Sunday, May 29, 2005

Encouraging Words and Good Advice for New Travel Agents

Podcast Number Fourteen

A new home based travel agent sends an email to the listserv and she is very disheartened over not having received any business despite a lot of advertising. This email spurs many other travel agents to respond with a lot of good advice and encouragement. The support and encouragement for new home based travel agents that is part of the Dugan's Travels host agency is something that I believe that few host agencies have. I also want to mention that Dugan's Travels is not a sponsor of this podcast and I receive no compensation for recommending or making positive comments about Dugans.

This podcast is a bit of a reality check for those of you that are interested in becoming a home based travel agent.

I want to give credit to Magnatunes and the group Cargo Cult for providing the background music for this podcast.

Thanks for listening!

Email me at barry@hometravelagent.net and visit my website at http://www.hometravelagent.net.

Please visit my business website http://www.special-destinations.com if you would like to book a trip or a cruise.

Sunday, May 22, 2005

A Destination Gadget & Listener Mail About Host Agencies

Podcast Number Thirteen

I go into more detail about Nexion as a host agency by answering questions posed by listeners. Also the destination gadget is revealed and it is the sport/hobby of Geocaching. This hobby will take you to destinations that are exciting and destinations that you would likely not travel to if it weren't for geocaching.

Thank you for listening to my podcast. Please feel free to drop me an email at barry@hometravelagent.net and visit my web site at http://www.hometravelagent.net.

Thank you to Magnatunes and artist John Williams for the background music in today's podcast.

If you are interested in booking travel or wish to visit my business web site please stop by at http://www.special-destinations.com.

Sunday, May 15, 2005

Trucker Tom Cameo Appearance, Home Office & Pet Travel

Podcast Number Twelve

What telephone systems are home based travel agents using. Well many are using voice over internet protocal (VOIP) telephones. The most popular are Vonage, Packet8 and Lingo.

Looking for a travel agent niche then how about becoming a pet travel agent. A story that orginally appeared in the Christian Science Monitor was reported today at CBSNews.com.

Trucker Tom from the Trucker Tom's Travels and Audio Podcast makes an appearance at the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast to tell us of some of his hotel horror stories.

This week I will be attending a conference in Bellaire, Michigan at the Shanty Creek Resort. My next podcast will be next weekend and I hope to have a sound seeing or is it scene tour from around Shanty Creek and Bellair, Michigan. If you want to see a beautiful golf course check out the link to Shanty Creek!

Thursday, May 12, 2005

The Humble Travel Agent

Podcast Number Eleven

The Wyndham O'hare experience finally comes to an end - an end that leaves your host humble and eating crow.

In my quest to create better audio quality for my podcasts I was humbled when I lost my motherboard on Mother's Day.

And the topper was when your humble host was gracefully rammed by the handle on a wheel barrow.

However, the podcast ends on a sound scene tour of downtown Holland, Michigan during the Tulip Festival. The Holland Tulip Festival has been rated as the number one small town festival in the United States by Readers Digest Magazine.

Next time a bit more travel related and a segment from Trucker Tom talking about his hotel experiences.

Tuesday, May 03, 2005

Again, European Travel Guides and Nexion Host Agency

Podcast Number ten

In podcast number 9 I paused the recording for a short break and when I came back I hit the record button, or so I thought, and continued on with the podcast. After I posted the podcast I discovered that I must not have hit the record button because that part of the show was missing from that point on. So, tonight I make up that part of the show and move on to talk about an update of my Wyndham O'hare experience and I discussed my experiences so far with the host agency Nexion.

I want to give thanks to Trucker Tom for his podcast. This is my number 10 podcast and I want to thank Trucker Tom for the inspiration that he gave me from his podcasts to jump in and do my own podcast. Trucker Tom can be found at his website, truckerphoto.com.

Please drop me an email if any of you experienced travel agents or experienced travelers would like to occasionally co-host this podcast. I can bring you into the show via a Skype telephone connection.

In an upcoming show, in the destinations segment, look for me to describe a tool that will take you to and let you explore destinations that you would likely never explore otherwise - fun!

Please stop by my website at www.hometravelagent.net. Thank you for listening to my podcast!