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Tour Operator Business

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Starting a Tour Operator Business: 13 Key Steps

Written by: Carolyn Young

Carolyn Young is a business writer who focuses on entrepreneurial concepts and the business formation. She has over 25 years of experience in business roles, and has authored several entrepreneurship textbooks.

Edited by: David Lepeska

David has been writing and learning about business, finance and globalization for a quarter-century, starting with a small New York consulting firm in the 1990s.

Published on May 17, 2023 Updated on July 3, 2024

Starting a Tour Operator Business: 13 Key Steps

Investment range

$2,300 - $10,300

Revenue potential

$108,000 - $360,000 p.a.

Time to build

0 – 3 months

Profit potential

$86,400 - $144,000 p.a.

Industry trend

Are you an entertainer? One of the ways you could use your skills is by starting a tour operator business. You could offer tours to see the main attractions in your city, tours of natural areas, or even tours of the food scene in your city. The tour operator industry took a hit during the pandemic, but it’s coming back strong in 2023 and is worth more than $10 billion, so there’s money to be made.

But first, you’ll need some business know-how. Luckily, this step-by-step guide details all you need to know to start a successful tour operator business.

Looking to register your business? A limited liability company (LLC) is the best legal structure for new businesses because it is fast and simple.

Form your business immediately using ZenBusiness LLC formation service or hire one of the Best LLC Services .

Step 1: Decide if the Business Is Right for You

Pros and cons.

Meet lots of people and show them a good time
Good profit potential
Growing market
Business needs to be based in an area with attractions of some kind
Can be somewhat seasonal

Tour operator industry trends

Industry size and growth.

Industry size and past growth – The U.S. tour operator industry is worth $10.3 billion in 2023 after declining an average of 3.4% annually for the last five years due to the pandemic.(( https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/market-research-reports/tour-operators-industry/#:~:text=Tour%20Operators%20in%20the%20US%20industry%20trends%20(2018%2D2023),falls%20to%206.6%25%20of%20revenue. ))
Growth forecast – The U.S. tour operator industry is projected to grow an impressive 19.4% in 2023.
Number of businesses – In 2023, 10,286 tour operator businesses are operating in the U.S.
Number of people employed – In 2023, the U.S. tour operator industry employs 44,534 people.

Trends and challenges

Many tourists are seeking tours to “hidden gems” rather than the normal tourist spots.
Many people are booking their travel activities, including tours, on mobile apps.
Technology is playing an increasing role in the tour operators industry, requiring tour operator business to make an investment in technology.
Current economic conditions may negatively impact the travel industry in general.

Demand hotspots

Most popular states – The most popular states for tour guides are Alaska, California, and Oregon. (( https://www.zippia.com/tour-guide-jobs/best-states/#oregon ))
Least popular states – The least popular states for tour guides are Minnesota, Michigan, and Louisiana.

What kind of people work in tour operator businesses?

Gender – 53% of tour guides are female, while 47% are male. (( https://www.zippia.com/tour-guide-jobs/demographics/ ))
Average level of education – T he average tour guide has a bachelor’s degree.
Average age – The average tour guide in the US is 34.3 years old.

How much does it cost to start a tour operator business?

If you’re going to do walking tours, your startup costs should be around $2,000. Costs include a computer and a website. If you plan to give tours in a vehicle like a trolley, your costs will be closer to $10,000.

Start-up Costs	Ballpark Range	Average
Setting up a business name and corporation	$100 - $500	$300
Business licenses and permits	$100 - $300	$200
Insurance	$100-$500	$300
Website	$500 - $1,000	$750
Computer	$1,000 - $2,000	$1,500
Van or trolley down payment	$0 - $5,000	$2,500
Sales and marketing budget	$500 - $1,000	$750
Total	$2,300 - $10,300	$6,300

How much can you earn from a tour operator business?

You can probably charge about $120 per person for a half day tour or $200 for a full day tour. Your profit margin should be about 80% if you run your business from home.

In your first year or two, you could work from home and have 30 customers a week, 30 weeks a year, at $120, bringing in $108,000 in revenue. This would mean $86,400 in profit, assuming that 80% margin.

As you gain traction, you might have 100 customers a week, 30 weeks a year. At this stage, you might have a kiosk and hire staff, reducing your margin to around 40%. With annual revenue of $360,000, you’d make a tidy profit of $144,000.

What barriers to entry are there?

There are a few barriers to entry for a tour operator business. Your biggest challenges will be:

Being in a good location where people will pay for tours
Having extensive knowledge of your tour area

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Step 2: hone your idea.

Now that you know what’s involved in starting a tour operator business, it’s a good idea to hone your concept in preparation to enter a competitive market.

Market research could give you the upper hand even if you’ve got the perfect product. Conducting robust market research is crucial, as it will help you better understand your customers, your competitors, and the broader business landscape.

Analyze your competitors

Research tour operator businesses to examine their services, price points, and customer reviews.

Make a list of tour operator businesses that offer similar services.
Review your competitors’ services – their features, pricing, and quality – and marketing strategies.
Check out their online reviews and ratings on Google, Yelp, and Facebook to get an idea of what their customers like and dislike.
Identify your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses.

This should identify areas where you can strengthen your business and gain a competitive edge to make better business decisions.

Why? Identify an opportunity

You’re looking for a market gap to fill. For instance, maybe the local market is missing an inbound tour operator, or a tour guide business that offers travel agency services as well.

You might consider targeting a niche, such as food scene tours or adventure travel tours.

This could jumpstart your word-of-mouth marketing and attract clients right away.

What? Determine your services

You’ll need to determine what kind of tours you want to give. Consider what’s in your area that might be of interest to tourists. Your best bet is to pick a niche that other tour companies are not targeting. You could also offer travel agent services like booking hotel accommodations or flights.

How much should you charge for tours?

Your prices should be based on market prices in your area, but also on your operating costs.

Once you know your costs, use this Step By Step profit margin calculator to determine your mark-up and final price points. Remember, the prices you use at launch should be subject to change if warranted by the market.

Who? Identify your target market

Your target market is likely to be tourists, and the tourists who participate in tours are often older, but it will depend on the type of tours you offer. If your tours are likely to appeal to older tourists, you can market to them on Facebook. However, your best bet is to partner with travel agencies who can promote and book your tours.

Where? Choose your business premises

In the early stages, you may want to run your business from home to keep costs low. But as your business grows, you’ll likely need to hire workers for various roles and may need to rent out an office or a invest in a kiosk to set up in high traffic tourist areas. You can find commercial space to rent in your area on sites such as Craigslist , Crexi , and Instant Offices .

When choosing a commercial space, you may want to follow these rules of thumb:

Central location accessible via public transport
Ventilated and spacious, with good natural light
Flexible lease that can be extended as your business grows
Ready-to-use space with no major renovations or repairs needed

Step 3: Brainstorm a Tour Company Name

Here are some ideas for brainstorming your business name:

Short, unique, and catchy names tend to stand out
Names that are easy to say and spell tend to do better
Name should be relevant to your product or service offerings
Ask around — family, friends, colleagues, social media — for suggestions
Including keywords, such as “tours” or “guided tours”, boosts SEO
Name should allow for expansion, for ex: “GlobeStride” or “Boundless Journeys” over “EcoTreks” or “Dive Quest”
A location-based name can help establish a strong connection with your local community and help with the SEO but might hinder future expansion

Once you’ve got a list of potential names, visit the website of the US Patent and Trademark Office to make sure they are available for registration and check the availability of related domain names using our Domain Name Search tool. Using “.com” or “.org” sharply increases credibility, so it’s best to focus on these.

Find a Domain

Finally, make your choice among the names that pass this screening and go ahead and reserve your business name with your state, start the trademark registration process, and complete your domain registration and social media account creation.

Your business name is one of the key differentiators that sets your business apart. Once you pick a name, reserve it and start with the branding, it’s hard to switch to a new name. So be sure to carefully consider your choice before moving forward.

Step 4: Create a Tour Operator Business Plan

Here are the key components of a business plan:

Executive Summary: Summarize your tour operator business, highlighting the unique travel experiences you offer and your target market.
Business Overview: Describe your tour operator business, including the types of tours you provide, destinations you cover, and the travel niche you specialize in.
Product and Services: Detail the tour packages and services you offer, such as guided tours, transportation, accommodations, and any unique experiences or add-ons.
Market Analysis: Analyze the demand for travel and tours in your chosen destinations, considering factors like tourism trends, customer preferences, and competitor offerings.
Competitive Analysis: Identify other tour operators in your target locations, their strengths and weaknesses, and explain how your tours will differentiate themselves through quality, pricing, or unique experiences.
Sales and Marketing: Outline your strategies for reaching and attracting customers, including digital marketing, partnerships with hotels or travel agencies, and promotions to drive bookings.
Management Team: Introduce key team members responsible for running the tour operator business, highlighting their experience in the travel industry and customer service.
Operations Plan: Describe the logistics of running your tours, including itinerary planning, tour guides, transportation, safety measures, and quality control.
Financial Plan: Present financial projections for your tour operator business, including startup costs, revenue forecasts based on anticipated bookings, expenses for tour logistics, and expected profitability.
Appendix: Include any relevant documents, such as tour itineraries, partnerships with hotels or attractions, insurance policies, and marketing materials.

If you’ve never created a business plan, it can be an intimidating task. You might consider hiring a business plan specialist to create a top-notch business plan for you.

Step 5: Register Your Business

Registering your business is an absolutely crucial step — it’s the prerequisite to paying taxes, raising capital, opening a bank account, and other guideposts on the road to getting a business up and running.

Plus, registration is exciting because it makes the entire process official. Once it’s complete, you’ll have your own business!

Choose where to register your company

Your business location is important because it can affect taxes, legal requirements, and revenue. Most people will register their business in the state where they live, but if you are planning to expand, you might consider looking elsewhere, as some states could offer real advantages when it comes to tour operator businesses.

If you’re willing to move, you could really maximize your business! Keep in mind, it’s relatively easy to transfer your business to another state.

Choose your business structure

Business entities come in several varieties, each with its pros and cons. The legal structure you choose for your tour operator business will shape your taxes, personal liability, and business registration requirements, so choose wisely.

Here are the main options:

Sole Proprietorship – The most common structure for small businesses makes no legal distinction between company and owner. All income goes to the owner, who’s also liable for any debts, losses, or liabilities incurred by the business. The owner pays taxes on business income on his or her personal tax return.
General Partnership – Similar to a sole proprietorship, but for two or more people. Again, owners keep the profits and are liable for losses. The partners pay taxes on their share of business income on their personal tax returns.
Limited Liability Company ( LLC ) – Combines the characteristics of corporations with those of sole proprietorships or partnerships. Again, the owners are not personally liable for debts. Here’s how to form an LLC .
C Corp – Under this structure, the business is a distinct legal entity and the owner or owners are not personally liable for its debts. Owners take profits through shareholder dividends, rather than directly. The corporation pays taxes, and owners pay taxes on their dividends, which is sometimes referred to as double taxation. Read how to start a corporation here .
S Corp – An S-Corporation refers to the tax classification of the business but is not a business entity. An S-Corp can be either a corporation or an LLC , which just need to elect to be an S-Corp for tax status. In an S-Corp, income is passed through directly to shareholders, who pay taxes on their share of business income on their personal tax returns.

We recommend that new business owners choose LLC as it offers liability protection and pass-through taxation while being simpler to form than a corporation. You can form an LLC in as little as five minutes using an online LLC formation service. They will check that your business name is available before filing, submit your articles of organization , and answer any questions you might have.

Form Your LLC

Choose Your State

We recommend ZenBusiness as the Best LLC Service for 2024

Step 6: Register for Taxes

The final step before you’re able to pay taxes is getting an Employer Identification Number , or EIN. You can file for your EIN online or by mail or fax: visit the IRS website to learn more. Keep in mind, if you’ve chosen to be a sole proprietorship you can simply use your social security number as your EIN.

Once you have your EIN, you’ll need to choose your tax year. Financially speaking, your business will operate in a calendar year (January–December) or a fiscal year, a 12-month period that can start in any month. This will determine your tax cycle, while your business structure will determine which taxes you’ll pay.

The IRS website also offers a tax-payers checklist , and taxes can be filed online.

It is important to consult an accountant or other professional to help you with your taxes to ensure you are completing them correctly.

Step 7: Fund your Business

Securing financing is your next step and there are plenty of ways to raise capital:

Bank loans: This is the most common method but getting approved requires a rock-solid business plan and strong credit history.
SBA-guaranteed loans: The Small Business Administration can act as guarantor, helping gain that elusive bank approval via an SBA-guaranteed loan .
Government grants: A handful of financial assistance programs help fund entrepreneurs. Visit Grants.gov to learn which might work for you.
Friends and Family: Reach out to friends and family to provide a business loan or investment in your concept. It’s a good idea to have legal advice when doing so because SEC regulations apply.
Crowdfunding: Websites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo offer an increasingly popular low-risk option, in which donors fund your vision. Entrepreneurial crowdfunding sites like Fundable and WeFunder enable multiple investors to fund your business.
Personal: Self-fund your business via your savings or the sale of property or other assets.

Bank and SBA loans are probably the best option, other than friends and family, for funding a tour operator business. You might also try crowdfunding if you have an innovative concept.

Step 8: Apply for Tour Operator Business Licenses and Permits

Starting a tour operator business requires obtaining a number of licenses and permits from local, state, and federal governments.

Federal regulations, licenses, and permits associated with starting your business include doing business as (DBA), health licenses and permits from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA ), trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other intellectual properties, as well as industry-specific licenses and permits.

You may also need state-level and local county or city-based licenses and permits. The license requirements and how to obtain them vary, so check the websites of your state, city, and county governments or contact the appropriate person to learn more.

You could also check this SBA guide for your state’s requirements, but we recommend using MyCorporation’s Business License Compliance Package . They will research the exact forms you need for your business and state and provide them to ensure you’re fully compliant.

This is not a step to be taken lightly, as failing to comply with legal requirements can result in hefty penalties.

If you feel overwhelmed by this step or don’t know how to begin, it might be a good idea to hire a professional to help you check all the legal boxes.

Step 9: Open a Business Bank Account

Before you start making money, you’ll need a place to keep it, and that requires opening a bank account .

Keeping your business finances separate from your personal account makes it easy to file taxes and track your company’s income, so it’s worth doing even if you’re running your tour operator business as a sole proprietorship. Opening a business bank account is quite simple, and similar to opening a personal one. Most major banks offer accounts tailored for businesses — just inquire at your preferred bank to learn about their rates and features.

Banks vary in terms of offerings, so it’s a good idea to examine your options and select the best plan for you. Once you choose your bank, bring in your EIN (or Social Security Number if you decide on a sole proprietorship), articles of incorporation, and other legal documents and open your new account.

Step 10: Get Business Insurance

Business insurance is an area that often gets overlooked yet it can be vital to your success as an entrepreneur. Insurance protects you from unexpected events that can have a devastating impact on your business.

Here are some types of insurance to consider:

General liability: The most comprehensive type of insurance, acting as a catch-all for many business elements that require coverage. If you get just one kind of insurance, this is it. It even protects against bodily injury and property damage.
Business Property: Provides coverage for your equipment and supplies.
Equipment Breakdown Insurance: Covers the cost of replacing or repairing equipment that has broken due to mechanical issues.
Worker’s compensation: Provides compensation to employees injured on the job.
Property: Covers your physical space, whether it is a cart, storefront, or office.
Commercial auto: Protection for your company-owned vehicle.
Professional liability: Protects against claims from a client who says they suffered a loss due to an error or omission in your work.
Business owner’s policy (BOP): This is an insurance plan that acts as an all-in-one insurance policy, a combination of the above insurance types.

Step 11: Prepare to Launch

As opening day nears, prepare for launch by reviewing and improving some key elements of your business.

Essential software and tools

Being an entrepreneur often means wearing many hats, from marketing to sales to accounting, which can be overwhelming. Fortunately, many websites and digital tools are available to help simplify many business tasks.

You may want to use industry-specific software, such as Flybook , FareHarbor , or Resmark , to manage your bookings, email communications, and customer lists.

Popular web-based accounting programs for smaller businesses include Quickbooks , Freshbooks , and Xero .
If you’re unfamiliar with basic accounting, you may want to hire a professional, especially as you begin. The consequences for filing incorrect tax documents can be harsh, so accuracy is crucial.

Create a website

Website development is crucial because your site is your online presence and needs to convince prospective clients of your expertise and professionalism. You can create your own website using services like WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace . This route is very affordable, but figuring out how to build a website can be time-consuming. If you lack tech-savvy, you can hire a web designer or developer to create a custom website for your business.

Your customers are unlikely to find your website, however, unless you follow Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practices. SEO will help your website appear closer to the top in relevant search results, a crucial element for increasing sales.

Make sure that you optimize calls to action on your website. Experiment with text, color, size, and position of calls to action such as “Book Now”. This can sharply increase purchases.

Here are some powerful marketing strategies for your future business:

Leverage Social Media Influencers: Collaborate with travel influencers on platforms like Instagram and YouTube to showcase your tour packages, tapping into their engaged audiences and fostering trust through authentic experiences.
Run Targeted Online Ads: Utilize platforms like Google Ads and social media advertising to target specific demographics interested in travel, ensuring your ads reach potential customers who are more likely to engage with your tours.
Create Compelling Visual Content: Invest in high-quality photos and videos of your tour destinations, sharing them across social media, your website, and promotional materials to evoke emotions and entice potential customers.
Implement Referral Programs: Encourage satisfied customers to refer friends and family by offering incentives such as discounts or exclusive perks, amplifying your customer base through word-of-mouth marketing.
Collaborate with Local Businesses: Partner with local hotels, restaurants, and other businesses to cross-promote services, creating mutually beneficial relationships that expand your reach within the travel community.
Host Virtual Tours: Capitalize on the growing trend of virtual experiences by offering online tours or live-streamed previews, allowing potential customers to get a taste of your offerings before committing.
Optimize for Local Search: Ensure your business appears in local search results by optimizing your Google My Business profile, collecting positive reviews, and providing accurate information, making it easier for customers to find and choose your tours.
Offer Limited-Time Promotions: Create a sense of urgency by periodically offering limited-time promotions or exclusive deals, encouraging potential customers to book your tours sooner rather than later.
Attend Travel Expos and Events: Participate in travel expos and events to showcase your offerings directly to an audience interested in travel, allowing you to engage with potential customers face-to-face and establish personal connections.
Focus on Customer Experience: Prioritize exceptional customer service and personalized experiences to build a positive reputation, as satisfied customers are more likely to become repeat clients and ambassadors for your business.

Focus on USPs

Unique selling propositions, or USPs, are the characteristics of a product or service that sets it apart from the competition. Customers today are inundated with buying options, so you’ll have a real advantage if they are able to quickly grasp how your tour operator business meets their needs or wishes. It’s wise to do all you can to ensure your USPs stand out on your website and in your marketing and promotional materials, stimulating buyer desire.

Global pizza chain Domino’s is renowned for its USP: “Hot pizza in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed.” Signature USPs for your tour operator business could be:

Discover the extraordinary with our immersive and personalized tours
Leave no stone unturned with our comprehensive and authentic tour itineraries
Discover the hidden gems with our knowledgeable tour guides

You may not like to network or use personal connections for business gain. But your personal and professional networks likely offer considerable untapped business potential. Maybe that Facebook friend you met in college is now running a tour operator business, or a LinkedIn contact of yours is connected to dozens of potential clients. Maybe your cousin or neighbor has been working in tour operator businesses for years and can offer invaluable insight and industry connections.

The possibilities are endless, so it’s a good idea to review your personal and professional networks and reach out to those with possible links to or interest in tour operator businesses. You’ll probably generate new customers or find companies with which you could establish a partnership.

Step 12: Build Your Team

If you’re starting out small from a home office, you may not need any employees. But as your business grows, you will likely need workers to fill various roles. Potential positions for a tour operator business include:

Tour Guides – give tours, customer service
Marketing Lead – create and implement marketing strategies
General Manager – scheduling, accounting

At some point, you may need to hire all of these positions or simply a few, depending on the size and needs of your business. You might also hire multiple workers for a single role or a single worker for multiple roles, again depending on need.

Free-of-charge methods to recruit employees include posting ads on popular platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, or Jobs.com. You might also consider a premium recruitment option, such as advertising on Indeed , Glassdoor , or ZipRecruiter . Further, if you have the resources, you could consider hiring a recruitment agency to help you find talent.

Step 13: Run a Tour Operator Business – Start Making Money!

The tourism industry has bounced back in a big way since the pandemic, so now could be a great time to start a tour operator business. It’s an exciting way to share the highlights of your area, have some fun, and make some money. You could eventually hire a whole team of tour guides to take your business to the next level.

Now that you understand the business, you’re ready to plan your itineraries and get your successful tour operator business on the road!

Tour Operator Business FAQs

A tour operator business can be profitable depending on various factors such as market demand, pricing strategies, operational efficiency, and the ability to provide exceptional customer tour experiences.

During a typical day at a tour operator business, various activities take place to ensure smooth operations and high-quality service. These include responding to customer inquiries and booking requests, designing and customizing tour itineraries, coordinating with suppliers, managing reservations and payments, addressing customer feedback, conducting research on new destinations, and collaborating with marketing and sales teams.

The growth potential of a tour operator business is significant, with opportunities to expand services to new destinations, diversify tour offerings, enhance customer experiences, and leverage digital marketing strategies. Developing partnerships with other businesses in the travel industry can also contribute to growth and increased revenue potential.

A tour operator business falls under the travel and tourism industry and operates as a service-based business that organizes and arranges travel experiences for individuals or groups. The business acts as an intermediary between customers and various suppliers, providing comprehensive and well-planned travel experiences through pre-packaged tours or customized itineraries.

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How to Create a Business Plan for Your Tour or Travel Company

Do you have the next great tour business or travel company idea, but don’t know how to turn it into reality? You’ve found your niche and even come up with the best tour company name ever, but who do you tell and how do you get started?

Why your tour company needs a business plan.

We’ve previously covered topics on how to build your business, but one beneficial, even crucial, practice before you start is to write up a small business plan, one that compiles all the important aspects of your brand in a single 15-20 page document. Having a simple tourism business plan will help you plan for the future and even discover new things about your brand.

Whether you’re a young entrepreneur building a tour startup in search of investors, or you’re an established tour operator looking to better understand your business and take it to the next level, a tour operator business plan can help guide you in the right direction.

The Benefits of a Business Plan

As mentioned above, a tour company business plan is a document that outlines all the important aspects of your tour business. From your company goals and objectives, to your team members, and even your financial statements, a business plan is an effective tool for analyzing the ins and outs of your business.

It is the ultimate document used to convince investors and lenders to support your tour company. If you’re not looking for investors, writing a simple business plan for your tour business is still useful practice to align the leaders in your company, discover any shortcomings you might have missed, and plan for future growth.

How to Create a Tourism Business Plan

Now that you understand why having a small business plan is important, you’re probably wondering how to write one. You can use a business plan template, but it’s good to know why you’re including the information it asks for. It’s also acceptable to cater the content of your business plan to suit your unique company, but there are certain sections that investors expect to see, making them beneficial for you to include.

Here is what you need to include in your company’s business plan:

Executive Summary

One of the most important sections of your business plan will be your executive summary, which serves as a high-level overview of your business, providing highlights of the fundamentals of your brand.

You’ll notice that most, if not all, of the topics covered within your executive summary will have their own dedicated section later on in your business plan. Because the executive summary is typically limited to a single page, leave the nitty-gritty details for their respective sections and use the executive summary as a way to simply introduce the topics to your reader.

Executive summary topics:

What is your business and what does it do? Do you host walking tours or provide bicycle rentals? Are you a tour guide or do you run a themed hotel experience? Give the reader a clear understanding of your business concept.
What are your business goals and where do you envision your company in the future? How do you want to see your business grow?
What makes your business different from your competitors? Whether you’re renting out a specific product like Segways or providing a service like guided tours, discuss what sets you apart from (and makes you better than) similar businesses in your industry.
Who is your target audience? Who are you selling to and why are they interested?
What is your marketing strategy? How do you plan to connect with and convert your customers?
What is your current financial state? What is your projected financial state?
What is the purpose of your business plan? Are you looking to secure investors and/or lenders? If so, how much are you asking for? You won’t need to discuss this if your business plan is strictly for your own planning purposes.
Who is on your team, what are their job titles, and what do they do?

Again, like your business plan as a whole, not all of the topics listed above may be applicable to your business or your specific needs, so include only what you see fit.

Company Overview

Your company overview should give your reader a detailed understanding of who you are and what you do. This includes technical topics like your business description, structure, and model, but should also cover the heart and soul of your company. That is, not only what you do, but why you do it. Developing your brand story is an important step to branding in the travel and tourism industry .

What is it about running a bungee jumping business, wine tasting tour, or spelunking course that inspires you? What is your company’s mission, vision, purpose, and USP (unique selling proposition)? What are your business goals and objectives, both short-term and long-term? Defining these aspects of your business helps readers, whether investors or your own employees, connect with your business at a deeper level.

Market Analysis

Another important section to include in your business plan for your tour company is a detailed market analysis. Even if you’re creating your business plan for internal use only, conducting market analysis and research is an excellent way to gauge your position within your industry, identify areas of concern, and create an effective marketing strategy using the 7 Ps of Travel and Tourism Marketing .

Things to consider in your market analysis include your target market and demographic, whether your marketing strategy is aligned with your target market, where you want to position yourself in the industry in relation to your competitors, and where you have room to improve.

Try conducting a SWOT analysis for your tour business to explore your:

Strengths – what do you do well?
Weaknesses – what could you do better?
Opportunities – are there gaps in your industry that you can take advantage of?
Threats – what external factors affect your chance of success?

Team Summary

Use your team summary section to outline the leaders and key players in your tour company. An organizational chart works well to display this information and will usually explore members of management and other key personnel, their job titles, and their roles and responsibilities. Be sure to address how each person plays/will play an integral role in the success of your tour business or travel company.

Even if your business is very small or you run a sole proprietorship, it’s still worth including a team summary section so that potential investors can get to know who they’re investing in. A team summary adds a human element to your business plan and can help build your readers’ confidence by showing them that they can trust the leaders (even if it’s just you) to bring the company to success.

Financial Plan

Discuss your finances. What is your current financial state, what is your future financial projection, and how do you plan on getting there? If you’re looking for an investment, how much do you need? Include relevant documents, paperwork, statements, calculations, etc. to back up the numbers you’re sharing.

Marketing Plan

Needless to say, tour marketing is one of the most important aspects of your tour business.

Your business plan should have a detailed marketing strategy and promotional tactics, including pricing strategy, advertising channels, and innovative tactics. It should also leverage social media and other tourism-related technology to reach your target market effectively.

Your Business Plan Can Set You Up For Success

Investing the time up front to create a simple business plan for your tour company is worth the effort, and is crucial to becoming a successful tour operator. Going into anything without a plan can be risky, and starting a tour business is no different.

Once you know how to write a business plan and understand the main components that make one effective, you’ll have an invaluable tool for securing investors and planning your company’s growth in the competitive tourism and travel industry. There’s really no better time than now, so go out there, write a killer business plan, and start the tour business of your dreams .

Written By | Edward Nieh

Edward Nieh is a freelance writer and copy editor working across multiple mediums for clients from various industries. He has a degree in creative writing with a focus on screenwriting for feature films.

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A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating a Tour and Travel Business Plan

Are you thinking about starting a tour and travel business? If so, you will need to create a business plan. This document is essential for any business, and it will help you map out your goals and strategies.

In this blog post, we will outline a step-by-step guide on creating a tour company business plan. By following these steps, you will be able to create a plan that is tailored to your specific business. Let's get started!

Why Your Tour Company Needs a Tour Company Business Plan

For any tour company to be successful, they need to have a well-developed business plan.

A business plan acts as a roadmap, providing essential information on the market and industry you are operating in, the marketing strategy you can use to reach your target audience, pricing structures and legal regulations related to the operations of your business.

A well-crafted plan also allows entrepreneurs to budget their tours, identify potential areas of risk before they start operations and find ways to gain competitive edge over competitors. It serves as an invaluable guide that can help businesses make informed decisions on all aspects of running a prosperous venture while also providing assurance that they are compliant with all applicable local laws.

Benefits of a Tour Operator Business Plan

Having a written plan helps you set realistic objectives and develop operational marketing strategy built for success. So when starting out with your own tour company, it pays to invest time into creating an effective business plan that covers all bases.

Doing so will enable you to launch a strong product that stands out and provides customers ultimate satisfaction!

How do I write a tour operator business plan?

Now that you understand why a tour and travel business needs a well-crafted business plan, you're probably wondering how to create one. Sure, you can just use a tour business plan template, but it's still better to craft your own tour business plan.

So, here are the steps you need to follow to create one.

Executive summary

An executive summary is the first and most important part of your tour business plan. In a single page, you should include your company's mission and vision statement, objectives and strategies, financial projections and any other relevant information. This is the part where you need to grab people's attention and make a strong first impression.

operations plan, market analysis, potential customers, tour guide, important step, future, potential investors

As the word executive summary suggests, though, make sure it is short and to the point . You don't want to bore readers with lengthy introductions or details they don't need.

Important points to add in your executive summary are the following:

clear business concept
goals and vision
what sets you apart
your target market
marketing strategies
projected financial state
the purpose of your business plan, whether to attract investors or strictly for your own planning purposes

Company overview

Your company overview should give a detailed understanding of who you are and what you do as a tour business. Explain your company's history, vision and mission statements along with the services you offer.

travel agency business plan template, adventure travel business, travel agents, travel company

Be sure to also include not only what you do, but why you do it. Your company may have a unique angle that sets you apart from the competition.

For example, what is it in your skydiving or guided tours or adventures that sets you apart from the other you in your area? Defining your company overview serves as a brand story that your customers can connect to and guides you to the right direction.

Industry analysis

This is where you discuss the broad and deep travel industry research in your specific industry. An industry analysis is also called that market analysis of your travel business.

You need to identify the current tour and travel trends, understand your target market, evaluate existing tour companies in your field and analyze your strategies.

travel business, employee salaries, create a business plan, sole proprietorship, ownership structure, swot analysis

When analyzing the tourism industry where your travel agency business operates, you should also be aware of any new tour technology, laws, and regulations. Doing your due diligence on the tourism industry will give you a better understanding of the tour market and how to position your tour business.

Competitor analysis

Your tour business plan should also include a competitor analysis. This helps you understand the market forces and how your business can compete against them.

tour operator business plan template, guided tours business, employees, sales, focus, insurance

Analyzing tour competitors should include looking at your prices, packages and tour quality. Doing this will help you come up with ways to position your tour business and make it stand out.

You might also conduct a SWOT analysis to identify your company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

Customer analysis

Having a tour plan that includes an analysis of your customers helps you understand your target clients. It involves researching their needs and preferences, satisfaction and feedback.

By doing customer research, you can better customize packages and services to meet your customers' needs. This will help them build loyal customer relationships, eventually resulting in more tour bookings.

Operational planning

Here goes the most detailed and meaty part of tour business planning. In this important section, you should include your legal structure, risk management strategies and management plans.

tour operator business plan, marketing strategy, business plan

You should also include safety measures and policies they are planning to implement. This helps businesses stay organized, be accountable and avoid tour-related risks.

This is also where you will consider any tour software they might need to manage operations – from booking software, distribution channels, or any other partnerships with other businesses.

Team Summary

Use your team summary section to list the key people involved in your tour business and their roles. This is also where you can list any experts, guides, operators, and the management team you will be working with.

Using an organizational chart will allow you to quickly visualize the team structure and make sure all tour business roles are filled.

Financial planning

Your financial plan is an essential element of successful business planning. When creating a business plan, you should include revenue forecasts and expenses. They can also include pricing strategy, cost control methods, cash flow forecasts, financial statements and balance sheets.

tour operator business plan, employees, future

Having a tour financial plan will help you make better business decisions, raise capital and compile budgets. If your travel company is seeking potential investors, you should also include your investment strategies and exit plans.

Marketing plan

It goes without saying that tour marketing is an important component of tour businesses.

Your tour business plan should include marketing strategies and promotion tactics. This includes your pricing, advertising channels, and other marketing ways. You should also consider how you are going to use social media and other tour-related technologies to reach your target customers.

Wrapping up

Creating a tour business plan can be overwhelming, but it is essential for tour businesses. Taking the time to do your research and include all the necessary elements in your tour business plan will help ensure success.

As an overview, here are the parts of a successful tourism business plan:

executive summary
company overview
competitor analysis
customer analysis
operational plans
team summary
financial planning
marketing plan.

Get started with Ticketinghub

Investing in tour technology and software is also a great way to make your tour business stand out from the competition. Online reservation software for tour operators like Ticketinghub is designed to help tour businesses manage tour bookings, marketing and operations.

Our platform is simple enough for any business owner to use yet powerful enough to grow a large travel company's sales. We offer the most complete solution on the market with features like automated pricing, customizable booking engine, instant online quotes and more than 40 different languages supported by our customer service team.

Furthermore, you can integrate other programs and tools such as Google Analytics, Stripe, SumUp, and more.

Make the most of your tours and activities reservations with Ticketinghub. Book a demo to learn more today.

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How to create a tour operator business plan in 8 steps

Preparing to Write a Business Plan

Tour operator business plan template, tips and tricks for a strong tour operator business plan.

Wondering how to turn your tour operator idea into a real business? The first step to launching a startup and getting investors onboard is to develop a formal proposal called a business plan . Whether you want to start a travel agency, a walking tour company, or an adventure travel business, you will use a business plan to communicate exactly how you plan to make your idea come to life.

Creating a tourism business plan might sound daunting; in this article, we’ll show you how to do one and offer lots of advice for first-time founders. You’ll be able to use this article as a tour operator business plan template to write your own sample business plan (as an exercise) or to create the real thing.

To more clearly illustrate how to create a tour operator business plan, we’ll use a sample business as we go through each section. Our sample business is a small tour operator startup that specializes in ecotourism in Thailand.

Before you start to create your official business plan, it can be helpful to think through several aspects of your business so that you are fully prepared to address each topic in the business plan template. One excellent preparation exercise is to complete a Business Model Canvas for your company.

The Business Model Canvas encourages you to think critically about your customers, cost structure, revenue streams, marketing strategy, and more. It’s the perfect warm-up for your business plan because you’ll incorporate your Business Model Canvas notes into the actual business plan document. We recommend that you do this exercise with your co-founders, if you have any, and with a whiteboard – you’ll probably make lots of changes as you go!

You can find a printable Business Model Canvas template here .

Your tour operator business plan should contain at least seven sections: an executive summary, a company overview, a description of your services, an analysis of your market, an implementation plan, a team summary, and a financial plan. You might have one or more appendices at the end, if you have additional relevant information to include. The finished product should be formatted nicely and incorporate your company’s logo and branding.

Executive Summary

As the first component of your business plan, the executive summary is arguably the most important section. If you’re pitching your idea to investors, they’re likely very busy people, so you want to grab their attention from the beginning. The executive summary should contain a concise outline of your tour operator company’s objectives and goals, your mission and/or vision statements , your key success factors, and a clear description of your value proposition.

Company Overview

Think of this section as what you would post on the “About” section of your tour operator company’s website. The company overview should explain who your company’s key leaders are, how and when the business started, what the ownership structure looks like (if you have investors, for example), where your office is located, and an outline of your current assets and debts. If you’re in the early stages of your business, this section might be quite short.

Operations Plan

The operations plan is where you describe exactly what your company will offer. What kinds of tours will you sell? Where exactly will you operate? This is the type of information you would list on your website for potential customers or guests to read – but without too much of a sales pitch.

In this section, it can also be helpful to include a description of the full “ life cycle ” of your business. What happens before, during, and after a tour? What steps does the guest complete, and what happens behind the scenes at your company’s office?

Thinking about our Thai ecotourism company, we might illustrate how someone could book a tour perhaps six months in advance on our website. Between booking and arrival, we coordinate accommodation, meals, and transportation with partner providers. When the tour concludes, we offer transportation back to the airport and follow up with a special offer to book another tour with us at a discount.

Market Analysis

Try to include statistics from reputable sources whenever you can. Destination marketing organizations, tourism bureaus, and air traffic data, just to name a few, can provide valuable insight and add credibility. This section should leave no stone unturned so that your reader can truly understand your market conditions.

In our ecotourism business in Thailand, for example, we would include information about travel trends in Thailand (like the most popular feeder markets), new air routes, economic trends, the number of new hotels being built, etc. We would also explore the ecotourism market; are more people choosing eco-friendly travel options today compared to five years ago? What companies are the current ecotourism market leaders globally and in Thailand?

Implementation

Now that you’ve explained your business idea and described the market in which you plan to operate, it’s time to outline exactly how you will bring your tour operator business to life. This section should include a SWOT analysis , details about your marketing and pricing strategies, and a sales projection.

In the SWOT analysis , you will explore your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. What does your company offer that nobody else in the market does? What are some potential challenges that you will need to face? Using our ecotourism company example, a threat could be natural disasters – if there are floods or mudslides, our business cannot operate. On the other hand, an opportunity is that more people are interested in eco-friendly travel options.

Your marketing and pricing strategies should be very specific. How will customers find your company? Which online channels will you use? Will you work through travel agents or directly with your customers?

Your pricing strategy should include the exact rates you plan to charge for at least a year in advance. For example, our ecotourism company in Thailand might charge $699 for a package during low season, $899 during high season, and $999 over holiday periods, with rates increasing 5% each year.

We might also offer a 10% discount for advance purchase bookings made at least 6 months in advance and charge a 50% cancellation fee for any reservations cancelled within 3 months of the tour departure date. Based on your pricing strategy, you can create a sales projection that will estimate your company’s sales performance, preferably over the next three years.

Team Summary

After your reader understands what your tour operator business will do, they’ll wonder who is going to make it happen. And if you’re planning to launch a full-fledged tour operator business, you’re probably not going at it alone. The Team Summary section should include a thorough plan for your company’s organizational structure, key leaders, employees, and training processes.

Do you already have a management team in place, or will you need to hire additional leaders? How many employees will you need, and how much will you pay them? And how will you train and develop your employees? The Team Summary should answer all of these questions and provide enough information for potential investors to understand exactly how you plan to staff your business, pay your employees, and ensure all team members are trained properly.

Financial Plan

The financial plan is extremely important to potential investors because they will want to maximize the return on their investment. Your financial plan is essentially a projection of your revenue streams and cost structure for your company’s first five or so years of operation. It will include not only revenue from ticket sales and costs from employee salaries, but also details like tour-operator software costs, insurance, taxes, marketing spend, depreciation of assets, interest on loans, and more.

If you don’t have a finance background yourself, it may be helpful to seek assistance from an accountant or someone who knows the ins and outs of financial modeling.

Additional Information

In an appendix, you can include supporting information or statistics that may be helpful for potential investors, but not essential to your business plan. For instance, you could include a full report on air traffic trends that you used in your Market Analysis section.

Download Your Tour Operator Business Plan Template

Now that you know what a Tour Operator Business Plan should include, below we provide the one we have specially created for you.

Writing a business plan is certainly not an easy task. It’s time consuming and requires a lot of thought, but a well written business plan can lead to significant growth for your company. As you complete your business plan, keep these pieces of advice in mind:

Conduct thorough research on your market . When you pitch your company to investors, you want to be seen as an expert, so learn as much as you can about your competitors and market trends.
Simplify your words and descriptions whenever possible . A business plan is not the place to wow your reader with flowery language – instead, you want your reader to easily grasp your value proposition. Think about writing so that a fifth-grader can understand it. The last thing you want is for your reader to be confused about what your company actually does.
Don’t be afraid to make changes . As you work on your business plan, you might discover that some aspects of your business need to be adjusted for the greater good of the company. After all, the companies that are the most adaptable are the ones that survive!
Get a second opinion (or a third or a fourth). A good test of your business plan’s readability and clarity is to let someone outside your industry read it, like a family member or friend. If they have a lot of questions, you might need to adjust your descriptions or more clearly explain your plans.
Proofread ! Your business plan is a reflection of your company’s values. If your formatting is sloppy and your text is full of typos, your reader might question whether you have the attention to detail necessary to run a successful business.

Now that you have all the tools to create a great tour operator business plan, it’s time to get to work!

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Adrienne Fors is the founder of Strategic Stays, a consultancy specializing in tech solutions and copywriting for short-term rental businesses and boutique hotels. She was previously a Market Manager at Expedia, and she graduated from the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University. Adrienne is originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota and enjoys traveling and playing tennis.

Mize is the leading hotel booking optimization solution in the world. With over 170 partners using our fintech products, Mize creates new extra profit for the hotel booking industry using its fully automated proprietary technology and has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue across its suite of products for its partners. Mize was founded in 2016 with its headquarters in Tel Aviv and offices worldwide.

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Start a Successful Tour Business with These 8 Insider Tips

Embarking on the journey to start a successful tour business can be both exciting and daunting. With the right approach, however, it's entirely possible to carve out a successful niche in the tourism industry.

What is a Tour Operator Business?

A tour operator business involves creating, organizing, and managing tours and experiences for tourists. It's about crafting unique journeys that offer guests more than just a visit to a place; it's about delivering unforgettable experiences. Whether it's a guided city tour, a wildlife adventure, or a cultural immersion, the goal is to provide value and enjoyment to your customers.

8 Steps to Start Your Tour Operator Business

Launching a tour operator business requires a blend of passion, planning, and strategic execution. Each step is designed to build upon the last, ensuring that by the time you launch, your business is well-positioned to attract, delight, and retain customers in a competitive market.

Research and Planning

Research and planning are the bedrock of any successful business. Start by understanding the market, identifying competitors, and recognizing what tourists are looking for. This initial step lays the foundation for a solid business plan.

You might think the initial step is straightforward: identify your niche market and craft a detailed business plan. Pause for a moment to consider what truly excites you and where your expertise lies.

If you have a knack for or enjoy delving into the details of various destinations, attractions, and accommodations, your insights could be incredibly valuable to your clients.

Consider these sought-after travel niches for your agency:

Adventure Travel
Luxury Travel
Wellness and Spa Retreats
Family Travel
Senior Travel
Cultural and Heritage Tours
Sustainable and Eco-Tourism
Culinary Tours
Sports Events Travel
Destination Weddings

Each of these niches offers a unique opportunity to leverage your personal interests and expertise, setting your travel agency apart in a crowded market. If you're intrigued by the idea of exploring niche markets, consider delving into the flavorful world of brewery tours. Learn more about starting a brewery tour business and tap into a growing trend that combines culinary delights with unique travel experiences.

For those passionate about cuisine and culture, starting a food tour business could be your recipe for success. Dive into our guide for an in-depth overview of the food tour business, where gastronomy meets adventure.

Elevate your tour offerings by embracing the mysterious allure of ghost tours. Explore our insights on launching a ghost tour business to captivate those fascinated by history and the paranormal.

Define Your Target in the Tourism Industry

Identifying your target market is crucial. Are you catering to adventure seekers, culture enthusiasts, or luxury travelers? Understanding your audience helps tailor your tours and marketing strategies effectively.

With your fresh tourism concepts in hand, it's time to envision your perfect customer. Reflect on the characteristics of individuals who would be drawn to your tour.

What age group do they fall into?
What are their origins?
Which language(s) do they communicate in?
What are their hobbies and interests?

Develop a Tour Business Plan

A comprehensive business plan outlines your business goals, strategies, and how you plan to achieve success. It should cover market analysis, marketing and sales strategies, operational plans, and financial projections.

Once you've navigated through the legal requirements, it's time to pen down your business plan.

This document encapsulates all your innovative ideas, serving as a guide to navigating your business's future path. It should encompass a description of your company, an analysis of the market, potential partnership avenues, and your objectives for the business.

Choose a Location for Your Tour Business

The location of your tour business significantly impacts its success. Select a place that is not only rich in attractions but also accessible and appealing to your target market.

Choosing the right location is key if you decide to have a physical office. Look for a spot that’s easily accessible for your clients and offers a comfortable and inviting atmosphere.

Consider factors like foot traffic, parking availability, and proximity to other businesses that align with the travel industry.

Obtain Tour Operator Legal Requirements

Legal requirements, including permits, licenses, and insurance, are essential to operating legally and protecting your business. Ensure you understand and comply with all local, state, and federal regulations.

Here are the key aspects to focus on:

Business Registration

Officially registering your travel agency as a legal entity is essential. The process will differ based on your geographical location and the regulations of your country or state.

In the United States, for instance, this might involve registering with the Secretary of State or securing a business license from your local government.

Compliance with Travel Regulations

The travel industry is regulated by a variety of laws at the local, regional, and international levels. It's important to acquaint yourself with the regulations relevant to your business's scope of operations.

Acquiring Certifications and Licenses

The specific nature of your business and the services you offer may necessitate obtaining particular certifications or licenses.

For instance, selling airline tickets typically requires accreditation from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) .

Create Tour Pricing

Pricing your tours competitively yet profitably requires understanding your costs, market demand, and competition. Offer various price points to cater to different budgets.

Set Up the Tour Operator Booking System

An efficient booking system is vital for managing reservations and payments. Invest in a reliable system that's easy for both you and your customers to use. You don’t just want travelers to find you online; you want them to make and pay, for reservations right on your website.

To do this, you need an online booking system. Your booking system can also be used to process your in-person and over the phone reservations.

Offer Compelling Tour Packages

Design tour packages that stand out. Include unique experiences, itineraries, and extras that add value. Remember, it's about creating memorable experiences that guests will cherish and share with others.

How Much Does it Cost to Start a Tour Operator Business?

Starting a tour operator business involves various costs, including licensing, insurance, marketing, equipment, and possibly transportation and staffing. While costs can vary widely based on location, type of tours, and scale of operations, initial investment can range from a few thousand to several tens of thousands of dollars.

Consider the following aspects:

Startup Costs

To kickstart your travel agency, you'll need to allocate funds for various startup expenses. These may include setting up your website, securing a deposit for a physical office space (should you choose to have one), and earmarking funds for initial marketing efforts.

Keep in mind, these expenses will vary based on your unique requirements and geographical location.

Funding Options

Exploring funding avenues is crucial for getting your travel agency up and running:

Pre-sales: Earning revenue from your initial customers is an effective way to support your business financially.
Grants: Look into grants offered by organizations and government bodies aimed at supporting small businesses within the travel sector.
Credit Purchases: For essential purchases like office equipment or software, consider buying on credit.
Friends and Family: Don't overlook the potential support from friends and family who might be willing to invest in your venture.
Banks: Traditional banking institutions can provide business loans or credit lines to finance your agency.
Angel Investors: These are individuals or groups, often with entrepreneurial or industry-specific experience, who invest in promising new businesses.
Venture Capital: For travel agencies with high growth ambitions and a scalable model, venture capital investment could be a viable option.

Tour Operator Business vs. Walking Tour Business

The main difference between a tour operator business and a walking tour business lies in the scope and type of experiences offered. Walking tours typically focus on guided explorations of a city or area on foot, often requiring less cost and logistical planning than broader tour operator businesses that may offer a wider range of experiences and transportation options.

Key Takeaways

Identify Your Niche and Target Market: Understanding what unique experiences you can offer and who your ideal customers are is crucial. This insight helps tailor your tours and marketing efforts effectively, ensuring they resonate with the right audience.
Develop a Comprehensive Business Plan: A well-thought-out business plan is your roadmap to success. It should detail your company's vision, market analysis, operational strategies, and financial projections, guiding your decisions as your business grows.
Comply with Legal Requirements: Ensuring your business adheres to all legal and regulatory requirements is non-negotiable. This includes registering your business, understanding travel regulations, and obtaining necessary certifications and licenses.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you need a license to do tours.

Yes, most locations require tour operators to have specific licenses and permits to operate legally. The requirements can vary by city, state, or country.

Is Starting a Tour Business Profitable?

A tour business can be highly profitable if managed well. Success depends on offering unique experiences, effective marketing, and excellent customer service.

Is the Tour Operator Business Better than a Travel Agency?

Whether a tour operator business is better than a travel agency depends on your passion, skills, and market demand. Tour operators focus on creating and managing tours, while travel agencies typically sell trips and experiences created by others.

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How to start a tour business

By Kevin Tjoe — 9 Jul 2021

booking system online booking software for tours tour operators

Updated March 2023 – Considering how to set up a tour operator business in your area?

You could be about to launch into one of the most exciting industries around and give people amazing lifelong memories – but the nitty gritty of getting started can still be a little daunting! We’ve covered some of the essential steps that will help you steer and launch your tour business ideas successfully.

Here are 6 steps on how to start your tour and travel company the right way.

First, starting a business in a commitment

Starting a tour business requires a lot of time, effort, and dedication. Before diving in, it is important to understand that starting any business is a commitment. It requires a significant investment of time, money, and energy. You need to be passionate about what you do and prepared to face challenges and setbacks.

But with the right planning, strategies, and mindset, you can overcome any obstacle and fully understand how to start a tour guide business that is successful and enjoyable to run.

1. Getting started

Identify your target market and niche.

The first step in starting a tour operator business is to identify your target market and niche. Who are your ideal customers, and what types of tours and activities do they enjoy? Are you targeting adventure seekers, families, or history enthusiasts? Once you have identified your target market, you can develop tours and activities that cater to their needs and interests.

Develop a business plan

A business plan is a crucial document that outlines your company’s mission, goals, strategies, and financial projections. It serves as a roadmap that guides your business decisions and helps you stay focused and organized. A good tour operator business plan should include an executive summary, market analysis, marketing and sales strategies, operations plan, financial projections, and funding requirements. It will also take into account the permits and licenses you may need to apply for.

When finalized, your business plan will set out your roadmap for success , and minimize wasted time and resources as you build your business.

Secure financing for your business

Starting a tour business can be expensive, and you will need to secure financing to cover your startup costs. Whether you are starting with a modest budget or have a large amount of money to invest, there are various options for financing your business, including personal savings, bank loans, crowdfunding, and angel investors. Before choosing a financing option, it is essential to have a clear understanding of your business’s financial needs, cash flow, and revenue projections. You should also research the pros and cons of each financing option and choose the one that best suits your business’s needs and goals.

2. Legal requirements

Get your business registered.

Before launching your tour business, you will need to register your company with the appropriate government agencies. This process may vary depending on your location but typically involves registering your business name, obtaining a business license, and registering for taxes. You may also need to obtain permits or licenses specific to your industry, such as a tour operator license or transportation permit.

Check local and national regulations

In addition to registering your business, you will need to ensure that you comply with local and national regulations. These regulations may include safety standards, environmental regulations, insurance requirements, and labor laws. It is crucial to research and understand the regulations that apply to your business to avoid legal issues or fines down the line.

Consider liability insurance

Liability insurance is essential for any tour business. It protects your company from financial losses in the event of accidents, injuries, or property damage during your tours. Liability insurance can also help build trust and credibility with your customers, as it shows that you take their safety and well-being seriously.

3. Building your tour

Establish your tour’s unique selling point.

To stand out in the crowded tour industry when starting a tour business, it is essential to establish a Unique Selling Point (USP) for your tours. Your USP is what sets your tours apart from your competitors and makes them more attractive to your target customers. It could be anything from a unique itinerary, a particular theme, or an exclusive experience that only your company can offer.

Develop tour pricing strategies

Pricing your tours correctly is crucial for the success of your business. You need to find the right balance between profitability and affordability to attract customers and generate revenue. Researching your competitors’ pricing strategies can help you set competitive prices, but it is also essential to consider your costs, profit margins, and customer value.

Build relationships with suppliers

To provide high-quality tours and experiences, you need to build strong relationships with your suppliers when starting a tour guide business, such as hotels, transportation providers, and activity operators. One of the ways to connect with potential suppliers is through industry events and trade shows. Sharing contact details is convenient with an Apple Wallet business card , allowing you to exchange details with just a tap. Building long-term relationships with your suppliers can help you negotiate better prices, ensure availability, and provide a seamless customer experience.

4. Your brand identity and store

Develop a brand that resonates with your target audience.

Your brand image can make all the difference to whether and how your customers book with you. First, check out our guide to creating the right name for your tourism business.

Consider how you want to come across to your customers. Are you a warm and welcoming family company, or would you like to exude a sense of exclusivity and luxury? These decisions will shape how you design your visual branding, tell your brand story, come up with tour package name ideas and build your online presence over web, social media, and reseller websites.

Build a user-friendly website to market your tours

In today’s digital age, having a user-friendly website is essential for marketing your tours and reaching your target customers. Your website should be visually appealing, easy to navigate, and optimized for search engines. It should also provide all the necessary information about your tours, such as itineraries, prices, and booking options.

Learn how you can improve your website’s health by following these steps in our FREE website health checklist .

Promote your tours on social media

Social media is a powerful marketing tool for tour businesses. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok can help you reach a broader audience, engage with your customers, and promote your tours. You can use social media to showcase your tours’ unique features, share customer testimonials, and run promotional campaigns.

Partner with DMOs and travel agencies

Partnering with Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) and travel agencies can help you reach a broader audience and increase your bookings. DMOs and travel agencies have established relationships with tourists and travelers, and they can help you market and promote your tours to their clients.

To begin with, you should identify the DMOs and travel agencies in your area that cater to your target market. Once you have a list, reach out to them and set up a meeting to discuss your partnership. Highlight your unique selling points, tour offerings, and target audience to them. It’s important to showcase the value that you bring to the table and how your partnership can benefit both parties.

5. Customer service and operations

Hire knowledgeable and friendly tour guides.

Your tour guides are the face of your business and can make or break the customer experience. Hire guides who are knowledgeable about the destinations you visit, passionate about their work, and have excellent communication skills.

Train guides to handle complaints effectively

No matter how well you plan, unexpected situations can arise during a tour, and complaints can happen. Train your guides to handle complaints effectively and to find solutions that can satisfy customers.

Ensure smooth tour operators

Before every tour, make sure that everything is in order, such as transportation, tickets, and reservations. Communicate any changes or delays to your customers promptly and professionally.

Collect customer feedback

Feedback will help you to really understand and refine your offerings both before and after you launch your tourism business. Take your friends and family on your tours and activities before you launch and gauge their responses. Consider offering local concierges or travel agents a free version of the experience, then gather their feedback and ask for recommendations. And most importantly, request and respond to customer feedback and analytics once you launch. Success all comes down to your customer experience !

6. Launch and beyond

Expand your tour business.

As you begin growing your tours and activity business , consider expanding your tour offerings to attract new customers and increase your revenue. You may even be able to add new destinations, activities, or packages that cater to your target market!

Invest in technology

Investing in technology can help tour operators save time, streamline operations , and enhance customer experiences. With the right technology, tour operators can automate their booking process, manage inventory, and stay organized.

One tool that can help with this is tour booking management software, such as Rezdy. Rezdy allows tour operators to manage their bookings and inventory in one central location, automating much of the administrative work that comes with running a tour business. Additionally, it allows tour operators to create and manage tour schedules, set up payment processing, and track their performance in real-time.

Nurture your network

Networking can be a large part of how tour operators work and thrive as distribution and referral channels are key. Are there local hotels that could benefit by recommending your tours or activities to guests? Could you offer delectable treats from a local food producer in the middle of your tours to enhance your customer experience?

It may be worth connecting with your local chamber of commerce or business network, and almost certainly reaching out on Rezdy Marketplace to see which resellers you can connect with in the area. The platform makes it easy to set custom commission rates for each travel agent.

Build a loyal customer base

Building a loyal customer base is essential for any tour business. A loyal customer base can provide a steady stream of revenue and act as advocates for your business, referring new customers and leaving positive reviews.

To build a loyal customer base, tour operators should focus on delivering exceptional customer experiences. This means going above and beyond to meet customer needs, answering their questions, and providing a memorable experience that they will want to share with others. When customers have a positive experience with a tour operator, they are more likely to return and recommend the business to others.

One way to build a loyal customer base is to offer personalized experiences tailored to individual customer preferences. This means taking the time to get to know your customers and their interests and providing customized recommendations for tours and activities. Tour operators can also offer loyalty programs, such as discounts for repeat customers or incentives for referrals, to encourage customers to return and refer others.

Start your tour and activity business with Rezdy

When learning how to start a business within the tours and activity space , the right support and resources can be key. Book a personalized product demo of Rezdy today, or get started with a free 21-day trial of our powerful booking software.

If you enjoyed this article then make sure to follow the Rezdy blog . There are a lot of marketing, business & industry tips for operators and resellers.

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Tour Company Business Plan: Everything You Need to Know

A tour company business plan is a document that contains all the ideas an individual has for the business. 3 min read updated on January 01, 2024

A tour company business plan is a document that contains all the ideas an individual has for the business. It's like have a roadmap to follow to keep the company heading in the right direction.

The Sections of a Business Plan

Basic Information

A tour company business plan contains several sections to be developed in a clear and detailed manner, such as a description of the company, partnership opportunities, and market analysis. It will also include information for an operations plan, a marketing plan, and a list of the products and services your company will provide.

Within the business plan, you'll be providing information that includes financial projections for the business, which will take into account how the seasons can affect tourism, and a selling theme or proposition explaining why your tour company surpasses the competition.

Executive Summary

This portion of the business plan provides a concise summary of each section.

Business Overview

This section describes the business. It will include:

Business formation information.
Business type.
The legal structure of the business.
Business location.
The means of doing business, i.e., street-based or internet based.

Operations Plan

The operations area fully describes how the business will operate and be set up. It will also include when tasks will be implemented and who will be responsible for completing the tasks.

Market Analysis

Market analysis is an important area and one that has several questions that need informative answers. You'll provide information on who your major competitors are, what their pricing strategy is, how you'll price products/services in relation to their price structure, what the demand is for your product or service, the market demand for your product, and what the consumer behavior is toward the product or service.

Team and Management

The team of employees is the driving force of the company. Describe the team, the role of each team member, and who will need to be hired to support the execution of your product/service.

Describe your plans for implementing your ideas to promote a successful business.

Financial Plan

Outline the financial forecast for the business. The information covers effective pricing, marketing budgets, cost of sales, cost of staff, and other elements/costs affecting the business.

Legalities of Starting a Tour Company

Name the business something that's memorable and descriptive.
Check to see if the domain for the name you've chosen is available. If so, buy it.
Register the business to make it official.
Choose the business structure: a partnership, corporation, or sole proprietorship. Evaluate the pros and cons of each structure prior to making a decision.
Contact the tourism board in your area to find out what the requirements are for opening a tour company.
Check with your particular city or state about the permits and licenses needed to operate a tour company.
If you're planning to be a tour guide, you may need to complete a course to attain a license. Check with the tourism board for your area for requirements.
Open a business bank account to handle tracking of revenue and expenses.
Purchase liability insurance to ensure the business isn't held liable. Common types of insurance for tourism are property insurance, accounts receivable insurance, and commercial general liability insurance.

Starting a Tour Company

There are several things to do before opening for business as a tour company.

Choosing a Niche and Finding Your Passion

Choose a focus for your company. Keep that focus fresh and stay passionate about the service you're providing.

Repeating the same information to clients several times a day is repetitive and can become boring. The boredom will reflect in your voice, and your customers will pick up on it, which won't be good for business.

Evaluate Your City

Do your homework to determine if your city will benefit from a tour company. Things to consider include if the city is a popular tourist destination, current travel trends, and if there's anything your company can offer that isn't already available.

Identify Your Target Market

Know who your company is focusing on and what areas to cover, such as outdoor activities, fine dining, and points of interest or things to do.

Research Competitors

Know your competition. This means having an understanding of their operations and how you can make yours stand out from the crowd.

If you need help with a tour company business plan, you can post your legal need on UpCounsel's marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.

Hire the top business lawyers and save up to 60% on legal fees

Content Approved by UpCounsel

How to Open a Tour Company
Creating a Business Plan
Parts of Business Plan and Definition
How to Start a Business: A Comprehensive Guide for Entrepreneurs
Service Business Plan
IT Company Business Plan
Business Description Outline
How to Make a Business Plan Format
Business Plan for New Company
Business Plan Contents Page

How to start a Tour Operator business in 2024: A step-by-step guide

By Brieanne Biblow

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There are so many benefits of being a tour operator , but taking the first step to start your own tour company? That can feel daunting. Like any start-up business, there are lots of pieces that need to come together before you welcome your first customers. With countless resources out there, it’s easy to get overwhelmed when you’ve asked yourself “How do I start an online tour operator business?” We’re here to give you more than just a few tips on starting a travel and tour company. Dive into our practical step-by-step guide on how to start your own tour company.

How to start a Tour Operator business in 2024

1. choose a business niche, 2. register your tour company, 3. design your tour, 4. build relationships , 5. market your tour, 6. launch your tour, choose a business niche.

Find your passion

The first step to becoming a tour operator is to know what you’re passionate about. If you survey a handful of happy tour guests, do you know the number one thing they’ll say makes a difference between a good tour and a tour they’ll recommend to all their friends? A passionate tour guide.

Your passion for cooking could translate into delicious food tours, or your love of the outdoors could turn into hiking tours, even a passion for all things spooky could transform into starting a ghost tour business. So, take some time to find your passion that you can’t wait to share with others every day.

Evaluate your city

Once you have your passion in mind, it’s time to take a look at your city. Is it a popular tourist destination? Is there anything that’s not being explored? While passion is key, it’s equally important to identify if there’s an opportunity. Passion without opportunity is just a hobby. Check in with your local tourism board to see if they have any market research reports that outline the opportunities and challenges in the industry.

Dig into travel and tourism trends

The travel and tourism industry, like any industry, can see larger trends in pop culture trickle down and open up entirely new business opportunities. Your potential customers are being influenced by trends, so why not do some research, incorporate ones that feel like a fit for you, and watch more bookings roll in.

Some 2024 tourism trends that will be influencing travelers:

Multi-generational tours : Post-retirement boomers will be looking to travel with their entire families. So creating a tour offering that has something for the whole family could be a great idea.
Cultural connection : More and more, savvy travelers are always looking for something truly authentic to the destination they’ve traveled to. That doesn’t mean you have to be the authentic expert. Instead, think about exploring opportunities to partner with other start-up businesses in your community that could add this element to your tour offering.
From screens to reality: Keeping a pulse on popular TV shows and movies can be a great way to come up with unique tour ideas that can target new customers for your business.

Identify your target market

Now that you have innovative tourism ideas , you need to map out what your ideal potential customer looks like. Think about the types of people that will be attracted to your tour.

What’s their age demographic?
Where are they coming from?
What language(s) do they speak?
What interests do they have?

Who your customers are will determine many of the decisions you make later. This information will also be crucial when you create your marketing strategy. So, take the time to get to know your target market.

Research your competitors

Having found your tour idea and evaluated the market in the previous section, you’re almost ready to register your tour company. But first, you’ll need to research your competition, so you know what you’re up against. Head to Google and search simple like “tour operators near me” and ask yourself:

What are they doing well?
Where are their gaps?
What are their price points like?

Then, find ways to differentiate yourself and stand out.

Register your tour company

With your research complete, now is a good time to consider your options for registering your business. Go to your local tourism board and find out the requirements for starting a tour company in your area. Here are some of the legalities you might have to go through.

Name your tour business

The first thing you need to do is name your business. Your tour name will be used in all of your documentation. Make sure your name is both memorable and descriptive. The most important is if the website domain is available. If your name checks all the boxes, go to your local Registrar of Companies to get it approved and then purchase your domain.

Register your business

Now that you have a name you’re ready to make things official by registering your business. There are different options for how you register— sole proprietorship, partnerships, corporations. Speaking to a small business accountant is a great idea to understand the tax implications of each option. Then, evaluate the pros and cons of each before you make your decision.

Get your business license and permits

Once you’ve registered your business, you’ll need to get a local business license. Check in with your local municipality to do this. You might need to obtain additional permits and licensing based on where you are operating and if you have any vehicles.

Purchase liability insurance

Protect your business, yourself, and your guests by getting liability insurance. Accidents happen, that’s a given. But to ensure that you aren’t held personally liable, you’ll want to meet with an insurance company to learn about what coverage your business needs. Some commonly required in the tourism industry are:

Commercial General Liability (CGL)
Property Insurance
Accounts Receivable Insurance

Register as a tour guide

If you are guiding, you might need to complete a course to become a licensed tourist guide. This allows you to take tourists around a designated geographical area. To find out if you need to register as a guide, check in with your local tourism board.

Open a business bank account

Now that you have a business license, you’ll want to open a corporate bank account. This will help you keep track of all your expenses and revenue and make accounting a lot easier.

Design your tour

Write your business plan

With all the legalities taken care of, it’s time to write your business plan.

A business plan is a document that holds all of your ideas. It’s your roadmap that helps you determine how you’ll move forward. Include your company description, market analysis, partnership opportunities, and small business goals . It should also include your marketing plan, operations plan, and a list of your vendors, products, and services. It should also contain a variety of financial projections for your first 1-5 years of business. Remember: it’s okay if you don’t have all the answers right away, but it’s good to know what to focus on as you grow.

Side note: once you get up and running, you should learn how to develop a strategic plan to help you reach your ultimate vision for your tour operator business.

Create your Unique Selling Proposition

With your business plan in hand, it’s time to lock down your unique selling proposition. This explains what makes your tour better than the competition. It’s the benefit that travelers can only get by booking with you — like that you provide ethical travels & tours . You should be able to define this in one sentence.

Set your tour pricing

Now that you’ve evaluated your market it’s time to determine the value of your tour and choose what you will charge. It’s important to consider your operating costs and market value as well as what you think customers are willing to pay. This part often feels overwhelming for a lot of start-up businesses, which is why we’ve created our free Tour Operator Costing Sheet .

Craft your brand story

Now comes the fun part—it’s time to create a compelling story for your tour. Make sure it has a definite beginning, middle, and end. Find themes that you can carry through the entire experience. A clear narrative makes your tour more memorable. The goal is to have your guests telling their friends all the neat things they learned in the weeks that follow.

Design a tour logo

Once you’ve created a story for your tour, it’s time to design your brand around it. The first step is to create a logo. Your logo is the visual representation of your business. It will be used in all of your marketing collateral. You can choose to work with a graphic designer, or give free tools like Canva a try. Lookin for some inspiration? Check out more ideas for branding your business .

Build a travel website

Alright! You’re finally ready to create an online presence for your business . This is how many travelers will find you when researching their trips. If you don’t know how to build a website you have a few options; you could hire a contractor, or try your hand with tools like: Wix , Squarespace , or WordPress . Whatever you choose, make sure your website works with online booking system (like Checkfront 😉).

Set up an online booking system

You don’t just want travelers to find you online; you want them to make, and pay, for reservations right on your website. To do this, you need an online booking system . Your booking system can also be used to process your in-person and over the phone reservations. Here are a few links that will help you find the platform that’s right for you.

What is an Online Booking System?
How to Create an Online Booking System in 24 Hours (or Less)
Start Using Checkfront’s Booking System for Free

Build Relationships

Talk to other tour guides

When starting a business, many entrepreneurs think they need to do everything on their own. This can lead to loneliness and frustration. But, you don’t have to do it alone. Many guides would be happy to share their knowledge with you. Go out and build relationships with other operators in your city, who aren’t direct competitors. Online communities like Tourpreneur are an invaluable resource for tour operators at any stage of their business.

Connect with the local tourism community

Take any opportunity you have to build relationships with local business . While it’s difficult to walk into a room full of strangers and feel like an outsider, you won’t regret pushing yourself to meet other business owners. You’ll feel connected to people in the same boat as you and get a lot from the relationships you make. Just don’t forget to give back. Here are a few key relationships you should build locally:

With your local city council
Your local tourism or destination management organization (DMO)
Your local tourist information office
Hotel front desks and tour desks

Market Your Tour

With your target market defined and your marketing strategy ready to go, it’s time to get the word out about your amazing business! From online travel agents to social media to email marketing, we’ll cover it all:

List your tours on OTAs

Make it easy for travelers to find you by listing your tour on online travel agents (OTAs). OTA’s like Viator, Expedia Local Expert, Google Things To Do and GetYourGuide already have experience in digital advertising and have built up a mass following. While they will take a commission from your sales, they also have a significant amount of marketing spend at their disposal that your business can benefit from.

Think about it like selling vegetables — while you could set up a booth at a local farmer’s market, you’ll probably get far more customers by selling in a grocery store.

Implement SEO best practices

Now that you’re tour is listed with a couple online travel agents, it’s time to start driving traffic to your website. The best long-term strategy to do so is through search engine optimization (SEO). You can use SEO best practices to optimize your site for Google and other search engines. One of the best things to do is to SEO optimize your product descriptions . That way when someone searches for something related to your tour, your website shows up in search results.

Buy Google Adwords

While SEO is great, it’s a long-term strategy and can takee time to crawl up Google or Bing’s search rankings. To get immediate results you can buy AdWords. Instead of waiting for Google’s algorithm to show your website on the results page, you bid on specific keywords related to your business so your site shows up on top of the page.

Start email marketing

With steady visitor traffic coming to your website, you’ll want to capture their emails so you can stay in touch with them. Email marketing is a powerful tool when done right but it will take some work to stand out in your customers’ inboxes. Our Complete Guide to Email Marketing for Tourism Operators is a great place to start.

Get on Facebook and Instagram

Social media is where your customers are likely spending most of their time online, so you should be there, too. Creating a Facebook page and Instagram account will let you connect to your customers, post pictures of your tours, and make your company information easy to share and recommend. Plus, you can use Facebook Messenger or Instagram’s Direct Messages to answer questions and use the ad network on both platforms to help more people discover your tour.

Launch Your Tour

Host Your Friends and Family

As you prepare for a successful business launch , you’ll want to do a few test runs. We recommend a pre-launch buzz campaign or hosting a few friends and family first. Think of it as your dress rehearsal. Go through the tour from start to finish and collect as much feedback as you can. Once you feel confident that you’ve worked out the kinks, you’re ready to launch!

Final thoughts

Building your own tour business is no easy feat. From designing a tour and evaluating your market, to building relationships, your brand, your online presence, and getting those first customers through the door. There’s a lot of pieces to put together. However, following this step-by-step guide and your intuition you’ll have a successful tour operator business in no time.

Want to get your tour business off to a running start?

Join the 30 Day ‘Things to Do’ Challenge for Tour Operators.

Tackle one small task a day and watch your business grow.

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How to Start a Tour Business: From Passion to Profit in the Tourism Industry

Learn how to start a tour business, turning travel passion into profit. From finding your niche to running your first tour, get your venture going

Two hikers with backpacks looking at mountain scenery with trees and rock formations.

by Kate Cornell | 16 July 2024

From dreaming to doing, starting a tour company from the ground up can be one of the most rewarding ventures you’ll ever embark on. Not to mention the most challenging. Transforming your passion and stories into tours that captivate your audience requires more than just creativity. It demands strategic planning and an understanding of the market you want to break into.

Back in 2022, in the State of Tours, Activities & Attractions report, Arival projected that the global tours and activities industry would reach $183 billion by this year, and operators surveyed in 2024 were overall optimistic about their prospects.

So what’s stopping you from getting started on turning your passion into profit?

In this guide, you’ll find invaluable tips, perspectives, and reflections from tour operators and industry veterans on how to start a tour company. This walkthrough will help you navigate this exciting journey as you start a tour business, and what it takes to be successful. The good news: Don’t be too worried about getting in the weeds of how to become a tour operator just yet. It all starts with a genuine love for what you do.

Here’s what we’ll cover

Understanding the Tour Business Landscape

Legal and practical foundations, preparing for operations, marketing your tour business.

Managing Finances and Evaluating Success
Scaling Your Tour Business
Transitioning from Passion to Profit

The tourism landscape is an exciting place to start a tour business. It’s a complex and diverse landscape, but travelers — your potential customers — are not interested in everything being the same. In that complexity and diversity is the opportunity for you to find a way to earn a living doing what you love.

Identify Your Niche

The first step to starting a successful tour company is identifying your niche. This means finding a specific area or theme that you are passionate about and knowledgeable in. Whether it’s food tours, historical walks, adventure excursions, or cultural experiences, your point of view and storytelling in that category will set you apart from the competition, especially as travelers are seeking out memorable tourism experiences now more than ever.

“I don’t think people should be thinking about trends because I think the trend is that there’s an audience for just about everything now,” according to TripSchool co-founder Mitch Bach. “Now with digital marketing, you can connect with a niche, as well as be as interesting or obscure as you want to be. I think it’s the best time to be in this industry because twenty years ago you probably had to build more generic products for more general audiences and now you can build full businesses and happy lives by being as unique and interesting as you want yourself to be in the world.”

Mitch Bach giving his presentation on stage with projection screen behind him

Understand Your Market

Before launching your tour company, it’s crucial to understand your target market. Who are your ideal customers? What are their interests and preferences? Conducting market research will provide you with insights into the demographics and even the psychographics of your potential clients.

Bar chart comparing different types of tours taken by U.S. travelers in 2019 and 2023.

You can use simple techniques to get this valuable data. Send your tour scripts to a group of friends, and ask them for constructive feedback. Set up a Google or Zapier survey via a form and send it to community groups you belong to. Look at reviews of similar tours on platforms like TripAdvisor, Yelp, and Google Reviews. Identify common themes in customer feedback to understand what people enjoy and what they don’t. Explore the latest Arival consumer research to find out what travelers are prioritizing and looking for.

Be prepared: It can sometimes lead to you having to adjust your format to reach the audience you want to serve. “The most challenging aspect of starting my own tour company has been removing my bias and trying to see things through the lens of my guests,” reflects Eric Curry, who started his eponymous tour company in 2021 to tell native tales and history of San Francisco. “I think that when you find the balance between the things that interest your guests and what you are passionate about is when you will find success in your business.”

Group selfie of seven diverse people smiling outdoors with trees and overcast sky behind them.

For those still deciding where to land, look to what travelers want: authentic, immersive, and bookable online. Further, eco-friendly and sustainable travel options are still increasingly popular, especially among Millennials and Gen Z travelers. Tailoring your tours to meet these demands can set you on the path to success.

Develop a Solid Business Plan

A comprehensive business plan is essential for any new business, and a tour company is no exception. Your business plan should outline your company’s mission, target market, marketing strategy, financial projections, and operational plan. This document will serve as your roadmap and help you stay focused on your goals.

Take the time to detail every aspect of your business, from pricing models to staffing needs, to ensure you’re well-prepared for the challenges ahead. According to a recent Skift report, venture capital investment in the travel industry hit a decade low in 2023, but recovery is imminent. Ensuring you are set up for success in the case you need to raise funding is crucial to staying ahead.

However, there’s also something to say for just getting out there and getting started. “You can put up your own mental roadblocks and think because it’s safer to remain theoretical,” Bach said. “And when you’re starting a tour business things can get real very quickly. You can put up a website with some copy about you and a tour experience. Even if you don’t have everything figured out, you can start selling it even as you’re figuring out all of the other pieces of the business.”

Operator Takeaways:

Be bold, tell a unique story.
Use feedback from friends, surveys, and user reviews on similar offerings to refine your scripts and itineraries, and align them with customer interests.
Pinpoint what it means for you to offer authentic and immersive elements of a tour.
Don’t try to compete in oversaturated areas of your market. Innovate, don’t replicate.
Take action and start selling your tours even as you refine your business model.

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You’ve got the vision, you outlined a plan, and now what? It’s time to set up a legitimate business entity.

There are a series of legal and administrative steps necessary to launch a tour business. For starters you will need to register your business and obtain the necessary insurance.

Register Your Business

The process of registering your business may differ depending on where you are located. Your national, provincial, regional or state authority should provide guidance on how to register a business in your location and understand the regulations governing tour operations in your local region.

There are also different structures to consider. While most operators start out with sole proprietorship or as a limited liability company (LLC), there may be more to consider depending on your business goals, from registering as a cooperative to even franchising your business.

If you’re unsure where to start, look to your local tourism board or destination management organization (DMO) for guidance. You can also tap the tour operator community for advice — connect with fellow operators on LinkedIn, at an upcoming Arival event , and even on places like Reddit .

Secure Liability Insurance

Running a tour company requires various licenses and permits, depending on your location and the nature of your tours. It’s crucial to research the legal requirements in your area and ensure you comply with all regulations. This might include business licenses, special permits for certain types of tours, and insurance coverage.

Choosing the right insurance coverage involves assessing your business risks, considering your budget, and understanding policy exclusions and limitations. Partnering with a reliable insurance provider familiar with the travel industry is crucial for ensuring comprehensive protection for your tour company.

Depending on your needs, you may require other types of insurance in addition to liability insurance, such as property damage coverage, business interruption insurance, commercial auto insurance, and so on.

Learn more here about which tour operator insurance is right for you. If you’re a U.S.-based operator, be sure to look into this specially tailored for tour operators product: Arival ProShield Insurance.

To make your idea a reality, start by registering your business!
Familiarize yourself with the regulations governing tour operations in your local region.
Get protected: ensure you have the appropriate insurance in place before you begin operating tours.

The success of your tour company hinges on the quality of the experiences you offer. Your tours should be engaging, informative, and memorable. This requires thorough research, meticulous planning, and a deep understanding of your subject matter.

It also takes a commitment to best practices and establishing processes to keep you organized. Here are just a few ways to get started on creating a well-oiled tour operations machine.

Hiring and Training Tour Guides

For many tour operators, it’s the ability to connect with guests that brings them the most joy in running a tour company.

“A great tour experience is only possible when you are connecting with guests on a truly human level,” says Michaela Gonzales, founder of Mick’s Bootique Tours . “People travel because they want to understand the world. Yes, they want to see the big-ticket items and be entertained, but they also want to explore and have authentic local experiences. Guides can help them by being welcoming, honest, and genuinely interested in guests enough that they can cater the experience to them.”

Nighttime street scene with people walking along a well-lit alley between brick buildings.

Mick’s Bootique Tours founder, Michaela Gonzales, leads the Walk with Spirits, A Haunted Pub Crawl in San Francisco, and tours in Dublin, Ireland. I Photo: Mick’s Bootique Tours

It’s one thing to connect with guests when you run the tours yourself. But how do you ensure you are achieving this kind of connection on tour consistently, regardless of who is guiding each tour?

You need to build a business that isn’t totally dependent on you.

“You need to be designing something that could be delivered by somebody else,” Bach advises. “But it really comes back to doing that work on what is your why and what are you about, even a simple three words that come to mind, the anchor points. It’s about the brand story, and the story you are telling yourself. Once you get that clear it becomes much easier to understand who the right guide is, the right operations manager for your business, and so on.”

Learn more about tour guide training here. Arival Insider Pro Access members can also learn more about hiring great tour guides in this on-demand video on The Secrets of Hiring, Training & Retaining Guides.

Setting Up a Booking System

With travelers increasingly booking online and on mobile , setting up an efficient online booking system is crucial for the success of your tour company. A robust booking system not only streamlines your operations but also enhances the customer experience, ensuring seamless reservations, less booking errors, and increased sales.

Consider booking software — also known as reservation systems, “res-tech,” or ticketing software — specifically designed for tour operators, such as Fareharbor , Rezdy and Bókun : see a longer list of examples of tour operator booking software here. Many of these platforms offer tailored features like integrations with online resellers, support for custom and dynamic pricing, and the ability to handle complex itineraries.

Key Features to Look For :

User-Friendly Interface : Your booking software should be intuitive and easy to navigate for both customers and staff. A clear, straightforward process reduces the likelihood of booking abandonment.
Real-Time Availability : Ensure your system updates availability in real-time to prevent double bookings and provide accurate information to customers.
Secure Payment Processing : Integrated payment gateways should offer secure transactions, giving customers confidence in their purchases.
Mobile Compatibility : With the rise of mobile bookings, your system must be optimized for smartphones and tablets to cater to on-the-go travelers.
Integration with Other Tools : Look for a system that integrates with your website, accounting software, and marketing tools to streamline operations and data management.

Check out our Arival Guide on How to Choose a Booking System to learn more. Arival Insider Pro members can also access checklists to help with this process.

Pricing Models :

The pricing structure of a booking system is an important consideration when deciding which one to work with, and different pricing models can work better for different types of companies. The two most common pricing models are:

Fee-per-Booking : This model charges a commission on each booking, ideal for smaller operators as it ties costs directly to sales volume. However, different systems have varying payment processing charges and fees.
Subscription : This model involves a fixed monthly or annual fee, providing predictable costs and often includes more advanced features. It can be more cost-effective for larger operators with higher booking volumes.

The Arival Guide on How to Choose a Booking System breaks down the pricing models and explains the various fees involved. See also our updated Guide to Booking System Pricing for a detailed overview of rates from some of the most popular platforms.

Embrace AI for Efficiency

Embracing AI in your tour business doesn’t mean you need to be a tech expert. There are many user-friendly tools and platforms designed specifically for small and medium-sized tour operators. Start by exploring how AI can help you streamline your admin and operations, so you can focus on how to create more engaging and personalized tour experiences.

If you are a sole proprietor or operating with a lean team, imagine using AI as a virtual marketing assistant that learns about your customers’ preferences. AI can analyze data from previous bookings, social media, and even real-time behavior to offer personalized recommendations that resonate with each traveler.

Check out the Arival Guide to AI in Travel Experiences . Arival Insider Pro Access members can dig deeper on real-world examples of how AI is being used in travel experience companies with AI in Experiences: Case Studies in Emerging Tech.

Build a business that isn’t dependent solely on you; focus on clear brand stories to guide hiring excellent tour guides, and provide them with ample training to carry out your vision.
Ensure your booking software is user-friendly, real-time, secure, mobile-compatible, and integrates with other tools.
Consider how AI can help you streamline your operations.

In today’s digital age, a strong online presence is crucial for any business. You want to be in a position where you are getting direct bookings , as well as efficiently managing your third-party distribution channels. Add to that social media and AI, and you’ve got a lot to manage when it comes to marketing your brand and products.

OTA Marketing and Distributions Channels

Whether you love them, or love to hate them, online travel agencies (OTAs) are the lifeblood of many tour operators’ bottom lines. Working with distribution partners can help you widen your reach to new audiences.

“Use the OTAs to your advantage,” recommends Dara Mihaly, an industry veteran who has worked with the likes of ExperienceFirst, Another Side of Los Angeles Tours , and the Griffith Observatory, among others.

Mihaly recommends getting on as many platforms as possible, as long as you can stay on top of your inventory and effectively manage your availability. “Ultimately, direct is the goal but the OTAs are one of your best marketing tools. Make Viator, and the like, work for you,” Mihaly adds.

For more on working with OTAs and managing distribution channels, check out our articles on Essential OTA Checklist for Experience Operators , OTA Marketing , and 4 Ways to Make OTAs Work Harder for You .

Online Presence and Social Media Marketing

In today’s digital age, having a robust online presence is essential for the success of any tour business. With the rapid evolution of technology and changes in consumer behavior, it’s more important than ever to stay ahead of the curve.

Get listed on Google Things to do

While Google does of course offer paid ads, it’s free for operators to get their tours and experiences listed on Google Things to do, an initiative that presents users with tour and attraction tickets and purchasing options directly in Google search results.

Getting listed on Google Things to do is as simple as claiming your Google business profile, and loading up and optimizing your product listings on Google. Operators who’ve completed these steps will benefit from an “official site” badge next to their tour or ticket product listing.

Learn more about Google Things to do and how to take advantage of the program with Arival’s collection of content on marketing with Google .

Keep up with changes in SEO

Google’s latest search algorithm updates only add to the complexity of digital marketing and online presence. In 2024, we are real-time transitioning away from what we’ve traditionally known as search engine optimization (SEO) to search generative experience (SGE).

At Arival 360 I Orlando 2023, Brennen Bliss, the founder of the digital marketing agency Propellic , spoke about the implications of SGE during SEO in the Age of AI: What’s Changing and How to Adapt . “SEO, as a channel, is going to move a lot further down the funnel,” Bliss predicted based on early results he was seeing.

Propellic CEO Brennen Bliss speaks about SEO at Arival

As an example, for many operators, the coveted “things to do” query was the bullseye you wanted to hit to attract people to your site. Now, SGE can give a much faster and streamlined answer to recommended things to do. As you build your online presence, focus on the unique value propositions of your tours and experiences.

“SEO is not title tags and keywords,” says The Tour Guy, Sean Finelli. “I mean, these things are important, but it’s really your product. A rockstar product. Something that is difficult to replicate, and that everyone wants, is what’s going to drive traffic. Not some hack to the algorithm.”

For more on SEO, check out Arival’s Essential Guide to SEO for Tour and Activity Operators . Arival Insider Pro Access members can also get more insights from Finelli by watching his full talk from Arival 360 I Berlin 2023 on how to feel less intimidated by Google.

Be active on your social media

Building a strong online presence goes beyond SEO; social media is a crucial component of your digital marketing strategy.

And as younger (Gen Z and Millennial) travelers in particular are relying on social media for travel inspiration and bookings, staying on top of your social media game is critical for reaching these travelers.

Side-by-side comparison of top social media platforms used by travelers in 2023 and 2024.

“Reviews and group pics can be good content for your ‘stories,’ while scheduled tours and current events can be good ‘pinned’ or weekly content,” Curry advises.

Social media is also about engaging with your audience, not just broadcasting. Respond to comments, ask for feedback, and create conversations around your tours. This builds a community around your brand and can lead to fostering loyalty around your brand.

Learn more about social media strategy with this Ultimate Social Media Guide for Tour Operators .

Operator Takeaways

Get listed on Google Things to do by claiming your business profile, uploading and optimizing your product listings.
Keep up to date with SEO and differentiate yourself by focusing on the unique value proposition of your tour or experience products.
Focus on creating unique, compelling content (don’t copy/paste it to use on your third-party channels) about your tour offerings.
Showcase video and photos that capture the essence of being on tour with you or your tour company through your social media channels.
Respond to positive and constructive feedback from your engaged users to build trust.

Managing Finances and Evaluating Success

Effective financial management is the backbone of any successful tour business. This section covers essential strategies for budgeting, managing costs, and setting competitive pricing to ensure profitability and growth.

Budgeting and Managing Costs

Effectively managing finances is crucial to the success of your tour business. Start by creating a detailed budget that accounts for all operational costs, including marketing, staffing, transportation, and equipment. This should be in line with your overall business plan and strategy : something you refer back to regularly.

Time blocking is one successful way to keep yourself on top of your finances. “Usually, I will spend just one or two mornings a week taking care of all the scheduling, bookings, sales, and marketing,” Gonzales shares. “I prefer to wait until I have the time and tools to complete a task from start to finish.”

Utilizing financial management tools and software to keep track of your spending can help you identify areas where you can cut costs without compromising the quality of your tours.

Pricing Strategies for Tours

Uncertainty in the economy, stock market and consumer confidence continues to cast a gray cloud over 2024 when it comes to where consumers are spending their money.

Yet despite some headwinds over 2024, demand for experiences has remained strong. Travelers want more, and they are increasingly prioritizing experiences when trip planning. Operators need to understand their customers — and their various customer segments — more than ever, and tailor products and prices to suit both affluent and price-sensitive guests. Private tours , for example, are becoming more popular among affluent travelers — and can be priced higher, and corporate tours are another potential avenue to consider.

Bar graph showing average experiences per trip for tours, activities, and attractions in 2019 and 2023.

“When it comes to determining the value of your tour(s), practical logistics (length of the tour, add-ons, etc.) are certainly important, but come second to defining your competitive edge,” Curry says. “What makes your tour(s) different from anything else out there? Once you have identified that most crucial question, you can begin to take a look at the other options (in your city) and how they are priced and marketed.”

Learn more about pricing your tours in this article on How to Set Your Net Rates , and explore the opportunity of corporate tours with How to 5x Your Revenue from Corporate Groups .

Research what other tour companies are charging for similar tours. This will give you a benchmark to ensure your prices are competitive while reflecting the unique value your tours offer.
Calculate all your costs, including fixed costs (licenses, permits, insurance) and variable costs (transportation, tour guides’ wages, marketing).
Ensure your pricing covers all costs and leaves room for profit — especially if you are selling on third-party platforms that are taking a commission.
Implement tiered pricing based on different levels of service or experience. For example, offer a standard tour and a premium tour with additional features or exclusivity.

Scaling Your Tour Business

Successfully scaling your tour business requires strategic planning and a keen understanding of market dynamics. Here’s how to effectively evaluate customer feedback and explore new market opportunities to drive growth.

Evaluating Customer Feedback

Customer feedback is a vital resource for improving your services and ensuring customer satisfaction. By systematically collecting and analyzing feedback, you can identify areas for improvement and capitalize on strengths.

Start by implementing feedback collection methods such as post-tour surveys, online reviews, and direct customer interactions.

Renee Ventrice, Founder of Cork & Keg Tours , emphasizes the importance of leveraging customer feedback to enhance your offerings. In discussions at Arival, she shared insights on adapting to customer needs and preferences to refine and improve services. By responding to feedback and making necessary adjustments, you can improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Additionally, consider setting up a formal process for addressing negative feedback. This could involve training staff to handle complaints effectively and using feedback to guide staff development and operational changes. By demonstrating a commitment to continuous improvement, you build trust and credibility with your customers.

Arival Insider Pro Access members can enjoy a candid discussion with Renee Ventrice, Founder of Cork & Keg Tours, about strategizing for success as a tour operator in 2024 and beyond.

Exploring New Market Opportunities

Identifying and capitalizing on new market opportunities is essential for scaling your tour business. This involves understanding market and tourism trends , customer demographics, and emerging travel interests.

Begin by conducting market research to uncover untapped opportunities. Look for gaps in the market that your tours can fill, whether it’s a niche interest or an underserved geographic area. Utilize resources like the Arival 2024 U.S. Experiences Traveler report series and attend an upcoming Arival event to stay informed about the latest travel trends and potential opportunities, and to learn from fellow operators and travel industry experts.

Also be clever with finding the audience you want to reach. “I’ve seen tour operators be successful on Pinterest and it’s because nobody talks about Pinterest,” Bach mentions. “I’ve seen multi-day tour operators become successful because they went to their local public library and talked to the seniors in little meetings there and sold trips to Europe to her community in the area. Don’t follow the crowd, go where there’s an opportunity.”

Transitioning from Passion to Profit

As you embark on the exciting journey of starting your own tour business, remember that the key to success lies in balancing passion with strategic planning. Embrace the challenges, stay committed to continuous improvement, and let your unique perspective shine. With dedication, creativity, and the right strategies, you can build a thriving tour business that captivates travelers and stands out in the ever-evolving market.

Now that you know how to start a tour business, it’s time to take the first step—transform your passion into profit and start creating unforgettable experiences for your guests.

About the Author

Kate Cornell is an editorial and digital strategist with many years of experience in the experiences sector of travel, and has spoken at Arival on the topics of writing tour descriptions, and the “content conundrum.” She has led global editorial teams for travel brands including Viator and Tripadvisor, helped build startups such as TourismSolved, and worked behind the scenes as a content consultant for leading travel and luxury brands.

Become an Insider Pro Access member today and get access to the full library of Arival research, plus many other benefits such as free consulting sessions, special discounts and 20% off in-person events, starting from $179 per year.

Header photo: Ivana Cajina / Unsplash

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Sample Business Plans
Transportation, Logistics & Travel

Travel Agency Business Plan

Are you a travel enthusiast and want to establish your own travel agency?

Well, if yes, then it’s an exhilarating journey of stepping into a world brimming with adventure and discovery.

But in the midst of this excitement, it’s necessary to lay the groundwork for a successful business out of a hobby. It demands a strategic roadmap – writing a proper travel agency business plan .

So, our travel agency business plan serves as the compass that directs you through all the intricacies of the industry and helps you pay attention to every detail of the business plan.

As you delve into this step-by-step guide, you can explore how to write your own business plan that sets the stage for sustainable growth and leaves a mark on potential investors or readers.

Without further ado; let’s dive into the art of crafting your travel agency business plan.

Key Takeaways

Create a compelling executive summary for your travel agency’s identity, vision, mission statement, and core values.
Showcase your business goals, market opportunities, and marketing plan to attract potential investors or partners.
Highlight the range of travel services you’ll provide, including specialized offerings that place your agency ahead of competitors.
Give valuable insights into everyday business operations, from booking management to customer service protocols.
Provide a detailed financial plan to illustrate a clear understanding of your travel agency’s financial health and expected growth trajectory.
Thoroughly analyze the industry and competitive landscape to uncover the latest trends and customer preferences.
Utilize modern and cost-effective business plan software for writing and maintaining business plans.

Why do you need a travel agency business plan?

In reality, every established or emerging business requires a well-written business plan. It is not just a document; it’s a strategic blueprint, offering you a roadmap to make informed business decisions.So, starting your travel agency business greatly benefits from having a well-thought-out business plan like any other business.

Attracting Investors

Whether you’re looking to secure a loan or attract potential investors, a detailed business plan is truly helpful. It shows your agency’s capital cost & revenue potential and summarizes the profitability for angel investors.

Strategic Direction

An actionable plan provides a comprehensive view of your travel agency’s goals, offered services, and strategic steps you will take to achieve success. Also, it indicates a thorough understanding of your target audience and top competitors.

Risk Mitigation

Drafting a professional business plan serves as a foundation for a successful business and helps you identify potential risks & challenges in the market. Through careful planning, you can create effective strategies to overcome obstacles.

Operational Guidance

A well-crafted business plan offers an internal guide that ensures your team understands and aligns with the overarching business objectives, encouraging a cohesive and immersed work environment.

Now, let’s move forward to write a successful business plan for a travel agency.

How to write a business plan for a travel agency?

1. get a business plan template.

Before you start writing a travel agency business plan, it’s highly advisable to get a business plan template first!

It’s like having a valuable toolkit for your business planning endeavors. It not only streamlines the business plan writing but also ensures that you describe all the essential sections.

It offers a structured framework that helps you organize your thoughts effectively to draft a strategically sound business document according to your specific needs and preferences.

Beyond that, a quality business plan template lays the foundation for a comprehensive, professional business plan that highlights your business idea and vision to attract potential investors.

If you’re in search of a polished template, consider Upmetrics’ sample business plan template and ensure that you won’t overlook any essential points in your plan.

Free Business Plan Template

Download our free travel agency business plan template now and pave the way to success. Let’s turn your vision into an actionable strategy!

Fill in the blanks – Outline
Financial Tables

2. Draft an Executive Summary

An executive summary is the first and foremost section of any business plan. It offers a quick overview of your entire travel agency business plan.

If your first few pages are compelling enough, potential investors or loan officers will find the document intriguing and delve further into your plan.

Your executive summary should be clear, concise, and engaging if you’re looking for investors or loan sanctions, as it will grab their attention and make a strong impression.

To draft an effective summary, start with a concise description of your travel agency business, covering its name, concept, location, objectives, and unique aspects. Refer to the below example:

Next, explain what sets you apart and share insights about your service offerings, target market, and ideal customer base. Also, highlight marketing materials, current trends, and potential growth opportunities.

Lastly, give a summary of critical financial figures in terms of projected revenues, profits, and cash flows for the initial 3-5 years. From that, you can address funding needs and resources.

A business plan is a professional, living document that you should update regularly to reflect changes in your business.

3. Provide a Company Overview

Now, it’s time to draft a company overview section that provides a more detailed description of your travel agency.

It could be commercial travel agencies or online travel agencies. Share your agency’s founding story and the individuals behind its inception.

Try to explain your business legal structure(S-Corp, Limited Liability Company, or sole proprietorship), and describe the physical location of your travel agency.

Subsequently, highlight your vision and mission statement in this section to define your identity and core values. This serves as a brand story that your customers can connect to.

Take reference from the below example describing the mission statement of the travel agency:

Internally we intend to create and nurture a healthy, exuberant, respectful, and enjoyable environment, in which our employees are fairly compensated and encouraged to respect the customer and the quality of the service we intend to provide.
In addition, follow-up will be mandatory to ensure customer satisfaction and make any improvements as recommended by the customers in the future.
We seek fair and responsible profit, enough to keep the company financially healthy for the short and long term and to fairly remunerate employees for their work and effort.

Discuss a little bit more about your business background information and how your travel agency works. Try to give answers for when you start your business and how you have set your office space.

In addition, highlight any milestones you have accomplished, such as the number of clients served, positive reviews, new travel agency openings, etc.

4. Conduct an Industry and Market Analysis

An industry and market analysis section is one of the most important ones in your travel agent business plan. It explores your specific niche within the industry and the geographic background where you wish to operate.

So, take some time to go further and find more accurate information, such as who are your target customers & top competitors, what are the current trends, and whether the tourism market is increasing or decreasing.

Market Size and Growth Potential

Conduct a complete market analysis to study the market size and explore growth potential areas for travel agencies. Assess the total revenue generated within the travel industry and identify the emerging trends.

Customer Analysis

Examine your target market in detail, including demographics, travel behaviors, and customer preferences. Understand your ideal clients and tailor your services to satisfy their specific needs.

Do thorough customer research and understand how your target audience plans and experiences trips. This can help better customize packages and offerings to meet your clients’ needs.

Want help writing a target customer segmentation for your travel agency business? Use Upmetrics AI writing assistant now and easily draft your business plan sections:

Competitor Analysis

As a travel agent, assemble a list of direct and indirect competitors in the travel agency industry. You can consider both classic brick-and-mortar travel agencies and online travel agencies.

Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each competitor, including service offerings, tour packages & quality, customer reviews, and marketing strategies.

Understanding these competitor factors will help you determine areas where your travel agency can differentiate itself and stand out in the competitive landscape.

Execute a SWOT analysis to find internal strengths & weaknesses of your travel company and external opportunities & threats in the travel industry.

Take reference from the below example showing a SWOT analysis for an XYZ travel agency business:

SWOT analysis for an travel agency business

Based on SWOT analysis, formulate strategies to capitalize on opportunities and mitigate threats to outline competitive advantage.

Some extra tips for drafting this section of your travel company business plan:

Use reputable sources to gather data, including industry reports, market research studies, and surveys.
Be specific and provide detailed info wherever possible.
Include charts and graphs to demonstrate your key points.
Keep your target audience in mind while documenting the business plan.

5. Propose Your Service Offerings

Next, define the scope of your service offerings and clarify how they meet the diverse needs of your clients.

It must be informative, precise, and client-focused, as it is a detailed breakdown of different services that your travel company offers your customers.

As a travel agency, detail your service offerings, such as bookings, accommodations, vacation packages, international/domestic trips, custom-made business trips, or any cruise bookings.

Effectively disseminate your travel services with a detailed description of what it entails, service specifications, precise pricing plans, or any client reviews.

Here, you can take a reference from the below example to illustrate travel agency services:

1 . Guided Tours

Our guided tours are led by knowledgeable local guides who provide valuable insights into the culture and history of each destination.

Price: Varies by destination, starting at [$50] per person

Specifications: Group sizes are limited to 15 people, and tours typically last 2-3 hours.

2. Accommodation Booking

We offer a range of accommodation options, from luxury hotels to charming bed and breakfasts, ensuring our clients have a comfortable stay.

Price: Varies by location and accommodation type, starting at [$100] per night

Specifications: Accommodations are vetted for quality, safety, and comfort.

Not only that, describe any specialized services in your travel agency business plan template that set your travel agency apart so investors can quickly understand your business scope.

In addition to planning & booking, highlight additional services (trip consultations, wedding planning, speaking at industry events, providing training to other travel agents) and mention third-party partners(if any).

6. Outline a Sales and Marketing Plan

Comprehensive sales & marketing efforts can help your business grow by leaps and bounds. Carry out market analysis and develop clear sales and marketing strategies for reaching your target customers.

For travel agency businesses, explain your preliminary approach and promotion tactics to acquiring either local or international customers.

Also, discuss affordable/high-quality travel packages you provide, their prices, and hassle-free transactions at the point of sale. Here are some of the sales and marketing strategies for travel agencies:

Unique selling proposition

Emphasize the agency’s capability to offer personalized customer service, a variety of communication modes, and 24/7 customer support. Present exclusive access to unique destinations, experiences, and special perks.

Pricing Strategy

Implement a flexible and competitive pricing plan that caters to a diverse client base. It allows the agency to adapt to market dynamics, provide value to customers, and uphold a profitable business.

Take reference from the below example written using Upmetrics’ travel agency business plan template:

Pricing Strategy for travel agency business

Offline strategies

Create visually appealing brochures and distribute print materials to local businesses, travel agencies, and strategic locations. Implement a referral program and try to provide discounts or exclusive festive offers.

Social Media Marketing

Utilize social media platforms(Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) to highlight travel packages, engage with the target audience, and build a community around travel enthusiasts.

Content Marketing

Create a content marketing strategy comprising blog posts, travel guides, and visually appealing content to encourage potential customers to consider your agency for their travel needs.

Collaborations

Partner with local businesses, hotels, and travel-related service providers to promote your service offerings. Attend travel fairs, trade shows, or community events to network with potential clients.

7. Introduce Your Team

The management team section offers an opportunity to showcase your strength as a travel agent. It should include a thorough plan for your travel agency’s key managers, employees, or sub-travel agents.

Mention their roles & responsibilities or relevant experience in the related fields or travel agency industry. Also, highlight their expertise that contributes to your agency’s success.

Try to break down overall payroll expenses, such as how much their compensation, commission split, base salary, or whether you will give any bonuses or benefits to your employees.

average salary of travel agency employees

If you need to hire employees or a travel agent, emphasize how many individuals you will need and how much you will pay them.

This can provide brief details to the investors and help them understand what exactly you plan to staff your agency and pay your employees.

If applicable, you can also design an organizational chart for your travel agency. This can help you demonstrate who your key members are and what roles they serve in your travel agency.

8. Outline Business Operations

Now, it’s time to develop an in-depth look into the day-to-day functions of your travel agency. Paint a picture of seamless operations and ensure that your business runs smoothly.

Describe the entire operational cycle of the tour business, including staffing, how bookings are managed, customer service procedures, technology used, and safety measures for handling unforeseen circumstances.

Include the below subsections in your travel agent business plan operations section:

Highlight the number of employees required, and opening hours, and briefly outline the responsibilities of each team member and training programs. Refer to the below example written using Upmetrics AI assistant :

Customer Service Procedures

From pre-travel assistance to emergency response, prioritize customer satisfaction, efficient techniques, and effective client communication to ensure a positive and stress-free travel journey.

Equipment & Technology

Explain what kind of equipment & technology you will need to run your travel agency. Include a brief idea of how you will reach some travel agency milestones and look forward as your business grows.

You might consider below things:

Office equipment(Telephone, fax, or scanner)
Travel agency website
Booking tools
Itinerary builders
Customer Relationship Management(CRM)
Invoicing and payment processing tools

9. Prepare Financial Plan

Currently, you are in a business planning stage, but dedicating some time to putting together the most realistic financial projections is very crucial.

Having a well-structured and in-depth travel agency financial plan will help you show the tentative spending as well as the revenue forecasts and budgets if your travel company is seeking funding from investors.

In this section, you will need to make a few assumptions that will greatly affect the financial statements of your agency. Take a look at the below table to make important assumptions:

assumptions that affect the financial statements of travel agency

Mention all the below financial aspects in your travel agency business plan:

Income statement (Profit and loss statement)
Cash flow statement
Balance sheet
Sales forecast
Break-even analysis
Business ratios
Investment strategies
Exit strategy

From the above financial statements, you can identify the startup funding needs and evaluate the funding resources for your agency, such as bank loans, angel investors, crowdfunding, or personal savings.

Well, keeping a realistic financial report in your hand not only helps you demonstrate your agency’s fiscal health but also emphasizes its sustainability.

However, calculating all the financial elements from scratch can be overwhelming. But don’t worry; consider Upmetrics’ financial forecasting tool .

All you have to do is fill in all the details you have and let the tool calculate financial factors, and create visual reports for you. No manual data entry, placing Excel formulas, or designing graphs—nothing.

Here’s an example of a projected balance sheet for the next 3 years using Upmetrics:

projected balance sheet example of travel agency business

Download a travel agency business plan template

Need help writing your travel agency business plan from scratch? Well, here you go; download our free travel agency business plan template now and get started.

This modern, user-friendly business plan template is specifically designed for travel agencies. With a step-by-step guide and example, it helps you write a professional plan without missing any crucial steps.

Simply import data into your preferred editor and start writing!

The Quickest Way to turn a Business Idea into a Business Plan

Fill-in-the-blanks and automatic financials make it easy.

Start preparing your business plan with AI

Finally! With the help of our sample business plan template, you know how to write a travel agency business plan. So, you are one step closer to starting your travel agency business confidently- pretty exciting, right?

But you know what else is more exciting? Your business planning process can be even smoother than this. Yes, you heard it right; it’s possible with the help of Upmetrics AI Assistant.

So, don’t wait, and start planning now !

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Frequently asked questions, where can i find a free travel agency business plan template.

There are various online platforms where you can find free travel agency business plan templates. Consider a reputable business planning website—Upmetrics, which offers free templates to help you get started.

What should be included in a travel agency business plan?

A comprehensive travel agency business plan should include below key components:

Executive summary
Company overview
Market research and industry analysis
Services offered
Sales and marketing strategy
Management team
Operational plan
Financial plan

How often should i update my travel agency business plan?

It is advised to regularly update your travel agency business plan to reflect changes in the market, industry trends, and business growth. Review and update your plan at least once a year or more often if there are significant changes in your business.

What financial projections are necessary for a travel agency business plan?

Make sure that you include the following financial factors in your travel agency business plan:

Startup costs
Revenue projections
income statement (Profit and loss statement)
Projected cash flow

About the Author

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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Travel Agency Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Travel Agency Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your Travel Agency business plan.

We have helped over 10,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their travel agencies.

Below is a template to help you create each section of your Travel Agency business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

My Itinerary Travel Agency is a new travel agency located in Boca Raton, Florida. The company is founded by Sandra Rodriguez, an experienced travel agent who has gained valuable knowledge on how to run a travel agency during the past ten years while working at Fun Destinations Travel Agency. Now that Sandra has experienced managing a travel agency, she is ready to start her own company, My Itinerary Travel Agency. Sandra is confident that her organizational and communication skills, combined with her understanding of business management, will enable her to run a profitable travel agency of her own. Sandra is recruiting a team of highly qualified professionals to help manage the day-to-day complexities of running a travel agency – sales and marketing, vendor relationships, customer relationship management, budgeting, and financial reporting.

My Itinerary Travel Agency will provide a full suite of travel planning services for individuals nationwide through its sophisticated online platform and accompanying customer app. My Itinerary Travel Agency will be the go-to travel agency for personalized service, convenience, and expertise of its travel agents. The company will be the ultimate choice for customer service while offering the best travel accommodations available.

Product Offering

The following are the services that My Itinerary Travel Agency will provide:

Airline travel bookings
Tour and travel package sales
Accommodation reservations and bookings
Cruise bookings
Car rental reservations
Travel ticket sales and reservations
Tour ticket sales and reservations

Customer Focus

My Itinerary Travel Agency will target individuals nationwide who are looking for personalized and convenient travel planning services. The company will target vacationers, tourists, and business travelers who are seeking the best deals on premium accommodations. No matter the customer, My Itinerary Travel Agency will deliver the best communication, service, and the best prices.

Management Team

My Itinerary Travel Agency will be owned and operated by Sandra Rodriguez. Sandra is a graduate of Florida University with a degree in business. She has over ten years of experience working as a travel agent for another local agency. Sandra will be the company’s chief executive officer. She will oversee the travel agency staff, manage customer relationships, and build vendor relationships.

Sandra has recruited sales and marketing expert, Sara Anderson, to be the company’s chief marketing officer and help oversee travel agency’s sales and marketing activities. Sara will handle all branding, marketing, advertising, and outreach for the company. She will also create and maintain the company’s online and social media presence. Sara has a Master’s degree in Marketing and has nearly ten years of experience working as a marketing director for a leading travel industry corporation.

Success Factors

My Itinerary Travel Agency will be able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

Skilled team of travel agents combined with the latest technology in the industry will allow the company to provide its clients with personalized service and modern convenience to make planning their trip easy and efficient.
The members of the leadership team have long standing relationships with a large pool of vendors, allowing them to provide clients with the best deals possible on premium accommodations.
The company offers a variety of modes of communication to better serve more clients’ preferences. Customers can speak with a travel agent in person, via telephone, video call, email, or chat through the website or app. Support is available 24/7 to ensure all clients’ questions and concerns are promptly attended to.

Financial Highlights

My Itinerary Travel Agency is seeking $290,000 in debt financing to launch its travel agency. The funding will be dedicated towards securing the office space, and purchasing office equipment and supplies. Funding will also be dedicated towards three months of overhead costs to include payroll of the staff and marketing expenses. The breakout of the funding is below:

Office build-out: $110,000
Office equipment, supplies, and materials: $70,000
Three months of overhead expenses (payroll, utilities): $90,000
Marketing costs: $10,000
Working capital: $10,000

The following graph below outlines the pro forma financial projections for My Itinerary Travel Agency.

Company Overview

Who is my itinerary travel agency.

My Itinerary Travel Agency is a newly established travel agency in Boca Raton, Florida. My Itinerary Travel Agency will be the first choice for anyone seeking a personalized approach, 24/7 support, and streamlined technology to make trip planning easy. The company will serve customers nationwide from their headquarters in Florida.

My Itinerary Travel Agency will be able to guarantee the best deals possible thanks to the leadership team members’ long standing relationships with a large network of vendors in the hospitality, transportation, and entertainment markets. The company’s team of highly qualified travel agents will provide personalized service to each client, removing the uncertainty and hassles associated with finding and booking the right accommodations.

My Itinerary Travel Agency History

My Itinerary Travel Agency is owned and operated by Sandra Rodriguez, an experienced travel agent who has gained valuable knowledge on how to run a travel agency during the past ten years while working at Fun Destinations Travel Agency. Now that Sandra has experienced managing a travel agency, she is ready to start her own company, My Itinerary Travel Agency. Sandra is confident that her organizational and communication skills, combined with her understanding of business management, will enable her to run a profitable travel agency of her own. Sandra is recruiting a team of highly qualified professionals to help manage the day-to-day complexities of running a travel agency – sales and marketing, vendor relationships, customer relationship management, budgeting, and financial reporting.

Since incorporation, My Itinerary Travel Agency has achieved the following milestones:

Registered My Itinerary Travel Agency, LLC to transact business in the state of Florida
Has identified the ideal location for the company’s office and is in the process of securing a lease
Reached out to numerous contacts to include transportation, hospitality, and entertainment companies to begin securing vendor contracts
Began recruiting a staff of accountants, travel agents, and other office personnel to work at My Itinerary Travel Agency

My Itinerary Travel Agency Services

Airline travel comparisons and bookings

Industry Analysis

The U.S. travel agency industry is valued at $48.5B with more than 90,600 businesses in operation and over 318,600 employees nationwide. Factors currently driving industry growth include an increase in domestic tourism and travel for overnight trips, vacations, and business purposes. More domestic travel typically results in more consumers using travel agencies to book their trips. The travel agency industry can be segmented by brick-and-mortar establishments or online businesses. The global market size for the online travel agency segment reached $432B last year and is expected to rise as more people use the internet to book their trips. The travel agency industry relies heavily on the use of technology. Industry operators must stay up-to-date on the latest travel technology in order to remain competitive in the market.

One of the most significant hurdles for travel agency operators is attracting customers in the age of do-it-yourself booking. Now that customers are able to book many of their travel accommodations themselves, travel agents must be able to demonstrate why booking with them is a better option. Some ways industry operators can add value are by providing personalized services, promotional discounts, and helpful information about accommodation options.

Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

My Itinerary Travel Agency will target individuals nationwide who are looking for personalized and convenient travel planning services. The company will target vacationers, tourists, and business travelers who are seeking the best deals on premium accommodations. No matter the customer, My Itinerary Travel Agency will deliver professional communication, service, and the best prices.

The precise demographics for Boca Raton, Florida are:

Zip Code:	78712	78718
Total Population	13,059	26,896
Male	52.6%	48.5%
Female	47.4%	51.5%
15 to 19 years	3.6%	3.6%
20 to 24 years	61.4%	62.2%
25 to 29 years	21.0%	20.5%
30 to 34 years	14.0%	13.7%
Household income $50,000 to $74,999	1.2%	2.3%
Household income $75,000 to $99,999	9.8%	10.2%
Household income $100,000 to $124,999	3.6%	3.2%
Household income $125,000 to $149,999	10.8%	8.9%
Household income $150,000 to $199,999	27.4%	27.2%
Household income $200,000 or more	47.2%	49.0%

Customer Segmentation

My Itinerary Travel Agency will primarily target the following customer profiles:

Individuals and families planning a vacation
Business travelers
Individuals and families in need of accommodations for events such as weddings, reunions, or conventions

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

My Itinerary Travel Agency will face competition from other companies with similar business profiles. A description of each competitor company is below.

Fun Destinations Travel Agency

Fun Destinations Travel Agency is one of the largest and oldest travel agencies in Florida. The company was founded in 1958 in Boca Raton with one small office location. Now, the company has over 50 locations throughout multiple states. Fun Destinations specializes in booking accommodations for family vacationers. The company books accommodations near key family destinations such as theme parks, resorts, and tourist attractions. Fun Destinations is family owned and operated so the founders are familiar with the hassles associated with planning a family vacation. For this reason, Fun Destinations focuses on booking the best family-friendly accommodations so its clients can relax and enjoy the family fun.

Best Fit Vacations Travel Agency

Best Fit Vacations Travel Agency is a small travel agency catering to Boca Raton locals from its central office and nationwide clients via its online booking platform. The company was established in 1995 with the mission of providing vacation accommodations that will be “the best fit” for every client. Best Fit Vacations is owned and operated by industry professionals that have extensive experience working with vendors to negotiate the best deals for clients. The company strives to get the lowest prices for every booking and regularly finds additional savings and discounts other agencies might not know about.

Trustworthy Travel Agency

Trustworthy Travel Agency is a Boca Raton, Florida-based travel agency that provides superior service to its consumers. The company is able to provide a wide variety of travel accommodation bookings for customers in the area. Trustworthy Travel Agency has three locations throughout the state and operates an online booking platform for nationwide travelers. Customers can book online or over the phone at their convenience. The company uses an algorithm that finds the lowest prices on travel, lodging, and other accommodations across the country.

Competitive Advantage

My Itinerary Travel Agency will be able to offer the following advantages over their competition:

Marketing Plan

Brand & value proposition.

My Itinerary Travel Agency will offer the unique value proposition to its clientele:

My Itinerary Travel Agency offers the best deals through its extensive vendor network.
The company offers personalized customer service, a variety of communication modes, and 24/7 support.

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for My Itinerary Travel Agency is as follows:

Social Media Marketing

The company’s chief marketing officer will create accounts on social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. She will ensure My Itinerary Travel Agency maintains an active social media presence with regular updates and fun content to get customers excited about traveling.

Professional Associations and Networking

My Itinerary Travel Agency will become a member of professional associations such as the Travel Agency Association, American Travel Agents Society, and the Florida Travel Industry Association. The leadership team will focus their networking efforts on expanding the company’s vendor network.

Print Advertising

My Itinerary Travel Agency will invest in professionally designed print ads to display in programs or flyers at industry networking events. The company will also invest in professional ads to place in travel magazines and local publications.

Website/SEO Marketing

My Itinerary Travel Agency’s chief marketing officer will design the company website. The website will be well organized, informative, and list all the services that My Itinerary Travel Agency is able to provide. The website will also list testimonials from happy customers.

The chief marketing officer will also manage My Itinerary Travel Agency’s website presence with SEO marketing tactics so that when someone types in a search engine “best travel agency” or “travel agency near me”, My Itinerary Travel Agency will be listed at the top of the search results.

The pricing of My Itinerary Travel Agency will be on par with (and often lower than) competitors so customers feel they receive value when purchasing the company’s services.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for My Itinerary Travel Agency.

Operation Functions:

Sandra Rodriguez will be the chief executive officer for the company. She will oversee the travel agents, vendor relationships, and customer relations. Sandra has spent the past year recruiting the following staff:
Sara Anderson – chief marketing officer who will oversee all marketing strategies for the company and manage the website, social media, and outreach
Tom Brown – accountant who will provide all accounting, tax payments, and monthly financial reporting for the company
Christopher Jones – lead customer support manager who will directly oversee all customer support activities

Milestones:

My Itinerary Travel Agency will have the following milestones complete in the next six months.

12/1/2022 – Finalize contract to lease the office

12/15/2022 – Finalize personnel and staff employment contracts for the My Itinerary Travel Agency management team

1/1/2023 – Begin build-out/renovation of the office, and purchase office equipment and supplies

1/15/2023 – Begin networking at industry events and implement the marketing plan

2/15/2023 – Finalize contracts for initial vendors

3/15/2023 – My Itinerary Travel Agency officially opens for business

Financial Plan Business Plan FAQs

Key revenue & costs.

The revenue drivers for My Itinerary Travel Agency are the commissions earned as a percentage of bookings from vendors and fees charged to customers for consultations and services.

The cost drivers will be the overhead costs required in order to staff a travel agency firm. The expenses will be the payroll cost, utilities, greenhouse equipment and supplies, and marketing materials.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

Key assumptions.

The following outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and in order to pay off the startup business loan.

Average accommodations booked per month: 9,000
Average commissions per month: $15,000
Overhead costs per year: $640,000

Financial Projections

Income statement.

		FY 1	FY 2	FY 3	FY 4	FY 5
Revenues
	Total Revenues	$360,000	$793,728	$875,006	$964,606	$1,063,382

Expenses & Costs

	Cost of goods sold	$64,800	$142,871	$157,501	$173,629	$191,409
	Lease	$50,000	$51,250	$52,531	$53,845	$55,191
	Marketing	$10,000	$8,000	$8,000	$8,000	$8,000
	Salaries	$157,015	$214,030	$235,968	$247,766	$260,155
	Initial expenditure	$10,000	$0	$0	$0	$0

	Total Expenses & Costs	$291,815	$416,151	$454,000	$483,240	$514,754

EBITDA		$68,185	$377,577	$421,005	$481,366	$548,628
	Depreciation	$27,160	$27,160	$27,160	$27,160	$27,160
EBIT		$41,025	$350,417	$393,845	$454,206	$521,468
	Interest	$23,462	$20,529	$17,596	$14,664	$11,731
PRETAX INCOME		$17,563	$329,888	$376,249	$439,543	$509,737
	Net Operating Loss	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Use of Net Operating Loss	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Taxable Income	$17,563	$329,888	$376,249	$439,543	$509,737
	Income Tax Expense	$6,147	$115,461	$131,687	$153,840	$178,408
NET INCOME		$11,416	$214,427	$244,562	$285,703	$331,329

Balance Sheet

		FY 1	FY 2	FY 3	FY 4	FY 5
ASSETS
	Cash	$154,257	$348,760	$573,195	$838,550	$1,149,286
	Accounts receivable	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Inventory	$30,000	$33,072	$36,459	$40,192	$44,308
	Total Current Assets	$184,257	$381,832	$609,654	$878,742	$1,193,594

	Fixed assets	$180,950	$180,950	$180,950	$180,950	$180,950
	Depreciation	$27,160	$54,320	$81,480	$108,640	$135,800
	Net fixed assets	$153,790	$126,630	$99,470	$72,310	$45,150

TOTAL ASSETS		$338,047	$508,462	$709,124	$951,052	$1,238,744

LIABILITIES & EQUITY
	Debt	$315,831	$270,713	$225,594	$180,475	$135,356
	Accounts payable	$10,800	$11,906	$13,125	$14,469	$15,951
	Total Liability	$326,631	$282,618	$238,719	$194,944	$151,307

	Share Capital	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Retained earnings	$11,416	$225,843	$470,405	$756,108	$1,087,437
	Total Equity	$11,416	$225,843	$470,405	$756,108	$1,087,437

TOTAL LIABILITIES & EQUITY		$338,047	$508,462	$709,124	$951,052	$1,238,744

Cash Flow Statement

		FY 1	FY 2	FY 3	FY 4	FY 5
CASH FLOW FROM OPERATIONS
	Net Income (Loss)	$11,416	$214,427	$244,562	$285,703	$331,329
	Change in working capital	($19,200)	($1,966)	($2,167)	($2,389)	($2,634)
	Depreciation	$27,160	$27,160	$27,160	$27,160	$27,160
	Net Cash Flow from Operations	$19,376	$239,621	$269,554	$310,473	$355,855

CASH FLOW FROM INVESTMENTS
	Investment	($180,950)	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Net Cash Flow from Investments	($180,950)	$0	$0	$0	$0

CASH FLOW FROM FINANCING
	Cash from equity	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
	Cash from debt	$315,831	($45,119)	($45,119)	($45,119)	($45,119)
	Net Cash Flow from Financing	$315,831	($45,119)	($45,119)	($45,119)	($45,119)

	Net Cash Flow	$154,257	$194,502	$224,436	$265,355	$310,736
	Cash at Beginning of Period	$0	$154,257	$348,760	$573,195	$838,550
	Cash at End of Period	$154,257	$348,760	$573,195	$838,550	$1,149,286

What Is a Travel Agency Business Plan?

A travel agency business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your travel agency business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can easily complete your travel agency business plan using our travel agency Business Plan Template here .

What are the Main Types of Travel Agencies?

There are a number of different kinds of travel agencies , some examples include: independent agency, host agency or franchise.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Travel Agent Business Plan?

Travel agencies are often funded through small business loans. Personal savings, credit card financing and angel investors are also popular forms of funding. This is true for a travel agent business plan and a tour and travel business plan.

What are the Steps To Start a Travel Agency Business?

Starting a travel agency business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.

1. Develop A Travel Agent Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed business plan for your travel agency that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast.

2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your travel agency business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your travel agency business is in compliance with local laws.

3. Register Your Travel Agency Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your travel agency business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws.

4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your travel agency business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms.

5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations.

6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events.

7. Acquire Necessary Travel Agency Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your travel agency business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation.

8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your travel agency business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising.

Learn more about how to start a successful travel agency business:

How to Start a Travel Agency Business

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Welcome to the New Mexico Tourism Department Industry Resource Website

Tour operator business plan guide.

Before you start to create your official business plan, it can be helpful to think through several aspects of your business so that you are fully prepared to address each topic in this business plan guide. One excellent preparation exercise is to complete a Business Model for your company.

Download Business Plan Guide PDF

With your Business Model prepared, you can now more easily complete your Tour Operator Business Plan .

Your tour operator business plan should contain at least seven sections:

an executive summary,
a company overview,
a description of your services,
an analysis of your market,
an implementation plan,
a team summary, and
a financial plan.
You might have one or more appendices at the end if you have additional relevant information to include. The finished product should be formatted nicely and incorporate your company’s logo and branding. For assistance with branding, reference the Entrepreneur Tour Operator Toolkit – Branding & Marketing Guide .

Executive Summary

Company Overview

Operations Plan

It might be helpful for example, to illustrate how someone could book a tour perhaps six months in advance on your website. Between booking and arrival, coordinate accommodation, meals, and transportation with partner providers. When the tour concludes, offer transportation back to the airport and follow up with a special offer to book another tour with us at a discount.

Market Analysis

This section explores your specific niche within the tourism industry and the geographic location(s) where you plan to operate. Who are your target clients or guests? Who are your main competitors? What trends exist in this industry sector? Is the number of visitors to your location increasing or decreasing? Try to include statistics from reputable sources whenever you can. Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), Chambers of Commerce, and the New Mexico Tourism Department, just to name a few, can provide valuable insight and add credibility. This section should leave no stone unturned so that your reader can truly understand your market conditions.

For example, try to include information about travel trends in New Mexico, economic trends, the number of new hotels being built, etc. We would also explore the ecotourism market; are more people choosing eco-friendly travel options today compared to five years ago? What companies are the current ecotourism market leaders?

Later in this toolkit, you will have an opportunity to further flush out your marketing plan utilizing the Entrepreneur Tour Operator Toolkit – Branding & Marketing guide .

Implementation

Now that you’ve explained your business idea and described the market in which you plan to operate, it’s time to outline exactly how you will bring your tour operator business to life. This section should include a SWOT analysis, details about your marketing and pricing strategies, and a sales projection.

In the SWOT analysis , you will explore your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. What does your company offer that nobody else in the market does? What are some potential challenges that you will need to face? Using an ecotourism company example, a threat could be natural disasters – if there are floods or mudslides, our business cannot operate. On the other hand, an opportunity is that more people are interested in eco-friendly travel options.

Your pricing strategy should include the exact rates you plan to charge for at least a year in advance. For example, will you charge different prices for different packages? For low season vs. high season vs. holiday periods? With rates increasing 5% each year? And/or consider a 10% discount for advance purchase bookings made at least 6 months in advance and charge a cancellation fee for any reservations canceled within 3 months of the tour departure date. Based on your pricing strategy, you can create a sales projection that will estimate your company’s sales performance, preferably over the next three years.

Team Summary

After you understand what your tour operator business will do, you’ll wonder who is going to make it happen. And if you’re planning to launch a full-fledged tour operator business, you’re probably not going at it alone. The Team Summary section should include a thorough plan for your company’s organizational structure, key leaders, employees, and training processes.

Financial Plan

A break-even analysis is a critical part of the financial projections in the business plan for a new business. Financing sources will want to see when you expect to break even so they know when your business will become profitable.

But even if you’re not seeking outside financing, you should know when your business is going to break even. This will help you plan the amount of startup capital you’ll need and determine how long that capital will need to last. A one-page break-even analysis template is available to help you through this exercise.

In general, you should aim to break even in 6 to 18 months after launching your business. If your break-even analysis shows that it will take longer, you need to revisit your costs and pricing strategy so you can increase your margins and break even in a reasonable amount of time.

If you don’t have a finance background yourself, it may be helpful to seek assistance from an accountant or someone who knows the ins and outs of financial modeling.

Additional Information

In an appendix, you can include supporting information or statistics that may be helpful for potential investors, but not essential to your business plan. For instance, you could include a full report on trends that you used in your Market Analysis section.

Tips and Tricks for A Strong Tour Operator Business Plan

In summary, writing a business plan is certainly not an easy task. It’s time-consuming and requires a lot of thought, but a well-written business plan can lead to significant growth for your company. As you complete your business plan, keep these pieces of advice in mind:

Conduct thorough research on your market . When you pitch your company to investors, you want to be seen as an expert, so learn as much as you can about your competitors and market trends.
Simplify your words and descriptions whenever possible . A business plan is not the place to wow your reader with flowery language – instead, you want your reader to easily grasp your value proposition. Think about writing so that a fifth-grader can understand it. The last thing you want is for your reader to be confused about what your company actually does.
Don’t be afraid to make changes . As you work on your business plan, you might discover that some aspects of your business need to be adjusted for the greater good of the company. After all, the companies that are the most adaptable are the ones that survive!
Get a second opinion (or a third or a fourth). A good test of your business plan’s readability and clarity is to let someone outside your industry read it, like a family member or friend. If they have a lot of questions, you might need to adjust your descriptions or more clearly explain your plans.
Proofread ! Your business plan is a reflection of your company’s values. If your formatting is sloppy and your text is full of typos, your reader might question whether you have the attention to detail necessary to run a successful business.

Back to Tour Operator Toolkit Outline

How to Start a Tour Company with (Almost) No Money

Table of Content

How to start a tour company: before you start, designing your tour, testing the waters, taking care of the legal stuff, open for business, how to start a tour company in case you can’t do everything yourself, launching and beyond.

Starting a tour company is tough work.

There are many steps involved and it’s important to sequence them in the right order. Otherwise, you risk losing money and time working on the wrong things.

To make it easier, we created this article to guide you through the process of starting a tour company.

Among other things, you’ll find what are the crucial first steps to start a tour company off the ground. You’ll find ways to test your ideas without spending lots of money up front and get early sales before you even launch your business.

You’ll also find tips for designing your tour and positioning yourself in the market so that you have a clear differentiator from existing competitors.

Lastly, you’ll gain an understanding of how to market and grow your tour company so that you have a solid basis for success.

Ready? Let’s go.

Before going further, you need the most important ingredients for starting a tour company – skills and passion.

Just kidding.

You really don’t need skills and passion at the beginning because you can acquire these as you go along.

But you do need to make a commitment.

Make a commitment to yourself

Starting a tour business is like everything else in life that’s worth pursuing – you’ll get out of it whatever you put in it. So it’s best to approach the whole venture with a long-term mindset. It’s hard to get started and it won’t get easier over time. Before even starting, make sure you’re truly committed to spending days, months and years on growing this venture.

Now, on to the more practical stuff.

Check the requirements

The first thing you’ll want to do is check the requirements with your local tour body. There may be specific health and safety regulations, depending on your city and the type of tour you want to start. For the most part, these should be relatively easy to fulfill but in some cases, you might have to take a special course to start trading legally.

If you find that it takes time to obtain the necessary documents, skip to the part about registering your business and take care of that first. This way, you can do all the work around designing your tour while waiting for the registration documents.

So now you’ve made a commitment that you’re in it for the long run.

You’ve also checked the regulations with your local tourism body and you have a good idea of what’s to come from a legal standpoint.

That’s all you need to go forward and design your tour – including how you will make money and stand out from the competition.

Choose your target market

If you’re sure you can meet all requirements of starting a tour company and you’re in it for the long run, it’s time to do a little market research .

The most important thing to do at the beginning is to choose your market and niche down. That’s because you likely have limited resources and you don’t want to waste them on activities that won’t get your results. To get results, you need to know who you’re targeting, what your potential customers need, and how they acquire information.

So how do you choose your niche?

There are many ways to go about this and below are just a few best practices:

1) Scratching your own itch A tried and tested method is to build a tour for people like yourself. This means people that are in your age group, share your interests and, ideally, you know a lot of them.

Taking this approach is great because it will be easier for you to “get in the shoes” of your customers.

2) Take advantage of a market trend Is there a factor that makes targeting one group a really good idea?

Perhaps a new law reduced travel restrictions for another nation and you expect many people will come and visit?

Or maybe there’s a new initiative in your city that’s likely to attract many new visitors?

It’s important to stay on top of local and international tourism trends because you might spot a pattern before everyone else and take advantage of it.

3) Look at your competition before starting a tour company Is there a gap in the market that you’ve spotted? Something that’s missing in the region for you personally, that you’d like to introduce? Check out Viator or GetYourGuide to make sure it’s really missing.

If you’re lucky, all 3 factors above will work in your favor. You should ideally be in a growing market that you understand and is underserved by existing competitors.

Develop your Value Proposition

Once you’ve chosen a target market, it’s time to figure out what type of tour you’re going to sell them and why they will buy it.

How do you go about that?

A good approach is to list out your ideal customer’s pains and gains .

How can you help them solve their problems or reach their goals with your tour? Answer this question to figure out what type of tour you can offer and how to tailor it for your customers.

For more information on developing an effective value proposition, check out our article on how to conduct market research for tours and activities .

Identify your Unique Selling Point (USP)

The USP or Unique Selling Point is the answer to the following question: why would anyone choose you over competitors?

Getting your USP right is important because you’ll need to communicate it often and everywhere you can.

Is your tour the only one of its sort in your city? Are you giving more value at the same price? Increasing the duration (though not always), giving out freebies or adding a tour theme are all good examples of differentiation.

Devise a go-to-market strategy on how to start a tour company

So you know who you’re going to target and what you’re going to offer them. Now it’s time to think about how you’re going to reach your audience in a cost-effective way .

Below are some of the best channels for selling tours (you can click on each to read more):

Your website
Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)
Social Media (Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube…)
Destination Management Organizations (DMOs)
Review sites like TripAdvisor

We’ll speak more about these channels later. For now, think about how your target audience acquires information so you have a rough idea of how you’re going to reach them.

Set your price

how to start a tour company without bidget

Pricing is a tough subject to master.

But it’s important to get it right because it directly affects your revenue, the perceived value of your tour and, most importantly, the type of customers you attract.

The most important thing is to avoid underpricing. Just because you’re starting out doesn’t mean you should be lower cost. If you compete on price, it’s going to be hard to get the initial profit you need to grow and provide a better service.

Think about it this way – the higher the price, the more value you can provide to your customers.

In fact, you can have several tiers of pricing to control demand and allow people different types of experiences.

That said, it’s worth checking out competitors so you have a rough guideline of the average price others are charging.

Identify the resources you’ll need

Now it’s time to think about what you’ll need in order to deliver your tour.

It’s good to have an idea of the required resources so you can estimate your costs and avoid unexpected surprises.

These could be things like special equipment, assets, and employees. Or maybe you need to find a great office location?

Whatever it is, keep that in mind so you can budget for it later.

Visualize a day running the tour

By now you should have a good idea of how your tour is going to function.

In order to clarify what it means to do this, try and visualize a normal day running the tour.

When do you wake up?
What do you do first in the morning?
How does your workday go by?
How does it end?

Visualizing your day will help you spot any gaps or things you’ve missed. You’ll also get a rough idea of the more repetitive and mundane tasks you’ll have to do – hopefully, this will not put you off!

Make a list of people who can help you

We’ve covered some ground now and you’re probably thinking “that’s a lot of work”!

Once you have a rough idea of what you’ll need and the ongoing activities, think about who can help you with starting and running the tour.

Do you know people who can provide you with any resources , guidance or support? Or maybe there are specific organizations that you can partner with or even pay to massively increase your chances of success?

Think about this early and you’re likely to find that things are much more realistic than you thought at the beginning.

Estimate your costs

As with any business, you also need to keep an eye on the costs.

After putting in the work in the thought exercises above, you should be able to estimate some rough number – both a monthly overhead and the cost of starting up. Try and make a few notes right now.

Now double the number you got for both the upfront and monthly costs.

The reason for this is to avoid “ optimism bias ” – we are wired to underestimate the likelihood of things going wrong in the future.

So stay on the safe side and, as they say, “expect the unexpected”.

Source: TNW

Most articles online will suggest you register a company, find an accountant, build a content-heavy website and all sorts of useless things – before even knowing if people want your tour.

Here, we take a slightly different approach.

While you need to get the formalities right (like your license, registration, and insurance – but more on this later), you should try and collect as much information as possible to validate your assumptions before spending lots of time, effort and money.

Here, we’ll look at the first steps you can take to prepare your tour for success and get online as quickly and cheaply as possible.

Choose a name for your tour

This should embody your core differentiator and make clear what you do. Here are a few good examples:

Seaplane Adventures
BrewCycle Portland *
Boston Lobster Tours

All 3 examples give you an idea of what to expect – but they are not obvious.

This is also a good time to check if there’s a suitable domain name for your business – later on, you’ll need it for your website. Plug your ideas into this domain name generator to get some killer suggestions.

*Please note: We don’t support drinking craft beer before getting on your bicycle.

Create a logo

Ok, so you have an idea of your tour design, pricing, and USP. Now it’s time to get to the visuals.

The first thing to think about is a basic logo to use across various sales channels – like your website and social media.

You can create a free logo here or hire someone to do it for you on places like 99designs .

Try to get the colors right and make it represent what you stand for. But don’t worry too much about it – the logo is important but not the main reason people will come and buy from you.

Take some photos and videos

Source: GofreeDownload

Yes, I know you still haven’t launched your tour and don’t have any photos of happy people with stunning views behind them.

But that’s no reason to exclude visuals from your marketing materials.

Go around and take some photos in your city. Or record a video of the equipment you’ll use – even before you have it. This will come in handy when you start building your online presence (we’re getting there).

Decide on your opening hours and launch date

What? Opening hours?

Yes, you’ll need to present a fully operational page in a moment that assures people the tour will go live.

This is also the time to decide on your official launch date so you can start generating some buzz ahead of that.

Make sure to stay on the safe side and expect that there will be delays. There’s no need to rush (unless you have a really good reason for it).

As a rule of thumb, give yourself at least 30 days for promotion ahead of the launch date.

Set up your contact details

You’re about to start interacting with a lot of people – now’s the time to set up your business contact number and email address.

No need to use a website domain name for your email or setting up a long-term contract for a mobile phone. People don’t really care about that.

A simple [your_tour_name]@email.com and a prepaid SIM card should be enough at this point.

Create a Facebook page

Source: Sprout Social

You were probably wondering why you need to do all these stuff above.

Well, the reason is your Facebook page (or in rare situations – some other social media where your target audience hangs out).

A Facebook page is one of the fastest ways to get online and gain the capacity to reach many people.

It can host all the information people care about when booking your tour – including pricing, address, reviews and so on. They can even get in touch with you directly via chat.

Best of all, your friends and family can share it and generate awareness.

There’s only one setback – you need a way to capture people’s email addresses to tell them about your launch date. That’s where your website comes in.

Create a basic website

Your website should be the primary online channel you use for acquiring new customers. The reason is you have full control over your website which is not always true when using other online channels. You can control things like the branding and messaging, but more importantly – you will not pay any commission fees to resellers.

At this point, you don’t need an elaborate website with all the bells and whistles. You just need a simple page with the following elements:

A ttention: Create an exciting headline that captivates your visitors once they arrive at your website.

I nterest: Describe the key benefit of your tour, making sure to mention who it’s best suited for.

D esire: Highlight the best parts of your tour using both words and images to instill a desire to act in your visitors.

A ction: Provide a clear call to action to submit an email address so you can save them a spot for launch date (or directly purchase your tour or activity once you have a booking system in place ).

Like with the logo, avoid spending too much time on this and make sure it’s just out there. There are many cheap options for building a basic website such as WordPress or Drupal .

You can learn how to build your own website with built-in booking system here .

Once you set up your website, take a minute to check its performance in terms of SEO, page speed and keywords. You can use this free SEO grader tool to perform the test.

So, you’re officially online and well on your way to launching a tour business. Now it’s time to get involved in the industry and talk to the most relevant people you can find.

Talk to people in the industry

Talking to tour guides and operators that have done what you want to do is probably the fastest way to a successful start. Ask for advice, ask for their stories and learn from their successes and failures.

Just search for tours that don’t directly compete with you and get in touch with one or more of the tour guides. Explain that you’re just starting out and that you want to meet other people in the field to bounce ideas and experience off each other.

Follow the influencers

There are many influencers in the tour industry that you can turn to.

Even if you can’t directly talk to them, you can follow their blogs and social channels to stay in touch with what’s going on in the tour industry.

Of course, keep a close eye on the Regiondo blog too – we cover the most important aspects of starting and running a leisure business with topics ranging from sales and marketing to leadership and important tourism events.

Get involved in events and meetups

Source: Local Guides Connect

Another easy way to develop the network you need is to join existing events, conferences and regular meetups near you. These should be related to the industry but don’t necessarily have to be just for tours.

A lot of groups exist where business owners can share ideas and experience to get more profitable and grow. These are also people that can refer you more business and, of course, buy from you.

Just go to Meetup.com or your local DMO too see if there are any good events happening nearby.

Stay active in these fields and you’re bound to get a lot of benefits and have fun along the way – while meeting new people and acquiring friends.

As you can see, your goal when starting out should be to generate bookings as quickly as possible.

However, there are a few things to take care of so you can trade legally. It’s best to do this early to avoid potential bottlenecks later down the road.

Register your business

The first thing you need to do is to register your business name so you can legally start making sales. The name doesn’t have to be the same as your tour name so you can use whatever makes sense for your business structure and future plans.

Just go to your local business registrar office or call them up on the phone to save time (if available).

Open a business bank account

There are many ways to get paid, but you always need a place where the money ultimate goes. So opening a business account is one of the first things you need to do. This will let you keep track of expenses while having a place to take payments.

Get a tour operator license

Once your business is officially registered, it’s time to obtain your tour operator license or (or equivalent in your country). The process for this should be detailed in your local government’s or tourism body website.

Set up liability insurance

Liability insurance will protect you in case something goes wrong and a guest or employee has an accident. You can also cover any potential legal costs. Make sure to go online and search for quotes from local insurance companies.

Well, not exactly. While your business is not fully operational yet, there’s no reason why you’d turn down bookings.

In fact, you have every reason to start getting pre-sales and booking your tour in advance. Not only is this the best way to validate your ideas, but it’s also great to fund your startup costs for launch day.

Start taking online bookings

Ok, now that your website is up and running, you’ll need a way to get bookings through it .

To do that, we recommend choosing a booking software like Regiondo that will take care of the hard work for you. You can book a live demo with Regiondo experts who will guide you through the platform and help you start getting online bookings.

Once you have your website and booking system implemented, you can manage all your sales in one place using your Regiondo dashboard.

Your website visitors can also see a live booking calendar on your website and you’ll be able to manage multiple sales channels – like Viator and GetYourGuide among others.

Register with Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)

Once you’re ready to take bookings, online travel agencies can be the best place for getting early sales. These sites have grown tremendously in recent years. They often list thousands of tours and activities and sell them to their visitors in exchange for a commission.

You can learn more about the top online travel agencies in our dedicated post on the topic .

Get on review platforms

Eventually, reviews will be a key part of your tour business and it’s never too early to start thinking about building your presence on review platforms .

The biggest name here is TripAdvisor so we have a whole article on building your TripAdvisor ranking .

As a best practice, try to build your reviews in a single platform, preferably TripAdvisor, so that you don’t spread your attention across multiple platforms. But there are other important places too – like Google, Yelp, and Facebook. If people prefer to use these platforms, you should give them a way to leave a review there as well.

Sign up for the relevant social media platforms

Hopefully, you already have some social media presence, such as a Facebook page .

But depending on who you target, you might also look into other channels.

For example, younger people tend to spend more time on Instagram and Snapchat.

And Pinterest is one of the most visual places to hang around on the web – ideal to post the photos you’ve taken in the steps above.

YouTube is the king of video – and it’s a great channel for many people to drive traffic to their website.

Twitter can be a good option too – especially if your target market hangs around there. Twitter’s users are from a varying background but you will often find influencers there – who can help you grow your business tremendously.

Finally, despite its status as a professional network, Linkedin can be a good channel for selling to businesses. If you plan to introduce teambuilding offers and group events for companies, this social network can be a good option.

Tell your story

Now it’s time to add a more personal touch to the places where you have a presence.

Like the USP, your story will do much of the selling for you.

Why did you decide to start this tour?
How did you come up with the idea?
What problems did you encounter?
Who was there to help you?

These are just some questions that help you define your brand story.

You may think that there’s nothing special to your tour – but I encourage you to sit down and think deeply about this.

Were you fed up with your 9-5 job? Or maybe you’ve always been fascinated with the subject of your tour? Did you grow up in the city, knowing all of its ins and outs? Or maybe you stumbled upon the location and fell in love with it?

Whatever the background, you surely have a good reason to be where you are. If you get to a point where you actually launch a tour, you will have something interesting to say about it. And people like interesting stuff. It’s why they buy tours and activities. And it’s why young people today prefer spending on experiences rather than things .

Do email marketing

Source: Depositphotos

Hopefully, your website is working well and generating a consistent flow of emails by now.

Email marketing is one of the best ways to reduce reliance on first-time customers.

It’s also a great way to generate more online reviews by contacting people after an event.

At this early stage, email will help you update customers and potential customers when the tour becomes available.

Advertise (if you can afford it)

Advertising is not crucial before launching but could help if you have the budget for it.

Depending on your target market, you could go for offline advertising or online advertising. And in some cases – both.

You might be tempted to go for modern approaches like Facebook ads or Google ads, however, traditional print media can also be a good choice.

As more people get their news and info online, you can strike some pretty good deals with local magazines or newspapers.

Another option is sponsoring travel bloggers and other influencers who can promote your upcoming tour in their content.

And if you don’t want to spend cash on advertising, check out our post with 10 ways to get free advertising for tours and activities .

Set up analytics

To be frank, sophisticated stats are not what you want to spend your time on so early.

However, it’s good to have a basic idea of where bookings are coming from (and hopefully you’ll get enough bookings to justify it).

Knowing this will guide you about where you should spend time later on when growing your tour.

Is your website working well? What about Facebook ? And maybe some of the OTAs are kicking in…

These are things you need to keep an eye on so you spend your time in the most effective way.

The important thing right now is to keep things simple.

Track a few KPIs and make sure you always have a specific question you want to answer before getting buried in data.

You can learn more about this topic in our post about Google analytics .

Do a test run

If you can, get some friends together and run the tour with them. This will help you spot potential bottlenecks ahead of launch day so you are prepared to tackle them.

You will also be able to make any changes to the tour based on your guest’s reactions and feedback.

In some cases, you might need staff or special equipment to start operations. This section is here for a reason – you will ideally confirm all your ideas and make sure there is high demand for your tour before investing serious resources.

But if needed, here are some tips on finding the right suppliers and hiring your first employees .

Find suppliers (and possibly funding)

Do you need some special equipment? Any assets that are crucial to the operation?

There are 2 aspects here – one is sourcing them and the other is getting the money to fund your purchases.

But this is a post about starting a tour company on a tight budget. If you don’t have all the cash upfront, check out our article on business funding so you can take care of this too.

For supplying the assets, it’s usually best to source locally .

You may be tempted to order from China or other places where you can get a cheaper offer.

But this way you increase the likelihood of problems and complications.

Despite major platforms like Alibaba that make it easier to trade wholesale, it can still be difficult to acquire assets this way, especially if you don’t speak the language.

It’s also much more difficult to get support later.

And in many cases, you will be surprised that there is not that big of a difference between wholesale prices. So sourcing local is a good step if you can afford it.

Another tip here is to start small .

Avoid ordering big batches but rather start with the minimum needed to make your tour a reality. Try and get it on credit and form a deal where it’s possible for you to return the equipment if you don’t manage to take off as quickly as you’d hoped for.

It’s good to do the job yourself first – at least for a little while. This will help you understand the processes and the type of people you need to hire.

But sometimes, you will need to hire from the get-go.

Needless to say, you should aim to get the best people you can. Whether it’s seasoned professionals or people with lots of potential whom you can train.

This is not the place for making compromises. Who you hire will have a great impact on your success or failure.

This is obviously a big topic and there’s no way to capture it here. If there’s one thing to take away, it’s this:

Find great people and treat them well – that’s one good recipe if you need staff early on.

Source: Pexels

The day you and the entire city have been waiting for…

Make it special

Ok, so you’ve designed and tested a great tour, people know about you and you’re confident things will go right. Or maybe you’re not – it doesn’t matter because it’s time to launch officially!

Get everyone you can – family, friends, family friends, friends of friends, the media – everyone should know about it.

If you used all of the tactics above, you might find that you’re booked well in advance!

Provide world-class customer service

Once you start getting some customers, make sure you treat them well. That’s the most important thing from now on – creating passionate, happy customers and treating the people around you well.

By giving people great service, you reduce the reliance on first-time visits and so you can build a sustainable business where you don’t have to grind all the time.

Sure, the odd bad review will come along, but there are good ways to deal with negative reviews.

The important thing is to be willing to sacrifice the short-term for the long run. You may have to swallow some pride and give a few refunds at first. You may have to sell some promotions that are not perfect revenue-wise. But it will pay off because people will spread the word and come back again and again.

Start managing for growth

Well, you’re hopefully in a pretty good spot right now. But the hard work has just started.

You will face many difficult choices from now on – bad economy, good economy, expanding and reducing sales. Plan and research every step carefully – but don’t overthink it. It’s a tough balance to accomplish.

Use your vision as a guide and you will make decisions easier. Go back to your brand story and the reason why you’re staring. Keep this in mind and use it when you have to make a hard decision.

Whatever happens, make sure you have fun and stay true to your vision.

Well, that’s one huge topic, isn’t it? Of course, there’s no way to capture everything you need to know in one article. It could well be a subject of a book or even many books.

But we hope this article will act as both a handbook and an inspiration for you to act and start your tour company.

The crucial things to remember are as follows:

Do your research
Test the waters so you don’t spend cash up front
Start marketing early
Analyze the best channels for you
Start small and don’t buy expensive resources
Hire after you’ve done the job yourself
Expand carefully, staying true to yourself and your values

So there you have it – that’s how to start a tour company without breaking the bank.

If you want to learn more about the topic, check out these articles:

How to Conduct Market Research for Tour and Activity Companies
9 Ways to Get Business Funding for Tours and Activities
How to Sell Tours and Activities with Facebook
The Top Online Travel Agencies for Selling Tours and Activities

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Starting a Tour Guide Business in 8 Achievable Stages

Sam Jefferies • July 19, 2024

Starting any business requires a bit of legwork to get up and running — but if you know where to begin and have a clear roadmap, you can keep costs low and establish your business in a matter of weeks. (Most tour operators can get started for less than $2K.)

We’re a Tripadvisor brand that has been working with tour operators for 10+ years to help them sell tours online, drive new bookings via online channels, and streamline their operations.

We put together this guide explaining the core steps to starting a tour business.

We’ve organised the startup tasks into more manageable stages so you can follow our plan step-by-step until you’re ready to launch.

8 Stages for Starting a Tour Guide Business

Cover the legalities
Develop your brand
Determine the types of tours to sell
Determine how to sell tours
Develop a marketing strategy to get your name in front of new customers
Partner with other businesses to expand your reach
Manage bookings, schedules, and staff with tour operator software
Open your calendar for bookings

1. Cover the Legalities

We’ll start with the not-so-fun stuff — the required permits, paperwork, and legal hoops to operate as an official, recognised business.

Now, these will be different from country to country and state to state, so you’ll have to research exactly what your region requires, but typically, you must:

Register your business. You need to file for business licences so your government recognises your tour operator business, and you can hire staff, file taxes, etc. Some websites can help with this (like LegalZoom ), but again, this varies from country to country.
You may also want to get certified by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council . This will build credibility and show travellers you follow the highest social and environmental practices.
You can also read more about certifications and requirements for EU-based teams here .
Secure the proper permits. This not only varies by location but can also vary by activity, so you’ll want to research what your business requires so you have all the necessary licences and permits from the start. (This can avoid legal troubles and fines later down the line.)
Set up liability insurance. Your insurance advisor can help point you in the right direction, but we typically see businesses obtain commercial general liability (CGL), property insurance, and accounts receivable insurance.
Set up a business bank account. This is a general best practice to prevent you from having personal accounts hooked up to payment systems and other business applications. You can also apply for business credit cards to help you earn extra perks for your spending.

In addition, it doesn’t hurt to build out a business plan. A business plan more or less defines your business and outlines a roadmap for the future — it’s a document with information about your brand, the goals you want to achieve, how you intend to achieve those goals, and timelines.

Then, unless you plan on going at it alone, you should hire staff members. Determine the resources you need and how many people you need to hire so you can plan accordingly.

2. Develop Your Brand

Now, things become fun — this is where you can tell your brand story.

You can answer questions like:

What’s your business?
What’s your mission?
What makes your business unique?
What can you offer customers that competitors don’t?

This is also the stage where you:

Brainstorm a business name
Design a logo
Select brand colours and fonts
Determine your unique selling points
Come up with a business slogan or a catchphrase (this isn’t necessary)

Some business owners also take the time to develop a brand guide . This is a detailed document outlining how to represent your brand across all touchpoints — in-person interactions and online communications. It includes many of the above points (like typography and colour palettes) but also goes into tone and includes “how-to” instructions for interacting with travellers and tasks such as sharing marketing materials.

Outlining a brand guide can be especially useful as you grow; it ensures all staff and partners know how to be the “face of your brand” so you can maintain consistency and develop a strong brand image. You’re not making things up as you go or risking staff going rogue on tours or in social posts.

3. Create a List of the Types of Tours & Experiences You Want to Offer Travellers

This is arguably the most critical step, but remember that you can adjust your product line as you go. You’ll learn more about customer interests and which tours from your line are most popular (and which aren’t). Of course, lifestyle, tourism trends, and seasonality can also impact this. What you put in place now doesn’t have to be set in stone forever.

First, you should consider your passions and interests. What are you good at? What types of tours do you want to offer? What are your value propositions?

Then, we suggest doing some market research to learn about:

The other tours and activities offered in your area
What’s popular on online travel agencies (OTAs) like Tripadvisor , Viator , GetYourGuide , Expedia , and Trip.com
Your potential competitors
Your ideal customers and target markets
Current tourism trends

During your brainstorming, you’ll also want to consider pricing. Yes, you want to offer experiences you and your customers love, but these experiences also need to drive a profit, or your business won’t succeed.

Determining pricing can be a process of trial and error. We suggest looking at similar experiences and other tours and activities in your area to get an idea of how to price your tours. You can always update rates as you go, as a majority of tour operator software offers dynamic pricing tools to adjust rates based on different conditions (we’ll discuss these more later) .

4. Determine How to Sell Tours

Now, you want to think about sales channels — how will you sell your tours? Obviously, you can take in-person, walk-up business, but in today’s digital age, the great majority of your potential customers plan vacations and shop online, so you want to make sure people can find and book with you there.

There are two primary ways to do this:

Create a booking website — travellers who know about your business can visit your website, see your tours and availability, and book with you instantly, 24/7.
List your tours on OTAs — these are the travel sites people already know and use to book vacations and things to do. These sites see millions (upon millions) of monthly visitors, so posting your tours here allows you to get in front of new customers across the globe.

Note: You can also connect with Google Things to do . This allows you to appear in Google’s “Activities and tours” feature when users search for tours and activities in certain destinations. This program is free for tour operators and lets you reach searchers travelling to your area and looking to fill their itineraries.

To learn more, we wrote detailed guides on these steps:

How to create a booking website in 7 steps
How to sell tours on Viator

5. Develop a Marketing Strategy to Promote Your Brand & Experience

Selling tours on OTAs and Google is an effective way to get in front of new customers, but you also need a marketing strategy to support short-term and long-term growth. There are dozens of approaches here, including free and paid methods.

Your marketing strategy could include:

Creating accounts on social media platforms and regularly posting and interacting with customers.
Partnering with travel influencers to promote your business.
Sending email newsletters with details on new experiences, events in your area, and incentives to book (like discounts).
Listing your business on review sites like Tripadvisor and Yelp and asking customers to leave reviews. Businesses with more reviews and higher star ratings are promoted more often on these sites.
Investing in paid advertising — you can run search engine ads to your website, boost content on social media, or enrol in ad programs on OTAs.

We could go into a lot of detail here, as marketing a tour guide company is a whole topic in and of itself. So we wrote a complementary guide with more information & tips on these steps: How to market a tour company: 10 (free & paid) strategies .

6. Partner with Other Businesses in Your Local Area & the Tourism Industry

Now, this isn’t a necessary step to get started, but creating partnerships is helpful for new businesses to establish a customer base, expand their reach, and offer more unique experiences.

We recommend partnering with other tour and activity providers, hotel chains or resorts, travel agents, tourism boards, DMOs, and other businesses in the travel industry to promote your business to new customers. You can work with local businesses or even global brands (like a Marriott or Hilton).

We suggest:

Finding businesses that will promote and resell your tours. This helps you earn bookings and grow your customer base.
Offering to promote others’ services for a commission. This helps you earn “passive income,” as you can increase revenue without adding more to your schedule or product line.
Creating tour packages with other businesses. For example, you could partner with a hotel chain to offer travellers lodging with their tours or with another local tour operator to create a combo experience. This lets you offer customers experiences you otherwise couldn’t and expand your product line; it also gives you a competitive advantage as you can offer more standout or convenient experiences.

Read more: How to find the best partners & increase revenue

7. Support Yourself with Tour Operator Software to Manage Bookings & Back-Office Operations

The last major step is to equip yourself with the right business applications to support your operations. Tour guides have unique considerations here — they need tools to create a booking website, manage availability and new bookings, connect to OTAs and resellers, schedule staff for tours, handle customer communications and check-in processes, monitor revenue and which tours are booked most often, and more.

That’s why tour operator software exists. These are essentially online booking systems designed with all the tools tour operators need to manage back-office tasks.

This isn’t to say you absolutely need tour operator software to get started. We often see small businesses use free tools to keep startup costs low (e.g., WordPress to build websites and spreadsheets to manage bookings).

While these tools can save money and sustain you when you’re only selling on one sales channel or managing a few bookings per month, they have several disadvantages. You have to work between multiple software, processes and spreadsheets become disorganised, and it can be extremely time-consuming.

When you calculate the hours and costs to manage these tools, you’re better off investing in tour operator software and using your time for more productive tasks — like networking with partners to establish those relationships.

Our system, Bókun, is a popular tour operator software because we work with teams at all growth stages — including brand-new startups. (Plus, we offer some of the most competitive pricing in the industry.)

Bókun includes tools to support all of the steps above, so you can:

Create a booking website customised to your brand (with logos, colours, and fonts).
Connect with dozens of OTAs and grow your online presence. We also have preferred partnerships with Viator and GetYourGuide to offer extra perks to those users.
Create engaging tour listings for all of your experiences — our product builder walks you through the steps so you know exactly what details to include to create attention-grabbing listings.
Connect with Tripadvisor to pull customer reviews onto your website.
Partner with other travel businesses via Bókun Marketplace. Our network contains thousands of members (over 25K), including other tour operators, travel agents, hotels and resorts, rental providers, and more, so you have countless opportunities to drive new business.

In addition, Bókun lets you run a well-oiled operation where you can:

Create a customisable booking calendar to see all tour bookings in one place — whether they were from your website, OTAs, partners, or offline sources.
Manage availability across all sales channels from your Bókun booking calendar. All customers can see real-time availability, which helps avoid blunders like double bookings or overselling.
Automate customer communications so you don’t have to spend time manually sending booking confirmations, tickets, reminders, and follow-ups. We provide a template library so you can design those essential emails (and create other promotional or retargeting emails) and schedule them to be sent at set times or after specific actions. You’ll never forget an important email again.
Offer customer portals for travellers to view, modify, or cancel tours. All updates automatically reflect in your booking calendar, and our system sends an email to confirm customer changes.
Utilise a reporting dashboard to track bookings, revenue, popular tours, most successful sales channels, and more. This data can help guide your growth strategies so you know what’s working and where to double down.

Watch our quick, one-minute explainer video here:

Bókun offers affordable, straightforward pricing, so cost isn’t a barrier for small teams. Plus, our comprehensive booking software can actually save tour operators money during startup; for example, Bókun’s website builder saves our users an average of $3K/year because they don’t have to pay monthly subscription costs to host their site, buy a domain, or pay someone to manage or optimise it for SEO.

Here’s a breakdown of Bókun pricing:

Our platform’s free trial allows you to try Bókun for 14 days . During this time, you can begin building your website, connect with Viator, explore the Marketplace, and manage online and offline bookings.
After the free trial, you can opt-in to the Pro plan for $49/month. Every customer has access to Bókun’s core booking tools, so you don’t have to upgrade between packages or hassle with tiered pricing. We offer add-on modules through our app store if you want to customise Bókun with extra functionality; some add-ons are free, while others, like inventory management, are paid.
We charge one of the lowest booking fees amongst competitors — 1.5% for online bookings from your website, OTAs, and partners.
We waive Bókun booking fees on Viator reservations and offer those users four free monthly product checks (a total of $116 in savings).
You can manage offline bookings in Bókun for free.

You can learn more about tour operator software in our guides below:

Best tour operator software for small teams
Tour & activity booking system pricing comparison guide
Creating a booking system in Excel: How to + alternatives

Now that you’ve put in the hard work to get started, all that’s left to do is:

Officially open for business and begin accepting tours.
Provide the best customer service to earn positive reviews and repeat customers.
Track bookings and revenue to monitor and manage growth.
Test new sales channels to see how they perform, introduce new products to see if they attract new business, and measure which partnerships are most successful.

To create a successful tour guide business, you need to know what’s working and what isn’t. Being able to report on business performance is essential to the overall growth of your tour guide business.

In addition to our reporting tools, we offer consulting for growing teams as they drive new bookings in Bókun.

For more info, take a look at our guides to help small businesses expand their reach:

How to get more tour reservations & fill out your booking calendar
How to create tour packages: 3 steps + best practices
7 tour operator software for small teams

To see how Bókun supports these startup steps, start your free 14-day trial .

How To Start A Tour Operator Business – Complete Guide

Do you want to start a tour operator company? If yes, you have landed at the right place as you will find here a completed plan guide to start this almost no-investment tour guide business.

The average hourly wage in the United States for a tour operator is estimated to be $13 per hour. The average annual salary for a tour guide is $23,000 in the U.S. You can start this business from a home location with low capital investment.

What is a Tour Operator Business?

Is tour operator business profitable.

However, the profitability of a tour operator’s business can vary based on several factors, including the business model, target market, competition, and economic conditions.

12 Steps to Start a Local Tour Operator Business

1. explore your location, 2. research the market.

It is extremely important to understand your competitors before you start practicing as a tour operator. Do extensive market research and gather information on the tour packages, their approach, pricing, etc of other local tour guide operators. This information will help you to create creative standout tour packages for tourists that others are not offering.

3. Select Your Target Market

There are many types of tourists with different mindsets. It could be adventure tours, photograph shooters, cultural experiences, eco-friendly trips, or exclusive luxury getaways. Defining your niche sets the tone for your business. Depending on your location, set your tour packages.

4. Create a Business Plan

5. name your business, 6. register your tour operator business.

After you decide on the name, it is time to register your business. Every state and country offers different options for registering a company. Talk to competent people, and decide on the best business structure best suited based on your resources. For example, if you are from the United States, forming an LLC is best if you want to separate business from personal liabilities.

7. Licenses for Tour and Travel Guide Business

To initiate a tour guide business you need to obtain the necessary licenses from the local authority. To be an enlisted tour operator you can apply for a license to Regional Level Tourists Guides authorities.

8. Open a Business Bank Account

9. setting up tour and travel operator business.

Keep yourself organized with appointment schedules. Never be late. Remember your clients have their tight schedules. You can also design unique trips to attract tourists. Take advice and suggestions from every individual and consider being flexible. Make every trip fun and exciting for your clients. Another very important aspect is to set up proper bookkeeping. Choose proper accounting software to ensure smooth accounting for your business.

10. Build Partnerships

You must forge strong partnerships with airlines, hotels, transportation services, and local attractions. Negotiate favorable rates and create mutually beneficial relationships to enhance the overall experience you offer to your clients.

11. Develop Unique Tour Packages

12. promote your tour & travel guide business.

You need to promote your business aggressively online and offline to get success. Create your business card and brochures with detailed information. Contact your local hotels, resorts, and travel houses to have a business tie-up with them. In today’s world, every prospective tourist researches online. Also, choose the best business insurance available.

Frequently Asked Questions

What services does the tour operator business provide.

A tour operator business organizes and manages travel packages and experiences for individuals or groups. Services include itinerary planning, accommodation booking, transportation arrangements, and overall logistics management.

Do I need specific qualifications to start a tour operator business?

How do i identify a profitable niche for my tour operator business, what legal requirements and licenses are necessary for a tour operator business.

Legal requirements vary by location. Generally, you’ll need to register your business, obtain necessary permits, and may require licenses for specific services. Compliance with local and international regulations is crucial.

How can I build partnerships with hotels, airlines, and other service providers?

How do i create compelling and unique tour packages, what technology tools should i use to streamline operations.

You need to utilize booking platforms, customer relationship management (CRM) systems, and online payment solutions. These tools help manage bookings, communicate with clients, and enhance overall efficiency.

What are common challenges faced by tour operators, and how can I address them?

Challenges may include seasonality, unforeseen events, and changing customer preferences. Stay adaptable, continually assess market trends, and be prepared to adjust your offerings and strategies accordingly.

Don't bother with copy and paste.

Get this complete sample business plan as a free text document.

Travel Agency Business Plan

Start your own travel agency business plan

Adventure Excursions Unlimited

Executive summary executive summary is a brief introduction to your business plan. it describes your business, the problem that it solves, your target market, and financial highlights.">.

Adventure Excursions Unlimited (AEU) was formed to provide hard-adventure sport/travel packages with upscale accommodations, gourmet food, and celebrity service providers to wealthy clients. AEU hard adventures include helicopter-skiing, kayaking, white-water rafting, and mountain biking. The founders of AEU are Jordan Stephan (MBA/JD), Jillyn Certo (MBA), and Loren Harlo (MBA). In addition to their MBA status, they are passionate about the activities AEU will offer.

An opportunity exists for two reasons:

Tourism is a growing industry (4% annually), and within the industry adventure travel is growing at 10%.
There are few providers of hard-adventure travel to upscale clients.

Virtually all companies that provide “hard” adventure activities appeal to a lower income client. Companies that appeal to a wealthier clientele generally provide “soft” adventure packages. Hard-adventure activities involve difficult physical requirements. They carry a higher level of risk than do “soft” activities. Soft adventure activities may involve some physical exertion, however they involve a low level of risk and can be engaged in by non-athletic people.

The company’s target customers are high income (min. $75,000 for single person), health-conscious individuals interested in popular hard-adventure sports. These are lawyers, bankers, executives, doctors, etc. The major purchasers are located in urban areas within major United States cities. Our customers are more likely to be married. 51% are men and 49% are women.

In addition, more niche markets are evolving. Initially, it will be difficult to compete with experienced providers, especially market leaders. However, AEU’s target market is an exploitable niche and our service is differentiated. AEU’s target market members will have similar activity interests, more disposable income and less sensitivity to price.

AEU will price its services at the top of the market. We will provide a luxury service with prestige value. Our prices will be out of reach for the majority of adventure travelers. Service will be priced based upon luxury competitor prices and the value added of our offering. Providers that offer luxury services similar to ours do so at similar prices. We are competitively priced in the luxury market. Because we appeal to a smaller market, volume will be limited. However, we will be able to capture a higher gross profit margin.

Travel agency business plan, executive summary chart image

1.1 Objectives

Adventure Excursions Unlimited’s objectives for the first three years of operation include:

To create a service-based company whose #1 mission is exceeding customers’ expectations.
Capturing 25% market share of the high-end hard-adventure travel space.
To develop a sustainable, profitable business.
To achieve a 35% return rate of customers within the first three years.

1.2 Mission

Adventure Excursions Unlimited’s mission is to provide customers with the highest quality outdoor adventure. We exist to attract and maintain customers. When we adhere to this maxim, everything else will fall into place.

Company Summary company overview ) is an overview of the most important points about your company—your history, management team, location, mission statement and legal structure.">

Adventure Excursions Unlimited, located in Eugene, OR will offer hard-adventure trips to the upper end of the travel market. AEU will be concentrating on three activities, mountain biking, heli-skiing, and white-water adventures. AEU has chosen these three activities to allow the company to not be restricted by seasons, we will have trips occurring through the year. While AEU’s office is located in Eugene, it will be leading trips throughout the United States, and the world.

AEU expects the first several months will be used to plan trips and train trip leaders. By the end of year one the trips should be in full swing and AEU will be building a solid customer base.

2.1 Company Ownership

Adventure Excursions Unlimited will be a privately held Oregon Corporation. Jordan Stephan, Jillyn Certo, and Loren Harlo will all hold equal number shares of AEU stock.

2.2 Start-up Summary

Adventure Excursions Unlimited’s start-up costs include all the equipment needed for an office, as well as the equipment needed for the mountain bike trips and white-water adventures. Other costs will be marketing fees, website development, insurance and a deposit for the office lease.

The office equipment will consist of four computer systems, DSL router, printer, CD-RW, CPU to be used as an internal server, phones, copier, fax machine and installation of DSL and two phone lines.

The equipment needed for the mountain bike trip will be a fleet of 15 bicycles, a self contained kitchen, shower and toilet system, and bicycle tools.

The equipment for the white-water adventures will include inflatable rafts (and other requisite related equipment), self contained kitchen set up, portable shower and toilet facilities, and lots of dry bags.

The marketing costs are for the brochures and advertisements. AEU will also incur costs in the development of our website. Lastly, insurance will be a large start-up expense.

Travel agency business plan, company summary chart image

Start-up Funding

Start-up Expenses to Fund	$2,400
Start-up Assets to Fund	$57,600
Total Funding Required	$60,000

Assets
Non-cash Assets from Start-up	$13,000
Cash Requirements from Start-up	$44,600
Additional Cash Raised	$0
Cash Balance on Starting Date	$44,600
Total Assets	$57,600


Liabilities and Capital

Liabilities
Current Borrowing	$0
Long-term Liabilities	$0
Accounts Payable (Outstanding Bills)	$0
Other Current Liabilities (interest-free)	$0
Total Liabilities	$0

Capital

Planned Investment
Jordan Stephan	$20,000
Jillyn Certo	$20,000
Loren Harlo	$20,000
Additional Investment Requirement	$0
Total Planned Investment	$60,000

Loss at Start-up (Start-up Expenses)	($2,400)
Total Capital	$57,600


Total Capital and Liabilities	$57,600

Total Funding	$60,000

Start-up

Requirements

Start-up Expenses
Legal	$0
Stationery etc.	$50
Brochures	$100
Consultants	$0
Insurance	$500
Rent	$450
Research and Development	$400
Website Development	$500
Office Equipment	$400
Expensed Equipment	$0
Other	$0
Total Start-up Expenses	$2,400

Start-up Assets
Cash Required	$44,600
Other Current Assets	$0
Long-term Assets	$13,000
Total Assets	$57,600

Total Requirements	$60,000

AEU will position itself as a niche service provider within the hard-adventure market. It will offer high-quality travel packages for extreme sporting trips. To begin AEU will offer six trips: helicopter-skiing trips to Canada, India, and New Zealand, white-water rafting trips to New Zealand and Costa Rica, and a mountain biking trip along the Great Divide from Montana to New Mexico.

The target market will be made up of young professionals who work and play hard. These people can afford to play expensively, and are willing to buy time in the form of our services. AEU will serve the hard-adventure niche market as a top quality, full-service provider. AEU defines quality by the unique aspects of the services offered. Those aspects include booking group or custom trips, assistance with passports, providing top-of-the-line equipment and supplies, and a superior service offering with access to better terrain, luxury accommodations, entertainment, celebrity exposure, and gourmet food.

The tours to be offered are as follows:

Mountain Biking : This event will take place on the Great Divide trail from Montana to New Mexico and is designed for the serious biker that appreciates a few of life’s comforts along the trail. Showers and gourmet meals will be provided, along with entertainment. All excursions will maintain a staff to client ratio of 1:2.

A comprehensive map system has been created by Adventure Cycling and is currently available for purchase. The map clearly indicates the route, places to camp, stores for food and laundromats. Leadership training for the guides will be developed in-house using some outside material. There are many similar organizations that will be good sources of information. The products needed for this trip are for the most part already manufactured. One item that needs to be designed and built is a privacy compartment for the solar shower. This will be designed by Jordan and manufactured in-house. A cookbook collection of simple recipes, including some personal favorites, will also be assembled. Professional cooks will be provided, and flown in if necessary.

Heli-skiing : Helicopter skiing has become a popular alternative to resort skiing. It offers uncrowded access to the best terrain. For those who like to get off the beaten path heli-skiing is for them. AEU has planned annual and custom trips to three destinations. Everything will be taken care of for the customer. Transportation, lodging, transfers and skiing is included in the package. Although our trips are planned at peak ski seasons, mother nature cannot be predicted. In the event that the weather is too treacherous to ski the trip will be postponed. An in–house travel consultant will accompany each group and take care of all check-in and transfer issues.

AEU will not send clients to places we ourselves would not go. All service providers will be top-notch professionals with accomplished backgrounds. They will be medically trained, and evaluated for knowledge and ability to ensure safety and high-quality service. If they fail, at any time, to meet our rigid standards of quality, they will not be used. If quality falls, another provider will replace them. These activities take place outside of the United States and therefore we will hire local guides to accompany our professional guides and service providers.

White-water Sports : New Zealand and Costa Rica were chosen for these ten day long hard-adventure excursions. There can be a maximum of ten people per group. Annual trips will be planned to each location, but for large enough private groups, custom trips can be planed. As with the heli-skiing trips, local guides will be used in addition to our own. The abroad trips will be a cooperative effort in-house, as well as local guides in the host countries. The choice to seek outside consulting for the trips abroad is due to each countries different legal and regulatory climate. The potential subcontractors and guides are individuals currently in the industry in their respective countries.

Market Analysis Summary how to do a market analysis for your business plan.">

Travel industry is an upward growth industry. There are several reasons for this increase. First, a relative healthy domestic economy over the last several years and the devaluation of currency in other regions has made travel less expensive for U.S. residents. Pleasure travel has increased by 3.2% in 1999 and is predicted to grow 2.0% in 2000. Second, the healthy economy has increased business, which in turn boosted domestic business travel 4.8% in 1999 with an estimated increase of 3.6% in 2000.

Adventure travel is a growing segment of the travel industry. One theory of the recent increase in extreme sports has to do with the strong competitive nature of younger Americans. Statistics show that 8,000 U.S. companies (that offer adventure packages) generated $7 billion in 1999. There also has been a 66% increase in executive participation between 1996 and 2000 (or an increase of 2,000 participants)(La Franco, Robert. Forbes, Feb 9, 1998 v161 n3 p168(3)).

Some quick facts:

Adventure travelers: More than 50% of the U.S. adult traveling population, or 147 million people, have taken an adventure trip in their lifetime (98 million in the past five years). Thirty-one million adults have engaged in hard-adventure activities like white-water rafting, scuba diving and mountain biking. An additional 25 million engaged in both a hard- and soft-adventure activity. Six-percent of those who participated in adventure trips spent more than $2,500.
Activities most commonly participated in during adventure vacations: camping (85%), hiking (74%), skiing (51%), snorkeling or scuba diving (30%), sailing (26%), kayaking or white-water rafting (24%), and biking trips (24%).
Biking vacations: Twenty-seven million travelers with customers that tend to be young and affluent. Ages 18-34 and one-fourth are from household’s w/annual income of $75,000 or above.

4.1 Market Segmentation

AEU’s target customers are high income (min. $75,000 for single person), health-conscious individuals interested in popular hard-adventure sports such as skiing, white-water sports and mountain biking. The major purchasers are located in urban areas within these United States cities.

Customer Location (within the United States):

Pennsylvania

Hard-adventure travelers are more likely to be men. Therefore, AEU’s primary target market for hard-adventure sports is men between the ages of 18-34. However an increasing number of hard-adventure travelers are women (some statistics suggest that women comprise 49% of the hard-adventure market). Men, on average, spend more than women on their adventure travels.

Customers will be reached through traditional marketing communication methods. Information has been located relating to specific profiles of both hard- and soft-adventure travelers, where they live, work, what they do, etc. Research suggests that many of our target customers, and travelers in general, are Internet savvy. As such, the Internet will serve as an appropriate and effective medium of communication. Many adventure travelers purchase over the Internet or buy through travel agents. Purchase decisions are influenced by the amount of disposable income held, family issues, and the economy of a given year.

AEU will be targeting two specific groups:

High-income health-conscious individuals.
Young, active “trustafarians.”

The common elements between these two groups are money and a love for adventures. Group one has a lot of money from income that they earn. Group two has a lot of disposable income because the money was given to them, typically by members of their family. The second group, the trustafarians, is a very small group relative to the first group.

Travel agency business plan, market analysis summary chart image

Market Analysis
		Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Year 4	Year 5
Potential Customers	Growth						CAGR
High-income Health-conscious Individuals	12%	1,300,000	1,456,000	1,630,720	1,826,406	2,045,575	12.00%
Young, Active Trustafarians	5%	500,000	525,000	551,250	578,813	607,754	5.00%
Other	0%	0	0	0	0	0	0.00%
Total	10.19%	1,800,000	1,981,000	2,181,970	2,405,219	2,653,329	10.19%

4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy

AEU will promote/position itself as a differentiated provider of luxury hard-adventure travel, and will price accordingly within the chosen service niche.

AEU is targeting this special population for several reasons:

This segment, up until now, has been underserved.
This market segment traditionally spends a fair amount of money on adventure trips.
This target segment seems to be willing to pay a premium for a top-shelf adventure excursion.

Methods of communication will include direct mail, magazine advertising, personal selling and WWW presence. Continuous magazine advertising will be costly. Initially the use of direct mail, and personal selling will be employed. These methods of communication will be tailored to reach our target segment.

4.3 Service Business Analysis

As operations progress, AEU will continue to measure our progress relative to competitors and to the growth of the market(s) in which we operate. Though the primary target market has been defined, there may be new possibilities to serve additional segments. As the product is defined, and the strategy differentiation is defined based on competitive strengths, AEU will be better able to determine whether adjustments in positioning are necessary. Access to important information concerning the market, competitors, etc., is available. However it is not free. For the purposes of this project, we feel it is unnecessary to incur additional expense.

The marketing strategy will be to develop long-term relationships with customers. We will keep a database from which to obtain important demographic and psychographic information. As the business becomes profitable, plans will be implemented to expand. There is virtually no limit to the number and variety of trips AEU can provide. Trips can take place on every continent and in most countries. The goal is to establish AEU as an international provider of top-of-the-line hard-adventure travel.

4.3.1 Competition and Buying Patterns

Strengths and weaknesses of the competitors:

Companies that offer higher-priced, more luxurious packages generally provide a “soft” adventure. The activities are more along the lines of sightseeing and low-risk alternatives. The advantages these companies have include established reputations, extensive knowledge of the industry, and key personnel and management. Some have been in operation for more than twenty years. They are familiar with local service providers and have established strategic relationships.

Disadvantages to us:

It will be difficult to price ourselves competitively when we first enter the market.
Many of AEU’s activities are seasonal. Recurring revenue will depend upon successful trips in various regions of the world. For example, ski trips will end in April in North America. AEU will then have to move ski operations to places like Las Lenas, Argentina.
The weather for a given year is hard to predict. Poor conditions will threaten the success of trips. Unforeseen occurrences such as inadequate snowfall could effect the viability of activities such as skiing and white-water sports.

Closely related competitors:

Abercrombie & Kent: A well-established, international travel provider. Their focus is mainly on “soft” adventure packages such as safaris, river tours (e.g. Amazon), trekking, sightseeing, etc. However they do offer a “Connoisseur” line of packages. These are generally priced starting from $4,000-7,000. Some of their packages include white-water activities and hiking, however most are touring packages.

Competing or substitute products:

There are many activities and types of travel available to people contemplating a vacation. Theme parks, motorhome trips, and cruises are just a few. Substitutes could include less expensive, self-planned trips, trips geared towards soft-travel, adventure trips involving hunting or fishing as primary activities, or exclusive adventure trips such as personal submarine tours of the Titanic or a trip around the world in a Leer Jet. Many activities that take place outside and involve some level of risk could be seen as hard-adventure competition.

Another alternative is to do nothing. Consumers do not have to vacation. They may opt to spend the money they would have otherwise spent on a vacation on something else.

Strategy and Implementation Summary

Adventure Excursions Unlimited will be going after the upper-end of the hard-adventure market. This market up until now has been underserved, there are hard-adventure tour companies, but none that are catering to the high-end spectrum. With the adventuring traveling industry steadily increasing, AEU sees a unique opportunity.

AEU’s main objective in its marketing and sales activity is to make the impression on prospective customers that AEU offers a higher level of service relative to any other provider of hard-adventure tours. This will be communicated through all of the different media that we use. If AEU can make the impression that our trips are truly different and superior, then our research indicates that there will be steady demand.

Once AEU has clients signed up and participating on our trips, it will rely on superior customer attention and service to impress and retain clients for future trips. Developing long-term relationships will be the key to steady growth.

5.1 Competitive Edge

The competitive edge in our services is the access we provide to popular “hard” adventure sports without the budget constraint of typical travelers. That is, most travelers are looking to spend less than “hard” adventure sports without the budget constraint of typical travelers. The majority of providers cater to these people. Adventure Excursions Unlimited intends to use the same service providers but provide more exclusive trips. Accommodations will be primarily in small luxury hotels and resorts. Meals will be exceptional, more like gourmet cuisine. In addition, the adventure activities will be better than average because the clients have more money. They won’t get stuck with people they don’t like; they will get access to the best terrain, sections of rivers, etc. AEU’s activities are very popular. AEU’s target market has no problem spending $4,000 per week on heli-skiing. Moreover, they generally make this type of activity an annual event.

5.2 Sales Strategy

The sales strategy is to create long-term relationships with customers through superior service. The intent is to initially target the primary customer group. This group has been defined as persons who have purchased, or are likely to purchase, a “hard-adventure” vacation for over $2,500.

The trips planned are designed with the wealthy adventure traveler in mind. Later marketing efforts may include trips geared towards corporate clients, Eco-tourism or hard-adventure trips for people who want to spend less money. Target customers will be identified through standard research methods. There are a number of publications available that contain profiles of Adventure travelers.

Methods by which we will contact customers will depend on results of marketing/sales research. We will likely use trade or special interest magazines, direct mail, Web-based communication, and personal selling. In addition printed materials will be made available to customers through travel agencies that cater to the adventure target market. Initially, service will be introduced regionally, and possibly nationally. Sales will be extended into the global market within a few years of operation.

Our services are seasonal. Recurring revenue will be dependent upon successful trips involving a variety of activities offered year-round. We hope to promote out of season services through frequent customer contact and our own publication, most likely a magazine of some sort. We will review up-and-coming trips, offer highlights of past trips and try to do other creative articles, giveaways, customer profiles, etc.

Most sales will occur at the retail level. The sales that occur between customers and travel agencies will be discounted appropriately, approximately 15%. Transactions will occur as the result of customer contact in response to communication efforts. In addition, AEU will engage in personal selling.

5.2.1 Sales Forecast

The following charts and table shows AEU’s expected sales forecast.

Travel agency business plan, strategy and implementation summary chart image

Sales Forecast
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Sales
Heli-skiing	$360,000	$500,000	$570,000
White-water Rafting	$140,000	$260,000	$310,000
Mountain Biking	$100,000	$200,000	$240,000
Other	$0	$0	$0
Total Sales	$600,000	$960,000	$1,120,000

Direct Cost of Sales	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Heli-skiing	$0	$0	$0
White-water Rafting	$40,000	$70,000	$78,000
Mountain Biking	$28,000	$50,000	$64,000
Other	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Direct Cost of Sales	$68,000	$120,000	$142,000

5.3 Milestones

Adventure Excursions Unlimited will have several milestones early on:

Business plan completion. This will serve as a roadmap for the organization. While AEU does not need a business plan to raise capital, it will be an indispensable tool for the ongoing performance and improvement of the company.
Set up the office. This will be the main/only office located in Eugene, OR.
Develop the training program. This program will be used to train the leaders of our trips.
Completion of first trip.
Completion of twentieth trip.

Milestones

Milestone	Start Date	End Date	Budget	Manager	Department
Business Plan Completion	1/1/2001	1/21/2001	$0	Jordan	Marketing
Office Set-up	1/1/2001	2/1/2001	$0	Jillyn	Department
Develop Leadership Training Program	2/1/2001	3/1/2001	$0	Jordan	Department
Completion of First Trip	4/1/2001	5/1/2001	$0	Loren	Department
Completion of 20th Trip	4/1/2002	5/1/2002	$0	Loren	Department
Totals			$0

Management Summary management summary will include information about who's on your team and why they're the right people for the job, as well as your future hiring plans.">

Jordan Stephan, VP, Corporate Council, Business Development, and Mountain Biking Activity Supervisor : Jordan received his Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, PA. While there, he was president of the Washington and Jefferson Cycling Club and Team for two years. He completed his Master of Business Management/Doctor of Jurisprudence, joint degree program at Willamette University where he has served as the secretary of the Environmental Law Society, and chairperson for the Willamette University Public Interest Law Project (WUPILP). As chairperson, Jordan supervised twenty-five staff members and raised $14,000. Jordan has also managed a bicycle shop for two years. Following graduate school, Jordan worked for Counterclaim.com where Jordan did business development, organizational development, and other management activities. He is responsible for all logistics on the mountain bike trips.

Jordan’s expertise in mountain bike trip logistics comes from years of cycle touring. Jordan has cycled across the country and around the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Vermont. Jordan has also done a great deal of backpacking, backcountry hiking and snowshoeing. He has served as a consultant on many long-distance bicycle tours in the United States and abroad. In addition to his role as logistical planner, Jordan will be responsible for part-manufacturing for the mountain bike trips as he has manufacturing expertise from several years of design and improvement experience with outdoor gear.

Jordan’s extra curricular activities are based upon his love for the outdoors. He has been a competitive cyclist and runner for the last five years. He competes in cycling road races, endurance mountain bike races, and road/trail running races up to half-marathons. His current favorite activity is the duathlon or run/bike/run events. He would like to combine his experience and education with his love for the outdoors. The AEU business concept is a reflection of this desire.

Jillyn Certo, VP, Human Resource Manager/Corporate Trainer, and Ski-trip Coordinator : Jillyn graduated with two Bachelor of Science Degrees, one in corporate and industrial fitness and the other in occupational safety, from Oregon State University in 1991. Jillyn completed her MBA work at Atkinson Graduate School of Management in 1998. She has six years experience in the field of safety. After Atkinson Jillyn worked at Nike as a human resource specialist. Her interests include scuba diving and downhill skiing. Jillyn has competed in track & field as well as in horse shows and barrel racing. Along with her interest in sports, Jillyn has a variety of experience with business and pleasure travel. Jillyn will supervise the training of our leaders.

Loren Harlo, Marketing Manager and White-water Adventure Coordinator : Loren is twenty-seven years old. He received his Bachelor degree in psychology from Western College and graduated Magna cum Laude. He will complete his Master of Business Administration degree (with an emphasis in marketing) in 1998. Following graduate school, Loren worked for Burley Cooperative as a marketing manager. Loren has been active in athletics for twenty-years. He played football at the grade school, high school and college level, as well as basketball, track and field, and competition karate. He is an avid outdoorsman with a passion for water sports, skiing, hiking, hunting and fishing. He has recently taken up kayaking. Loren gained self-employment and management experience as an independent contractor for the Union Pacific Railroad. He has also managed and operated a small restaurant. He has always planned to own his own business and realized, while working independently, that he needed the knowledge of business management that an MBA program could provide.

Though the founding members intend to take an active role in the operation of AEU, additional management will be sought out. AEU is open to assistance from experienced managers associated with venture capital providers.

6.1 Personnel Plan

The following table shows the personnel plan for AEU.

Personnel Plan
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Jordan Stephan	$30,000	$30,000	$30,000
Jillyn Certo	$30,000	$30,000	$30,000
Loren Harlo	$30,000	$30,000	$30,000
Mountain Bike Trip Personnel	$70,000	$150,000	$170,000
Heli-skiing Personnel	$120,000	$170,000	$200,000
White-water Adventure Personnel	$70,000	$125,000	$155,000
Secretary	$18,000	$0	$0
Total People	4	19	19

Total Payroll	$368,000	$535,000	$615,000

Financial Plan investor-ready personnel plan .">

The following subtopics will provide more financial information.

7.1 Projected Cash Flow

The following chart and table indicates projected cash flow.

Travel agency business plan, financial plan chart image

Pro Forma Cash Flow
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Cash Received

Cash from Operations
Cash Sales	$600,000	$960,000	$1,120,000
Subtotal Cash from Operations	$600,000	$960,000	$1,120,000

Additional Cash Received
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received	$0	$0	$0
New Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
New Other Liabilities (interest-free)	$0	$0	$0
New Long-term Liabilities	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Long-term Assets	$0	$0	$0
New Investment Received	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Cash Received	$600,000	$960,000	$1,120,000

Expenditures	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3

Expenditures from Operations
Cash Spending	$368,000	$535,000	$615,000
Bill Payments	$168,145	$245,468	$305,745
Subtotal Spent on Operations	$536,145	$780,468	$920,745

Additional Cash Spent
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out	$0	$0	$0
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment	$0	$0	$0
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Long-term Assets	$0	$0	$0
Dividends	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Cash Spent	$536,145	$780,468	$920,745

Net Cash Flow	$63,855	$179,532	$199,255
Cash Balance	$108,455	$287,987	$487,243

7.2 Important Assumptions

See the following table for general assumptions.

General Assumptions
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Plan Month	1	2	3
Current Interest Rate	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%
Long-term Interest Rate	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%
Tax Rate	25.42%	25.00%	25.42%
Other	0	0	0

7.3 Break-even Analysis

This Break-even Analysis table and chart, below, project the figures for monthly sales break even.

Break-even Analysis


Monthly Revenue Break-even	$43,114

Assumptions:
Average Percent Variable Cost	11%
Estimated Monthly Fixed Cost	$38,228

7.4 Projected Profit and Loss

The following table indicates the projected profit and loss.

Pro Forma Profit and Loss
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Sales	$600,000	$960,000	$1,120,000
Direct Cost of Sales	$68,000	$120,000	$142,000
Other	$0	$0	$0
Total Cost of Sales	$68,000	$120,000	$142,000

Gross Margin	$532,000	$840,000	$978,000
Gross Margin %	88.67%	87.50%	87.32%


Expenses
Payroll	$368,000	$535,000	$615,000
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses	$21,000	$0	$0
Depreciation	$4,332	$4,332	$4,332
Leased Equipment	$0	$0	$0
Utilities	$0	$0	$0
Insurance	$4,800	$4,800	$4,800
Rent	$5,400	$5,400	$5,400
Payroll Taxes	$55,200	$80,250	$92,250
Other	$0	$0	$0

Total Operating Expenses	$458,732	$629,782	$721,782

Profit Before Interest and Taxes	$73,268	$210,218	$256,218
EBITDA	$77,600	$214,550	$260,550
Interest Expense	$0	$0	$0
Taxes Incurred	$17,825	$52,555	$65,122

Net Profit	$55,443	$157,664	$191,096
Net Profit/Sales	9.24%	16.42%	17.06%

7.5 Projected Balance Sheet

The following table will indicate the projected balance sheet.

Pro Forma Balance Sheet
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Assets

Current Assets
Cash	$108,455	$287,987	$487,243
Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0
Total Current Assets	$108,455	$287,987	$487,243

Long-term Assets
Long-term Assets	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000
Accumulated Depreciation	$4,332	$8,664	$12,996
Total Long-term Assets	$8,668	$4,336	$4
Total Assets	$117,123	$292,323	$487,247

Liabilities and Capital	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3

Current Liabilities
Accounts Payable	$4,080	$21,617	$25,444
Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0
Other Current Liabilities	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Current Liabilities	$4,080	$21,617	$25,444

Long-term Liabilities	$0	$0	$0
Total Liabilities	$4,080	$21,617	$25,444

Paid-in Capital	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000
Retained Earnings	($2,400)	$53,043	$210,706
Earnings	$55,443	$157,664	$191,096
Total Capital	$113,043	$270,706	$461,802
Total Liabilities and Capital	$117,123	$292,323	$487,247

Net Worth	$113,043	$270,706	$461,802

7.6 Business Ratios

Business ratios for the years of this plan are shown below. Industry profile ratios based on the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code 4725, Tour Operators, are shown for comparison.

Ratio Analysis
	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3	Industry Profile
Sales Growth	0.00%	60.00%	16.67%	4.00%

Percent of Total Assets
Other Current Assets	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	42.80%
Total Current Assets	92.60%	98.52%	100.00%	65.80%
Long-term Assets	7.40%	1.48%	0.00%	34.20%
Total Assets	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

Current Liabilities	3.48%	7.39%	5.22%	33.10%
Long-term Liabilities	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	16.40%
Total Liabilities	3.48%	7.39%	5.22%	49.50%
Net Worth	96.52%	92.61%	94.78%	50.50%

Percent of Sales
Sales	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%
Gross Margin	88.67%	87.50%	87.32%	40.10%
Selling, General & Administrative Expenses	79.51%	71.08%	70.16%	30.80%
Advertising Expenses	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.80%
Profit Before Interest and Taxes	12.21%	21.90%	22.88%	1.20%

Main Ratios
Current	26.58	13.32	19.15	1.66
Quick	26.58	13.32	19.15	1.29
Total Debt to Total Assets	3.48%	7.39%	5.22%	49.50%
Pre-tax Return on Net Worth	64.81%	77.66%	55.48%	2.70%
Pre-tax Return on Assets	62.56%	71.91%	52.58%	5.30%

Additional Ratios	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Net Profit Margin	9.24%	16.42%	17.06%	n.a
Return on Equity	49.05%	58.24%	41.38%	n.a

Activity Ratios
Accounts Payable Turnover	42.21	12.17	12.17	n.a
Payment Days	33	18	28	n.a
Total Asset Turnover	5.12	3.28	2.30	n.a

Debt Ratios
Debt to Net Worth	0.04	0.08	0.06	n.a
Current Liab. to Liab.	1.00	1.00	1.00	n.a

Liquidity Ratios
Net Working Capital	$104,375	$266,370	$461,798	n.a
Interest Coverage	0.00	0.00	0.00	n.a

Additional Ratios
Assets to Sales	0.20	0.30	0.44	n.a
Current Debt/Total Assets	3%	7%	5%	n.a
Acid Test	26.58	13.32	19.15	n.a
Sales/Net Worth	5.31	3.55	2.43	n.a
Dividend Payout	0.00	0.00	0.00	n.a

Sales Forecast
		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12
Sales
Heli-skiing	0%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$120,000	$0	$0	$120,000	$120,000	$0	$0
White-water Rafting	0%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$70,000	$0	$70,000	$0	$0
Mountain Biking	0%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$50,000	$50,000	$0	$0	$0	$0
Other	0%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Total Sales		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$120,000	$50,000	$120,000	$120,000	$190,000	$0	$0

Direct Cost of Sales		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12
Heli-skiing		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
White-water Rafting		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$20,000	$0	$20,000	$0	$0
Mountain Biking		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$14,000	$14,000	$0	$0	$0	$0
Other		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Direct Cost of Sales		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$14,000	$34,000	$0	$20,000	$0	$0

Personnel Plan
		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12
Jordan Stephan	0%	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500
Jillyn Certo	0%	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500
Loren Harlo	0%	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500	$2,500
Mountain Bike Trip Personnel	0%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$35,000	$35,000	$0	$0	$0	$0
Heli-skiing Personnel	0%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$40,000	$0	$0	$40,000	$40,000	$0	$0
White-water Adventure Personnel	0%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$35,000	$0	$35,000	$0	$0
Secretary	0%	$0	$0	$0	$2,000	$2,000	$2,000	$2,000	$2,000	$2,000	$2,000	$2,000	$2,000
Total People		3	3	3	4	4	9	9	14	9	14	4	4

Total Payroll		$7,500	$7,500	$7,500	$9,500	$9,500	$49,500	$44,500	$79,500	$49,500	$84,500	$9,500	$9,500

General Assumptions
	Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12
Plan Month	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
Current Interest Rate	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%
Long-term Interest Rate	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%	10.00%
Tax Rate	30.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%	25.00%
Other	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Pro Forma Profit and Loss
		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12
Sales		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$120,000	$50,000	$120,000	$120,000	$190,000	$0	$0
Direct Cost of Sales		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$14,000	$34,000	$0	$20,000	$0	$0
Other		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Total Cost of Sales		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$14,000	$34,000	$0	$20,000	$0	$0

Gross Margin		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$120,000	$36,000	$86,000	$120,000	$170,000	$0	$0
Gross Margin %		0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	100.00%	72.00%	71.67%	100.00%	89.47%	0.00%	0.00%


Expenses
Payroll		$7,500	$7,500	$7,500	$9,500	$9,500	$49,500	$44,500	$79,500	$49,500	$84,500	$9,500	$9,500
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$5,000	$1,500	$3,000	$5,000	$6,500	$0	$0
Depreciation		$361	$361	$361	$361	$361	$361	$361	$361	$361	$361	$361	$361
Leased Equipment		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Utilities		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Insurance		$400	$400	$400	$400	$400	$400	$400	$400	$400	$400	$400	$400
Rent		$450	$450	$450	$450	$450	$450	$450	$450	$450	$450	$450	$450
Payroll Taxes	15%	$1,125	$1,125	$1,125	$1,425	$1,425	$7,425	$6,675	$11,925	$7,425	$12,675	$1,425	$1,425
Other		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0

Total Operating Expenses		$9,836	$9,836	$9,836	$12,136	$12,136	$63,136	$53,886	$95,636	$63,136	$104,886	$12,136	$12,136

Profit Before Interest and Taxes		($9,836)	($9,836)	($9,836)	($12,136)	($12,136)	$56,864	($17,886)	($9,636)	$56,864	$65,114	($12,136)	($12,136)
EBITDA		($9,475)	($9,475)	($9,475)	($11,775)	($11,775)	$57,225	($17,525)	($9,275)	$57,225	$65,475	($11,775)	($11,775)
Interest Expense		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Taxes Incurred		($2,951)	($2,459)	($2,459)	($3,034)	($3,034)	$14,216	($4,472)	($2,409)	$14,216	$16,279	($3,034)	($3,034)

Net Profit		($6,885)	($7,377)	($7,377)	($9,102)	($9,102)	$42,648	($13,415)	($7,227)	$42,648	$48,836	($9,102)	($9,102)
Net Profit/Sales		0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	35.54%	-26.83%	-6.02%	35.54%	25.70%	0.00%	0.00%

Pro Forma Cash Flow
		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12
Cash Received

Cash from Operations
Cash Sales		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$120,000	$50,000	$120,000	$120,000	$190,000	$0	$0
Subtotal Cash from Operations		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$120,000	$50,000	$120,000	$120,000	$190,000	$0	$0

Additional Cash Received
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received	0.00%	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
New Current Borrowing		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
New Other Liabilities (interest-free)		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
New Long-term Liabilities		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Other Current Assets		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Sales of Long-term Assets		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
New Investment Received		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Cash Received		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$120,000	$50,000	$120,000	$120,000	$190,000	$0	$0

Expenditures		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12

Expenditures from Operations
Cash Spending		$7,500	$7,500	$7,500	$9,500	$9,500	$49,500	$44,500	$79,500	$49,500	$84,500	$9,500	$9,500
Bill Payments		($976)	($1,427)	($952)	($1,227)	($1,493)	$183	$27,193	$19,514	$46,704	$28,451	$53,668	($1,493)
Subtotal Spent on Operations		$6,524	$6,073	$6,548	$8,273	$8,007	$49,683	$71,693	$99,014	$96,204	$112,951	$63,168	$8,007

Additional Cash Spent
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Other Current Assets		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Purchase Long-term Assets		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Dividends		$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Cash Spent		$6,524	$6,073	$6,548	$8,273	$8,007	$49,683	$71,693	$99,014	$96,204	$112,951	$63,168	$8,007

Net Cash Flow		($6,524)	($6,073)	($6,548)	($8,273)	($8,007)	$70,317	($21,693)	$20,986	$23,797	$77,049	($63,168)	($8,007)
Cash Balance		$38,076	$32,003	$25,455	$17,182	$9,175	$79,492	$57,799	$78,785	$102,581	$179,630	$116,462	$108,455

Pro Forma Balance Sheet
		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12
Assets	Starting Balances

Current Assets
Cash	$44,600	$38,076	$32,003	$25,455	$17,182	$9,175	$79,492	$57,799	$78,785	$102,581	$179,630	$116,462	$108,455
Other Current Assets	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Total Current Assets	$44,600	$38,076	$32,003	$25,455	$17,182	$9,175	$79,492	$57,799	$78,785	$102,581	$179,630	$116,462	$108,455

Long-term Assets
Long-term Assets	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000	$13,000
Accumulated Depreciation	$0	$361	$722	$1,083	$1,444	$1,805	$2,166	$2,527	$2,888	$3,249	$3,610	$3,971	$4,332
Total Long-term Assets	$13,000	$12,639	$12,278	$11,917	$11,556	$11,195	$10,834	$10,473	$10,112	$9,751	$9,390	$9,029	$8,668
Total Assets	$57,600	$50,715	$44,281	$37,372	$28,738	$20,370	$90,326	$68,272	$88,897	$112,332	$189,020	$125,491	$117,123

Liabilities and Capital		Month 1	Month 2	Month 3	Month 4	Month 5	Month 6	Month 7	Month 8	Month 9	Month 10	Month 11	Month 12

Current Liabilities
Accounts Payable	$0	$0	$943	$1,411	$1,879	$2,613	$29,921	$21,281	$49,134	$29,921	$57,773	$3,346	$4,080
Current Borrowing	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Other Current Liabilities	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Subtotal Current Liabilities	$0	$0	$943	$1,411	$1,879	$2,613	$29,921	$21,281	$49,134	$29,921	$57,773	$3,346	$4,080

Long-term Liabilities	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0
Total Liabilities	$0	$0	$943	$1,411	$1,879	$2,613	$29,921	$21,281	$49,134	$29,921	$57,773	$3,346	$4,080

Paid-in Capital	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000	$60,000
Retained Earnings	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)	($2,400)
Earnings	$0	($6,885)	($14,262)	($21,639)	($30,741)	($39,843)	$2,805	($10,610)	($17,837)	$24,811	$73,647	$64,545	$55,443
Total Capital	$57,600	$50,715	$43,338	$35,961	$26,859	$17,757	$60,405	$46,990	$39,763	$82,411	$131,247	$122,145	$113,043
Total Liabilities and Capital	$57,600	$50,715	$44,281	$37,372	$28,738	$20,370	$90,326	$68,272	$88,897	$112,332	$189,020	$125,491	$117,123

Net Worth	$57,600	$50,715	$43,338	$35,961	$26,859	$17,757	$60,405	$46,990	$39,763	$82,411	$131,247	$122,145	$113,043

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How To Start A Business Plan: A Step-By-Step Guide

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Creating a business plan is a critical first step for any entrepreneur. Knowing how to start a business plan will help you create a roadmap, guiding your business from startup to growth and beyond. Whether you're looking for investment, trying to set clear goals, or simply organizing your thoughts, a solid business plan can make all the difference.

Here is a guide to help you get started on your business plan:

1. executive summary.

What It Is: This section summarizes your business plan as a whole and outlines your company profile and goals.

What to Include:

Business name and location
Products or services offered
Mission statement
The purpose of the plan (e.g., seeking funding, guiding the startup process)

Tip: Keep it concise. Although it's the first section, it's often best to write it last, after you’ve detailed everything else.

2. Company Description

What It Is: This section provides detailed information about your company, including who you are, what you do, and what markets you serve.

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Your business structure (e.g., sole proprietorship, LLC, corporation)
The industry and marketplace needs your business meets
Your business’s objectives and how you stand out from competitors

Tip: Use this section to highlight your company’s strengths and what makes you unique.

3. Market Research

What It Is: Market research demonstrates your understanding of the industry and target market.

Market size and growth potential
Target customer demographics
Market trends and outlook
Competitive analysis, including strengths and weaknesses of competitors

Tip: Include data and statistics to back up your findings and show that you’ve done your homework.

4. Organization and Management

What It Is: This section outlines your business’s organizational structure and management team.

Organizational chart
Information about the ownership of the company
Backgrounds and qualifications of the management team
Roles and responsibilities within the company

Tip: Highlight the skills and experiences of your team that will help the business succeed.

5. Products or Services Line

What It Is: Here, you detail the products or services you offer or plan to offer.

A description of each product or service
The lifecycle of products or services
Research and development activities, if applicable
Intellectual property, such as patents or trademarks

Tip: Focus on the benefits your products or services bring to your customers.

6. Marketing and Sales Strategy

What It Is: This section explains how you will attract and retain customers.

Marketing strategies, including advertising, promotions, and public relations
Sales strategies, including sales processes, channels, and tactics
Pricing strategy and how it compares to competitors

Tip: Ensure your marketing and sales strategies are aligned with your market research findings.

7. Funding Request

What It Is: If you’re seeking funding , this section outlines your requirements.

Your current funding needs
Future funding requirements over the next five years
How you intend to use the funds
Potential future financial plans (e.g., selling the business, repaying debt)

Tip: Be specific and realistic about how much funding you need and how it will be used.

8. Financial Projections

What It Is: Financial projections provide a forecast of your business’s financial future.

Income statements
Cash flow statements
Balance sheets
Break-even analysis

Tip: Use realistic and conservative estimates. Consider hiring a financial professional to help with this section if needed.

9. Appendix

What It Is: The appendix includes any additional information that supports your business plan.

Resumes of key management team members
Permits and leases
Legal documents
Detailed market research data
Product photos

Tip: Only include essential information that adds value to your business plan.

Final Tips for Creating a Business Plan

Creating a business plan requires clarity and precision. First and foremost, keep your business plan clear and concise. Avoid using jargon or complex language that could make the plan difficult to read or understand. Your aim should be to communicate your ideas effectively and efficiently.

Next, be realistic in your approach. Ensure that your goals and financial projections are attainable based on your research and understanding of the market. Overly ambitious projections can undermine your credibility and potentially lead to unrealistic expectations.

It's also essential to remember that a business plan is a dynamic document. As your business grows and market conditions change, you should revisit and revise your plan regularly. This helps you stay aligned with your goals and adapt to new challenges and opportunities.

Finally, seek feedback from experienced business professionals. Having someone with business experience review your plan can provide valuable insights and help identify any potential issues or areas for improvement. Their feedback can enhance the overall quality and effectiveness of your business plan.

By following these tips, you'll be better equipped to create a robust and effective business plan that can guide your business towards success.

The bottom line is that starting a business plan may seem challenging, but with careful planning and attention to detail, you can create a comprehensive guide to steer your business toward success. Use this step-by-step guide to ensure that all essential components are covered, giving your business the best possible start.

Melissa Houston, CPA is the author of Cash Confident: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Creating a Profitable Business and the founder of She Means Profit . As a Business Strategist for small business owners, Melissa helps women making mid-career shifts, to launch their dream businesses, and I also guide established business owners to grow their businesses to more profitably.

The opinions expressed in this article are not intended to replace any professional or expert accounting and/or tax advice whatsoever.

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How to Write a Business Plan Outline in 9 Steps (Example Included!)

Starting a business often begins with writing a business plan , especially if you need funding . It acts as a roadmap, guiding you through each stage of launching and managing your company, and it presents a clear, compelling case to potential investors and partners. But here's the thing: not everyone finds this step intuitive. That's where a business plan outline can be incredibly helpful.

Creating a detailed business plan outline helps you organize your thoughts and ensure you cover all the key aspects of your business strategy. Plus, it might be just what you need to overcome that blank page and start typing.

Below, you'll find an easy-to-follow guide on how to craft your business plan outline, and an example to show you what it should look like.

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What is an outline of a business plan?

Think of a business plan outline as the skeleton of your entire business plan. It gives a high-level overview of the main sections you'll need to flesh out later. It's not the final document but a crucial step in getting you there.

Simply put, it's like creating a detailed table of contents for your business plan, showing you exactly what information to include and how everything fits together. A well-structured business plan outline also helps you plan things ahead, saving time and effort.

Writing a business plan outline in 9 steps

Follow these steps to build your business plan outline and learn exactly what each section should include.

(Bear in mind that every business plan is unique, tailored to the specific needs and goals of the business. While the structure below is common, the order of sections may vary—only the executive summary will always come first.)

1. Executive summary

Imagine you have just 60 seconds to convince someone to invest in your business. That's the essence of a strong executive summary. Although it appears first on your business plan, this section is often written last because it sums up the entire plan. Think of it as your elevator pitch . This section gives a quick overview of your entire business plan, highlighting key points that grab the reader's attention.

Keep it clear and concise. Start with a brief overview of your business, including its name and what it offers. Summarize your mission statement and objectives, and don’t forget to mention crucial aspects like financial projections and competitive advantages.

2. Company description

Here's where you provide detailed information about your company. Begin with the business name and location. Describe the legal structure (e.g., sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation) and ownership. If your business already exists, share a brief history.

For new ventures, explain the business's nature and the problems you aim to solve. Go into more detail about your vision and mission statements, outlining your goals and the principles guiding your business. This section helps potential investors and stakeholders grasp your company’s identity and purpose.

3. Market research and analysis

This section shares insights into your company’s industry. Start with a landscape analysis to give an overview of the market, including its size, growth rate, and key players.

Next, define your target market and customer demographics—age, location, income, and interests—detailing who your ideal customers are. Identify market needs and trends your business will address, and highlight customer pain points your product or service aims to solve.

Consider conducting a SWOT analysis to evaluate your business's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and gain a strategic view of where your business stands in the competitive landscape.

4. Organization and management

Describe how your business is structured and who runs it. Outline the organizational structure, and if helps, include a chart. Introduce the leadership team and key personnel, highlighting their qualifications and roles. If you have a board of directors, mention them and briefly explain their involvement.

Then, outline your production processes, detailing how your product or service is (or will be) created—from sourcing materials to delivery—to give a comprehensive view of your operational capabilities.

5. Products and services

This section of your business plan outline is crucial for showing potential investors what makes your products and services unique and valuable.

Clearly describe what your business offers, emphasizing your unique selling propositions (USPs) and the benefits and features that set you apart from the competition. Talk about the product life cycle, including any plans for future updates.

If your business holds any intellectual property or proprietary technologies, detail them here to underscore your competitive advantages.

6. Marketing strategy

Having a fantastic product or service is just half the battle. The marketing plan section should outline how you'll reach your target market and convert them into customers.

Begin with market positioning and branding, explaining how you want your brand perceived. Detail your marketing and promotional strategies, including specific tactics to reach your target audience.

Discuss your sales strategy, focusing on how you'll convert leads into customers. Lastly, include your pricing strategy and provide a sales forecast, projecting your expected revenue over a certain period.

7. Operations plan

Here, the goal is to give a detailed overview of the physical and logistical aspects of your company. Start with the business location and facilities, describing where it operates and any significant physical assets. Detail the technology and equipment needed for daily operations.

Briefly describe your supply chain and logistics processes to illustrate how you manage inventory, procurement, and distribution. Finish it by outlining your production process and quality control measures to ensure your products or services consistently meet high standards.

8. Financial plan

Use this section of the business plan to show how your company will succeed financially. Include financial projections like income statements and cash flow statements. Specify how much capital you need and how you plan to use it, discussing funding sources.

Conduct a break-even analysis to estimate when your business will become profitable. Be transparent and address any financial risks and assumptions, outlining how you plan to mitigate them.

9. Appendices and exhibits

In this section, include any additional information that supports your business plan. This might be resumes of key personnel to highlight your team's expertise and experience, or even legal documents and agreements.

Include market research data and surveys to back up your market analysis. Add financial statements for a detailed look at your financial plan. Also, provide detailed product specifications to give a clear understanding of your products and services.

Here's a business plan outline example

Not quite there yet? Take a look at this business plan outline example—it will make everything clear for you.

3.1 Executive Summary

Overview of the business
Key points of the business plan

3.2 Company Description

Business name and location
History and nature of the business
Legal structure and ownership
Vision and mission statement

3.3 Market Research and Analysis

Industry analysis
Target market and customer demographics
Market needs, trends
Customer pain points
SWOT analysis

3.4 Organization and Management

Organizational structure
Leadership team and key personnel
Roles and responsibilities
Board of directors (if applicable)
Production processes

3.5 Products and Services

Description of products or services offered
Unique selling propositions, benefits, features
Product lifecycle and development plans
Intellectual property and proprietary technologies

3.6 Marketing Strategy

Market positioning and branding
Marketing and promotional strategies
Sales strategy and tactics
Pricing strategy and sales forecast

3.7 Operations Plan

Business location and facilities
Technology and equipment
Supply chain and logistics
Production process and quality control

3.8 Financial Plan

Financial projections (income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements)
Funding requirements and sources
Break-even analysis
Financial risks and assumptions

3.9 Appendices and Exhibits (if applicable)

Supporting documents and additional information
Resumes of key personnel
Legal documents and agreements
Market research data and surveys
Financial Statements
Detailed Product Specifications

Bonus tips on how to write a winning business plan

Once you've done your business plan outline, it's time to fill in the gaps and craft a winning business plan. Here are some bonus tips to keep in mind:

Tailor it to fit your business : Customize sections to meet industry-specific needs and highlight what makes your business unique.
Keep it clear and concise : Use straightforward language and support your points with data to ensure easy understanding and avoid any confusion.
Set actionable and realistic goals : Define measurable objectives with clear timelines and milestones to track your progress.
Update regularly : Keep your plan dynamic by making regular updates to reflect changes in goals, market conditions, and strategies.
Seek feedback : Gain insights from mentors and advisors to refine your plan.

Read this next: How to Start a Business in 8 Steps: A Comprehensive Guide from Concept to Launch

Tournament Manager - The Sentry

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The Best Players Need the Best People.

QUALIFICATIONS

Bachelor's Degree in Business, Marketing, or Sports Management required; Master's Degree preferred, or equivalent experience in professional golf events, sports & entertainment properties, or the hospitality industry.

Minimum of five to seven years in event management, with prior experience specifically in golf tournaments or related event planning and operations

Prior exposure to golf tournaments or sports event planning/operations (preferred).

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) proficiency (required)

Excellent communication skills, verbal and written.

Ability to manage multiple projects.

Able to safely operate a utility vehicle such as, but not limited to, golf carts, utility carts, and shuttle carts.

RESPONSIBILITIES/DUTIES

Strategic Business Plan Development : Actively contribute to crafting a comprehensive strategic business plan that encompasses all critical aspects of the event.
Sales Plan Creation : Collaborate with Sales Insights and Operations teams to build an annual sales plan, including product offerings, pricing strategies, and packaging. Ensure completion of the SIMM document capturing projected revenues, costs, and margins.
Revenue Generation : Oversee revenue streams through corporate hospitality, Pro-Am competitions, and sponsorship sales.
Sales Coordination : Lead weekly sales discussions with the National Sales & Service and Sales Insights teams to align strategies and enhance performance.
Marketing Plan Development : Assist in creating an annual marketing plan to increase tournament awareness and boost local ticket sales.
Collaboration on Advertising Assets : Work alongside HQ Marketing and Creative Services teams to develop the annual look and feel for the tournament's paid advertising assets across print, digital, out-of-home, radio, and television platforms.
Title Sponsor Engagement : Regularly engage with the title sponsor in scheduled meetings to align their goals and expectations with the event's objectives, discussing any necessary adjustments.
Relationship Building : Foster and maintain relationships with key stakeholders such as the host venue, local sponsors, corporate community, hospitality providers, local media, government entities, community organizations, and golf-related entities.
Volunteer Committee Development : Assist with structuring a comprehensive volunteer committee structure, including the roles of General Chair, Vice Chairs, Committee Chairs, and other members, to effectively prepare and execute the tournament.
Charity Collaboration : Coordinate closely with local 501(c)3 “Designated Beneficiaries” to manage the Charity Volunteer program.
Operational Design and Planning : Work with the Tournament Operations and Services teams to design the on-course venue layout and build, as well as manage parking, shuttles, and off-course ancillary events and initiatives.
Logistical Coordination : Collaborate with Tournament Operations and Services teams on managing vendors, accommodations, catering, and other logistical needs.
Financial Planning : Work with the Executive Director and cross-functional teams to budget and forecast revenues and expenses effectively.
Special Projects and Duties : Handle special projects and perform additional duties as assigned to support the overall success of the event.

Lahaina, HI

Research & Analysis

USABC Concludes Successful 2024 ASEAN Ambassadors’ Tour with Representation from Eight Embassies

From July 8-12, the US-ASEAN Business Council led Ambassadors and Chargés d'affaires representing eight ASEAN nations on the annual ASEAN Ambassadors' Tour to Louisville, Kentucky; Cincinnati, Ohio; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This year’s tour itinerary centered around our host companies: Brown-Forman, GE Aerospace, P&G, TE Connectivity, and UPS. The delegation met with executives across various industries who have vested interests in ASEAN. Additionally, the Council led its delegation on a series of political, economic and cultural meetings that broadened our knowledge of American enterprise, as well as its geopolitical trajectory. In Louisville, Kentucky, the delegation commenced the first leg of its tour on July 8. During the first portion of the visit, the delegation met with the University of Louisville leadership, toured UPS’ first-Worldport facility, toured the Churchill Downs, and had a private tour and bourbon tasting, courtesy of Council member, Brown-Forman. The delegation also met with Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg and key members of his leadership team. On July 9, the Council concluded its visit to Louisville with a tour of the Muhammad Ali Center and business forum facilitated by the World Trade Center of Kentucky (WTC-KY).

In Cincinnati, Ohio, the agenda started off on July 9 with an engaging tour and roundtable discussion at Procter & Gamble’s (P&G) Global Headquarters. The following morning, the delegation was invited to City Hall to meet with Cincinnati’s Mayor, Aftab Pureval, the first Asian American to hold the position. The ASEAN Ambassadors’ Tour wrapped its visit to Cincinnati with an informative tour and lively discussion at GE Aerospace Headquarters.

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the final leg of the tour commenced on July 11. The Philadelphia leg started with a tour and panel discussion facilitated by the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia (WTC-GP) at the Union League of Philadelphia. This was followed by a tour and discussion with executives from TE Connectivity at their regional headquarters, just outside the city. The day concluded with a tour of Discovery Labs and a series of local business presentations at Life Sciences PA. The following and final day on July 12, the Ambassadors were hosted by WTC-GP at their offices for a catered presentation and roundtable with local political figures.

“No matter what, the U.S. private sector has been, is, and will continue to stay in ASEAN,” said Ambassador Ted Osius, President & CEO of USABC. “Despite the ups and downs in domestic politics and impact of global event, our members show consistent commitment to and belief in the growth potential of ASEAN’s economy and its people.”, he added.

This delegation was represented by:

H.E. Dato Paduka Haji Serbini bin Haji Ali, Ambassador of Brunei Darussalam

H.E. Keo Chhea, Ambassador of Cambodia

H.E. Sisavath Inphachanh, Ambassador of Laos

H.E. Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, Ambassador of Malaysia

H.E. Lui Tuck Yew, Ambassador of Singapore

H.E. Suriya Chindawongse, Ambassador of Thailand

H.E. Nguyen Quoc Dzung, Ambassador of Vietnam

Mr. Ida Bagus Made Bimantara, Chargé d'affaires at the Embassy of Indonesia

Ambassador Ted Osius, President & CEO of USABC

The 2024 ASEAN Ambassadors’ Tour was generously supported by Brown-Forman, GE Aerospace, P&G, TE Connectivity, and UPS.

Membership Plans

Corporate Council

Corporate membership provides general advocacy support, access to all country- and industry-specific updates, and access to most Council events.

Business missions to all 10 ASEAN markets which engage governments at the highest levels.
Off-the-record roundtables and policy briefings with senior government leaders in ASEAN and the U.S.
On-the-ground support for promoting your positions/policy priorities with policy makers.
Industry-specific, country-specific, cross-sector and regional advocacy through committees that target their engagement based on member priorities.
Advocacy on your behalf in situations where your company should not be directly identified or is unable to be present.

Chairman’s Council

All Corporate benefits.
Assistance with resolving company-specific trade or investment issues through our six regional offices and U.S.-based staff.
Develop effective advocacy strategies to impact policy concerns.
Identification of, and engagement with appropriate policy influencers to impact policy concerns.
Assistance in conducting follow-up after engaging government leaders (can include providing officials with additional materials, setting up meetings with their staff, getting a readout of the government’s reaction to the discussion).
Support for developing arguments that will resonate with target stakeholders.
Leading and setting the agenda and policy priorities of the Country and Industry Committees.

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7+ Tourism Plan Word Templates
Travel Business Plan Template
Travel agency business plan example
Tour Company Business Plan Template Sample Pages
28+ Business Plan Templates
How to make business plan for tourism

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Business Plan Presentation Part About Discussion || Types Of Business Plan Presentation||
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COMMENTS

Tour Operator Business Plan [Free Template
Writing a tour operator business plan is a crucial step toward the success of your business. Here are the key steps to consider when writing a business plan: 1. Executive Summary. An executive summary is the first section planned to offer an overview of the entire business plan. However, it is written after the entire business plan is ready and ...
How to Start a Tour Operator Business in 13 Steps
Step 5: Register Your Business. Registering your business is an absolutely crucial step — it's the prerequisite to paying taxes, raising capital, opening a bank account, and other guideposts on the road to getting a business up and running. Plus, registration is exciting because it makes the entire process official.
How to Set Up a Tour Operator Business Plan
1. Business overview. This section of your tour operator/ tour agency business plan provides a holistic snapshot of your company, offering readers a clear understanding of your business's identity. Ideally, it should include the following: Business Name: Your business name should resonate with your target audience, conveying the essence of ...
Travel Tour Agency Business Plan Example
P25,365. P20,958. P10,959. Cash at End of Period. P25,365. P46,323. P57,282. Download This Plan. Explore a real-world travel tour agency business plan example and download a free template with this information to start writing your own business plan.
PDF Entrepreneur Tour Operator Toolkit Tour Operator Business Plan Guide
With your Business Model prepared, you can now more easily complete your Tour Operator Business Plan. Your tour operator business plan should contain at least seven sections: 1. an executive summary, 2. a company overview, 3. a description of your services, 4. an analysis of your market, 5. an implementation plan, 6. a team summary, and 7.
How to Create a tourism Business Plan?
The Benefits of a Business Plan. As mentioned above, a tour company business plan is a document that outlines all the important aspects of your tour business. From your company goals and objectives, to your team members, and even your financial statements, a business plan is an effective tool for analyzing the ins and outs of your business.
How to write a business plan for a tour operating business?
Let's go through the content of each section in more detail! 1. The executive summary. In your tour operating business's business plan, the first section is the executive summary — a captivating overview of your plan that aims to pique the reader's interest and leave them eager to learn more about your business.
How To Make A Tour And Travel Business Plan
Your financial plan is an essential element of successful business planning. When creating a business plan, you should include revenue forecasts and expenses. They can also include pricing strategy, cost control methods, cash flow forecasts, financial statements and balance sheets. Having a tour financial plan will help you make better business ...
How to create a tour operator business plan in 8 steps
Tour Operator Business Plan Template. Your tour operator business plan should contain at least seven sections: an executive summary, a company overview, a description of your services, an analysis of your market, an implementation plan, a team summary, and a financial plan. You might have one or more appendices at the end, if you have ...
Free Travel Tour Agency Business Plan Template + Example
Travel Tour Agency Business Plan Template. Download this free travel tour agency business plan template, with pre-filled examples, to create your own plan. Download Now. Or plan with professional support in LivePlan. Save 50% today.
How to Start a Tour Company: A Comprehensive Guide
Having a business plan serves as a guide toward growth and success. The business plan documents the roadmap you'll undertake moving forward to reach the end goal for your tour business. Things to include in your tour business plan are: Executive summary; Business description; Mission and vision; Business goals (short-term and long-term ...
Start a Successful Tour Business with These 8 Insider Tips
Develop a Tour Business Plan ‍ A comprehensive business plan outlines your business goals, strategies, and how you plan to achieve success. It should cover market analysis, marketing and sales strategies, operational plans, and financial projections. ‍ Once you've navigated through the legal requirements, it's time to pen down your business ...
6 Steps to Starting a Tour Business
A good tour operator business plan should include an executive summary, market analysis, marketing and sales strategies, operations plan, financial projections, and funding requirements. It will also take into account the permits and licenses you may need to apply for. When finalized, your business plan will set out your roadmap for success ...
Tour Company Business Plan
A tour company business plan contains several sections to be developed in a clear and detailed manner, such as a description of the company, partnership opportunities, and market analysis. It will also include information for an operations plan, a marketing plan, and a list of the products and services your company will provide. ...
How to start a Tour Operator business in 2024
Open a business bank account. Now that you have a business license, you'll want to open a corporate bank account. This will help you keep track of all your expenses and revenue and make accounting a lot easier. Design your tour Write your business plan. With all the legalities taken care of, it's time to write your business plan.
How to Start a Tour Business: From Passion to Profit in the Tourism
Develop a Solid Business Plan. A comprehensive business plan is essential for any new business, and a tour company is no exception. Your business plan should outline your company's mission, target market, marketing strategy, financial projections, and operational plan. This document will serve as your roadmap and help you stay focused on your ...
How to Write Travel Agency Business Plan + Free Template
Well, here you go; download our free travel agency business plan template now and get started. This modern, user-friendly business plan template is specifically designed for travel agencies. With a step-by-step guide and example, it helps you write a professional plan without missing any crucial steps. Simply import data into your preferred ...
Sightseeing Bus Tours Business Plan Example
Services. Double Decker Tours of Washington will provide double-decker bus sightseeing tours throughout Washington and close-in memorials. We will survey the national monuments, White House, US Capitol, and the many government buildings along the way during a 2-1/2 to 3 hour tour.
How to Develop a Successful Tour Operator Business Model
Some examples of goals and steps you may come up with: Expand your tour activity selection. In order to do so, you need to find gaps in the market that you can meet with your resources and experience. Reach a new market segment. That requires that you perhaps partner with other travel agents and activity providers.
Travel Agency Business Plan Template (2024)
Industry Analysis. The U.S. travel agency industry is valued at $48.5B with more than 90,600 businesses in operation and over 318,600 employees nationwide. Factors currently driving industry growth include an increase in domestic tourism and travel for overnight trips, vacations, and business purposes.
Tour Operator Business Plan Guide
Your tour operator business plan should contain at least seven sections: an executive summary, a company overview, a description of your services, an analysis of your market, an implementation plan, a team summary, and. a financial plan. You might have one or more appendices at the end if you have additional relevant information to include.
How to Start a Tour Company with (Almost) No Money
1) Scratching your own itch. A tried and tested method is to build a tour for people like yourself. This means people that are in your age group, share your interests and, ideally, you know a lot of them. Taking this approach is great because it will be easier for you to "get in the shoes" of your customers.
Starting a Tour Guide Business in 8 Achievable Stages
We put together this guide explaining the core steps to starting a tour business. We've organised the startup tasks into more manageable stages so you can follow our plan step-by-step until you're ready to launch. 8 Stages for Starting a Tour Guide Business. Cover the legalities; Develop your brand; Determine the types of tours to sell
How to Start a Tour Operator Business in 12 Steps
Remember, your business plan is the road map for your success in the business. A well-crafted business plan is essential for securing funding and guiding your business journey. 5. Name your Business. The first thing you need to do before actually starting is to name your tour operator business. Choose a relevant and relatable name.
Travel Agency Business Plan Example
1.1 Objectives. Adventure Excursions Unlimited's objectives for the first three years of operation include: To create a service-based company whose #1 mission is exceeding customers' expectations. Capturing 25% market share of the high-end hard-adventure travel space. To develop a sustainable, profitable business.
How To Start A Business Plan: A Step-By-Step Guide
Here is a guide to help you get started on your business plan: 1. Executive Summary. What It Is: This section summarizes your business plan as a whole and outlines your company profile and goals.
How to Write a Business Plan Outline in 9 Steps
This section of your business plan outline is crucial for showing potential investors what makes your products and services unique and valuable. Clearly describe what your business offers, emphasizing your unique selling propositions (USPs) and the benefits and features that set you apart from the competition. Talk about the product life cycle ...
Tournament Manager
Strategic Business Plan Development: Actively contribute to crafting a comprehensive strategic business plan that encompasses all critical aspects of the event. Sales Plan Creation : Collaborate with Sales Insights and Operations teams to build an annual sales plan, including product offerings, pricing strategies, and packaging.
USABC Concludes Successful 2024 ASEAN Ambassadors' Tour with
On July 9, the Council concluded its visit to Louisville with a tour of the Muhammad Ali Center and business forum facilitated by the World Trade Center of Kentucky (WTC-KY). In Cincinnati, Ohio, the agenda started off on July 9 with an engaging tour and roundtable discussion at Procter & Gamble's (P&G) Global Headquarters.
Make a plan to attend the Maine Lobster Festival, July 31 to Aug. 4
Our customer service team can be reached at [email protected] during business hours at (207) 791-6000. ... Make a plan to attend the Maine Lobster Festival, July 31 to Aug. 4.

Starting a Tour Operator Business: 13 Key Steps

Step 1: Decide if the Business Is Right for You

Tour operator industry trends

Trends and challenges

Demand hotspots

What kind of people work in tour operator businesses?

How much does it cost to start a tour operator business?

How much can you earn from a tour operator business?

What barriers to entry are there?

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How to Start a Bed & Breakfast Business (with Checklist)

Analyze your competitors

Why? Identify an opportunity

What? Determine your services

How much should you charge for tours?

Who? Identify your target market

Where? Choose your business premises

Step 3: Brainstorm a Tour Company Name

Step 4: Create a Tour Operator Business Plan

Step 5: Register Your Business

Choose where to register your company

Choose your business structure

Form Your LLC

Step 6: Register for Taxes

Step 7: Fund your Business

Step 8: Apply for Tour Operator Business Licenses and Permits

Step 9: Open a Business Bank Account

Step 10: Get Business Insurance

Step 11: Prepare to Launch

Essential software and tools

Create a website

Focus on USPs

Step 12: Build Your Team

Step 13: Run a Tour Operator Business – Start Making Money!

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Table of Contents

The Benefits of a Business Plan

How to Create a Tourism Business Plan

Executive Summary

Company Overview

Market Analysis

Team Summary

Financial Plan

Marketing Plan

Your Business Plan Can Set You Up For Success

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A Step-By-Step Guide to Creating a Tour and Travel Business Plan

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Benefits of a Tour Operator Business Plan

How do I write a tour operator business plan?

Executive summary

Company overview

Industry analysis

Competitor analysis

Customer analysis

Operational planning

Team Summary

Financial planning

Marketing plan

Wrapping up

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