Owning your own business is not for the meek and mild mannered. Business is tough—that's all there is to it. If it were easy, everyone would do it. So how do you insure that you are ahead of the competitive pack? Well, that answer is constantly changing, but I have collected a few suggestions from my 21 years in the industry. (Note: I never wrote that out before...wow, 21 years. I'm old!) But I digress, here's ten of my best suggestions to make sure you make it!

Be Unique

Remember, you work for you! Not the supplier. Stop marketing their stuff. Stop pushing their specials and promotions. Push what is right for you and your…

Use Your Mail Boxes To Reconnect.

In-box or out-box: they both serve the same purpose.

I received an email this morning from a friend who found himself “thumbing” through his inbox recently. As a result, he sent me (and others) an email detailing his…

Words matter. The decision to style an occupation one way or another can make a tremendous difference in the public’s perception of a profession. "Flight attendants" used to be "stewards" and that "waitress" at dinner last night was a "server." However, the person who opened your wine was a sommelier. Had a professional massage lately?  If so, in 38 states you had a licensed practitioner known as a "massage therapist", not a "masseuse."  In the other twelve states...well, you tell us.

Are you a travel agent? A travel counselor? What about a trip coach, a travel planner, a travel professional or a travel consultant?  Are you a "home based travel agent?" (ed. note - Yikes) What does…

Carol Dimopoulos is President of Perillo’s Learning Journeys and Groups where she brings her passion for education, travel and community service based programs to global destinations in Europe, Asia, The Americas, Africa and The Middle East. She is a prominent expert in both business and academia the field of niche market and transformative travel. She holds an MBA and serves as an adjunct faculty member for SUNY (State University of New York) where she shares her knowledge of business and organizational management with a focus on business ethics and women in business as well as global marketing and communications.  Her enthusiasm and passion for transforming self through the travel platform invites travel professionals to think in new…

The one certainty about trade show promotion is it is harder than it looks. The entire process must be a well coordinated and timed convergence of the right suppliers, the right speakers and a collection of travel professionals. This year, Travel Show Marketing Group’s Las Vegas Travel Agent Forum demonstrated how adept the group has become at putting together an exceptional travel agent trade show and received well deserved praise from both suppliers and travel professionals for their efforts.

The Stats: 900 travel agents in attendance with 130 Hosted Agents each whom boasted a vetted one million dollar annual production. More than 280 vendors were on site to exhibit, in total more than 1,700 travel professionals from across the world. 

The Conference Schedule: This…