In last week’s Travel Expert Insider I gave you the Full-Time Travel Agent Secret Formula. The first part of that formula is your niche, specialty and ideal client.
They key word here is “your”. You are the secret sauce in the secret formula! It may sound a little cliche, but Dr. Seuss said it best: “Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”
Customers buy from people they know, like and trust, and the only way to get them to know, like and trust you, is to be authentically you. Authenticity is important, because customers these days are savvier (and perhaps more cynical) than ever and most can see right through any BS and they will move on to another travel agent.
When you are authentically yourself you never have to fear loosing clients who choose to work with someone else because those people aren’t your ideal clients anyway! Working with them would not be a fun for either of you, so you can happily bless them and send them on their way knowing that you are attracting more than enough IDEAL clients for yourself.
So what does being authentic in your marketing look like? Where do you even start?
Truth is, a lot of it starts with your mindset and getting to know yourself and what you truly desire. If you’re in the Travel Expert Marketing Academy we have core modules and advanced training focused on just this – it’s that important!
The second step – when you know more about who you are and what you want from your clients and your business – is to create a personalized marketing plan.
How to Create a Personalized Marketing Plan
When it comes to creating a personalized marketing plan ask yourself three questions:
1. Does it work for YOU?
2. Is it what you want?
3. Is it what your client wants?
When you’re designing a marketing plan for your micro-business or as a solo-preneur, the process is a little different than with bigger companies. Your business is about you, your product is you, your brand is you, you are marketing and selling you – and ultimately how you can best serve your ideal client.
Your personalized marketing plan needs to include 3-5 lead sources that fit your personality, strengths and what you enjoy doing. And what a relief that is! You don’t have to do anything you hate just because some “guru” on the internet says that it’s the only way to bring in clients.
For instance, if you’re absolutely stone-cold petrified of speaking in front of crowds, don’t choose public speaking as a lead source. Or if you already love spending time on Instagram sharing gorgeous photos and witty captions about your latest travel adventures (or daily life) then Instagram should clearly be one of the lead sources you focus on.
I’ll take a moment here to mention that just because you LOVE a marketing lead source, doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s one you should choose. Be honest with yourself, or ask for honest, constructive feedback from a close friend – are you GOOD at it, too?
Let’s say you’re one of those magic unicorns that loves public speaking, you also have to be sure that you’re good at for it to bring you ideal clients. Similarly, there are lots of travel agents on social media sharing bad images and uninteresting captions which only drives potential clients away – they would be better served to stay off social media altogether or at least until they learn how to make it work for them.
You can always practice, and learn from experts how to be better at any lead source you choose (that’s why we created the Travel Expert Marketing Academy) just be honest about your skills and where you need to improve.
We would love to help you discover more about yourself and develop your personalized marketing plan to attract a sea of ideal clients. To learn more about the Travel Expert Marketing Academy and how we can serve you, I invite you to join our Travel Agent Marketing Workshop and Academy Preview. To register, click here now.
