Earlier this year, The Travel Institute said there could soon be a shortage of skilled available travel advisors able to meet rising consumer demand. In “The Changing Face of Travel Agents 2023,” the third in a series of surveys, The Travel Institute found that despite 74 percent of advisors reporting that they “love what they do,” there has been a significant exodus of experienced advisors in recent years (likely a result of the pandemic) and there is further potential for today’s seasoned advisor population to “age out."
Diane Petras, president of The Travel Institute, said this is “both a wakeup call and an opportunity” for collective industry recruiting and retention efforts.
Some good news on that front: The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) on Thursday shared that over 12,000 people have downloaded its “Travel Advisor Career Overview” materials, which provide a step-by-step guide the joining the travel industry. The free guide is made possible by an investment by Norwegian Cruise Line and part of ASTA’s overall initiative to bring new travel advisors to the industry.
“Right now, the travel industry desperately needs more talent,” said Zane Kerby, president and CEO of ASTA, adding that “our members are telling us they need help.”
He continued: “If someone is interested in becoming a travel advisor, they first have to understand the landscape of our industry and the variety of pathways available to them. Thanks to Norwegian Cruise Line, we’re able to provide that information as well as step-by-step materials to introduce new advisors to the industry.”
Prior to 2023, ASTA’s "Career Overview" materials had been available for a small fee, and in the five years they were available, only 50 people had downloaded the program. Investments were made not only to make the materials available at no cost to potential advisors, but also to create a leads list from that group, from which ASTA could market further educational materials to them.
The association says it is also invested in developing further educational offerings as well as growing its Travel Career Center, which has seen exponential growth and record traffic in the last few months.
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