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It's All About Groups!
December 21, 2007
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As we wind down the year with our last
edition of InSite, we want to thank you for
your support and readership this past year.
This e-magazine is truly a labor of love in
our effort to community new and noteworthy
items that are relevant to you and your group
trip planning.
It truly wouldn't be possible without the
support of our readers like you.
May the holiday season be all that you hope
for and the New Year bring prosperity and joy
to you and yours.
Sincerely,
Jeff Gayduk
Publisher
P.S. We're awarding one lucky InSite reader
two tickets aboard Southwest Airlines, just
for requesting information from advertisers.
Might as well be you...click
here to enter - we'll inform the winner
by New Year's.
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This Week's News
From Group Travel Blog
Jamaica
Takes Home Top Honors at World Travel Awards
"Michigan's
Little Bavaria" To Host Fam Tour
Religious
Tour to Mata Vaishno Devi,India
Kuoni
buys Conference & Touring GmbH of Germany
Cheap
Student Travel Discounts - on Prep Trips.com
See more breaking news
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Looking for New Trip Ides?
Find them on GroupTravelDirectory.com - 4.0!
Grouptraveldirectory.com
4.0 places you in direct contact with the
group-friendly suppliers world-wide. With
thousands of group businesses - from
accommodations to attractions to
transportation resources and everything in
between, the task of organizing your next
group trip is effortless.
On our search engine you can search for
suppliers by keyword, category, country,
state or zip code and save them in your own
"trip ideas" folder making it easy to review
later and print the information or make
personal contacts to build an itinerary.
We make online trip research effortless. See for yourself!
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Beyond New Ships in 2008: Cruise Industry Focuses on Elevating the Experience
By Cindy Bertram
Ship innovations marked the cruise industry
in 2007, along with a focus on stronger
branding. A new cruise line, Azamara Cruises,
emerged, and 12 new ships were introduced.
The year also saw an intense demand and
growth in the European market, a new focus on
multi-generational travel occurred, and the
hardware components of ships once again
became a concentration point.
The river cruise segment of the industry
also saw tremendous growth and heightened
interest. Leisure Group Travel spoke with
executives in the cruise industry to get
their input and ideas on where the market is
heading in trends, demands and focus in 2008.
Click here to get a head start on cruising for the New Year
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New England Travel Tips: Historic Byways
By Alice Gregory
Robert Frost wrote his famous poem, "The Road
Not Taken," long before group travel made an
impact on the landscape of New England. But
he would have surely smiled whenever a group
goes off the well-traveled, bustling highways
to explore the historic byways, beautiful
routes that highlight the history and culture
of the region.
Traveling State Route 169 in Connecticut,
it is easy to erase the bustling cities and
busy Interstate 95 from your mind. This
historic byway takes you back in time,
winding through historic villages, passing
picture-postcard white churches, their white
spires rising above the tops of ancient maple
trees. Miles and miles of stone walls are a
photogenic reminder of how early settlers
wrestled farmland from this rugged landscape.
Click here for more on New England's Historic Byways
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Marketing Matters: Three Ways to Avoid Travel Advertising Trauma
By Tim Warren
I am spending tons of money for advertising,
and I am not getting enough new clients or
arrivals. What do I do?" Does this statement
sound familiar? Most people are so focused on
website traffic or generating leads that they
overlook the most important aspect of
advertising - sales conversion. Promotions
without a strong focus on converting
prospects into new inquires and sales is big
waste of your time and money!
Here are some very common ways many fail
at travel advertising and sales conversion,
followed by what you need to do to have sales
conversion success. To turn your pain into
profits, follow the important link at the end
of this article and you'll get more free top
tips and personal training from me to
supercharge your travel advertising success.
Turn your pain into profits
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Warming Up! (Putting your money where your mouth is.)
By Mike Marchev
In a few short weeks, we will all be
documenting our "wish list" for the New Year
- 2008.
>From business tactics to dietary controls
.... from exercise to house-hold chores,
we will once again focus toward improving our
lot in life in one way or another.
This is as it should be.
But what about "the warm up"?
Perhaps this is why year after year we come
up short. Maybe ... just maybe ... we become
victims of
our own impetuousness.
Let's try something different this year.
Let's warm up while we still have some time
left in 2007.
Athletes do it. So maybe we should give it a
shot.
When our bodies are not use to something
there seems to be a tendency to reject our
efforts.
So let's slowly get use to the change that we
are forecasting in 2008.
I don't care at this point what it is you are
planning to do differently next year,
but whatever it is, I want you to do it for
the next five days. Exercise? Diet? Prospecting?
Whatever you think will make your 2008
Resolutions List, try it this week.
Five days is all I ask. Then go back to your
current routine for the next three weeks.
But when January 1srt comes, you will already
have tried your new behavior.
You have already warmed up a little bit. This
will prevent your "cold-turkey" approach
and who knows, maybe next year just might be
the year for the New You.
What have you got to lose? For the next five
days, pretend you are in motion.
Then, next week, let me know how you feel.
Next year is going to be the best year we
have ever had. Not by accident ... but by
design.
Let's warm up and then, make it happen.
Mike Marchev
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Cathing Up With...
Kevin J. Wright , Founder/President of the World Religious Travel Association
This week, InSite E-Zine interviews Kevin J.
Wright.
Kevin J. Wright is one of the world's most
recognized religious travel authorities and
Founder/President of the World Religious
Travel Association (www.religioustravelassociation.com),
the leading global organization for faith
tourism.
In Fall 2008, WRTA will host the World
Religious Travel Expo & Educational
Conference 2008 (www.religioustravelexpo.com).
Wright is also the founder of the world's
first-ever online global social network for
religious tourism
(www.religioustravelnetwork.com).
In addition, Wright is the President of the
Religious Marketing Consulting Group (www.religiousmarketconsulting.com),
a team of independent professionals who
assist companies in marketing, selling, and
developing products and services for the
global religious market.
In 2004, Wright launched the very successful
and high profile Religious Travel Division at
Globus, one of the world's largest escorted
travel companies.
Today Wright is an award-winning author and
has traveled to almost 30 countries, visited
more than 300 major places of pilgrimage,
embarked on full-ship faith-based cruise
charters, writes for national publications,
and serves as an international guest speaker.
In 2000, Wright personally presented his
travel guidebooks to Pope John Paul II. He is
the forthcoming author of The Christian
Traveler Planner, the most comprehensive
guidebook ever written on faith vacations.
As one of the most sought-out religious
travel authorities worldwide, Wright has been
interviewed by the CBS Early Show, TIME
Magazine, USA TODAY, The Wall Street Journal,
The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Travel
Weekly, Travel Age West, Travel Agent
Magazine, and dozens of other travel,
religious, and secular media outlets to
discuss faith-based travel.
Click here to read Kevin's interview
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