The resumption of travel following the COVID-19 shutdown is generally considered a positive change that brings economic and emotional relief to many. However, it is not without its costs, including more stress for travel advisors who have been on the frontlines of the pandemic since the beginning.
According to a new survey — part of TravelAge West’s Need to Know series — the majority of advisors (52%) are suffering from “burnout.”
52% of advisors say they are suffering from "burnout."
Credit: 2022 TravelAge West
“Burnout is the buzzword,” said Erika Richter, vice president of communications and marketing for the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA). “We’re hearing it more often, not just in our industry, but everywhere. It doesn’t surprise me one bit that travel advisors are experiencing burnout. We’ve been dealing with so much whiplash in our industry, there’s been so much lifting and shifting, for little to no pay.”
Richter says what gives her hope is that travel advisors are in this business because it is their passion, because they love it.
We’ve been dealing with so much whiplash in our industry, there’s been so much lifting and shifting, for little to no pay.
“Travel advisors are dream weavers, and there are so many people out there who are dreaming of that trip they never took,” she said. “The value of having a good travel advisor is only going to increase. I know there’s a bright future ahead for our industry.”
The good news is that while agents may be feeling burnt out, nearly two-thirds (62%) say their current workload is still sustainable. And while 58% say they are more overwhelmed than before the pandemic, most (86%) describe themselves as generally happy with their job.
While that is an encouraging number, a bit less than half (46%) of respondents have considered quitting the profession because it is too demanding or not worth the effort, and 55% personally know of someone who left for those reasons.
55% of respondents know someone who has recently quit the profession because it is too demanding or not worth it.
Credit: 2022 TravelAge West“The so-called ‘great resignation’ hasn’t left any industry unscathed,” Richter said. “People all over the world are re-evaluating their careers. But I’d be willing to bet that for every travel advisor who quit the profession, there’s at least one person who decided to become a travel advisor — or is at least considering it.”
One issue causing stress on advisors is dealing with the expectations of clients — 56% feel customers are more demanding now than before the pandemic.
I’d be willing to bet that for every travel advisor who quit the profession, there’s at least one person who decided to become a travel advisor — or is at least considering it.
In addition, while 68% of agents are satisfied with the support they receive from their professional circle — including colleagues, consortia, host agencies and associations — they are evenly split on the support they get from the suppliers they work with. A bit more than half (51%) are satisfied with the help from suppliers and 49% are not satisfied.
68% feel supported by their professional circle, but 49% feel that they are not getting enough support from suppliers.
Credit: 2022 TravelAge West“ASTA is the global advocate for travel advisors, and it represents them at all levels of government, within the industry, and to the traveling public — that’s been ASTA’s mission for 90 years,” Richter said. “I’m glad to see that a strong majority of travel advisors feel supported. I’d love to see that figure at 90% or 100%, and it’s something we’ll strive to accomplish. Our advocacy work doesn’t just stop at the state and federal level, we advocate for travel advisors with our supplier partners as well. We promote and elevate good supplier behavior as often as we can. When travel advisors bring something to our attention that isn’t fair, or is hurting their business, we take that into account and depending on the situation, we may step in and publicly, or privately, make our position known.”
Advisors are also evenly split on some of the solutions that would best help them deal with the stress of their workload. The top response was hiring more help (25%), but that was followed by a tie between getting more/better support from suppliers and getting more/better support from a consortia/host agency (21%); and taking on fewer clients and charging more for the work they are doing (19%).
Need to Know Survey Series
“Need to Know” is a research series from TravelAge West that tracks the responses of advisors as they relate to various travel trends and topics. This survey recorded the responses of 347 advisors across the U.S. Click here to see more Need to Know stories.
