Compelling Reasons Why You Should Choose the Travel Sector

I’ve worked with clients in many sectors, but I’m most enthused about the travel sector.  I’ve found real estate and the sports equipment sectors stimulating too. But there’s just something about travel that puts it front and center.

It’s not just about living the good life either.  It’s about life-improvement, self-actualization, professional development, being more valuable to others, and feeling gratitude toward others and our society. And if I’m investing in a travel career, I want to be laser clear of the benefits, so I can commit fully to it. It becomes work that isn’t work — just enjoyment and growth.

When we feel satisfied with life through travel, we feel better about our world and are more likely to be a good contributor to our society and communities. This is how travel makes us a better person.

I’ve typically built in travel opportunities with my clients across the US. Meeting them in person is great, building rapport, understanding each other while setting the stage for a long-term professional engagement.

Travel’s Powerful Benefits are for Industry People Too

Far beyond FAM trips or digital nomad explorations, travel brings a wide body of benefits for travel workers which I’ll highlight below. And everyone speaks of personal transformation as the real end goal – whether relaxation and health or personal growth. Well-being trips are important for travel pros too.  Of course, when you’re working in the industry and traveling, you can engineer workcations and Bleisure trips and get every last ounce of value out of it. And why not?  Travel is rare and expensive and we have to respect our budgets and time.

When we drill down to specific gains, we find some that are truly irresistible and unique. They’re compelling for our health, outlook, social well-being and enjoyment of life. Travel too has income and career benefits and it awakens profound skills, confidence, enthusiasm and capabilities that lay dormant. And it’s not for laziness or lack of awareness either because we do need the financial means and resourcefulness to travel. Opportunity should be a big word in our marketing vocabulary and we should feel empathy to customers who waffling on their opportunities.

Authenticity in the business means actual, real travel experiences enjoyed.

Understanding the Travel Customer: Their Zest for Life

There is a clear difference in the personalities and the joie de vivre of people who travel. They have this lively buzz about them that infuses their activities and social interactions. Their joy of travel itself becomes a catalyst for raising other’s mood and spirit.  They have this open-ended air about them that lifts the oppressive ceiling that we feel in our daily work lives. They’re a walking billboard for “a great life really is possible and your dreams are precious.”

If people see this value in travel, they can use travel as a portal to a new, more profound life – a lifestyle that’s personally relevant, stimulating, and elevating. If it’s evident in your staff, consider the effect on your travel customers.  It can create a new lifestyle platform supporting everything they do, infusing every activity with positive meaning and exposing them to new situations, perspectives and relationships that relax their soul, making them believe life is good and travel should be a fixture in their lives.

Why Do the Wealthy Travel So Much?

Do wealthy people travel out of boredom or just to spend?  Travel is an easy option for them, but has to be more about self-actualization.  Whether it’s business or personal, they’re getting things done, enjoying life, and exploring their own potential – not wasting time in stultification. They learn from the people they meet and the change of scenery brings them back to life.

Many would say travel is a privilege of the wealthy. It takes significant financial resources, requires the willingness of other foreign peoples, and you have to work long hours to get your 2-week escape from your work life.  But if you’re working in travel, perhaps you don’t have to escape your work, because it’s filled with exciting novelty, fresh healthy experiences and opportunities.

When you work in travel, you are part of the consumer and business travel market – living it.

Let’s review the Full Personal Value of a Travel Career:

Intrinsic Enjoyment of travel and helping others:

• • A Passion for Travel: Many individuals who work in the travel industry are passionate about exploring new places, cultures, and experiences themselves.
  • Creating Unforgettable Experiences: We’re helping others plan and enjoy their dream vacations or crucial business trips knowing we’re enabling some of the most rewarding and healthy results for our customers.
  • Blending Work and Leisure: The workcation and Bleisure trends (business + leisure) allows travel professionals to get our work accomplished, even better, while exploring rejuvenation, new novel experiences, locations and cultures. 

Unique Benefits and Perks:

• • Access to Industry Perks: Employees in the travel industry often receive discounts, special rates, and even complimentary trips or travel vouchers.
  • Cultural Immersion: Working in the industry, especially abroad, offers opportunities to live and work in different settings, gain firsthand experience of diverse cultures, and broaden one’s worldview.
  • Networking Opportunities: The global nature of the travel industry provides numerous opportunities to connect with people from different backgrounds, cultures, and professional fields. We connect with prospective customers and business partners and discover the potential of a vacation destination.

Personal and Professional Growth:

• • Continuous Learning: The travel industry is dynamic, with new destinations, technologies, and trends constantly emerging, offering opportunities for continuous learning and skill development.
  • Developing Diverse Skills: Professionals in the travel industry develop valuable skills like communication, problem-solving, cultural awareness, and adaptability, which are transferable to various roles and sectors.
  • Exposure to International Markets: Most lucrative travel sales is international. Professionals gain unique insights into global economic patterns and consumer behaviors through interactions in destinations abroad.
  • Building Resilience and Adaptability: The industry’s susceptibility to external factors like global events encourages progressive, adaptive business skills and mindfulness. 

Dynamic and Engaging Work:

• • Creative Opportunities: Roles in the industry often involve contributing to creativity and innovation, whether in designing tour packages, sharing experiences, promoting marketing destinations, or for creative marketers, crafting engaging content.
  • Variety and Excitement: The nature of the travel industry means no two days are the same, keeping work stimulating and fulfilling. The power of novelty and fresh experiences is key to business innovation and brand leadership.

Freedom and Autonomy

• • Self-determination: Given AI is automating mundane work, travel workers are free to learn, grow and deliver the essential human touch in their work. That freedom lends value to clients/employers filling the vital human emotional connection with travelers.

Saying the travel business is the most rewarding is somewhat subjective. There are the performance demands, expectations, competitive challenges, where you’ll need energy and availability for projects to help maintain a customer base who are always exposed to competitors. And whether it’s marketing, sales, customer-engagement, we need to bring expertise, skills and enthusiasm to our roles. We can’t mail it in.

But if being out there in the world gives us all the benefits above, it is far beyond what other industries are offering.

In an era when sitting in a chair staring at a screen is the leading cause of death, travel offers to get travel staff out there living within the world of experiences creating more to share, to earn a great living and support great travel companies.

Find strategies to help your travelers enjoy their vacations and optimize your travel marketing strategy.

Title graphic of Almalfi Italy courtesy of FreePik