Of course, many years have passed since then, and many of us have experienced marriages or profound relationships that may or may not have been successful. We have questions about our lives and how we want to experience the next half of our existence. As rebellious as the baby boomers were as a group – for the most part we have bought into the traditional family model and “American Dream.” Now perhaps we are looking to see if there is something beyond the material trappings of our comfortable lives.

I have traveled to many places in the world, and have seen many “poor” people who have lives that have more meaning, purpose, love and joy than many “wealthy” Americans I know. They seem to be grounded in a way that has them feeling valued as humans, rather than feeling like disposable numbers. I certainly do not mean to romanticize world poverty here – not at all – but I want to make it clear that our moneyed society members suffer greatly from depression, stress and a general malaise of sorts.

What is so powerful about a spiritual journey or retreat is the opportunity to leave our current lives for a while, and remove ourselves from the day to day stresses that steal our clarity of mind. It is true that sometimes we cannot see the forest for the trees, and that it takes some separation and objectivity to have a deeper understanding of the circumstances of our lives.

On our journeys, we assist trip members in obtaining clarity about what is working and not working for them – and we help them incorporate a deep sense of spirituality into their lives. Finding what is most important in our lives and prioritizing these items is the key to a balanced, peaceful, stressless and loving existence. To most, this means looking at the wants and needs of the ego-mind and learning to see beyond those never-fulfilled cravings to the true desires of the heart.

For many folks this is a challenging task since we were never taught to perceive our lives from this point of view. Material wants and needs have traditionally been given preference in our society, but in the end, we cannot take those things with us when we die. What makes a satisfying life is one filled with loving human relationships. And these days that seems to be a rare commodity!

When we learn to strengthen our spiritual connections, everything falls into place in life. What is temporal is given less importance, and what is eternal is given primary focus. By visiting the many sacred sites in our world we have the opportunity to use the energy and intent of those places to focus on our spiritual evolution in a most positive and nurturing way.

If you have never experienced this kind of journey, I highly encourage you to participate in one. You may find out many enlightening things about yourself – and that can be an amazing experience! After all, we are part of the Infinite and that mystery is an ever unfolding adventure of the heart and soul. If you are ready to begin your journey – we are waiting for you to join us!

Blessings, Dr. Sheri Rosenthal
Journeys of the Spirit®
727.421.0849

www.journeysofthespirit.com

Dr. Sheri A Rosenthal

Opening Hearts & Healing Minds

http://www.WithForgiveness.com
http://www.SheriRosenthal.com
http://www.JourneysOfTheSpirit.com

Author of:

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Toltec Wisdom
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1592573924/sherirosentto-20

&

Banish Mind Spam!
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0981478107/sherirosentto-20

Every campaign should start with a marketing plan directed at just the immediate effort. The marketing plan should lay out each component of the effort: the message, the promotion, the event, the presentation, the follow up. Naturally, the more elaborate the campaign, the more important the planning should be.

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A campaign will build on any previous similar efforts. If your travel agency is sponsoring an event, reach out to those who have helped you in the past – the reporters, the workers and others who assisted you with the organization and promotion of the event. A smart marketer will continually maintain the relationships that have served well in the past. As a result, you will no doubt be called on to assist others in their efforts. This is a good thing. The networking inherent in assisting others is an invaluable part of your own marketing efforts.

Your plan should stage out the promotion of your event or speaking engagement. Even if the particular PR effort in question involves only a press release, the timing of the release, calls to reporters and your follow-up will all contribute to the likelihood that your writing will see press coverage. Set appropriate lead times that are not too far in advance of the culmination, nor too close to rush preparation.

Incorporate as much free assistance as possible. If you are staging an event with another organization, utilize every offer of assistance that you can find. Whether it’s letter writing, catering, promotion…almost any task, you may find help lurking in the form of a volunteer.

About the only task you cannot delegate successfully is your follow-up. That one is too important not to monitor for yourself. Make sure that everyone involved in your event…press, workers, attendees and invitees receive a personal follow up from you. This vital final step is one of the most crucial and often neglected.

Public Relations involves periodic burst of energy, but the reality is that it is an ongoing effort for the travel agent with a marketing mindset. The costs are typically low, and the return high. Give public relations the attention it deserves.

Part of your overall networking stragegy should be to meet as many people associated with media as possible.  Writers, editors, radio and television personalities, publishers.  Cultivating good relationships in the media helps to give you an edge in getting your story noticed by those responsible for editorial and advertising.

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A crucial mistake is to approach a reporter with bare information on your services or on client product. Writers look for “angles” and for human interest. Writers and reporters are interested in stories that advance their reader’s interests, not your business. If at all possible, utilize the services of a local PR professional. Local publicists are likely to already have established relationships with reporters and know how to craft a press release or story for your community market.

An excellent way to properly time your PR campaigns is to take a look at the editorial calendars of your area’s local magazines and print publications. Most publications produce an editorial calendar – a list of themes for upcoming issues- to provide advertisers with an advance awareness of good issues in which to place an advertisement. However, editorial calendars also give the smart travel consultant insight into opportunities to have local media feature their travel planning practice in an article.

For example, at random we pulled the editorial calendar for Philadelphia Magazine:

http://www.phillymag.com/files/media_kits_phil/pm_media_kit_2010.pdf

Look at the topics to be covered in this one magazine. Each issue represents several reporters with critical deadlines, looking for stories and angles for that issue: February – Travel, Women in Business; March – Travel, Visit Florida ; May – Travel; June – Travel… do you get the idea that travel is an important editorial concern? In addition, the small business nature of the travel agency provides magazines a wealth of opportunity for special niche stories on trends in travel, women in business, eco-travel; working at home; working in a new economy, etc.

To take advantage of the editorial calendar, write the editorial staff well in advance of their deadlines, which will also be featured on the calendar. Give the editors an interesting twist on some national issue that has a local angle: “Philadelphia travel agent promotes angry green travel!” What does that mean? I have no idea, but it grabs your attention, doesn’t it? It will grab the attention of a local reporter as well.

Take some time to investigate the editorial calendars of some of your local magazines and learn to spin a good human interest story. You might just find a real opportunity awaits.

The above facts confirm a major paradigm shift from the usage of the traditional “storefront” travel agent to  the true “travel professionals” including the home based professionals who specialize in specific travel segments. Over recent years, clients have continued to become more concerned with the knowledge and expertise of their travel professional and less and less concerned about where that professional works. For the longest time, we have been led to believe that an agent’s own travel experience and knowledge would allow them to fulfill the needs of their clients. In the past this knowledge and experience was gained by supplier offered FAMS, training conducted in travel agencies and training offered at the major travel conferences. But now with so many clients doing the basic research online, is that necessarily true anymore?

This alone shows that continuing education is no longer a nice thing to have—it is mandatory! Suppliers, destinations, consortia, and host agencies have all invested millions of dollars in technology and training to set you apart from the crowd. The challenge is deciding which training will offer the most benefit to you travel practice.

The true professional travel consultants and understand that for them to compete in today’s world of online agencies and direct to consumer suppliers, they must be actively engaged in continuing education and visiting as many new ships and destinations as time and funds allow. They understand that networking is of utmost importance and they take advantage of trade shows and online forums like the TRO Community. These agents understand that their actual success is tied to being able to say, “I have been there and done that!”

One way to be seen as a true travel professional, is to develop an annual training plan. Spend a little time and money and continue to add to your knowledge. Why not start now? One of the better shows (and a great bang for your buck) is CLIA’s Cruise3Sixty. It combines thought provoking keynote speakers, informative panels, supplier updates, workshops, continuing education credits and the equally important ship inspections .

This year’s CLIA conference will be held June 2^nd to the 6^th in Vancouver BC. If you have never visited this Olympic city, here is your chance to gain product and destination knowledge. For info go to www.cruise3sixty.com

As someone who has been attending most of the major cruise conferences for the past 25 years, I can attest that I always came away with few new ideas that translated into enough new business to more than pay for the cost of my trip. And when you get back, don’t keep that knowledge inside your head. Brag a little and let your clients know that you attended and that you are up to date on the latest industry trends and newest ships in the industry. Don’t think for a minute that the  call center agents of the online agencies and direct to consumer suppliers  have this knowledge. They don’t, so don’t forget  to always blow your own horn. Use your experience to send some timely tweets, add some pictures to your Facebook account and make some daily entries to your blog. By taking the time to add to your knowledge you will continue to be known as a travel professional. I will be there and hope to see you there as well!.

Larry Norman, CTC, MCC is an icon in the industry. He has been a consultant to over 5,000 Home Based Travel Agents and trained an estimated 22,000 travel agents over his career. He was Travel Trade’s 1996 Travel Educator of the Year. Larry owned a four state network of 17 agencies, with annual sales of $28 million.  Larry is known as “The Outside Sales Agent Expert” for his presentations on outside sales at Travel Trade Cruise-A-Thons, ASTA, ARTA and NACOA travel agent conferences among others.

You can share your views with Larry at LNormanCTC@aol.com

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Offer to address a particular topic that has some immediate currency:

• How to travel to Europe this Year;
• 10 places everyone should see and how to do it;
• Family Travel;
• Traveling with your pet;
• How to achieve your travel goals;
• How to avoid travel scams;
• Niche Cruising
• Favorite destinations or themes

Talk about what you know.  If you have just returned from a FAM, talk about the romance of the destination, the excitement, the people, the food and the culture. Your passion for travel will carry you far in your efforts to communicate your enthusiasm.

Speaking in front of a group is daunting to some. If so, start with groups with which you are very familiar such as your Sunday School class, social club or other organization to which you belong. As you become more comfortable, branch out. Write a brief summary of your topic and research it thoroughly using resources like USA Today, MSNMC.com and other internet sites with good travel sections. Speak to those things that are interesting to you, that engage you as a professional.

Use your first effort to build a speaking resume. When you first approach an opportunity, inquire about the group’s interests. You can deliver the same talk to multiple audiences, but be prepared to offer a choice of topics if asked. When delivering your talk to the audience, stay on topic. Don’t be overtly promotional: your very presence as a speaker will establish you as an expert in the eyes of those listening. Make sure to take along some of your own marketing materials and business cards to hand out after your talk.

With practice and determination, you will soon be one of your own best marketing tools!

How’s your moral turpitude, Pumpkins? Wait…don’t Google it, I already did.

The U.S. coined this gem of a legal term for “conduct that is considered contrary to community standards of justice.”  Oh my nerves! And, that’s just one of the questions on our dear southern neighbour’s fancy new Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) form that lots of folks who want to visit the U.S. will have to answer.  Starting March 20th, a little trip to Disney World, Vegas or the BIG Apple from any of 35 ‘Visa-Waiver’ countries – including the U.K., Australia, France, Germany and Japan – will require completion of a wildly and weirdly worded online questionnaire prior to their trip.

And, talk about crazy…Americans expect potential visitors to disclose whether they suffer from a mental disorder, have ever performed espionage or sabotage or were involved in any way with Nazi persecutions between 1933 and 1945. Of course, dahrlings, if you were involved with the Nazis in 1933 you’d be a ripe old 97 this year, and not likely to be riding Space Mountain.

My personal favourite is the question about seeking entry to engage in immoral activities. O-o-o-o-oh, I wonder if they mean stuff like browsing the selection of assault rifles at the local gun shop or a drive-thru liquor store?

If you make it through the questionnaire, the next step is the ‘Waiver of Rights’ – that just means you sign away the ability to question any actions of the folks at U.S. Customs & Border Protection. I’m kinda familiar with waivers…may as well have signed off on both husbands 2 and 3.

But wait, there’s added value…on arrival in the U.S., Visa-Waiver visitors will be welcomed by a photographer, to preserve the moment…oh, and they’d like your fingerprints too, all 10 of them.

One last thing dahrlings: visitors will also pay a new $10 fee that will go towards tourism promotion.

That’s like brass in our tourism pockets, Pumpkins. Thanks neighbour!

Canadian (and likely worldwide)  perspective courtesy of Ms. Ivanna Gabbalot and the folks at www.openjaw.com.

Courtesy of Open Jaw and Sean Kapitain

Regardless, I forged ahead with the planning and dealings like a trooper. As a one-woman show, it can be difficult to allocate enough time to adequately handle a group with many questions and individual travelers. While I have not done as well as I personally would have liked, I’ve chalked it up to a learning experience. In the past, my clients had been mostly honeymooners and families, so dealing with high level executives who know what they want and have been doing these types of groups for 20 some years, is a totally different ballgame.

I have  never traveled with any of my wedding groups before; and I was a bit surprised when the group leader asked if I would travel down to the hotel two days early to ensure everything was ready for the group. Well, I guess I am traveling with them now. The other glitch they threw my way was that they want me to change my hat from travel consultant to meeting planner upon arrival.  They are planning morning meetings, dinners, casino night, cocktail parties and tours—and want me to coordinate them all.

I am looking forward to this new venture and am working with some wonderful group coordinators to plan out the details. Once I get past this learning curve, I’ll have a better understanding of how all the details come together once the group arrives in resort. While this one may cost me a bit in terms of stress, I am sure that it will make be more prepared for the next one!

Jennifer Byrne is the owner of The Tropical Travelers (www.thetropicaltravelers.com) in Malvern, PA. For more information, you can contact Jennifer at jennifer@thetropicaltravelers.com.

Comments to this article are welcomed and encouraged, please utilize the comment form below so we can all learn and interact with each other!

Publishers and editors of magazines, newspapers and newsletters in your community need your assistance. Each day, or week or month, these hard working souls have to fill their periodicals with timely, interesting content.  If you have some writing skill, or you are willing to learn, writing feature articles for other publications is a terrific way to establish your reputation as an expert and to add another important tactic to your overall public relations strategy.  The authors of feature articles carry an inherent authority. By publishing articles in community newspapers, letters and blogs, you become the “local expert”.  Look at the “Point to Point” articles on TRO’s home page and you will get the idea.

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Travel is an area of wide appeal for the public, and ideas for feature articles are easy to find. One of the best ways to create a feature article is to place a local slant on a national story. If the national news is “Airline Declares Chapter 7“, your article is “Protect yourself against airline bankruptcies.”

The purpose of your feature article is to inform and entertain. Avoid being promotional in the article. However, the fact that you are writing the story will help to establish you as a local or even national authority on the topic of travel. Newsroom editors look for stories that have an interesting, local slant to them. Make their job easier by providing a story already styled in that manner.

When all of the national news is bad, use it to your advantage. The dollar is off, the economy is bad. An airline declares bankruptcy, stranding travelers. A couple books online only to arrive at their destination to find no hotel room, ruining their honeymoon. A travel agent is jailed for defrauding a group on a cruise that did not exist. Left unanswered, the headlines at times such as these convince some not to travel at all or to ‘do it themselves”.  Bad headlines provide the perfect opportunity for a strong travel consultant to step up and do their job: help the public understand the travel industry. When the news is bad, offer your local news outlets, social organizations and clients an explanation. Write articles for the newspaper and letters to the editor. Use your insight into the industry to assist the public to understand how to mitigate the impact of these events:

• Yes, the dollar is off in Western Europe, so now is the time to see Mexico or use B&B’s in Ireland or to see Europe without crowds;
• Yes, the airline declared bankruptcy, which is why you advise your clients to use a credit card to book;
• Yes, the couple booking online needed the assistance of a good travel agent;
• Yes, the public should investigate the credentials of their travel agent.

The reading public likes lists.  That is why you so often see articles with numbers in them: “The top five reasons to go to Europe off-season“.  National newspapers and websites like MSNBC, USA Today and Budget Travel can provide you with excellent resources for article ideas.  TRO’s Travelgram is a very good source for a daily exposure to what the public is reading. 

If you are going to be a good writer, you must read a great deal to study the many styles and pitfalls of feature story writing. Start small and work your way up. Look to the local newsletters in your community such as those published by neighborhoods or retailers for their clients. Write the story and then put it aside.  Compare it to other feature articles written by professional writers. Re-work weak areas of your article, edit it several times.  A good, strong headline is a must.  The headline grabs the readers attention and pushes the reader into the article.  A good headline summarizes the importance of the article to the reader in a few short words.  Polish your headline to perfection.

Concerned that you don’t have the writing skills? Find a co-author and double your marketing efforts!  Hire a local English teacher to tutor you.  You will set yourself apart by writing useful articles in your field.

Send your article to the person responsible for your target publication.  Expect rejection – it comes with the territory.  But don’t hesitate to find multiple uses for your articles.  Create handouts for clients or for tradeshows. Use the same article in your blog.

Writing takes work, but with practice and persistence you may find your name on a by-line and you will soon find people seeking you out as a local expert!

Here’s how to get started - Make a list of some local publications to which you can submit an article.  Look hard.  Your local yoga studio, dress shop or neighborhood association probably publishes a newsletter and is in need of feature articles.  Next, start a collection of articles from popular travel newsletters, websites, and newspapers. Grab one of the articles and re-write it as an exercise.  Put your own slant on the article.  Embellish it, add to it.  Change every word.  Give it a better headline. If you are happy with your story, have your toughest critic read it for editorial purposes while you go to a bookstore and purchase a book on writing. Once you have an article with which you are satisfied, approach the owner of one of your local periodicals with the article. Once you are published, you will have the confidence, and the resume you need to build on your success.