A sneak peek at Host Agency Reviews' (HAR) annual travel advisor survey reveals glimmers of hope for the industry. A key highlight: The majority of travel advisors intend to go back to selling travel as a primary source of income.
According to HAR's preliminary data, 29 percent of respondents reported they stopped selling travel as a primary source of income during COVID. Of those, 74 percent indicated that they intend to go back selling as a primary source of income. Nineteen percent said that they were unsure, but just seven percent said they will not go back to selling travel full time.
HAR's survey found other trends, too. The 2021 research found that of the advisors who did not charge fees in 2020 many will begin to. Thirty-five percent reported they will implement fees in the next 12 months. Average booking rates were $4,334, and 65 percent of the advisors who completed HAR's survey were hosted.
For the first time, HAR asked travel advisors if they switched hosts. Findings showed that advisors were mostly loyal to their host agencies. Preliminary data indicated that 11 percent of hosted advisors reported switching hosts in 2020. Most of those advisors that did switch did so during COVID, at 65 percent. Interestingly, however, HAR found that zero listed COVID as an explicit reason for making the change.
HAR will release the complete results during the month of September.
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