Without a doubt, the travel technology we have seen develop over the past two decades has been amazing. We have gone from communicating via phone and fax to email and text. Considering we (travel agents) were one of the first industries to have desktop computers, I guess it should not be such a surprise. But that technology comes with a price as well. Certainly it has “stolen” some of our business by giving clients the ability to do some of what we used to do. And that is ok. As far as I am concerned, much of what today’s tech provides the client is what I despised doing in the first place. Now, I can concentrate on offering advice and crafting experiences rather than making…

From time to time I find myself driving either north or south on Interstate 95 from here to there … hither and yon. I am not a big fan of the airlines and less of a fan of the fickle fate of Mother Nature. When I drive I can opt to turn left, right or throw a U-turn at a moment’s notice.

On my latest trip I was alone as my wife was already in New Jersey visiting her parents. This presented me with a golden opportunity to play “radio-control-master.” Country is my favorite with a little CNN dialed in now and then … until I get frustrated with the repetition.

Here was my chance. I downloaded two Audible books I wanted to read (listen to) and…

January and February of 2017 are literally history. Yikes! The new car smell is gone but we can all  look forward to good things for the balance of this year. It's time to focus on enhancing every aspect of your travel practice, making every point of contact with clients as sharp as possible. As we have said to the point of extreme repetition, travel consulting is all about relationships.

The unique nature of your position as a travel consultant, however, is dual facing.  Your relationships with clients are of primary importance.  But of nearly equal importance is the relationships you develop with your suppliers.  Knowing a supplier intimately is a very large part of mastering the art of being a travel professional.   — Travel Research Online
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An expert in adventure and wildlife destinations worldwide, Jane Behrend started her own travel marketing company in 1989 after learning the business as an account executive in public relations and advertising sales. She started off as the Southeast USA sales rep for African Travel, Gametrackers Botswana, and 4th Dimension Tours before helping Volcanoes Safaris relaunch tourism to Rwanda and Uganda in the North American market.

In 2008, Jane re-branded her business as Emerging Destinations, a company that represents cool companies in cool places around the globe. She chose the name because her passion is working with areas where tourism is relatively new and still off the beaten…