The How-To Magazine for ICs, OSRs & Home-Based Travel Agents

1. TRAVEL AGENTTHE HOW-TO MAGAZINE FOR ICs, OSRs & HOME-BASED TRAVEL AGENTS
THE ART OF SELLING TRAVEL FROM HOME
AUGUST 2014

2. 4 EDITORIAL
Selling travel from home does
not have to be a puzzle when you
read IC! Find the host agency
that best suits your needs.
Share your money making ideas
in IC and help your IC colleagues.
CONTACT
Steve Crowhurst
steve@ic-travelagent.com
250-738-0064
www.ic-travelagent.com
Publisher:
SMP Training Co.
www.smptraining.com
Contributors
Steve Crowhurst
IC TRAVEL AGENT is owned and published
by Steve Crowhurst, SMP Training Co. All
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AGENT can be shared, forwarded, cut and
pasted but not sold, resold or in any way
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from IC TRAVEL AGENT must be sourced as
follows: “Copyright SMP Training Co.
www.smptraining.com” SMP Training Co.
568 Country Club Drive, Qualicum Beach,
BC, Canada, V9K-1G1 Note: Steve
Crowhurst is not responsible for outcomes
based on how you interpret or use the
ideas in IC TRAVEL AGENT.
T: 250-738-0064.
7 HOW TO BRING YOUR PAST CAREER WITH YOU
12 PART TIME OR FULL TIME
14 ARE YOU ON THE LIST?
15 PUBLISHED THIS MONTH
16 TRAVEL TRAGEDIES AND HOW TO SURVIVE THEM
17 TRAVEL SAFETY 101
18 HAS DIRECT MAIL GONE THE WAY OF THE DODO BIRD? By Jill Wykes
19 ASK YOUR CLIENTS
20 PACKING THE PADLOCK
21 BERNIE, MASCOTS & MORE
24 THE PHOTO PAGE
25 TRYING TO BE ALL THINGS TO ALL TRAVELLERS
26 SAM URAI’S SALES TRAINING SCHOOL
27 THE MIKE T’ METHOD
28 THE TRAVEL INSTITUTE – VILLA TRAVEL COURSE
29 SELLING TRAVEL WITH STEVE
33 CLASSIFIEDS
TABLE OF CONTENTS – IC AUGUST 2014
If it’s not yet 5pm where you live, you still have time to make one more
call, close one more sale or e-mail one more promotion!
Advertising in IC Travel Agent reaches the serious business-minded travel agent.
Promote your products and services via video, audio or generic text and images. IC
Travel Agent is marketed direct to over 4,000 travel agents plus thousands more via
social media channels such as Facebook, LinkedIn, SlideShare, trade contacts,
partners and educational institutions. Your ad includes a BONUS How-to-Sell article.
Full page rates range from $300 to $425 based on number of insertions.
For even more selling ideas read
SELLING TRAVEL!

3. TRUE SUPPORT FOR TRUE PROFESSIONALS
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• Innovative marketing programs to grow your business
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It’s time to join a family of professionals that truly supports your independent business dreams.
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• Your choice of up to 80% of commissions
• Top commissions with leading air, cruise and land suppliers
• Technology tools to better manage your business
• Access to our exclusive point-and-click booking engine or through the Amadeus, Sabre or Galileo
• Training, coaching and networking opportunities
• Innovative marketing programs to grow your business
• Exclusive cruise block space and supplier offers
• Lead generation for qualified agents
• Vacation.com membership included at no additional charge!
Contact us today to learn more about our growing family of travel professionals.
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MENTION THAT YOU SAW US IN IC AGENT MAGAZINE
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4. Bringing Your Past Career With You
The travel industry is a world unto itself and attracts people from all walks of life. It’s a tough
business and not for the weak or underfunded so it helps if you have one or two extra gifts, skills,
and talents to help support your entrance into the trade. Business continuation is what everyone
is aiming for. You will want to be selling travel 5 and 10 years from now. One way to make sure
you can sustain your travel agency is to bring past skills and know-how with you.
With a tweak here and tweak there, you’ll be able to promote your degrees earned in another
industry and you might even end up selling travel back to your previous industry. It’s all in how
you tell your story and marry it to selling travel. Make sure you read that article in this issue of
IC TA.
There is also a page or two about selling travel part time or making the big leap and going 100%
fulltime. Of course it’s your decision, however, know now that selling part time has its downsides,
stresses that can affect your sales.
See you inside.
Don’t forget to check out the new titles at The Travel Agent’s Store.
Here’s to your continued success!
Best regards.
Steve Crowhurst, CTC
steve@ic-travelagent.com
www.ic-travelagent.com
Steve Crowhurst, CTC, Publisher
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Work in the comfort of your own home!

7. How To Bring Your Past
Career With You
The travel industry has attracted people from all walks of life and many have left their existing
careers to enter the business of selling travel. Not sure why, but when someone does move
from one career or one industry to another, they tend to shut the door on their past career as
they delve into what will make them successful in selling travel. The fact is, you do not have to
close yourself off from what you did before or keep it quiet. Better that you learn how to
embrace what you’ve done and weave it into your selling travel marketing plan.
“So, what did you do prior to joining the
business of selling travel?” That was one
question I would always ask a new
franchisee who joined the Uniglobe
franchise. As the then VP of Uniglobe
Western Canada what someone had
achieved in the past was to me a crucial
element of their success going forward.
It’s the same today as you join the travel
industry to become a home based seller of
travel, joining via a host program or
franchise.
What so many miss is the connection
between what they’ve done in the past and
the current world of selling travel. Whether
you were an accountant, a tradesperson, a
CFO, an admin assistant, mechanic… and all
the rest, there is always something that you
can use to promote yourself with a
differentiation.
I’m sure your host agency has already
advised you on how to do this but let’s
review it from the marketing point of view
and how you can write the words to sell your
inherent skills such as number crunching for
instant.
Accountant:
Let’s start here. Your skills are obvious so
some not so to others. The idea here is to
promote your accounting talents and tie
them into selling travel.
“As a former accountant let me
search for the best overall price for
your next trip!”
Tradesperson:
Your keywords are related to building and
planning and putting things together:
“As a former tradesperson, let me
build the best tour of Europe, just for
you!”
CFO Chief Financial Officer:
Your keywords are all about numbers,
investments and return (ROI):
“As a form CFO, I know how to
negotiate and invest your hard
earned money into a one of kind
dream vacation. Your ROI will be a list
of fantastic lifetime memories!”

8. Admin Assistant:
Your past career gives you many options
both in wording and actual doing – such as
arranging meetings, groups and events. Look
at what you actually did in your past career
and pull out those activities that also work in
the travel trade.
“As a former Administrative Assistant
it’s in my blood to help others. Let me
be your personal travel assistant and
help create the best trip ever!”
Mechanic:
Your keywords relate to getting things
running properly, running smoothly.
“As a former mechanic I know when
something is running properly. Let
me book your next vacation, check all
the details and make sure your trip
will go as smooth as the engines I
rebuilt!”
Okay. You get the idea. Everything you need
to kick start your travel trade career can be
found in your past career, job, work. Don’t
hide it, bring it into the world of selling
travel.
Start by listing what you actually did for a
living and search for those keywords:
planning, building, checking, arranging,
talking to, negotiating, budgeting,
managing… as all of these are involved in
planning someone’s vacation, business trip
and also meetings and events.
The other thing you can connect your past to
is your present-day passion – which might be
adventure travel for instance.
… as a former pilot you
know I’ll make sure you are
booked on the BEST flights!

9. You might also have a love for a certain
country or culture. Once again, you will tie in
the words and phrases and your inherent
skills and talents to support your niche.
Now, if your previous career was as a
photographer, writer, tour guide, flight
attendant, hotel front desk, hotel manager,
luggage retailer then your previous
experience is directly linked to travel and if
you have worked in retail before then you
should be ahead of the game when it comes
to talking to customers and helping them
make a purchase.
Marketing Your Past
This is where many who join the travel
industry from a previous career tend to fail.
Marketing expertise is a talent, a skill and
something that can be learned over time, or,
if you invest yourself 100% you could learn
all you need to know within a month or
more. After that you need practice.
Sales and selling is the next challenge. You
must be able to ask for the business and then
close the sale. There is no free ride when it
comes to sales and selling. You live by your
own means and it really is down to you.
Prospecting for new business rises to the top
for most newcomers to the industry and
now, with the anti-spam laws tightened up it
is going to be very difficult to generate leads
unless you know how to use what might be
termed “old” or “traditional” marketing
techniques. You can turn to your host agency
and franchisor for more information on how
to source and use the traditional forms of
prospecting that can also be applied to social
media.
Arrange a sit down session with your HQ
contact and start the ball rolling now.
As a former events planner…
I’ll make sure every detail of
your vacation is checked and
double checked.
Proof and Credibility
To support your marketing slogans you
should go into those old boxes you’ve stored
somewhere and retrieve those diplomas,
certificates, photographs and anything else
that proves you did what you did.
It’s important to name names not just write
that you “worked for a very large firm…” – as
that reads as if you are hiding something.
Tell the world who you worked for, name the
firm. Claim your title and what you did there
and obviously within reason – you cannot
give away company secrets of your past
employer.
Look for photographs you can use and make
sure just your face is featured unless you
have permission from others in the photo.

10. LET ME SHOW YOU
MY COUNTRY
Like no other travel agent can
Something else for you to think about. Not only can you bring your past career with you, you
could and should also bring your culture and country if you hail from somewhere other than
where you are now living and selling travel. There’s a “but” coming, and that but this: before you
promote you know your own country etc., you must be 100% fluent in the language, you must
have travelled your own country from border to border and coast to coast, know all the events,
the weather patterns and seasons and of course the best places to visit. Anything less and your
credibility will not stand for long. Note: if your suppliers have packaged tours to your country
work with them not against them – or you’ll lose your shirt. Block & sell seats with them.

11. As a husband & wife travel team
we specialize in tours to Asia.
Are you, could you be a husband & wife
team? Think like those real estate couples
who use the word “team” to great effect. Of
course marriage isn’t really required – just
partner with someone and you have a team.
Now if the team consists of one male and
one female you will attract who? Yes,
couples. And that can be your niche. Tours of
Asia for couples.
Team up. List your joint past experiences
that you can apply to your travel selling
career and start marketing now.
What else can you bring with you?
Do you have a religion? A specific cultural
connection? Ancestry overseas? A language
skill (fluent)? Are you well read and know all
the classics? Are you an artist? What’s your
sport? What’s your lifestyle?
Think deeply about YOU and as I suggest, list
everything you feel you can bring with you
into your new industry and business. From
my own experience I can tell you that pretty
much everything can find a place in this
industry. 

12. Part Time or Full Time
So which one is it? Yes for part time or yes for full time? A tough decision when you are holding
down a so called “real job” and earning $40,000 a year or more and if your salary range is up
to $150,000 then it would be a huge decision to drop that income to go full time into selling
travel. Decisions, decisions…
When it comes to selling travel as a home
based travel agent you will be faced with this
decision, eventually. The challenge comes
when you are, as they say, chasing two
rabbits. The outcome is you catch neither.
Pecking away at selling travel whilst doing
your “real job” can cause you more stress
than you realize. Travel is as you will know or
come to know is alluring, seductive and
inviting. It is also, as an independent
contractor, a slow growth business if you
follow the normal IC route to success over
time and work two jobs, or more.
It will, or can cause you to lose focus on your
day-to-day job/career and that will be to
your personal detriment.
On the other hand you could make that leap
of faith and go for it. Get into the world of
selling travel full time. What happens when
you do this? You are able to focus all of your
energy and talents into learning about and
selling travel and when time allows, to
travel.
But what about that monthly salary you had
coming in?

13. And that’s the big if. What if you had no
safety net? Well here we have to discuss the
issue of why are you even getting into selling
travel. Something is either wrong at the real
job or you are simply dissatisfied in your
chosen field of work or you have realized
that life is passing you by as it is everyone on
the planet and it’s time to follow your dream
– which for you is travelling the world and
selling your experiences.
The Dual Career
As it happens, some careers fit nicely with
selling travel and each one becomes an
extension of the other. Each one feeds the
other. Jobs such as photographer, author,
writer, blogger, chef and fashion designer…
each of one these jobs are, or can, become a
dual career and each combination presents
the opportunity to specialize and also offer
group departures for same interest
customers.
The Full Time Commitment
Although you will hear different, if you do
turn your attention to going full time and
committing every waking minute to building
your travel business then you will earn the
money you desire AND get to see the world
you love so much. Travelling is now your
business and it is something you must do,
and do frequently if you are going to
promote yourself as a dedicated travel agent
and you can only do this if you own your own
travel business.
Travel counsellors working for smaller travel
agencies and larger firms rarely travel other
than one, perhaps two, FAM trips per year
plus their annual vacation time of 3 weeks or
less.
For you, life is different as you own and run
your own IC business. You can travel
whenever you want.
What About The Money?
Well now. What you earn is resting on your
shoulders. You no longer have a large
company behind you, marketing themselves
and putting customers or contracts on your
desk for you to service. You must now
generate your own buzz and attract clients
to do business with you. And you do this all
by yourself, using the tools of your host
agency.
How much you earn will depend on how
much you prospect, what you invest to
promote yourself, how well you sell and
close and what your goals are.
You could generate $50,000 a year before
tax and travel the world at the same time.
It’s doable. Sell higher grade travel and you
could increase that $50,000 to $75,000. Go
for groups of deluxe travellers and your
$75,000 can go to $100,000.
Back to what you’ll hear in the trade about
how much money travel agents make. Of
course as in any sales business there are
some you are not making it. Did you know
that the average real estate agent in North
America is making under $20,000 / year.
Then there are those who are earning
millions. Same in the auto business – some
salespeople are moving 10 cars a month and
others are moving 75 cars a month.
For inspiration in the travel trade, look up
online for the Top 100 Travel Agents, chosen
by Conde Nast magazine. Now there’s a
listing of travel agents who are making it
happen for themselves –with consulting fees
at $650 for the first hour.
So now… will it be part time or full time.
Discuss this issue with your host agency HQ
/ BDM and do the math. They can show you
HOW to generate the income you want. 

14. If you like cutting edge, no-fluff, little-theory how-to information
then join THE TRAVEL AGENT’S STORE list and receive notices
of new publications, 20% off all your purchases
PLUS 1-hour coaching sessions per topic.
CLICK STORE TO JOIN!

15. Published This Month
Here are two brand new, hot off the keyboard publications that will
help you better plan and manage your travel trade career.
MANAGING
YOUR CAREER
MANAGING YOUR
HOME-BASED TRAVEL SELLING CAREER
This 66 page eGuide focuses on you and your
career and nothing else which means the
content puts your career first above any
concerns for the company you work for. The
topics cover off your career and where you
wish to take it, how you can move to a
different role in the industry, how to quit, how
to fire a bad boss and overcome the walls that
prevent you from advancing, how you can go
from travel counsellor to VP, agency owner,
manager or start a series of boutique hotels.
You career is only limited by your imagination.
As the title reads, this eGuide focused on how
you can manage your independent career
working from home. The emphasis is on
selling travel full time and how you can
manage your time, your travels and also how
you can lead a dual career if you wish. This
means adding another talent you have to
selling travel. Become a travel agent / blogger
for instance. Live overseas and still sell to your
client base ‘back home’. When you go home
to sell travel a whole new world opens up to
you. But it must be managed.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW CLICK HERE TO VIEW

16. Travel Tragedies
And How To Survive Them
Having spent many years in the travel industry I can tell you from experience that each and
every tragedy has a moment in time when it is front page news and then, except for the
survivors and their families, the event is lost to history except for when the mass media
channels resurrect the pain and suffering on the anniversary of the event. This is a fact of
working in the travel industry and selling travel for a living. It is not all happiness and joy and
you must know how to handle yourself and your business when these things happen.
As you read this issue of IC Travel Agent you
will I am sure be teary eyed about the loss of
life in the MH17 crash. Such a waste of life.
Then another crash. And another. Finally the
mass media channels identified something
they could “expose” or go with for maximum
eyeballs tuning in.
The outcome of the mass media take on
these recent aircraft crashes was to ask “Is it
safe to fly?” Under the guide of ‘keeping
them honest’ as one news personality likes
to say, their reporting is usually off base,
presenting by someone who has no
connection to the travel trade or airline
industry and simply delivers scary
information that causes nervous fliers to
cancel their trips with you.
When these tragedies happen you must be
on top of it and become your own
spokesperson in the local community. Get
yourself on a radio talk show and be featured
in the local press too.
Be armed with knowledge and be ready to
put down the commentary that the mass
media organizations are putting out there
and challenge them for scaring the general
public and also for perpetuating the sorrow
that the surviving families are experiencing.
Death by flying is about an 8 million to 1
chance. Better than crossing the road or
driving to work. Most tourists who are killed
during their vacation are hit by a car, or
inside it driving or as a passenger. In the US
in 2013 3.8 million people were injured in a
car accident. Over 32,000 were killed.
Flying is safe and you need to stand up and
be counted in the local news arena.
Challenge the mass media output in your
blog, on your website, and even hold a
consumer event to discuss the issue. Bring
your clients together if they are concerned
and lay the facts and stats in front of them.
Look for positive trade responses from
various and well informed parties such as
IATA and well known spokespersons that
represent the travel and tourism and airline
industries. Beware however of some
comments that are just plain grandstanding
and full of fluffy statements that are not
quite meaningful to the situation or the
business at hand which is to keep selling.

17. DO YOU KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT
TRAVEL SAFETY
TO ADVISE YOUR CLIENTS?
Make sure you engage your clients in how they can travel safely and better protect themselves
by planning ahead, preparing for certain situations within their control and taking the right
precautions. Your roles is to handle their travel arrangements expertly, selecting the best air
carrier, route and seating arrangements and more – and don’t forget you are supposed to cover
every client with travel insurance coverage throughout the trip and until they arrive home.
Travel Safety 101 is available now at The Travel Agent’s Store

18. Many marketers have moved away from direct mail because of cost, in favour of email and
social media. This is certainly true in the travel industry and, even though the new Canadian
Anti-Spam Legislation is now in effect, most companies will still find a way to continue to email
their clients. (More about this in my next column)
But direct mail can and should still play a part in
your marketing strategy. For one thing, some of
your customers don’t use email, and if they do, a
lot of it ends up in their trash or they feel
overwhelmed by too many emails and press
delete. Pressing delete is always an option with
email but it’s not an option with direct mail.
Yes that’s right….direct mail is making a
comeback as an effective tool for travel
marketing and a channel that will catch your
customer’s attention.
There are certain tricks when using direct mail to
ensure your message is not
discarded….handwritten postcards and
envelopes receive more attention. Attractive
travel images are always appealing.
Personalization of some sort always helps.
There are programs which can make this easy for
you and you should ask your host agency if they
offer direct mail as one of their marketing
options. Some agencies have abandoned direct
mail but this could be a mistake.
Look for a host agency that features direct, direct
mail promotions and programs to reach your
clients. Find out if they will mail the pieces on
your behalf and if so, how many and how often?
Sending your clients timely, attractive direct mail
pieces keeps you top of mind and recommends
different types of travel experiences on a direct
basis.
Clever marketers have discovered that the
letterbox is less crowded these days and your
message has a better chance of being noticed
and held onto.
Remember, if you are out of sight, you are out of
mind!
Brought to you by: The Travel Agent Next Door
Gone The Way Of The Dodo Bird?
Has Direct Mail Actually, no…
By Jill Wykes

19. Ask Your Clients
There’s a trend in chatter about big data and little data and data bites and deciphering this and
that about your customer’s travel and travel habits. You can save an awful lot of time and effort
by simply checking in with your clients on a regular basis be it annual or quarterly. Here’s why
and how.
Naturally you need information on which to
base your marketing plans for the year. With
good intentions various parties within the
travel trade are echoing big and bigger
business and advising you to get involved
with big data.
If you are running a fifty million dollar travel
agency then that would be a good thing to
do and a member of your financial team
would take it on. Most travel agencies are
writing $2m to $5m and all that’s required
here is to ask your clients about their travel
plans this year.
You want to sell more, sell up, sell niche, sell
luxury and additional services & peripherals
then the best thing to do is ask the very
people who make up your client list.
The Annual Ask
Plan your Annual Ask around November and
ask your clients about their travels for the
coming year. Some will know exactly and
other will still be thinking about it to “no
idea”. Each response offers you a chance to
sell more travel.
Plotting Response
As the responses return to you it’s an easy
thing to plot each one onto a low tech Excel
spreadsheet if you do not have a CRM
program that you can use. Set up your
spreadsheet with monthly columns as a
start.
Code the responses so that you can plot
quickly. Keep it simple and let’s go with a two
letter code per country and then a date
number. UK9 means this client wants to visit
the United Kingdom in September. You can
add more coding if you want to such as T for
touring and C for cruising, A for adventure.
Again, keeping it easy to use and interpret
and graph.
Asking Part Deux
With your spreadsheet completed you will
be looking at your sales and marketing plan
for the coming year. You can now target your
clients based on the month of travel, their
destination and vacation type. You can
upsell, offer supplier discounts and even
suggest another date close to the one they
selected that offers something more.
You have a chance to offer a customized trip
and sell the benefits of an FIT arrangement.
Take the time to ask if their friends are
joining them, if they can refer their friends to
you and how about other family members?
Yes you are trying to build a group departure
within each client’s circle of friends and
family.
Timing is Everything
Give yourself the month of November to
complete your project and be ready to
market come January 2nd. 

20. Packing The Padlock
Crazy I know, but then what’s new? It’s the world we live in and travel. Here’s a tour idea whilst
the law still permits inscribed “love locks” to be locked to a fence and the keys thrown away –
usually into the river if the love lock fence happens to span a river. But wait there’s more…
The first thing to note is that this show of
love has popped up around the world from
Paris to China. The fence behind my cousin
Pam from Australia pictured above actually
had a partial collapse. Too much love locked
on the fence! Officials are deciding what to
do and of course, throwing metal keys into
the river does raise environmental concerns.
If you are looking for something completely
different then you could be offering “Love
Lock Tours of The World”.
This tour would naturally visit the best love
lock fences in the world where your
travelling love lockers would lock their love
lock to the love lock fence! Say that after
three beers! Leave that idea with you.
If you go for this – there are love lock trees,
fences, poles and there similar places where
poets write out their poems. Explore how
you can stand out from the travel selling
crowd in your community. 

21. Bernie, Mascots & More
Who or what is your mascot? Who “speaks” for you when you need it? Who breaks the ice
between selling and telling and poses so nicely in your advertising?
Welcome to the world of mascots. I’m sure
you’ve seen the Roaming Gnome, and
cartoon airplanes that speak and even have
eyes! Ronald McDonald. The peanut guy.
KFC. M&Ms. Of course we can’t leave out
Disney! When you check into it, brands that
are still with us have had a mascot to
represent them and so much so that one
glance at that mascot and bingo, you are
recalling your meal, trip and taste of
chocolate! Yum. So, can it be done with a
travel product? You bet. Once again – the
Gnome who leaves home, likes to roam.
Now here’s Bernie. He’s the sandy haired
fella pictured above. I met him on the beach
recently when I went for a walk. It all started
when we made eye contact. His eyes looked
like a clam shell with sand in them. Hey that
was it. I saw those eyes, scooped some sand
out to give him some hair, a chin, mouth… a
face and there was Bernie just smiling back
at me. With a little Photoshopping, he
perked up nicely. If I was in the business of
selling beach vacations I might turn Bernie
into my spokesperson. Whatever niche you
sell to, there’s got to be a mascot.

22. This good looking fella below was one of my
first mascots and he was sketched out in the
mid 80’s by Jerry Wong.
This next one was sketched at a Disney park
in 2002 and cost about $25.
Currently I have become my own mascot
using my webcam and various cartoon
generating software to change my facial
contours etc. But what about inanimate
objects? All the need is a face when you
come to think it, and a background that your
clients would connect to you.
Are you female? Are you selling adventure?
Well it’s either going to be an image of the
real you that you use, or you could have a
caricature sketched as per mine or, you
could go for a custom designed mascot like
this image below which comes with the Task
Force image collection.
Need a cruise ship mascot, here’s one I
created in about 15 minutes, mixing and
matching images. All you need to do after
creating something like this is change the
lips/mouth and the eyes to represent Ah or
Ooh and even Satisfaction.

23. How about a ski
mascot… easy to
create the tip of
the ski and change
his expression and
even put a hat or
cap on him / her
too. Add a speech
bubble and it’s
done. Next would
be to animate
your ski mascot.
How about something that resembles an
airplane… then you can add a mouth and a
pair of sunglasses and a speech bubble…
When you see movies such as Disney’s
PLANES coming to a movie theatre near you,
you’ll know you should create something
similar to attract attention to your agency.
Cartoons and humour reach out and sell.
Here’s a program I use almost every day –
and it’s called The Logo Creator which offers
a series of add-ons and one of those is for
characters and others for mascots. The one
shown below cost $27.
You’ll need to purchase the main program
however that is only $37 give or take a sale
price.
There you have it. Mascots are one way to
gain instant recognition in the local
community. You can as mentioned turn your
mascot into a cartoon, by animating the
character.
You may select a whole host of different
characters rather than staying with one
design. That’s good too – you’ll need
however something constant such as your
logo or a tagline so the consumer will always
know it’s your ad or promotion.
I’m planning a series of
Manga style cartoons
and here’s one scary
image of my mug, shot
on my webcam and
distorted to suit using
Elements 12. Have fun!
Make funny money!
Come fly with US!

24. The Photo Page
The Group Tour
Taken with an iPhone 5
Taken in the lobby of a movie theatre in the area where the kids go to play before prior to watching the
movie. I’ve cropped the shot, and what’s missing is many more characters with eyes staring out at you.
The shot reminded me of all the personalities that turn up on your group tours… so, it came to mind pretty
quick that your clients would see themselves and their past travelling companions in such a shot, too. I’ve
added a caption just to spice it up for this page… you could do the same when promoting your tours. 
© Steve Crowhurst
Hey Big Bear, is that a
camera in your pocket
or are you just happy
to be on this tour?

27. If you’re not sure about managing your time as a home-based travel agent then you need to tap
into how others make it happen. Here is a good friend of mine, Mike T, who leads the way in
multi-tasking. Take a few light-hearted moments and see how many activities you can detect
that Mike is engaged in and jot them down. When you’ve finished, check the answer box below.
Multi-tasking Mike is engaged in:
Now you have to understand that Mike T is a
special kinda guy. He is perpetually happy, has
nothing but nice things to say, very funny as in
humorous, is certain only good things will
happen, positive, mindful, energetic and each
year challenges himself to learn something new.
His multi-tasking lifestyle can cause his wife a
few restless moments, as whilst driving to work
in the morning he is shaving, drinking coffee,
listening to blues music, steering with his knees,
answering his mobile and saying “Yes dear…” like
he was tuned in 100%! What a guy! 
Sitting
Posing
Eating
Meditation
Listening
Watching
Reading
Looking
Rocking
Smiling
Exercising
Resting
Learning
Working
(laptopopen!)

28. Enroll in
The Travel Institute’s
Villa Travel Course
and Receive a FREE Luxury Travel Specialist Course!
Enroll in The Travel Institute’s Villa Travel
Specialist course before August 15, 2014 and
receive a FREE Luxury Travel Specialist online
course (a $49 value). Both courses are online and
include all testing fees. Earn two specialist
certifications for only $49!
Have Villa Vacations increased in the last five
years? What type of villa do Travelers prefer?
Are traditional, classic villas more popular than
modern villas? And, most importantly, are
travelers who have stayed in villa
accommodations satisfied with their
experience?
Villa Travel link:
You will also learn the difference between a Villa
Vacation and a vacation home rental, how to
define a villa, what services and amenities are
included in a villa, and who the villa traveler is.
Luxury customers are clamoring for more - more
amenities, more destinations, more experiences.
As the luxury travel marketplace evolves, the
villa vacation has emerged to meet their needs.
The opportunities for selling to luxury
customers, even in a down economy, are
tremendous. Enroll in the Villa Travel course by
August 15, 2014 for only $49 and position
yourself for profit!
Luxury Travel link:

29. CanadianTraveller.net  CT/AMERICA YOURS TO DISCOVER JULY 2014 105
”T
hey’re coming to America…la
la la… coming to America…”
Who sang that? Ah yes, the
great Neil Diamond – or it
might have been a great travel agent who
knew what niche they wanted to be in
and that leads me to my next sentence...
I’m thinking that going to America is a
box that so many Canadians have already
ticked – but then there are thousands of
Canadians who have yet to make the trip.
Their box is still waiting for a check mark.
And those “been there” Canadians might
have already visited America, but did they
really – I mean really – see America?
There are two ways to find out: ask them,
woo them – or both.
I’m thinking your job this year is to move
your clients into a travellin’ state of mind
and you’ll do that by pitching the various
sights to be seen state by state. Or, you
could market the state that has all the
activities your clients like to do.
STATE Your Business
Before we venture any further let’s get you
online. Check out www.discoveramerica.
ca/usa/states.aspx – it’s full of the
information you need to sell more
America. When you land there you will
see a wall of images, one per state, and
when you click on each image you will
be seeing many more links to click on
for additional information. This is a very
quick and easy resource to access.
Make Your STATEment Count
As I clicked around each state I was
noticing a list of phrases that ended in a
down-arrow for additional information.
The list of phrases intrigued me and I
quickly realized that each phrase could be
used as a leading headline for any of your
soon-to-be-created promotions.
Here’s what I gathered from just three
states. Imagine the collection of one-
liners you’ll have when you review every
state, then copy, paste and save your list
of headings to a marketing file. Once you
have that done you can start to review
your headings and determine the tag-line
that goes with it. But first a smattering of
what’s waiting for you behind each state
listing:
★ Best bargains
★ Breathtaking scenery
★ Classic road trip
★ Don’t leave without tasting...
★ Don’t overlook this...
★ Films shot here
★ For your first visit
★ If you want to fit in...
★ Just want to indulge?
★ Made in the state
★ Must-see museum
★ One awe-inspiring building
★ Only have one day here?
★ Outdoor excitement
★ Roadside attractions
SELLING TRAVEL
WITH STEVEBy Steve Crowhurst, CTC
SELLING TRAVEL
A Travellin’ STATE of Mind
When it comes to the States, make
your marketing statements count
Making memories: take a
moment to think about what
vacation memories your
clients’ kids will remember
for the rest of their lives.
H�� T� S���
A���ic�
PHOTOS:VISITFLORIDA,SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

30. JULY 2014 CT/AMERICA YOURS TO DISCOVER  CanadianTraveller.net106
Steve Crowhurst, CTC, is an author, speaker, trainer and owner of The Travel Agent’s Store where travel
professionals shop for educational tools. Visit Steve’s store at www.thetravelagentsstore.com; and like
his Facebook page at www.facebook.com/sellingtravel; T: 250-738-0064.
www.thetravelagentsstore.com
Jointhestorememberlistand
receiveadvancenoticeofnew
titlesandamember’sdiscount.
Scan’n’Go!
Wheretraveltrade
professionalsshopfor
educationaltools.
The
Travel
Agent's
Store
★ Top photo opportunities
★ Want to stay up late?
★ Where locals go to relax
★ You might be surprised by…
★ You’ll know you’re here when…
★ Your child will always remember...
Let’s Try "Breathtaking Scenery"
A bit of a no-brainer, isn’t it? But then
again, some scenery is very nice but not
breathtaking. Save this heading for the
truly wonderful scenery that America has
to offer.
Next: if you yourself are into scenery
– and especially the breathtaking type
– then you’ll want to develop a niche
market here, and blend in your own style
of travel, too.
Think: scenery, state, client-interest
and activity. Every state has its own
blend of scenery, so it’s down to you to
match it to your client’s tastes, needs and
wants, as well as your own niche market
opportunity.
For Your Foodies Try "Don’t Leave
Without Tasting..."
You know that each and every state offers
you a foodie tour opportunity, so this is
a great one-liner that you can use as the
header for your American Foodie Tour.
You might go with one state only and
hone-in on its specialty cuisine. Whatever
way you come at it, that "Don’t Leave
Without…" statement causes a response
along the lines of: “I gotta taste that!”
Attract Your Adventurers With
"Outdoor Excitement"
When it comes to the outdoors and
adventure tourism, you have so many
niche market opportunities. You could, for
instance, stay within the state boundaries,
or you could select three or four states
and engage in a specific outdoor activity.
Hiking certain trails would be one idea.
Camera Buffs Will Want "Top
Photo Opportunities"
As you know, pretty much, everyone
is now a travel photographer, social
journalist and travel blogger. Putting
together some tours of "Top Photo
Opportunities" could be a very attractive
proposition for those click-happy clients.
And how nicely would this idea tie in with
the "Breathtaking Scenery" headline?
Your Mission
As you can see, these state-related
headings are all-purpose, with just one
or two pertaining to the actual state they
were listed under. Your mission, if you
choose to accept it, is this: go back to the
website and click your way through each
state and read through the list of one-
liners. Capture the ones that make sense
to your particular interest and then start to
fashion your sales plan around the words
in that heading. And yes, you can adapt,
adopt and combine the words you find.
There is another heading that I really
liked and it is this one coming up… and it
fits right into present day trends.
" Yo u r C h i l d W i l l A l w a y s
Remember..."
What a fabulous lead-in to promote family
travel, family adventures and theme
parks. Go back into your own childhood.
Do you remember any great family trips?
Yes, of course you do!
Now think about your clients… what
would their kids remember for the rest of
their lives? Meeting a Disney character,
for sure. Riding the wildest ride and
surviving, of course. Hiking up a mountain
with Ma and Pa and sharing the moment
– absolutely. You get the idea. In fact, you
might even call all your clients to a meeting
to discuss family tour topics. When clients
have a say in where they might go, guess
what? They generally sign up and go. ✪
"W��� ����nt�
h��� � s�� ��
����� ����
�i�h� g�, ��es�
�ha�? T���
����r���� �i��
�� �n� g�..."

32. A HOME FOR THE
HOME BASED AGENTS
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Before You Travel:• Ensure that you are carrying your up-to-date passports and have obtainedany required/necessary tourist visasfor entering the country(s) you arevisiting.
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• Be aware of luggage restrictions such as weight, size and type of suitcasesallowed on the international anddomestic flights on your itinerary.Excess baggage charges are steepand can cause great inconvenience• Ensure you have obtained recommended or requiredinoculations. Certain inoculations are mandatory for travel to endemicareas. Your travel agent will have provided full details.
• Check out the availability of local ATMs in your destination and/orpurchase some local currency ortravellers cheques.
• Give family/friends the contact information at hotels/lodges youwill be staying during your travel.Information on your accommodationsis provided within your documents.• We recommend that you put your newspaper subscription on hold forthe duration of your trip and haveyour mail collected by a neighbour orheld at your local post office.• It is always recommended that you secure your home with a securityalarm before you leave.
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THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM PRINTER FOR OVER 30 YEARS
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2. No design/setup fees – choose from our
selection of pre-designed templates or
Design Your Own.
3. Full use of our image gallery at no extra
charge.
4. Travel related marketing products such
as calendars and magnets plus all your
standard business products – business
cards, envelopes, letterhead, flyers, and
more.
5. Wide selection of ticket packaging
options for groups, weddings, and
niches.
6. All products available in small quantities
(some as low as 25).

33. C L A S S I F I E D S
Wanted: readers to click
on this link and make
money selling more travel.
Animoto is the BEST and
easiest DIY video creator.
Try it today.
When you need to write
something and can’t – hire
in a ghost writer like Steve
Gillick. Steve produces
scripts for your keynotes,
webinars and brochures.
Contact Steve here.
Are you CASL compliant?
Do you want to explore
using an email service? If
so then scan this QR code.
Publishing soon. Get what
you need to start using
more video in your travel
marketing & promotions.
WANTED!
DREAM MERCHANTS
to complete a survey.
Tell us about your passion
for being a travel agent.
Click here for information.
Had enough of working for
someone else? Would you
like to explore how you
can sell travel from home?
If so then click on this link
and explore.
Your education station
is right here.
DIY Websites. This IS the
Best of the Best.
Where travel trade
professionals shop for
knowledge.
THE HOW-TO MAGAZINE FOR TRAVEL TRADE PROFESSIONALS
Home Based?
Need sales and
marketing ideas
that relate to
working from
home? If so then
click here and read
IC Travel Agent.

34. www.ic-travelagent.com
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