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Calendar Tips for Busy Travel Agents

When I was 17 the very first Palm Pilot (PDA) came out on the market (pictured here), and when I was 19 I BEGGED my dad to buy me one for Christmas.

For those of you who are too young to know what a Palm Pilot is – it’s the 1996 equivalent to a Smart Phone, but without the phone, Internet, Apps, or fancy color touch screen. Essentially it was an electronic calendar and contact management system, and maybe had a few games on it. But it cost about as much as a new iPhone does today — around $500! Which was even more money in 1996 then it is today.

The Christmas of 1998, I begged my dad for one because I, at 19, was already a full fledged calendar addict – I was in school plus trying to start a business, and I LOVED being organized.

I would daydream about a paperless future where everything I needed was on a pretty little electronic device that I carried around in my pocket.  As you know, I got my wish. In 2007 when Apple released the first iPhone, I realized that the “heaven on earth” concept was a real thing. 🙂

By the time the iPhone was released, I had been using electronic devices to keep my life organized for 9 years. (Christmas of 1998 my dad surprised me the uber expensive Palm Pilot that I had been begging him for — BEST. DAD. EVER. I cherished that thing for years).

Over those 9 years, I figured out some cool little life hacks using it, most of which still serve me well to this day.

Here are a few of my cool little calendar tips for travel agents:

1. I put everything in my calendar that needs to happen on a regular basis, and then set to recur. For example, each month I get a pop up reminder to change furnace and water filters. Each quarter I get a pop up reminder to wash my makeup brushes, change Sonicare toothbrush heads, check smoke alarms, and so on. Each season I get a popup to reset the outdoor light timers to accommodate for the change in sunrise and sunset times.

2. I create phone contacts for things like light bulb sizes, furnace and water filter brands and sizes, and so on. If I’m at the store and I know I need light bulbs, I open up my Phone Contacts, search for Light Bulbs, and then a contact appears called “Light Bulbs”. Listed in it are all the sizes and brands of light bulbs for the different rooms and fixtures in both the interior and exterior of my home.

3. I fully utilize Voice Notes, especially when I’m driving! When I think of marketing ideas, things I have to do, solutions to problems, or have a flash of insight, I hit the Voice Notes button and speak my mind. This ensures I capture my thoughts.

I use the Google Apps Calendar and the Tiny Calendar App on my iPhone – they automatically stay synced at all times, and they work with online schedulers such as Time Trade.  And they allow you to create shared calendars with your family, co-workers, staff, and so on – which is a really handy feature!

If you’re unfamiliar with how Google Apps works, and why it’s SO great, watch this video.

And if you don’t yet have an online scheduler, I made you a quick video on my current favorite one and how it works.

In the comments below please share some of your cool little calendar tips for your fellow travel agents. I can’t wait to hear about them!

Love & Success,

Heidi and Your Marketing Team

P.S.  Even though I LOVE my (nearly) paperless office and my digital organizing tools, I still go back to pen and paper for goal setting, mind-mapping, success planning, etc. for the proven benefits of handwriting vs. digital planning. And this is why I created the Travel Agent Success Planner  for you. You can get yours right NOW – you’ll love it!   Click here for details.

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