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Your Own Tour Company

Have you ever gone on some kind of tour? Have you ever thought about what you have learned from the tour? Typically, after completing a tour you may feel more comfortable about the surrounding area or whatever the tour was composed of. You go away with great memories and information that you can chalk up to as knowledge.

That is the key…great memories and knowledge. Wherever we live, there is something there to show others, you can make money sharing your knowledge.

First, gather your thoughts about the place that you live. What is unique? Do you live in a large city? Do you live in a small town? Or perhaps a village tucked away in a remote place. Think about what is unique to your area. Now write 10 reasons why someone would want to visit your area. To get you going here are some ideas:

1. We have a waterway system that connects saltwater to fresh water.
2. We make wine.
3. Our community is known for:

Don't go any further, make your list of 10 unique reasons why people to visit your area:

If you already have some kind of tours in the area, take as many as you can.

Take notes and learn what you can. Go to your local library, look up your area, get on the Internet and conduct your research. You will be surprised what you will learn as you begin conducting your research.

As you conduct your research you may find that there are so many unique places and things about your community that you were not aware of. Combine them with your list of ten reasons why someone would want to visit your area.

Keep your list of ten reasons into broad categories. For example: if you have a great art museum in town and a famous artist living near by, combine both ideas into one: "Art".

Now look over the 10 reasons and focus on the reasons that interest you the most, something that you naturally have a passion for. This is important, write only the ones that interest you:

Notes

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You may find that you only have one idea or you may find that you have 10 interests and are passionate about all of them.

Take this list of topics that you are passionate about and prioritize them. Make the one that strikes you the most on top and so on.

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You have just completed the most important part, the focus of your tours. Take you number one level of interest and begin researching everything you can about it. Become an expert on the topic.

If it is Art in your local community, do your homework. Get a notebook, a tape recorder if need be and research everything you can about the subject. Get information about the subject that may not even pertain to your local area. For example, Art, learn about other art museums or artists that are not from your community.

At some point you will be able to correlate the art within your community to art around the world. You will also surprise yourself, how much you know and how little you know at the same time.

Focusing on your passion makes the job very easy. You are not working but having fun. Be sure to document everything.

Picking a Company Name

By now you have a pretty good idea of what interests you and what is unique to your area. The best way to pick out the most suitable name is to begin by making a list.

Over the course of a couple of days write down every possible company name that comes to mind. Also, keep in mind that you want a name that is appropriate for a Domain Name. In other words, a descriptive and short name.

Every time we go through this process we get about 25-30 names, then we start eliminating those that just are not applicable. Here is a little hint…have a notepad next to you at night, you will be amazed at how many good names come to you sometime throughout the night. Write them down as they come, do not think, "oh, I can remember that"…more than likely you will not.

Write every name down. Ask your family or friends to help you …don't worry about perfecting the name, just gather names.

Many get stuck at these points because they are not open to allow their creative imagination to work. The secret in getting good names or other ideas is to write a list of everything possible over a couple of days.

Do not make any decisions regarding what to include, a name or idea…just write it down. Later you will make a decision and at that time, and only that time, you will know exactly what name or idea to use. Try it, you will find it amazing and do apply this process to other aspects of life too.

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Once you have gathered at least 25-30 names or even more, go through your list and strike out those names that are obviously not applicable to your tour company. Keep the names and we'll do some further research a little later

On a separate area within your notebook, create a section for Formulating Your Tour. Jot down ideas that interest you. Imagine how you will present the information to others. Think how you would like to have the information given to you. Write it down.

Researched Information

Ideas of How to Present the Information.

Now the next step, the process of formulating your tour. Itemize your areas in a logical sense.

Again, art for example, what location has many similar characteristics? If it is an art museum, group all of those into one logical location category. If it is a glass blowing shop, for example, put that into another location category.

Write out each location category: (it does not matter how many location categories you have…even if you only have one).

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Once you have developed your location categories, put each location into a logical sequence. Imagine going from each location category or each stop along the tour…what makes the best practical sense?

Start your tour at the simplest point. For example, if an artist lives in the area you may want to start there. Focus on building during your tour…just like a movie. You are the scriptwriter, director and producer. How exciting!

Logical Sequence of Location Categories
Write out your logical sequence. Have it run in a smooth order.

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Plan Your Tour Route

Once you have developed a logical sequence of location categories, go on your tour. Go through your tour just as if you had a group of "tourists" with you. All you are doing here is planning a route. Know every street and turn. Pick alternate routes as well.

In conducting our tours we found that some streets were under construction and we quickly had to go to plan "B". The tourists never knew. Don't make the mistake of getting lost. We did that once and the tourists were wondering if we really knew what we were doing.

So, you have gone through your tour and find the location categories run smoothly. Your tour is easily mapped out for anyone to understand. There are alternate routes and feeling confident that no one will get lost while giving a tour.

Target Your Tour

Let's go back to our original tour of ART. Let's assume we have developed a tour specific to art and now want to target that market. Here is a break out of what to do:

1. Visit each significant location on your tour, a museum for example. Ask the museum staff for a list of the various groups that have attended the museum in the past. Also ask if they have relations with other museums throughout the world.

2. Once you have some contacts to work with, give your contact a call. Explain the following: "Hello, this is John Smith of Western Tours. I received your name from the Windham Art Museum and just wanted to share some brief information with you. Is this a good time or shall I call you later? Now, is fine…Thank you. We noticed that you visited the Windham Art Museum in the past. Did you enjoy that? Good. Do you plan on having a group visit this area again? That's good. We simply want to let you know that we, Western Tours, have a complete Personalized Art Tour that also includes the Windham Museum. We focus on the Personalized Tour aspect and bring in the local culture within the tour. Your group will love it. Does this interest you? Great! We will send you our brochure and will include some information regarding some other tours your group may have an interest in…is that ok? Great, thank you for your time I will follow up with you at a later date." (Check out "Make Your Brochure" in another section.)


This dialog can be used in a variety of situations. If your local museum has a relationship with other museums contact them. Your mission is to find out what groups that particular museum has a relationship with. Once you have this group information, begin contacting the groups with a similar script as the above.

This is the beginning of your target process. Just keep asking questions.


3.

Go online and check out any ART group or forum.

Get involved in the "on- line" discussions. You will be surprised how well you can make relations with others and get your tour promoted through these groups.

We first recommend that you gather up some tour brochures from other companies. You'll find them at hotels, airports or visit your local travel agent.

A lot is to be learned from these brochures. Companies have spent a lot of money designing a brochure, you can learn from their endeavors.

Remember that you are not copying but learning and developing your own copyright for your brochure.

Typically the brochures are 3-color with a glossy paper…very expensive. Youdo not need to make this investment in a high quality brochure. You just want a professional looking brochure.

Once you have analyzed the brochures you are ready to develop your brochure. Take an 8x11 sheet of paper; fold it into 3 equal pieces. Now begin your design.

On each column we recommend that you have a picture. Draw a box representing the size of the picture to be displayed on the brochure, roughly

2 1/2" X 2 1/2".

At the very top and on the first column print the words" Personalized Tours" in big bold letter. This is what sets you apart from the rest of the tour companies out there.

You bring the personal touch. Beneath "personalized tours" put your first picture. People will be attracted to "Personalized Tours" and your picture.

Get a picture that represents your tour and what sets you apart. More on pictures later. Now, beneath the picture write a short narrative about your tour. Here is an example:

Discover Art in a new setting.

• See how ordinary glass is created into artistic pieces that sell for $1,000's
• Visit where it all began…glass blowing at it's finest
• Don't go home without seeing the 1^st Glass Blowing School in North America

Get the idea??? Write some key features that tourists can expect to see. Don't just write locations…everyone does that…be unique and create the location into a feature.

This will automatically draw people to you. Do this with each page on your brochure. If you only have 1 tour then write out a list of features…be sure to include a picture on each column. If you have more than 1 tour then each column will represent each tour. Use your creativity and have fun!

On each column and at the bottom of your brochure, include your phone number in Large BOLD Letters. Make it obvious. You do not want people interested in a tour only to find out they do not know who to call.

If you do not have pictures of your tour, get the best camera that you have available and go get some pictures!

By now you should have a pretty good idea of what pictures you want to include in your brochure. If you do not, go back to your features that you wrote on your draft brochure and decide what pictures are needed for those features.

The fun part…take the needed pictures. Don't use a picture from a magazine or another brochure…you may break some copyright laws. It is better to have your own original photos because you can include that information on your tour. You can tell people that you actually took the pictures…It adds to that personal touch.

Once your pictures are developed decide which ones to use. Figure out what part of the picture is important for your brochure. You may be able to cut the pictures with scissors or you may have to take the photos back to the photo shop for cropping. You may also find yourself shooting more pictures too.

If you have a scanner, scan the pictures into your computer and enhance, crop wherever applicable.

Take your rough draft and paste your final picture into its correct location.

You can make this as complex as you want, however, we recommend, keep it simple. You can utilize "Word" or "Microsoft Publishing" to create your brochure. There are some other software packages out there that allow you to do the same thing, however, our focus is to get you into business with little investment.

You are now ready to layout your brochure. Utilizing "Word" or another program (we use Print Master, it costs about $35) begin copying the format from your draft brochure. Be sure to leave enough room for the pictures.

Upon competition, print a copy of your brochure. Lay out the picture in the appropriate place. Does everything look appealing? Perhaps you need to re-size. Just go back to your document and do what needs to be done with re-sizing, etc. (Be sure to save your brochure…we forgot to save a brochure once…never make that mistake again). Remember to put a contact phone number at the bottom of each column.

Take your copy ready draft brochure to your local print shop and get 6 black and white copies. Distribute a copy to your friends or relatives. Have them critique the brochure. They can simply write on your brochure.

When you get the draft brochures returned to you, see if there are similarities in the suggestions. If there are, it would be wise to make some needed changes. If all of the responses are different then you can make a change if it seems like a good idea.

Your brochure is ready for its 1^st printing. Go to your local printer and have several copies made on a yellow card stock in black and white. This is an inexpensive way to go.

Yellow against black catches the eye. People will notice it. The card sock will keep the brochure in a good form and show some professionalism. The black and white simply keeps your cost down dramatically.

After you have built up your business then you can decide if you want to invest in to a more expensive brochure.

We also recommend having a minimum of 500 brochures printed. You can easily go through this amount. If your print shop is capable of machine folding the brochure, depending on the price, have them do this too. Otherwise, have a brochure folding party; invite family and friends over.

Distributing your brochure is another aspect of your marketing. A very simple method is to go to each hotel, seek out the concierges.

If the hotel does not have concierge speak with the people at the desk. Ask them if they would be willing to give out your brochure to individuals asking about tours... In return, for every person they recommend that takes a tour, pay them 10% of their tour amount.

For example, if a person goes on one of your $35 tours, plan on giving the referrer $3.50. People like being rewarded for their efforts. You will find those who will not accept any money but it is nice to offer.

Also, offer the hotel concierges or staff, a free tour; allow them to bring a friend. This will bring grand results. You will develop a personal relationship with the key people who will recommend you. Word of mouth advertising works wonders!

Typically located within hotels, airports, bus stations, etc., are racks loaded with tourist information. Look on the rack and see who the owners are. Contact them and find out the costs for displaying your brochure in the rack.

A nationwide company in the U.S., Certified Folder, has racks everywhere. All you need to do is select an area where you would like your brochure, provide them with adequate brochures and they will make sure your brochure is stocked in the rack. They do charge a fee, however, it is very cost effective to get the word out about your business.

Pricing is critical to your business. We found the best way to figure out a fair and competitive price rate was to look at the competition. Typically, for a 3-hour bus tour we found the competition charging $30 per person.

Look and see what your competition has to offer. Remember, you also have something unique to offer, a "Personalized Tour", much different than a typical bus tour. We often charged $5 over the competition. You may find that you have no competition in the area at all or perhaps you have a tour that no competitors offer.

We offered an ART tour that no one else offered and we charged $40 per person based on a group of 6. That yielded $240 for a 3 hour ART tour.

On a large group, such as a reunion, you will receive a check before departing on the tour.

You may find a reunion may want you available for a tour should the attendees want to take a tour. This is speculation…there is no guarantee that anyone will take a tour. From our experience, if you do not have any booked tours to go on then you have nothing to loose…only time waiting to see if a groups decides to take your tour.

We will discuss further details about Reunions in another section.

Ask the reunion coordinators to announce the option of taking a tour giving a specific departure time and departure location.

We made a small sandwich sign that we would place by the vehicle while we were waiting for potential tourists. Design the sign professionally and have something to the effect "3 Hour Personalized City Tour - $35".

Visit your local print shop and get some magnetic signs that will attach to your vehicle. A good size is 12 inches x 18 inches. We tried a few different color schemes and settled with a blue background and white letters.

The signs are usually sold in pairs, approximately $40 -$60 a pair. We recommend that you get 2 pair. Put one on either side of the vehicle and one in the rear. On the sign, have your company name, Personalized Tours and phone number. For example:

Having the magnetic signs is really helpful for advertising and it makes you professional. The magnetic signs allow you to take the signs anywhere and use on any vehicle.

Transportation is a key element in running your tour program. We recommend that you use a mini van that seats at least 8 passengers, including the driver.

If you have access to a van, great but if you do not here is a solution. We checked out all of the rental agencies and got their pricing for mini vans and full size passenger vans.

Typically a mini van was less expensive. We found the rates varied also on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Find someone you can work with and share with them what you are doing. They just might offer you some great pricing.

Here is a key, don't lease a van for anytime until you have tours booked. This way you have not put any money out. We will discuss booking the tours in the next section.

Payment

If you want to increase that amount of revenue then provide QUALITY SERVICE.

We purchased a large cooler, filled it with a variety of drinks and cookies, passed the goodies out up and down the isle while on the tour…WOW, the attendees loved the attention and service.

These little added extras go along way. At the end of the tour a hat was passed for tips. We typically earned about $200 per bus in tips. Of course, the driver is a part of the QUALITY SERVICE sooooo split the tip money with him. It will pay off on the tours to follow.

Conventions

Have an adequateFirst Aid Kit and fire extinguisher in your vehicle. And know how to use the first aid kit and fire extinguisher. If you need training, visit your local fire department. They typically offer CPR, First Aid and Fire Extinguisher Training.

Write your tours in book form. Most people, even after the tour forget up to 80% of what they heard on your tour. Write a book and add some great value. Get some ideas of how and what to write.

Travel & Leisure is a monthly magazine for the affluent traveler. The focus is resorts, hotels, fashion, foods and drinks. Payment varies form $100-$6,000. Visit their web site athttp://www.travelandleisure.com. For more specific information call 212-383-5600. Again, check out their magazine to get a feel of what they will accept.

Trips, a travel journal. The main focus is for younger, active travelers. Looking for unusual destinations that is very informative and educational. Pays $100-$1,500. Call 415-431-5133 to get specific information.