USTOA's 40th Annual Conference & Marketplace Kicks Off in Hawaii

 

USTOA President and CEO Terry Dale

WAIKOLOA VILLAGE, Hawaii - Travel Agent was on hand Thursday morning for the opening session of the 2012 United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) Annual Conference & Marketplace, in which USTOA President and CEO Terry Dale commanded the attention of the audience by walking on stage with a wrapped present.

"This is your gift," Dale said to the packed ballroom at the Hilton Waikoloa Village. "I'll tell you what is inside. Inside is more jobs, inside is new business, inside is new opportunity."

To demonstrate exactly what he meant by that, Dale then presented a representative of PricewaterhouseCoopers, Collin McIlheney, to reveal the overwhelmingly positive results of a recent survey, in which USTOA members offered opinions and projections on the immediate future of the tour operator industry and the travel industry in general. The survey, Dale told Travel Agent at a media roundtable later in the day, cost roughly $59,000 and is expected to be conducted around every two years. 

According to the survey, active members of USTOA contributed $10.3 billion to the U.S. tour operator industry in 2011, representing more than 6.1 million individual travelers. Moreover, the membership projects a healthy increase in sales in 2012 of 7.5 percent to $11 billion, with a 5.6 percent increase in individual travelers, to 6.5 million.

The outlook for the tour industry is healthy, according to 88 percent of members who anticipate a growth in sales in 2013 over 2012.  Of that majority, a quarter (26.7 percent) forecast a “boom year” with sales in excess of 10 percent, with another quarter (26.7 percent) optimistic about sales increasing 7-9 percent.  More than a third (37 percent) remains cautiously optimistic that sales will increase 4-6 percent in 2013.

Active members also report that agents represent nearly two-thirds (64.4 percent ) of total packages sold in 2011, a number expected to hold steady in 2012.

“Travel agents are clearly a very important piece of our members’ business model,” Dale commented.

Of course there are always going to be threats to any industry. Many of the people who took part in the survey said the biggest threat was global financial instability. Also, Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations and airline relationships were two critical issues surrounding the tourism industry.

Back on a positive note, the survey also projected a 7.5-percent growth for 2013, which would put overall tourism revenue at around $12 billion.

"Hope you liked your gift," Dale said.

 

John Hanratty, chairman of the USTOA

The general session was kicked off by remarks from USTOA Chairman John Hanratty, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of Travel Impressions, who told attendees all about the latest USTOA initiatives.

According to Hanratty, one of the biggest developments in the last year was the design of new logos for Active and Associate members and a new corporate logo using the stance line "Integrity in Travel." USTOA's Dale has said in the past that the goal was to draw a needed distinction between the Active tour operator members protected by the $1 million USTOA protection plan and Associate members who are USTOA members but are not covered by the USTOA protection plan. Another major step taken by the USTOA this year took place in May with the launch of the USTOA's Sweepstakes with $40,000 in travel prizes.

The opening sessions keynote speaker was Anita Mendiratta, founder and managing director of Cachet Consulting and a regular travel consultant on CNN, who gave attendees some validation for a job well done.

 

Anita Mendiratta, founder and managing director of Cachet Consulting and a regular travel consultant on CNN

"Traveling is changing borders, traveling helps people to come together, travel is helping to change the world," she said. "And why do people want to travel? They want people to come together. They want those one-on-one dialogues, that ability of touch."

Mendiratta went on to tell attendees how truly important their role in travel is.

"Ask your customers your value when an ash cloud hits or when an airline goes bankrupt or when Heathrow (Airport) closes because of a snowstorm," she says. "Why do you matter more now? Because things are happening all over the world. People want to know they can call someone if they are in trouble. You are their 9-11. They want to go on a trip with peace of mind. You are that peace of mind."

Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for more updates from our ongoing coverage of the 2012 USTOA Annual Conference & Marketplace.