South African travel agents remain cautious about charging professional fees, with uncertainty around client acceptance remaining a major barrier, despite growing evidence that similar models have been embraced overseas.
A recent Travel News poll found that if agents were to introduce a consultation fee, the majority would opt for a refundable deposit 42 or transactional service charges 36.
Among corporate-focused TMCs, transactional service fees or contractual fee models have been the standard reality for roughly two decades. Corporate clients are accustomed to paying per-booking fees or retainers for managed services, resulting in more stable and transparent revenue for agencies, said Otto de Vries , CEO of Asata.
