Tourpreneur Tour Business Podcast

Mitch, Chris and Pete are joined by Douglas Quinby and Bruce Rosard of the amazing industry focused event, Arival to discuss how you should choose the event that will give you the best ROI.We discuss...Which event is right for youDoing your ground work before you attendWhy Tour Operators should attend ArivalGetting an ROI from eventsTimestamp02:38 Networking, deals, partnerships lead to bigger events. Start locally, understand event types, work hard.04:55 Lack of diverse buyers at Arrival event.08:21 Event success depends on preparation and networking.11:28 Importance of tourism industry and cultural differences.15:10 Tourpreneur community focuses on ROI, marathon events.18:23 Valuable education component helps professionalize arrival industry.20:18 Maximize time with 2 guys from Columbia.23:45 Reach out to industry contacts for guidance.26:52 Digital game trumps traditional events, save money.31:23 Events provide valuable learning opportunities for businesses.34:12 Open mind at events can create possibilities.38:05 Events with global operators expand product development.41:47 Connect, niche talk, latest trends, water sports, podcasting, cross learning opportunities.45:40 cost, accessibility, regional relevance.48:25 Remember the questions, have a great time.

Chris & Pete are joined by Travis Pittman, the Co-founder & CEO of TourRadar to discuss the trends in multi-day tours as well as its future.We discuss...How TourRadar startedDistribution through travel agentsSweet spot in length of multi-day toursHow multi-day will be affected by AIOnboarding new operators restarting in some destinationsJoin our free tour operator community of over 9,000 members: Join Tourpreneur+ for even more content:Visit TourRadar 

Roberto D'Alessandro, owner of Touring Italy, blends exceptional customer service with deep Italian cultural insights. He shares how local guides and personalized experiences can create unforgettable tours. The discussion touches on the challenges of managing guest expectations, especially in a post-pandemic landscape. Renée Ventrice emphasizes the emotional weight of community connections in tourism, showcasing how flexibility and understanding diverse cultures enhance client satisfaction. Together, they highlight the importance of resilience in the face of industry adversity.

Today we are discussing the environmental crisis and the impact on the travel industry by industry expert Stuart McDonald of Travel Fish.

Christy, Samantha and Sandra join the Women in Travel podcast to chat over a variety of topics Including how to promote safety in women's travel.Christy HunterSamantha HardcastleSandra Weinacht 

Mat Newton, founder of Tourism Tiger and an experienced player in the tour industry, shares insightful strategies for multiday tour operators. He discusses effective website design and the importance of user experience. Learn how to engage customers through storytelling and innovative marketing approaches. Mat emphasizes thoughtful tour design to enhance guest satisfaction and highlights the significance of automation in customer engagement. Finally, he explores the unique challenges and opportunities within Australia’s diverse tourism landscape.

Mitch, Pete and Chris look back at 2022 while also looking ahead to what the future brings in 2023. AI has potential to improve customer experiences in-store and online through personalized recommendations and marketing content Upcoming Demo Day with 18 resellers and OTAs presenting platforms and available for one-on-one conversations with attendees Tourpreneur website launches several new directories, including a travel technology software directory, a "green list" of vetted service providers, a directory for buying and selling tour businesses, and a Tour Operator World Map Tour Operator World Map allows operators to connect with local service providers and form partnerships Free seminar on buying and selling a tour business available "Huddles" events offer in-person workshops and advice sessions for select group of tour operators, taking place in Charleston and Lisbon in early 2023 Artificial intelligence (AI) has gone beyond hype to become a genuine, useful tool with the potential to enhance the in-store and online purchasing experiences of customers. In preparation for an upcoming Tourpreneur Sprint, we discuss how AI will revolutionise the tourism industry by, among other things, analysing customer data and providing personalised recommendations, and creating marketing content while being careful to use other tools to ensure the content is not seen as plagiarised or AI generated.We discuss the upcoming Demo Day, where 18 resellers and OTAs will present their platforms and you will have the chance to speak with the attendees one-on-one. The conference will provide venues for tour operators to promote their services.The Tourpreneur website has recently launched several new directories, which we discuss in this article. These include a directory of travel technology software, a directory of vetted service providers known as a "green list," a directory for buying and selling a tour business, and a Tour Operator World Map. The purpose of these directories is to facilitate communication and resource sharing among tour operators.Using the Tour Operator World Map, the operators can network with one another and find local service providers or form strategic partnerships. Moreover, the presenter announces the availability of a free seminar on how to buy and sell a tourism business.Finally, we discuss the upcoming "huddles," where a select group of tour operators will get together for business-oriented workshops and advice sessions. The first two will take place in Charleston, South Carolina, and Lisbon, Portugal, respectively, in the first two months of 2023. The purpose of these face-to-face gatherings is to lend a helping hand to the travel industry's frontrunners by discussing the nitty-gritty of their operations and outlining concrete steps for growth.

Talking to tour operator John O'Sullivan is always a breath of fresh air; he likes to think deeply about the tour industry, and experiment with new ideas that often challenge the tour operator orthodoxy.   John runs Depot Adventures in Melbourne, Australia and Minneapolis, Minnesota, as well as a new TikTok-based venture, One Minute Tours.   John's first Tourpreneur podcast was recorded with Shane back in 2019, where he shared his thoughts about the economics of the "free tour" model. It's still a worthy listen. Now he's back with a new venture, new locations for his old company. We cover a wide variety of topics: how to structure and develop a tour in a new destinationthinking about tour content in the age of Wikipediadeveloping a business across two extremely different locationsdoes developing a global brand bring benefits?entering a midmarket destination: how to sell? how to price?hiring and retaining guides as employeesJohn's experiment with tip pooling, and being transparent about his experiment with his guide communityhis accidental virality on TikTok, and how it's changing the direction of his business As always, bonus material and more can be found on Tourpreneur.com/plus

Jason Heffernan operates a unique rainforest experience in the Daintree rainforest in Queensland Australia. Listen to his story of how he used distribution to help with growth.https://backcountrybliss.com.au/Join our community of 10,000+ members: https://www.facebook.com/groups/tourpreneur

Christy, Samantha and Sandra join the Women in Travel podcast to chat over a variety of topics Including creating, promoting and marketing tours to women.Christy Hunter: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christytheconnector/Samantha Hardcastle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/skhardcastle/Sandra Weinacht: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandraweinacht/