In Europe and America, people have long been refusing the services of large agencies and companies in favor of independent consultants. Similar trends are observed in our country.
Becoming a tour operator is an opportunity to create an excellent launching pad for the further development of your own business.
What attracts people to this work? High salaries, constant travel... To many, the life of a travel agent seems like a real fairy tale. But at the same time, almost no one dares to take any decisive steps towards fulfilling their dreams. Don't want to be one of them? Then this article is for you!
Step 1. Training
If you are interested in how to become a tour operator, you first need to figure out where and how you will undergo training.
There are two options here: regular colleges and universities, as well as special operator training schools.
The first option is attractive because you will study in depth all disciplines related to tourism and hospitality and gain a huge base of theoretical knowledge. However, it will take several years to complete the entire course of study. Alternative – distance learning. Actually, in the very educational institution you will appear 2-3 times a year, and the rest of the time you can use to prepare the ground for further work.
If you want to get maximum useful practical information and start working as soon as possible, it would be more logical to sign up for special school operator training. Here you will learn how to become a tour operator, get a general understanding of tourist destinations, sales and booking systems, marketing, etc.
Step 2: Obtain Certification
Working as a tour operator is impossible without obtaining certification. For your future clients, this will be proof of your competence and deep knowledge of the specifics of your activity. Consequently, they will trust you much more.
As a rule, appropriate certificates can be obtained at the place of study. But some people turn to CLIA International, which offers well-known and respected certification programs in the travel industry.
Step 3. Obtaining a license
If you want to have your own travel agency, it is better to register your business on entity(CJSC, LLC, etc.). But for those who want to become a travel agent (that is, an intermediary between a travel agency and its clients), it will be enough to register as an individual entrepreneur - PBOYUL. To obtain a license, you will need to pay a state fee of 1,300 rubles.
You should be aware that the sales license and pre-booking of air travel are issued separately. Certification conditions are dictated by Federal Aviation Regulations. In this case, they are presented certain requirements to the premises, personnel, security and reservation systems. If you intend to sell not only travel packages, but also air tickets, you will need to enter into an agreement with the airline and obtain this certificate.
When deciding to become a travel agent, it is very important to choose the right OKVED codes. The most commonly used code is 63.30 - “Activities of travel agencies.” In addition, it is advisable to apply for inclusion in the All-Russian Register of Travel Agencies.
Step 4. Selecting a tour operator company
Perhaps this is the most important stage. A travel agent can independently choose which of the many operators to cooperate with. When choosing, you should take into account the size of the remuneration, the company’s reputation in the market and ease of work.
An important question that almost everyone who is interested in becoming a travel agent faces is: “Where to look for these same operators?” The easiest way to do this is by visiting specialized tourism fairs, exhibitions, etc. It is best to “catch your luck” in Moscow, where similar events are held annually (MITT, MITF, Intourmarket, Otdykh). Hundreds of representatives gather here various companies and organizations. As they say, there is plenty to choose from. In addition, you can visit similar regional exhibitions.
A variety of conferences and fairs are also held in workshop format by professional tourism publications (“Tour Business”, “Banco”, “Tourinfo”, consulting group Travel Expert, etc.). The atmosphere at a workshop is usually calmer and more business-like than at exhibitions. There are more opportunities to meet partners, discuss important issues and get ready for work.
Step 5. Conclusion of an agreement
But now we get to the most important thing. How to become a travel agent? Once you have decided on the choice of tour operator, you will need to sign an agency agreement. According to the terms of such a document, you will receive a reward for each tour sold. The size of the reward may vary, but on average it is about 10-15% of the cost of the tour itself. If in the future you establish yourself well in the eyes of the tour operator and successfully sell tours, the percentage you receive from each transaction may increase.
In addition, partners of travel agencies that are part of agency networks (for example, Kuda.ru or the Last Minute Travel Chain of stores) receive an increased commission. Due to powerful corporate support, agencies that are part of such networks (which, by the way, are not so easy to get into) have the opportunity to deduct a fairly large percentage of their income.
Step 6. Advertising
Let's say you have already found a suitable company and entered into an agreement. Done: now you are a tour operator in Italy, France, Greece or Russia. It would seem that everything is going well, but... But no, for some reason in a few weeks you managed to sell only a few trips. And then to my friends. This is where the lack of advertising of your services comes into play.
First of all, we would recommend that you pay attention to the numerous publications, catalogs and applications that publish tourism advertising. Of course, standing out among hundreds and thousands of other offers is not easy. Therefore, first of all, you need to decide on your target audience.
“Seeing the world” is one of the most persistent human desires. If we are not talking about a sofa TV show, then why not give people joy by making your own business out of it? Is it difficult to open a travel agency, where to start? Let's try to figure it out.
The good thing about tourism business is that you can open a travel agency with minimal investment and without work experience. The activity is not licensed, so you do not need to obtain any permits. At the same time, competition in the travel business is high, and the demand for travel agency services in a crisis naturally falls. The population prefers to save rather than spend. How to open tourist agency from scratch in such difficult times and make it profitable?
According to the Russian Union of Travel Industry, in 2015, demand for mass outbound destinations fell by 30-60%. The reason is the decline in purchasing power of Russians. Because of latest events In the world, experts predict a large subsidence in the following directions: Egypt, Türkiye, France.
Tourism business: who is who
If the decision to open a travel agency has been made, it is first worth studying industry legislation. The legal side of the tourism business is regulated by Law No. 132-FZ of November 24, 1996 “On the fundamentals of tourism activities in the Russian Federation.”
According to the document, tourism can be international (inbound and outbound) and domestic, and tourism services are provided by tour operators and travel agents.
Tour operators- legal entities that independently develop tourism products (tours), promote and sell them. The mission of the operators is for the tourist to see Paris and... return home safely. Therefore, the law obliges them to have financial support in the form of a bank guarantee or insurance. All tour operators operating in accordance with the law are included in the Unified Federal Register, and those working to organize outbound travel must also be members of the relevant associations.
Travel agents- legal entities or individual entrepreneurs who are the link between the tourist and the tour operator. This party sells tours designed by tour operators and earns commissions. Relations between tour operators and travel agents are regulated by agency agreements, which stipulate the amount of remuneration - 5-16% of the cost of the sold tour.
The responsibilities of a travel agent are listed in the agency agreement and typically include:
- informing about tourism products and selecting tours according to the wishes of clients;
- preparation and issuance of tour documents to tourists (tickets, accommodation voucher, insurance, memo about the specifics of the route, visas);
- guarantee of reservation of all services.
We open a travel agency from scratch: we take into account experience and financial capabilities
A travel agency may exist in different forms. It all depends on starting capital and the swing of a novice entrepreneur. Be realistic about your capabilities, but be optimistic.
You can go one of four ways:
The initial investment when opening a franchise travel agency is 150,000-450,000 rubles. depending on the size of the city, and they can be repaid in the first six months of operation. Main disadvantage- setting by the franchisor unrealistic sales plans, especially for the starting period. Therefore, you need to either choose a partner who does not assign plans, or change the terms of the contract.
How to open a travel agency: step-by-step instructions
So, what does it take to open a travel agency?
- Registration. A travel agency can operate both as a legal entity and as an individual entrepreneur. It is easier for an individual entrepreneur to register, use the earnings for personal purposes and cease activities. This option is ideal for home-based travel agencies. In other cases, it is preferable to open an LLC - the level of trust in companies in Russia is traditionally higher than in individual entrepreneurs.
When choosing a tax system, you should focus on the simplified tax system with the object “income” (6% rate).
- Office organization. For a travel agency, a premises (own or rented) with an area of 15-20 m2 is sufficient. The office should be bright and comfortable, have a telephone line and the Internet. You will need to make repairs, decorate the premises thematically, buy furniture, office equipment, and stationery. There must be space on the façade of the building to accommodate external advertising.
The location of the travel agency is important. The preferred accommodation option is in a shopping center or business center, in an area with high business activity. It’s good if kindergartens, schools, beauty salons are located near the office - usually it is women who initiate the trip and collect all the information about the tours.
- Software. Information on tours can be searched on the websites of tour operators or in specialized search engines - Internet resources whose databases consolidate information on most tour operators. Such systems provide travel agencies with the most complete picture of current offers. The use is paid, but significantly saves time.
The most famous are the following search engines: TOURINDEX (www.tourindex.ru), “Ehat” (www.exat.ru) and “TURY.ru” (www.tury.ru).
- Choosing a direction of work. This is a key point for starting, on which the further strategy when starting a business depends.
You may prefer the following tourist destinations:
personally known and verified;
matching the specialization of potential employees;
promising and fashionable types tourism (eco-tours, beach holiday, extreme, etc.).
You should choose a niche where it will be interesting to work. All subsequent organizational stages will depend on the decision made at this step: recruitment of personnel, selection of tour operators for cooperation, search for effective channels for advertising.
- Website creation. Before creating/ordering a website, you should decide what function it will perform: representational (a regular business card website), informational with the ability to search for tours or an online store. The optimal solution in terms of the ratio between price and efficiency, the second option is.
- Selection of employees. This is one of the main problems when opening tourism business. Finding a professional with his own client base who knows how to work with people is difficult. Such specialists are rare and expensive, but investing in them pays off, so you shouldn’t skimp on remuneration. Wages Tour sales managers are traditionally calculated: salary and percentage of sales.
Employees need to be developed: thematic trainings, seminars, regular study tours to selected countries increase the effectiveness of managers.
You can save money on an accountant, especially in the first year of work. For small sales volumes, the businessman himself can handle accounting and reporting using specialized free online services.
- Selecting tour operator partners. You can enter into contracts with several tour operators at the same time. For each chosen destination, it is worth concluding agreements with several operators in order to satisfy all possible requests of tourists regarding arrival dates, hotel level, etc.
When searching for potential partners, you can use the federal register, where all legally operating tour operators are listed, as well as professional ratings, reviews in specialized Internet resources, tourist guides and other sources.
Main selection criteria:
the tour operator operates in key tourist destinations;
popularity of the tour operator, positive image, degree of reliability;
conditions offered to the travel agent (amount of agency remuneration, frequency of its increase, price offers for tours, etc.).
- Advertising. You need to use all available channels with high efficiency.
They work well: business cards in the checkout area of supermarkets, competent promotion of your own website, useful and beautiful handouts (calendars, metro maps, brochures and books), information on forums and social networks, announcements on information stands in elevators and entrances, preparation of joint broadcasts/publications with local media (print, radio, TV channels).
How to open a profitable travel agency from scratch?
Whatever they say about the year-round demand for tours, about the replacement of beach resorts by ski resorts, the business is still seasonal - experts note a decline in the market from January to February. In addition, the crisis that the economy is going through also affects the tourism industry. Find out why you should start your own business during a crisis.
Is it profitable to open a travel agency? What techniques should you use to not only break even, but also make a profit?
Analyze the market, study demand, adapt when external conditions change. Start with interesting outbound destinations, including CIS countries where growth has been recorded: Vietnam, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Moldova. Organize custom tours.
It is also worth taking a closer look at domestic tourism, the potential of which is enormous. Already now, a competitive infrastructure has been formed in some regions of Russia: the Black Sea coast, St. Petersburg, Golden ring. Russian exotics are also promising in terms of tourism: Altai Mountains, Baikal, Kamchatka, Kola Peninsula, Karelia, Khakassia, ski resorts in the foothills of the Caucasus.
According to the Federal Agency for Tourism, domestic tourism grew by 30% over the past year, 2014.
Lazy relaxation is going out of fashion, so the future belongs to active tours that combine travel and hobbies: yoga tour, ecotour, photo tour, trekking, jeeping, fishing tours, etc. Agrotourism is gaining momentum.
And, of course, the ratio of price and quality decides a lot. Offer discounts, develop bonus loyalty programs. Attract clients with quality service, cooperate only with reliable tour operators - create an image that will work for you in the future.
Watch the video interview with general director company "1001 tour":
How to make a travel agency profitable
If you decide to open a travel company, then you may have many questions that can only be answered by specialists with a sufficient level of knowledge and experience. Unfortunately, there are not so many experts in this industry. At the same time, it is very important that all issues related to organizing this business are resolved as quickly as possible with maximum accessibility and correctness. Otherwise, you will simply abandon your idea, since opening a travel agency from scratch is quite difficult without the necessary amount of information.
Collecting documents
Opening a business in the field of tourism services requires certain documents. What do you need:
- A statement that you have state registration.
- Charter of the company in two copies.
- Decision on establishment.
- Original document confirming that you paid for registration. This could be a receipt.
- The agreement on establishment, as well as a request that will allow you to receive a copy of the charter.
- Letter of guarantee from the owner of the premises at whose address the company is registered.
- Original document confirming payment state duty for receiving a copy of the charter, as well as an agreement on establishment, for example, a payment order or a receipt.
When thinking about how to open a travel agency from scratch, you should first collect all the listed papers. It must be remembered that the application for registration must be certified by a notary and signed by the applicant. After all, he is responsible for the correctness and reliability of all information.
If you open an IP...
If you decide to register as individual entrepreneur then you must provide:
Where is the best place to locate an agency office?
Not everyone decides to start their own business in this area. So, how to open a travel agency from scratch without high costs? You can't do without it here outside help. Of course, it is not only money that plays a decisive role. It is also very important where exactly your company’s office will be located.
While all the documents are being prepared, you can start looking for premises. In order to open a travel company, you will need premises of no more than 20 square meters. There should also be a personal line for connecting phones and the Internet. So, where is the best place to locate an office:
- City center. If you want to attract more clients by providing travel agency services, then the ideal place could be the main street settlement. The best option is a room located in a commercial or residential building on the ground floor. However, it should be remembered that the cost of renting such premises will be very high.
- Business center. Having an office in this building can also have a positive impact on your business. After all, in addition to outside visitors, business center employees can become your clients. The only negative is that you will not be able to place outdoor advertising and signboards.
- Shopping centers. If you decide to open your office here, then you will find a large number of clients. However, renting a space in a popular shopping center can cost you a decent amount of money.
- Sleeping areas. Here, a new travel company may be one of a kind. Plus, you can save on rent. The only downside is that you will have to put in a lot of effort to get your agency noticed. You can use any marketing strategy for this.
We select the right personnel
Many entrepreneurs who decide to start their own business in this area often do not fully realize that personnel for such work must be carefully selected. After all, the human factor plays an important role in this matter.
The agency is based precisely on the well-coordinated work of the team. And for success, personnel must be selected with special attention.
Who do you need
- System Administrator.
- Accountant.
- Sales Manager.
It is worth noting that the staff must gradually increase if the travel agency grows. Experts recommend hiring two sales managers. After all, they are the driving force of your activities. Managers promote your tourism product on the market. In addition, sales managers must be able to communicate with people. You should not hope that employment exchanges will offer you real masters. It is better to start searching for an available candidate on your own.
First steps on the path to success
So, the opening. A travel agency ideally requires a thorough study of the entire algorithm for creating a business plan. You don't have to be a professional in a particular industry. To begin with, you should carefully study the structure of this activity from the inside and analyze the real situation of organizations that have been providing similar services for many years.
To make everything clear to you, let's look at a diagram that contains all the components necessary to create a business plan and open a travel agency. It can be divided into several points that are interconnected. In this case, each stage plays important role at the very beginning of activity. That is why you simply cannot skip any of the points.
Company concept
The business plan of a travel company begins precisely from this point. The company's concept must fully reflect the type of activity. For example, an organization may be or provide mixed services.
In addition, all documents must fully reflect all possible activities of the company. For example, the sale of tickets for railway and air transport, insurance for clients traveling on travel, visa processing, limousine booking, and transfer services.
We determine in advance the list of services
Before opening a travel agency from scratch, you need to decide on the list of services. At the request of clients, the company must provide an interpreter and a guide. Perfect option- an employee who speaks several foreign languages fluently and is able to serve as a tour guide. In this case, the guide must know everything interesting places, which are worth visiting for vacationers.
A travel agency can purchase everything you need for your trip. Travel for tourists in in this case it will be even more enjoyable. After all, they won’t have to think about purchases and try to predict all the little troubles. It is worth noting that representatives of travel companies very often practice such a service as booking tables in a restaurant. Vacationers can visit it immediately upon arrival.
Why is this necessary?
Those who have already started tourism and hotel business, in mandatory draw up everything Required documents, if their client receives a foreign passport. In addition, they readily provide an accompanying person or a personal guide.
Very often a person who travels abroad does not know a foreign language. As a result, this can greatly complicate the vacationer’s communication with the local population. To prevent this from happening, many turn to a travel agency for help and hire a translator. It is worth noting that the company must provide a specialist in the field foreign languages at the first request of vacationers.
Scheme of all main stages
Before you open a travel agency from scratch, you need to clearly understand how it operates. Many did not fully work out their plan and, as a result, simply could not engage in this type of activity. Let's figure out how the technology for selling, promoting and developing a tourism product is built using the example of a specific trip:
- To begin with, it is worth determining the supply and demand in the tourism services market.
- Create detailed description services that the agency will offer to its clients.
- It is necessary to develop and design the content of all company service processes.
- Work out the route in detail.
- Form general scheme movements.
- It is imperative to draw up a list of services that the client can use immediately upon arriving at his vacation spot.
- Should be carried out full research the route along which the tour will take place.
- After this, an analysis of the designed tour should be carried out.
- Then prepare all the documentation.
- Don't forget about control. It is better to choose the most effective method.
- After completing the development of the route itself and preparing all the documentation, you should start advertising, various marketing moves and promotion methods. This will make your product popular.
- It is important to choose the right sales method, as well as methods for receiving payment from clients.
- Of course, before selling, you should calculate the cost and final price of the tourism product.
- Only after all this does sales begin, and then control over the quality of services provided and the customer service process.
Travel agency from scratch: pros and cons
Everyone who wants to work in the field of tourism services faces a choice: start everything from scratch or acquire ready business. At the same time, many people forget that both the first and second options have their drawbacks.
A travel agency created from scratch has greater advantages than a purchased company. You won't have to fight the old order and win your respect from your subordinates. In addition, many travel agencies for sale are unprofitable. Statistics show that 90% of those organizations that are put up for sale can be considered completely bankrupt. However, a business started from scratch also has disadvantages. First of all, you will have to spend a lot of effort and, of course, time to develop routes, settle into the new premises and develop a client base. In addition, you will need investors to open a business in this area.
How much do you need to invest?
Opening a travel agency from scratch is a business that requires large investments. So how much money will it cost? Let's calculate:
- First of all, you need to register as a legal entity - from 25 thousand rubles.
- To renovate the premises and purchase furniture - from 75 thousand rubles.
- Install computers and office equipment - from 60 thousand rubles.
- Develop your own corporate style and solve the issue of printing - from 10 thousand rubles.
- Create a company website - from 35 thousand rubles.
- For other expenses, as well as for connecting phones and the Internet - from 50 thousand rubles.
The result is a decent amount: about 255 thousand rubles. This is an approximate cost estimate for a travel company with three employees and an office in Moscow. In other regions the cost will be significantly lower. It is worth remembering that the specified amount will only be needed to get started. Starting a business in this area requires a lot of expenses. In addition, you will have to spend about 150 thousand rubles monthly. Therefore, initially you should have from 500 to 700 thousand rubles in reserve. The travel agency will begin to make a profit only after three months. If there is no such amount, then investors will help. To open a business in this area, it is imperative to have initial capital.
The Most Important Thing: Going to Market
The success of your company depends not only on a well-located office and professional employees, but also on advertising. You should invest a lot of money in this part. Only good advertising can attract potential clients to you. You need everyone to know about your travel agency. So, everything is ready and you celebrated the opening. The travel agency is ready for normal operation. But where can you get clients?
Don’t expect a large flow of people wanting to relax right away. To develop a small tourist base, you need to spend a little time. If you approach the matter correctly, then they will soon start talking about you. As you know, people are more willing to believe their friends and acquaintances than advertising. That is why it is very important for you to treat your clients with attention at this stage.
There is another option. You can open an agency based on franchising. Already famous brand does not require promotion, and it will be much easier for you. After all, he doesn't require special effort in terms of advertising. How to proceed? You decide.
Who among us would not like to see the world and visit the most remote and exotic corners of the earth? The love of travel is not alien to anyone. This is probably why, even in the most economically unstable times, most people still had the opportunity and financial means for a long-awaited trip. Thanks to this, you can organize for yourself a reliable and very profitable way of earning money - opening a travel agency from scratch. We will tell you how to do this further by providing step by step instructions with useful tips.
Where to begin?
The significant advantages of the type of business associated with tourism are relatively low investments, as well as the absence of the need for special education. Thanks to the fact that you won't need to receive special permits, you can avoid many of the barriers to opening a travel agency. However, it is worth noting that competition in this area is still quite high, and the profit you will receive depends on the economic situation in the country. Nevertheless, opening a travel agency from scratch even during the period economic crisis is quite real.
In order to understand in detail the legal side of the issue, you should refer to Law No. 132-FZ of November 24, 1996 “On the fundamentals of tourism activities in the Russian Federation.” Depending on the specifics of your activity, external and internal tourism differ. Services related to this industry are provided by tour operators and travel agents. Let us consider in more detail how these concepts differ.
The responsibilities of tour operators include independent development, promotion and subsequent implementation of tours. Thus, using its services, a tourist can reach his destination and return home safely without experiencing any inconvenience during the trip. That is why in order to open professional activity They will be required to have insurance or a guarantee from the bank. Tour operators must be included in the Unified Federal Register and also belong to the necessary associations.
In turn, travel agents are a kind of connecting link, an intermediary between the tour operator and the client. They sell tours; Moreover, their earnings consist of commission payments (from 5 to 16% of the cost of each tour).
The travel agent must also:
- Inform clients about the services provided.
- Select tours depending on the client’s wishes.
- Provide clients with all necessary documents.
- Guarantee the quality of all services provided.
Depending on the size of the start-up capital and the plans of the entrepreneur, travel agencies can exist in various forms.
To open a travel company from scratch, we will need to rent an office and also hire the entire necessary personnel. Despite the fact that this method is the most expensive, it will provide you with maximum financial independence.
The easiest way is to open a travel agency at home. In order to start this type of business, you only need a phone, a computer, Internet access and a printer. After you register an individual entrepreneur, you can start promoting your services using the media. In addition, you can organize meetings with interested parties both at home and on neutral territory (for example, in a cafe). This method of opening a travel agency is quite risky, but it is perfect for people who have a wide circle of friends and considerable professional experience.
The easiest way to open a travel agency is to buy.
But if you still want to do it yourself, we offer you step-by-step instructions from an expert from the company “Sletat.ru”.
Tourism, despite all the difficulties recently experienced, remains an extremely attractive business area. It makes it possible to open your own business with a small investment and is associated with a lot of positive emotions: helping people arrange a vacation, and then hearing their positive impressions is very pleasant. And yet, the tourism business is a tough nut to crack. In order not to break your spears on it, or rather not to lose all your money, you need to take a very balanced and serious approach to opening your own travel agency.
Where to begin?
First of all, it is necessary to find out how the tourism market works and what it consists of. The business owner must decide whether to work with a franchisor or as an independent agency. By opening on your own, you take on more risks. Firstly, unknown travel agencies do not inspire confidence, which means they need more serious efforts and budgets for promotion. Secondly, you will have to independently resolve issues of acquiring technologies related to searching and booking tours. And thirdly, it is more difficult to work with tour operators - suppliers of tourism products.
IN modern conditions It is more efficient to open not independently, but under the brand of a large travel agency network.
Network travel agencies offering franchises can be divided into main categories, each of which has its own branches.
- Travel agencies from tour operators whose task is to sell the tourism product of a given supplier. Obviously, a tour operator can offer low prices for travel only in some destinations, so such a travel agency may ultimately not be profitable enough.
- Travel agencies receiving traffic from offline channels. Such agencies are not limited in their choice of tour providers. Their disadvantage is the poor development of Internet technologies.
- Travel agencies receiving traffic from online channels. More modern networks that attract audiences using the Internet and have various online tools for searching, booking and selling tours. The downside is that such a network misses out on the “classic” offline audience.
- Networks that combine online and offline communication channels and provide technologies for automating work, as Sletat.ru does. The main mission of such companies is to give the travel agency the opportunity to modern technologies sell the most affordable tours and put this process on stream.
When choosing a franchisor, it is important to pay attention to his experience and specifics of doing business. Some companies have a high risk of bankruptcy during a crisis. This is due to the fact that in a number of situations, a tour operator may require an advance payment for tours of up to 100%, while tourists often pay for them in parts, and the management network does not have a sufficient financial “airbag” for such a case.
There is no specific formula for opening a travel agency that will be 100% profitable. Any business involves establishing business processes, and therefore competent management and, of course, the ambition of the travel agency itself often become a certain guarantee of success.
Before opening a travel agency, it is important to analyze the presence of the target audience. If you are going to open in a large city - St. Petersburg, Moscow or another million-plus city - it makes no sense to analyze it entirely. Choose the most attractive area and assess how much demand your company will have there.
Another important element preparation - analysis of the competitive environment. Find out what agencies are nearby, what they offer, what are your competitive advantages and differences from them. You can even go to a competing travel agency as a secret shopper if you really need it.
Investment size
Investments in opening a travel agency, as a rule, are relatively small: this business does not require expensive equipment or purchasing goods. Nevertheless, the volume of investment can be very different. The main expenses when opening a travel agency are office rent, purchase of equipment, promotion costs and payment of a fee if you are opening a franchise agency.
The larger the city, the higher the rental investment. The rental rate in 2016 is on average about 1.5–2 thousand rubles per 1 sq. m. m, but in Moscow and St. Petersburg it can be slightly higher - on average from 2.5 to 4 thousand rubles. Thus, the minimum rental costs will be about 30–60 thousand rubles.
Personal experience
For quality service clients and minimizing queues in the office, it is optimal for two managers to work simultaneously. To accommodate two workstations and a comfortable waiting area, a room with an area of 15 sq.m. or more is required.
Don't forget that the room will most likely need renovation. Even if it is in good condition, it will need to be brought up to certain standards. For example, our offices must be branded in accordance with the guidelines. Compliance with these requirements allows you to create a comfortable atmosphere for clients and managers and increases the loyalty of tourists to the brand as a whole.
As for the costs of furniture and appliances, there can be a wide variation in the amount of investment. You can buy inexpensive furniture and used equipment or choose more expensive options.
Don't forget about the costs associated with registering an agency. You will need to register an individual entrepreneur or LLC and pay a state fee, open a bank account (for which the bank will take a commission), recruit staff, register employees with the labor inspectorate and pension fund. If not strict reporting forms (SSR) are used, but a cash register, then it must be registered. As for settlement and cash services, Sletat.ru, for example, cooperates with the largest Russian banks and offers profitable terms for franchisees.
The average cost of opening a travel agency “Sletat.ru” (with furniture, appliances and repairs) will be about 150–200 thousand rubles.
The budget for promoting a travel agency can again vary: there are both expensive methods and channels that do not require any investment. On average, you need to budget about 100 thousand rubles for this expense item in the first 4–6 months of work.
Among fixed costs travel agencies - salary fund for managers. Their salary consists of a salary and a percentage of sales. In St. Petersburg or another large city, a manager can receive 15–20 thousand rubles in salary + 10–20% of the agency’s profit. If we are talking about a small city, then the ratio will be 10–15 thousand rubles of salary + 10–20% of profit.
At the same time, when calculating the volume of investment, you need to firmly understand that in the first six months the agency can operate without profit. This means that some kind of financial “cushion” is needed. Therefore, you should not invest your last funds in the business. An entrepreneur also needs to understand how he will live. Money should not be related to its current costs; a clear budget allocated for business development is needed.
Step-by-step instruction
On initial stage travel agency development is very important point- promotion. To make it work the best way, you need to understand which channels for attracting tourists are most effective in a particular case.
See what potential partners are nearby your travel agency. The tourist audience is adjacent to the leisure sector audience - restaurants, cafes, bars, beauty salons, etc. You can establish contact with representatives of such businesses and conduct joint promotions while spending a minimum of money. For example, you can jointly provide discounts to clients, print double business cards, prepare and place table tents with information about your partner on tables, etc.
Keep in mind that tourists come to the office next to which they live or work. Therefore, it is important to convey information about your discovery and existence to residents of nearby houses. If you opened in a residential area, you can do a mailing list. Moreover, this should not be an attempt to sell a tour, but a beautifully designed invitation to visit your office.
Try to involve local media: tell them about your discovery, make announcements regularly. Remember that promotion should be constant, it should never stop. Otherwise there will be no influx of new tourists.
The first clients are your friends, so you need to call them all.
Personal experience
People spend a lot of time in in social networks and do not want to leave a comfortable space. In contact with,Facebookand other similar platforms are a modern, popular and budget channel for attracting tourists. Sletat.ru has developed a special module for searching tours in social networks. Thus, a tourist can search for tours where it is convenient for him, and send requests for selected tours from there.
If you have opened an agency in a small city, it makes sense to reach out to audiences in city-forming enterprises, negotiate with their management and leisure department, offer employee participation in interesting events, etc. Remember that tourism is not limited only to foreign destinations, domestic ones can also be sold. They are well suited to “accustom” the audience to themselves in particular and to travel through travel agencies in general, gradually transferring clients to foreign package tours.
Having decided on the format of work, the place to open and promotion channels, you need to start looking for managers. To determine how many people you will need on staff, you need to understand how large your client base is and how many people will come to the office. Most often, a travel agency employs 1-2 managers. One of them attracts clients, calls, invites them to the office, processes applications, the other sells tours in the office, works with visiting tourists, leads further work for sale. You need to understand that tourists, when they come to the office, do not always immediately buy a tour. More often than not, they simply learn information, and in order to complete the deal, it is necessary to maintain communication with them.
Businessmen should not undertake the sale of tours on their own. An entrepreneur must think strategically, promote a travel agency, monitor development, look at what the business is missing, etc. If you go headlong into selling tours, it will be impossible to manage your business.
In a modern travel agency, it is important to automate processes related to searching and booking tours and processing incoming applications. Travel agency managers have to search for suitable tours hundreds of times a day. To do this, you can use the “search engines” that are on the website of every self-respecting tour operator. In this case, the manager will have to actually work manually, open many sites and tabs to find a suitable tour from different suppliers, and during this time the price may change. In addition, it will take too much time to work with one tourist.
Today there are special search engines that “collect” offers from all tour operators. They allow you to accumulate all information in one information space and save managers time. When choosing such a service, you need to be careful: it may lack relevance and reliability. The system should upload and update information about the package contents and its price online, and instantly update information about hotel and flight seats.
Personal experience
Sletat.ru has developed a tour search system that contains offers from all major tour operators and updates data on tours in real time. An agency can install the service on its website and promote it on social networks. In this case, the lion’s share of the work in finding a tour is done by the tourist himself. As a result, the time a manager spends working with one client is reduced from 2 hours to 40 minutes.
Another important point is booking the tour. It is much more convenient when the agency does not independently communicate with tour operators, but uses the services of a reservation center. Sletat.ru has created its own Central Bank, which simplifies the work of a travel agent, increases the speed of customer service, allows you to store data on all applications in one place, increases the security of tourist databases and provides a higher percentage of sales and additional bonuses when the plan is fulfilled.
The issue of placing a travel agency is worth paying attention to Special attention. First of all, analyze the city in which you plan to open and the specific location. At first glance, the most good option- office in the city center. However, this does not always guarantee success, nor does opening in a residential area.
It all depends on the specific location. If you open in a budget area remote from the center with new development, things may not work out. The bulk of the population here are young families, who often bought housing with a mortgage and do not have extra finances for travel. Therefore, try to choose middle and elite class areas for placement.
You can open on the first floors residential buildings, in separate buildings or shopping centers. In the latter case, it is better to choose modern buildings and try to avoid old low-class buildings. But this again depends on the specific shopping center, its location, the freshness of the renovation, and the brands represented.
It is also worth taking a closer look at your surroundings. For example, you can open next to grocery store. This does not have to be an establishment of a well-known chain, but it is worth focusing on price segment above average.
Another tip: it is best to open where there is an opportunity to place an illuminated sign.
A sign is 20–30% of the success of a travel agency. Without it, it will be difficult to find you even for those who purposefully go to your agency. And the sign will also allow you to “lure” those who are simply passing by.
As for the premises itself, there are also certain requirements for it. First of all, you need to focus on the convenience of the tourist. It is advisable that the office be square in shape: this way it will be easier to brand it and create it comfortable conditions. It is important that there are windows in the room, otherwise the atmosphere will put pressure on the client. Basements and semi-basements are not the best choice.
You shouldn't open up top floors. If the building has an access system, it should not be complicated. If a tourist, in order to purchase a tour or receive documents, needs to take a passport, write down his data and go up to the 11th floor, then he will most likely give up the trip altogether - few people will want to overcome so many obstacles.
It is advisable to provide a waiting area in the office. When all managers are busy, the client should be able to wait his turn in comfort. Otherwise, he will simply leave for another agency. It is worth placing coffee, tea, and a cooler with clean water in the waiting area.
Another important point is the children's corner. One of the key types of travel agency clients is a woman aged 30–35 with one child. Accordingly, it is necessary to provide play area, in which children can do something while parents choose a tour or wait in line.
Documentation
To start a travel agency, you need to register an LLC or individual entrepreneur. Everyone chooses the preferred form for themselves, it is only necessary to stipulate that the owner of a registered individual entrepreneur is liable for obligations with all his property, and an LLC - in the amount authorized capital. Also, the owner of a tourism business needs to decide whether he will work with an imputed or simplified tax system.
Many people are confused by the issue of licensing a travel agency. Previously, in order to sell tours, a travel agency actually needed to obtain a license. But according to current rules, licensing is not required. At the same time, a unified all-Russian register has been created for travel agencies on the basis of the Tourist Assistance Association. It is not yet clear whether participation in it is mandatory or whether the register is advisory nature. This issue should be clarified by additions and amendments to the tourism law issued in 2016.