This question is raised from time to time in our offices, usually when we have just lost a booking to a potential client who has used our time and expertise free of charge and then booked his/her holiday directly.

It’s a tricky one but I often ask myself why this is. Other professionals do not work free and the general public do not expect them to. Lawyers, dentists, doctors, accountants; they consult as we do and charge an hourly rate. Now that airlines no longer offer commissions, travel agents charge a fee for booking flights and this was accepted quite quickly as the norm.     

So why can we not levy a charge?

I believe our biggest challenge comes from the fact that many people believe that, by booking a holiday through the travel industry, it will cost more. We are often asked for a breakdown of costs, from new customers particularly. Ironically, when the client gets the breakdown, they see we are not charging more, and quite often less, than if they had booked direct. Given the competitive nature of today’s market, I suspect this is the case with most of us.

Another challenge is the Internet. Almost anything can be booked online now and as it is relatively simple for even the most technologically challenged among us to book car hire, a weekend in Paris or a flight to New York, the public are adept at doing so. Hotels offering BAR rates and better rates to customers booking directly online do not help our cause.   

I have noticed that there are a number of travel companies around the world, especially in the USA, that charge an upfront fee for advice and tour planning. This fee is deducted from the cost of the tour. If clients choose not to book, they forfeit the fee.

Fortunately, we have a large and loyal clientele so the need for consultation fees does not arise with them. However, while I understand that we are competing with others in the trade and we may not win the booking, I feel very strongly that if a potentially new client contacts one of my team, takes up a considerable amount of her time, picks her brain to create a perfect holiday and then books online himself to his own ends, he should not expect this to be free.

Am I alone in my musings?