Travel Business Success Case Study Award Winner Video Interview
When mountaineering guides Ben Gorelick and Jaya Marr, started their new business, Extreme Patagonia to teach people outdoor skills in distant Chile, they were confident that people would want to book their training course because of their many years of expertise as guides with in Alaska.
Ben and Jaya were clear that they would love to have their own business, be their own boss, run their own schedule, spend time outdoors and get paid to do what they love.
They wrote their own copy for their website, came up with some key word phrases and jumped into business, even though they had no business or marketing experience.
When the business they hoped they would get from their website was not showing up fast enough, they knew they would not survive if they didn’t get bookings…
The just needed some more clients.
Important Question About Your Business Dream
Let me ask you some quick questions to make sure the advice Ben shares in this Travel Business Success Case Study Series may be useful to you.
- Have you already started your own tour or guide business, lodge, B&B, become a travel agent or work for a small or regional tourism board and are just not getting enough new prospects, sales or visitors?
- Or have you dreamed of being your own boss, love travel, adventure, people and want to get paid doing what you love, but you are not sure how to start your business and market it?
- Is your website nothing more than a fancy brochure that some webmaster put up that’s not generating enough inquiries or sales?
- Is your travel business dream starting to turn into a nightmare?
If you can relate to thee questions, you need to watch this video interview with Ben.
If you can relate to these question, I am a lot like you.
That’s exactly what my brother Kevin and I went through when I was helping him start his Baja adventure company in 1989.
And this was way before the Internet, which is a God send for small tourism business marketing – when you do it right. Unfortunately too many people have webmasters who put up a website that are not effective at generating consistent inquiries, calls and sales.
Turning strangers into friends and friends into customer over time with a website that sells, is one of the secrets these successful tourism pros I am interviewing all share in common.
How Are Ben and Jaya Doing Now?
Fortunately for Ben and his wife Jaya, they sought out education and guidance with their marketing and online website sales. They took action. They made small but important marketing message changes, I taught them on their website. Things improved. They got more inquiries, more sales.
In fact things are so good now, they are booked up 1 year in advance and are expanding into Alaska. 🙂
Ben and Jaya are not in the office all the time now and can spend more time in the field teaching mountaineering. Jaya even shared that she “kinda enjoys marketing now”, when before it was confusing and not fun.
Just because you are an expert guide, experienced at a sport or your region or have a passion for travel, does not mean that you can successfully run or market a travel business.
That’s why I am doing these interview with successful tourism professionals. I want to be your guide and take some of the mystery out of tourism marketing and sales. Especially in the important area of helping turn your online brochure into a travel website that sells.
What Does Ben Recommend?
Here are some highlight with Travel Website Sales Superstar Winner Ben Gorelick, Co-founder of the renamed, Mountaineering Training School.
- The importance of communicating what you do in the eyes of your customer.
- How to automate your prospect marketing, save staff time and sell more trips
- How to create an e-mail newsletter with training videos that automatically builds relationships and converts more prospects into customers.
- The importance of asking your clients what they want, what they think?
- Why trying new things helps your sales efforts
I hope that you are watching, learning and getting inspired from the stories being shared?
Struggling with your dream tourism business or career does not have to be. Ben, Jaya and the other tourism professionals I am introducing you to are having record years, expanding and having more fun.
You can too.
Watch. Learn. Take Action. Prosper.
To your success, Tourism Tim (aka your travel business cheerleader)
PS Thanks for Sharing and Liking this video
PPS Let me know your top website marketing question below in the comment box so I can better assist you in the future