What do Travel Advisors and Girl Scouts have in Common?
It’s that time of the year again. You wake up early one Saturday morning to go grab some groceries, and as you approach the front entrance of the store, what do you see? A troop of Girl Scouts surrounded by boxes of Samoas, Tagalongs, and Thin Mints. As you walk by the “cookies for sale” sign, you politely let them know that you may stop by after you do your grocery shopping. While these cookies are tempting, you need the additional time to walk around the store, contemplate your New Years’ resolutions and decide just how many boxes of cookies you should commit to today.
You go about your grocery shopping when your list brings you to the snack aisle. Among the sea of cookies, there are knock-off brands of your favorite Girl Scout treats for half the price! You consider just buying these now that the craving for Thin Mints has entered your mind. Yet, for some reason, you keep going back to supporting the Girl Scouts standing outside of the store instead of buying the cookies in front of you that are basically the same. And here’s why:
It Feels Good to Support an Entrepreneur
Let’s face it – you could easily buy the off-brand cookies and they’d taste the same, but when you buy the cookies from a large chain grocery store, you never see the impact of your purchase. When you purchase a box of cookies from a Girl Scout, you see a smile light up on her face as she realizes that she is one step closer to reaching top sales for her troop. You’re contributing towards helping someone reach their goals and grow their business. You are fueling an entrepreneurial mindset and encouraging someone to keep going – all by simply purchasing their product and choosing them over a large corporate entity.
Likewise, as the client of a travel advisor, you can confidently know that by booking your trip through a travel advisor, you are assisting a small business owner in reaching their goals for no extra cost. When you book with a travel advisor, you are not simply another number – you are a contributing factor to their business’ success.
They Know Their Product In and Out
Unlike the grocery store aisle, a Girl Scout can provide you with top notch recommendations based on their product knowledge and your unique preferences. Hate coconut? Samoas aren’t for you. Allergic to peanuts? Don’t eat a Tagalong! Love the taste of mint and chocolate? Thin Mints are the cookie for you! Girl Scouts are able to provide personalized recommendations to you due to their in-depth knowledge and listening capabilities. They want to make sure they’re helping you get the product that you are going to like the best!
While your travel advisor may not be able to sell you a delicious box of cookies, they can provide you with custom-tailored itineraries and personalized recommendations. Much like a Girl Scout, travel advisors have a thorough understanding of their product and the trips that they are selling. They take destination certification courses, sit in on informational webinars, and do detailed trainings so that they can best serve their clients with a wealth of knowledge.
We Share Strong Values
The Girl Scout Law states, “I will do my best to be honest and fair, friendly and helpful, considerate and caring, courageous and strong, and responsible for what I say and do, and to respect myself and others, respect authority, use resources wisely, make the world a better place, and be a sister to every Girl Scout.”
Travel advisors run their business based on their true passion for the travel industry. When you talk with a travel advisor, you can often hear their passion for a destination shine through in conversation. The experience is entirely different from sitting on hold to speak with a corporate customer service representative that is most likely reading from a script. When you work with a travel advisor, you are building an individual relationship with someone who actively wants you to have the best trip ever. Much like the Girl Scout Law, travel advisors have a client-focused mindset. We strive to be considerate of your needs, friendly and helpful, and to do everything in our power to ensure that your vacation is exactly what you want it to be.
If you’ve never worked with a travel advisor before but you are ready to experience the difference, then we encourage you to reach out today!