Just Picture It Now: July 2006

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

5 Keys To Marketing On-Line

The goal of working online is the same as traditional networking: you’re trying to form a relationship with somebody you trust and that trusts you. People have formed relationships online for years, through message boards, instant messaging and e-mail. This relationship however only begins online.

Sales 101: People buy from people they like. Online marketing does not replace the human element of developing, maintaining, and nurturing any relationship. Real trust in any relationship only comes from personal contact, either in person, or over the phone.

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Finding your way into the online networking realm, and using your visits there effectively can be helped by applying traditional referral networking thinking. With online networking, there are several ways to develop your word-of-mouth marketing, but it's important to understand that the foundation of making online networking work for you is the same as with any kind of networking--you've got to develop relationships with trusted business associates.

I’ve been able to start many a friendship online and quite honestly, two of the best team members I have on my team came from online marketing. The question is how was I able to start these relationships, and get them to join MY team? How in all the millions of e-mails and posts that generate online every day, did these two people single me out of cyber space?

The answer is simple: Apply good networking fundamentals online. I believe there are five keys for networking success online:

1. Join one or more online networking communities – Actively participate. No matter which community you choose, however, after joining, you need to participate. Take a genuine interest the people on the board and talk about what they have posted in a positive, informative matter. After they get to know you, and if you are able to contribute something meaningful to the board, they will be the ones who contact you. Those two team members I told you about earlier, came from the same message board I contribute to regularly.

2. Start a Blog or write a regular column for a website or e-newsletter. You can start a Blog (basically an online diary just like this one) on one of the larger blogger sites or online communities; you'll create more buzz for yourself. Talk about your industry, either in general or be more specific to you particular market. It doesn’t matter as long as you make the reading informative.

3. Develop an e-mail newsletter for your own company. Create an e-mail database of clients, customers and friends, and send them regular content that drives them to your own website. A good rule of thumb for something like this would be once a month. A monthly newsletter gives you plenty of time to come up with a number of stories and articles to share. Keep a folder of ideas you would like to talk about and work on the project over the entire month. It’s also important to set a specific date and time, and then stick to that date. I’ve been getting a monthly newsletter from a company call “Home Toys” for years. I know to expect that newsletter on the first of every month without fail. Others are sent twice each month, and some even every week.

4. Never forget that online networking is still about developing trust. In order to drive business to your company by word of mouth, you must focus on developing real, personal relationships with people. Do not use these boards, blogs or newsletters as a platform to actively pitch and promote your business. A subtle signature with a link to your web site is all that is needed. Making you signature BIGGER or LOUDER will not drive people to your site. What you have to say and contribute is far more important and makes a much better impression than any banner ad or signature could ever do.

5. Understand that online networking has its own cultural norms. Many cultural pretenses don’t exist online, however, and people tend to be much blunter when responding online than in a face-to-face meeting. With online networking, people feel it's easier to be more direct.

I want you to pay particular attention to what is NOT on this list: Sending out thousands of unsolicited e-mails from a mailing list. This is not an effective marketing tool when it comes to developing relationships. When was the last time you opened an e-mail from someone you didn’t know and read all the way through? (And why are most of these e-mails mile and miles long and still never really tell you anything about the product or opportunity?) More importantly, when was the last time you wanted to develop a relationship with the sender of that e-mail? Once a relationship is formed and they trust the sender of that e-mail, then it’s from a trusted friend.

Doug & Ronda Bauknight
AKA: TravelPro
Travel Agent / Networker
Phone: 678.458.5812

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Travel Reservations: 1.800.243.4450
RTA #24635

Posted by TravelPro at 3:54 PM | Permalink | Comments

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Where Would You Like to Live?

Never in history has any other group of people had as much freedom to choose where they want to live as Americans do today:

• Our government gives us the liberty to live wherever we want.

• Our prosperity gives us the capacity to live wherever we want,

• Our technology gives us the ability to live wherever we want, and,

• Our diverse American landscape gives us the opportunity to live wherever we want. You can choose practically any climate, any environment, and any population density--and still live--in America

This is a privilege that should not be wasted. There is no reason for most Americans to live in a place they dislike, or is harmful to their health, their soul, or their family. We are free to move.

In choosing a community to call “home” we’ve been blessed with an amazing array of options to select from. Our nation is a smorgasbord of cities and towns of different sizes, styles, surroundings, scenery, social opportunities, and support systems. What we often overlook, however, is that there are serious financial, emotional, and even spiritual downsides to the most popular locations while there are great advantages to be found in less populated cities. For instance, status is always accompanied by stress. Uptown is usually uptight.

Every place has a pace. It is foolish to ignore this fact. Some cities run at warp speed; they never slow down and they never sleep. They live on caffeine and adrenaline, and all its citizens seem in a hurry. It’s exhilarating but exhausting.

Other cities stroll along with a slow saunter, like the lazy river that flows through the middle of many of them. Everything happens at a more moderate tempo. Just as some communities are passionate; others are peaceful. Recently more and more people are rediscovering the advantages of living in the smaller, less-expensive, and family-friendly communities of America’s heartland.

“Where on earth should I be living?” Your life has a context. We live on location, not in some vacuum. In considering your life’s purpose, you need to think, not only about what you’ll do, but also where you’ll do it. Make an honest assessment of how you are shaped and identify the environment that best suits the purpose, passion, and personality of your life.

You many find yourself caught up dreaming of living a simpler, healthier, more purpose-driven life. I urge you to spend some time reflecting on your alternatives. Is where you live worth the stress? No one is forcing you to stay where you are.

It’s your choice.

Doug & Ronda Bauknight
AKA: TravelPro
Travel Agent / Networker
Phone: 678.458.5812

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Travel Reservations: 1.800.243.4450
RTA #24635

Posted by TravelPro at 4:29 PM | Permalink | Comments

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

Former Employee celebrates his own Independence Day with YTB Travel Network.

Regular 9-5 Employee announces his retirement after partnering with a solid company and leadership to market a $7 Trillion industry and creates his own freedom.

Atlanta, GA - July 4, 2006 – The 4th of July has been a special day in America for the last 230 years, a day that all of America celebrates its Independence with our Stars and Stripes flying proud and high, back yard barbeques and fireworks. This year, July 4th has a special meaning for Doug Bauknight who celebrates his own independence with YTB Travel Network, an internet based travel agency, which uses referral marketing to build its business.

Thanks to both travel commissions made from his state of the art booking engine, and lucrative compensation received for helping others start a home based travel agency of their own, Mr. Bauknight has retired from the 9-5 grind of being an employee, to being his own boss. “I’ve always wanted to do my own thing, and have financial security, but never had any success.” Doug looks back “I began to feel as if success and prosperity was meant for somebody else, not me.”

Then on January 16th, 2005 Doug and his wife of 9 years, Ronda, joined a little known company called YourTravelBiz.com. “I remember thinking, what’s the worst that could happen?” Ronda smiles “We get to take a couple vacations a year with our two children, and because we own our own Agency, we can now claim that same vacation as a tax deduction. Even if we didn’t make a fortune, we’d still save far more on taxes than if we continued to vacation like we were.” That was only the beginning of what the Bauknight’s would learn about the travel industry and all the advantages a home-based business really had.

YTB Travel Network is a 5 year old, debt free, publicly traded internet based travel company, headquartered in Edwardsville, Illinois. Offering Franchise type support to tens of thousands of Referring Travel Agents across the country, YTB competes directly with other highly advertised internet travel companies such as Expedia and Travelocity. 72 year old Founder and CEO of YTB, J. Lloyd Tomer, affectionately known as “Coach” within the company, believes YTB Travel Network can surpass any and all other travel companies out there by choosing “referral marketing” as their marketing strategy.

“It’s brilliant! Who do you know at Expedia?” Doug asks “Do you even know where Expedia is? If I tell anyone I’m a Referring Travel Agent do you know what the very next thing out of their mouth is?” Doug answers “Can you get me a deal to_______?” So far it seems to be working, booking over $500 million in travel services in 2005 and thus far 2006 is showing indications that the company could exceed 5 times that amount, with expectations of $2.5 Billion in travel bookings for the current fiscal year.

Doug also believes there are other reasons he’s been able to succeed with YTB where he has failed before. The first being market appeal. Young or old, male or female, rich or poor, everyone dreams about, talks about, and wants a vacation. The second is inventory. “Not having to maintain any inventory is a big bonus for me.” Doug says “My inventory is a 160,000 ton cruise ship down in the Port of Miami right now.” The third is the current industry shift. 85% of all travel is now booked on line, and with Baby Boomers now starting to retire, there is substantial growth in the market for at least the next 20 years. “Baby Boomers have always dictated what will be explosive markets from the time they were born.” Doug points out. These same Baby Boomers will now retire once every 8 seconds for the next 20 years. Doug asks “What are they going to do with all their spare time?” His answer is “travel”, and industry experts agree that the current $7 Trillion industry will double to $14 Trillion by the end of the decade.

Jim Sloan, who also retired as a Police Officer and is Doug’s Sponsor with YTB, has worked with Doug for the last 18 months and considers him one of his closest friends. Jim looked back to when he first started mentoring Mr. Bauknight. “Doug was just like everyone else. He had the same dreams we all do. He just needed help in how to turn the dream into reality.” Jim recalls “Most people don’t understand that they didn’t form their current mindset and habits in a day. It takes time to learn new and better ways of thinking and working to create this type of independence.”

Jim credits most of Doug’s success to having a simple willingness to learn. Doug’s own research and personal development and growth, began to set a course to achieve success, something he once thought was meant only for others. Doug states, “There is some really good information out there, more information than you could ever imagine.” He continues “It’s just a simple matter of opening your eyes and mind to ideas and principles that have honestly been around for thousands of years.”
Now Jim believes that the student has become the teacher. “Doug would always thank me for what I would do for him.” Says Jim “I told him that the best way for him to thank me would be to teach others and help others the way I helped him.” Susan Hynes who joined Doug’s team from across the country in January of 2006 agrees “Doug was the first one who asked me what I wanted out of the business. That told me he really cared. He has a great desire to help. I just knew, I signed up with him on the spot.”

Doug Bauknight named his Marketing Company “Just Picture It Now!” He believes this industry brings up vivid images and pictures in everyone’s mind. “If you keep those pictures in the forefront, and actually feel the emotions they create on a daily basis, anyone can achieve the independence I’ve received.” Says the newly Independent Network Marketer “It’s all about passion and emotion, it’s really that simple.”

Doug & Ronda Bauknight
AKA: TravelPro
Travel Agent / Networker
Phone: 678.458.5812

Learn How To Become A Travel Agent

Book Your Travel & Vacations With

Travel Reservations: 1.800.243.4450
RTA #24635