Travel Advisor Business Glossary: Host Agency, Supplier, Commission, CRM and More

Core terms

These are the words that appear in your first week and are rarely explained.

• Host agency — a company providing accreditation, booking access, support and back-office services to independent advisors.
• Consortium — a buying group that negotiates supplier programs and amenities on behalf of member agencies.
• Supplier — the company delivering the travel: hotel, cruise line, tour operator, resort or transport provider.
• Commission — compensation paid by a supplier after travel, typically a percentage of eligible revenue.
• Planning fee — a professional fee charged by the advisor for research and design, disclosed in advance.
• FAM trip — a familiarization trip offered to advisors to learn a property or destination firsthand.
• IATA / CLIA — industry accreditation bodies whose identifiers suppliers may require.
• CRM — the system holding client records, preferences, history and follow-up tasks.