I stated a bunch of facts that came from an official document and the TravelPro took issue with this excerpt:
YTB/ZamZuu makes a ton of money off of the people that attend the convention. The revenue for the 2010 convention was $322,000. (Page 16) and the expenses were $457,000 (Page 17). So if you do the math that means that the gross income from the convention was $779,000. At $199 to attend, that puts attendance in the area of 3,900. A number YTB did not disclose. But, it is clear that for every person who attended the convention, more than $80 went directly to YTB’s bottom line. That is a 41% commission YTB earned on this event! Most companies tend to make their events affordable. Yes, most make money, but most don’t gouge.His comment was:
Last I heard (from my 9 year old daughter no less) you add revenue and subtract expenses.But for those who might be inclined to follow his logic, let me explain with a basic math word problem.
If you earn $100 selling a cruise and had to pay Carnival $1000 in an agency check, what is the minimum amount you sold the cruise to a client in order to earn that $100?You see the revenue is what YTB earned from the convention. Call it the commission. But in order to earn that, they needed to spend money to produce the convention. These are expenses. The only figure YTB did not report was how much they took in in ticket sales to the convention.
Maybe the TravelPro ought to suggest his 9 year old daughter listen a bit more carefully in math class!
