On February 26th, Jesse Upchurch the co-founder of Virtuoso passed away at 93.

As we look at the travel industry today, Upchurch’s fingerprints can be seen on nearly every aspect. He was a pioneer in luxury travel. He was the co-founder of USTOA. He was the chairman of the African Travel Association. Travel Weekly recognized him in 2008 with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Upchurch got his start in the industry with a yacht charter firm called Vagabond Cruises. He was one of the first to build a timeshare in Mexico. From there it was off to the orient and south Pacific in 1962 with his purchase of Percival Tours—destinations at the time that were certainly off the main stream map for travelers. Percival expanded into Africa and…

Although there may not be any “Do-Overs” or “Mulligans” in business these days, there is certainly time and rationale for “Try-Agains.” Let me explain.

I recently sent out a blast email promoting one of my books. In this case I was featuring my How To Capture More Profitable River Cruise Business. What better time to start planning for a brighter future than right…

Your “Unique Selling Point“ or “USP” is something that makes your agency different from all other companies of its type. Is there something about your business so unique customers would rather do business with you based on that one quality alone? Is there a reason to do business with you rather than the agency down the street or online with Travelocity?  Can you easily articulate the reason? If so, you have located your USP and are on the way to better understanding how to build a smart marketing campaign based on that uniqueness. If you have not emphasized your USP in your marketing, then consumers are likely to pass you over for any number of similarly positioned travel agencies - you are just one of…