, changes to information technology and the advent of the internet have the potential to allow travel suppliers and consumers to interact directly, thus threatening the existence of the traditional travel agent. This paper examines the factors that influence travel consumers' choices between using a travel agent and/or the internet when planning and arranging their overseas holidays.
Yeah its true that Internet is growing day by day. But still travel agents have their own importance. But still when we want to visit some place and book accommodation at that place then we do not totally rely on the information get from the Internet. We do check about the place and accommodation from other people before finalizing anything. It a human nature we love to take suggestion from others in such kind of situations. This problem is can be solved by the travel agents.
Toronto Furnished Apartments
Pamela, The internet is not growing day by day, agents in both the USA are getting a larger and larger share of the market. The internet is in decline in this area.
There is 2 different markets simple and normally low price or complicated and high price, the internet services the simple end well but does not work to well if you wish to visit 3 different countries and 11 different cities in 2 weeks. This is where for now agents excel.
Yes, for me, it could be! Based from my experience, I prefer to the internet when I inquire tickets. I can view what's the cheapest and less stress in going somewhere to go travel agencies. The good thing is no more service charge.
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Many travel agencies are now making business in both offline and online. One example is petas.gr that is a new site made by a traditional office operated more than 30 years in travel.
The worst problem for Co-op and Cook's is the damn First Choice and Thomson pricematches. Our comm levels are soooo low with the other big 2, after discount we barely make £10 and thats if we're lucky!
Although I have found introducing FlexiTrips to Co-op has made the internet alot easier to tackle, by most bookings only being a couple of quid difference to the web! Its brilliant :) Provided people dont mind travelling with EasyJet :D
Hi there according to me internet is playing a significant role in promoting the travel agencies through online they are making the work to book tickets simple thanks alot................
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I would defiantly get a travel agent they know what they are doing, and if this is your first time flying you should totally consider it.
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