text: January | 2014 | TravelResearchOnline
  Open Jaw – January 31, 2014
  When designing your marketing efforts, remember the principle of frequency: a client typically needs to hear your message several times before responding. The rule applies to your existing clients as well as to potential clients – if too much time passes between encounters, clients are easily distracted to other opportunities. Marketing efforts often look like bursts of activity rather than well-designed campaigns. In order to gain mindshare, your marketing and advertising efforts need to have a consistent look and feel and be repeated often on a regular, continuing, and ongoing basis. Marketing must be a continual, ongoing series of effort to keep clients engaged with your brand, to keep you top-of-mind. Read the rest of this entry »
  First and foremost, listen to the customer. Give the client your full attention and demonstrate your concern by turning off your cell phone or closing the door to your office and facing the client directly. It is seldom that a good client complains for no reason. No matter how poorly a customer may present a complaint, it will almost always have some basis. Read the rest of this entry »
  Homeric Tours has been serving the discerning needs of travelers for 45 years. Since the founding in 1969, Homeric Tours has been providing travelers with memorable travel experiences to Mediterranean destinations. What started as a provider of packaged tours to Greece has over time expanded to offer fixed and flexible travel arrangements to a variety of locales. The travel industry has gone through many dramatic changes over the years, and Homeric has resultantly changed with the times. However, Homeric has remained true to the founding principles of providing value and service unmatched elsewhere. Read the rest of this entry »
  Being quickly responsive to the needs of clients is the very indicator of a high quality of service. When a service provider is quick to appear and address our needs, we take notice. However, too many modern attempts at responsiveness have substituted a weak technological solution for a human touch. The phone tree is maybe the best of the worst examples of an attempt at being efficient that puts the burden on the client rather than on the business to respond. Read the rest of this entry »
  If you're looking for a mix between elegant luxury and beautiful scenery, look no further than St. Barts. This oasis is consistently ranked one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. The turquoise waters and the white sands, accompanied by a green mountainous backdrop make this island one of the most unique in the Caribbean. An eclectic mix of people and charm, St. Barts (St. Barths) should be on the top of your destination list in 2014. Read the rest of this entry »
  Cally: Santorini, Greece. It is a unique destination and has a powerful effect on me. I go every year but it never gets old. Sitting on the balcony and watching the stunning sun set melts away all the stresses of the outside world. It always feels fresh and new. Santorini is a paradox. It looks like a small traditional Greek village and yet, is one of the most sophisticated destinations of the world. It has remained true to itself and its traditions. Read the rest of this entry »
  Image a travel practice that doesn't sell travel. Imagine the mission of your company, in fact, is not to sell anything. Instead, your mission is to help consumers make intelligent buying decisions. Your mission would be to assist the client in choosing the cruise that is right for them: the right sailing on the right date, the right stateroom, the right shore excursions, the right activities in ports of call, with time so efficiently organized the client would feel as though they had a guardian angel looking out for their travels. Read the rest of this entry »
  Long gone are the days when we printed up a flyer, ran an ad in the local paper or hung a sign in the window and waited for the business to roll in the door and to get the phones ringing. Now we have those options plus Facebook, Twitter, Vine, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest and more to consider. Personally, I am a huge fan of social media and thrive on the additional reach it provides. I am not so much a huge fan of the constant changes the platforms make, because…well, let's face it, I am trying to sell travel. But there is one somewhat recent enhancement to Facebook and Twitter that very few agents are using. Read the rest of this entry »
  Open Jaw – January 24, 2014
  Crystal Cruises joins Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Viking Ocean Cruises in offering free Wi-Fi (as well as wired internet) to guests. Like Regent's program, Crystal's has caveats. Only Crystal Society guests, the line's repeat cruisers, will receive the perk. The offering is relatively generous, however, 60 minutes per day, per person. That means a couple doing a 10-day cruise will receive 1,200 free minutes. Read the rest of this entry »
  On occasion, problems arise mid-trip. Perhaps the room is not as anticipated, the day-trips too energetic or the passport is lost. While the situation may be easily corrected in most instances, a bit of pre-emptive planning can work miracles for saving both a vacation and a client relationship. Read the rest of this entry »
  In its early beginnings, Cloud Tours built its excellent reputation on our expertise in Greece and Turkey. Over the years, we have expanded to Italy, Croatia, Spain, Portugal, Israel, and Jordan specializing in customized F.I.Ts and group travel as well as romantic honeymoon packages. Read the rest of this entry »
  As a travel professional, the logistics involved in travel can seem so apparent as to merit little consideration. Get on a plane, fly to Paris, check into a hotel and begin to sightsee. Right? To the first time traveler to a destination, however, the process of travel can seem confusing and intimidating. A big part of the after the sale service a smart travel consultant can offer is to explain to the client the travel logistics they are about to experience. Read the rest of this entry »