The great thing about the travel market is that consumers want what we provide. If you are reading this then you probably want to run your own travel business – a travel wantrapreneur. This site is aimed at helping those who currently work in the travel market and aim to set up on their own, or those new to the industry. Here at TTA we are genuine experts on helping other people set up and run their travel business. We have four hundred travel business members some small and niche, some large and more mainstream. We help these businesses, day in day out.
It has been incredibly hard to work out what to describe and what to leave out for now. We finally landed on the seven topics below. For each we give you the bare minimum to get you on the way. If you are new to the industry then it will be a lot to take in. Once you have read this, why not contact us on 01483 545784, email George@traveltrust.co.uk or try why TTA. We can see whether we can help you further.
Our approach takes you through seven areas to think about
1. Travel Market and its customers –
Like any market, the travel industry has divided itself into different sectors and has different types of companies. The first section introduces you to the travel market and its lingo. It then helps you think about what your business will do for its customers. If you had been planning to compete with Thomas Cook, hopefully you will know what you are up against and will have thought that through by the end of this section.
The founders of TTA had set up a travel business many years ago. At the time it was quite a difficult process. That inspired them to set up a company that helped others set up their own travel businesses, and navigate through the regulation and legalities. While this might look like one to skip, there are some big costs to consider here. This section will make you aware of the regulation and how it impacts the way you set up and run your business.
3. Cash, Surviving the First Year –
Cash is like corporate oxygen, without it your business dies very quickly. The immediate question for you to answer is “How many bookings do I need to sell per month to survive?”. This section helps work through to the answer. It then helps you model cash flow to understand any borrowing requirements you might have for your first year of operation.
4. Marketing and Sales -
We live in a cluttered world with consumers being bombarded by marketing messages every day. Unfortunately, the travel market can deliver far more bookings than than customers want to buy. As a small business you are likely to need marketing and sales knowledge to stand out.
5. Travel Business Operations -
Marketing and sales are sometimes considered the sexy part of the business. They deliver bookings which need to be delivered to the customers. This section helps you understand what is required to fulfil the sale ie deliver the holiday to the customer.
6. Travel Business Network -
The customer will thank or blame you and your business for their holiday. Within travel, just about everything about the holiday is delivered by other companies, your suppliers. If there is something wrong with the holiday, the fact that it was delivered by your supplier rather than you is irrelevant. Its harsh, but it is true, you will get the blame. As we have said before, customer perception is reality as far as you are concerned. You will need to decide which parts of the customer proposition to deliver yourself (in house), and which to get other companies to deliver for your customers (out of house). Similarly, which parts of the operation will be performed in house, and which out of house. For some of these components there is little or no choice, like a credit card facility to take customer payment. This is going to be out of house as it will be performed by a financial services company.
7. Travel Business Leadership -
Many people decide to set up their own travel business as they want to enjoy how they make their living. A big factor on enjoyment and success is who you choose to work with. Deciding on what sort of people to hire and your approach to managing them is worth thinking through.