183 - Come Take a Ride With Us on the Best New Cruise Ship of the Year

Podcast Number One-hundred-eighty-three

Have you ever wondered what it is like to take a pre-innaugural cruise on one of the largest and most modern cruise ships in the world. In this podcast you will hear travel agent Deb Gronski describe her two day pre-innaugural cruise on the Celebrity Solstice.

News Articles:

The Best New Cruise Ship of the Year

Send postcards the old fashioned way using your digital photos.

Five ways to avoid germs.

Tech toys for business travelers.




Learn, enjoy, produce and prosper!

Keep up with us on Twitter.com

Lorene's Twitter name is lorener

Barry's Twitter name is kantzb

Check out Lorenes travel agent website at www.sharptonguedconsulting.com.

Check out Blubrry. It's a great place to be a listener. You can comment on podcasts you listen to and you can sign up to be friends with the podcasters on the Blubrry Network. Go over to Blubrry, sign up and become my friend. I would like to get to know all of you!

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. You can email me at barry@hometravelagent.net or email Lorene at sharptongued@mac.com

Steffen Shackinger
"Perfect Waves" (mp3)
from "ElectriGuitartistry"
(Candy Rat Records)

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182 - Local Travel, A Trend You Can Profit From

Podcast Number One-hundred-eighty-two

Your local area is ripe for setting up tours and package vacations. Justin Francis at the Future of Tourism organization predicts travel will become more local. People will be looking for local travel opportunities as airfares and fuel costs rise. Justin predicts travel will follow the trend which food is approaching and that is local grown food, or "slow food." People will travel locally as they become aware of the environmental benefits of staying close to home. Lorene and Barry talk about setting up contacts with local hotels and Chambers of Commerce. You can set up your own tours, after all you know best the area you live within and chances are you are proud of some of your area's attractions. Lorene and Barry also mention a new web based service where you can promote your local tours.

Tours By Locals

News Articles:

Wyndham Travel Agent Training

Worlds Largest Cruise Ship

New Runways at Major Airports

The Movie "Australia" and Tourism




Learn, enjoy, produce and prosper!

Keep up with us on Twitter.com

Lorene's Twitter name is lorener

Barry's Twitter name is kantzb

Check out Lorenes travel agent website at www.sharptonguedconsulting.com.

Check out Blubrry. It's a great place to be a listener. You can comment on podcasts you listen to and you can sign up to be friends with the podcasters on the Blubrry Network. Go over to Blubrry, sign up and become my friend. I would like to get to know all of you!

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. You can email me at barry@hometravelagent.net or email Lorene at sharptongued@mac.com

Mel Cooleys
"Welcome To the New World" (mp3)
from "Mel Cooleys Live (?) In Seattle"
(Yellow Tail Records)

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181 - Expand Your Market and Help People With Special Needs Travel

Podcast Number One-hundred-eighty-one

A differentiating factor a travel agent brings to the table when working with clients, is their knowledge of how to help the traveler. You may have clients who want to travel with family members but are limited because of their family member's special needs. You will be a hero if you know how to accommodate those special needs so the family can travel together. In this show our guests are from the company, "Special Needs at Sea." We've talked with Andrew Garnett from "Special Needs at Sea" in a previous podcast. However in this podcast, Andrew and Charles Newton talk about their new commission program for travel agents. You now can help those travelers with special needs and earn a commission.

Check out Lucianne Evans on MySpace

You can find Lucianne's album at http://cdbaby.com/cd/evanscoppola

Travel News:

American Airlines offers flight check-in by cell phone

Thirsty Swagman Tours is offering the first Asian Pub Crawl Tour

Tours by Locals may offer you an opportunity to expand your business


Learn, enjoy, produce and prosper!

Keep up with us on Twitter.com

Lorene's Twitter name is lorener

Barry's Twitter name is kantzb

Check out Lorenes travel agent website at www.sharptonguedconsulting.com.

Check out Blubrry. It's a great place to be a listener. You can comment on podcasts you listen to and you can sign up to be friends with the podcasters on the Blubrry Network. Go over to Blubrry, sign up and become my friend. I would like to get to know all of you!

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. You can email me at barry@hometravelagent.net or email Lorene at sharptongued@mac.com

Tony Evans and His Orchestra
"Trumpet Blues & Cantabile" (mp3)
from "The Ultimate Jive Album"
(Tema International)

More On This Album

180 - Planning Your Business for 2009 - Tools, Tips and Ideas

Podcast Number One-hundred-eighty

Now is the time to think about your business for 2009. Barry and Lorene talk about planning for 2009, including tips and ideas to help you make your business more successful. A cash flow projection is a great business tool to help you plan your expenses and revenue. Barry includes a screenshot of a cash flow projection spreadsheet and a link to the spreadsheet in the show notes.


The screen shot only shows three of the twelve months. You can download the full sample cash flow spreadsheet at - download spreadsheet.

Travel News:

Great Cruise Deals

Dogs keeping you safe


The Holidays which are the most dangerous for drivers

Best Places to Travel in a Recession

TSA Goes Entrepeneurial

Airfares Drop for Holiday Travel


GotoMeeting is now available for the Mac. Get a 30 day free trial at http://www.gotometting.com/podcasts.

Learn, enjoy, produce and prosper!

Keep up with us on Twitter.com

Lorene's Twitter name is lorener

Barry's Twitter name is kantzb

Check out Lorenes travel agent website at www.sharptonguedconsulting.com.

Check out Blubrry. It's a great place to be a listener. You can comment on podcasts you listen to and you can sign up to be friends with the podcasters on the Blubrry Network. Go over to Blubrry, sign up and become my friend. I would like to get to know all of you!

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. You can email me at barry@hometravelagent.net or email Lorene at sharptongued@mac.com

Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band
"Backrow Politics" (mp3)
from "Act Your Age"
(Immergent)

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179 - Destination Seaside

Podcast Number One-hundred-seventy-nine

Lorene talks about her recent visit to Seaside, Oregon. Seaside is a great place to send clients for a family reunion, a girl friend get-a-way, or for a relaxing visit. Lorene gives advice on local restaurants, hotels and the local candy. Plus, Lorene shares some of her photos.

Links for Seaside, Oregon

<http://www.seasideor.com/>

<http://www.seasidechamber.com/>

<http://mckeownsrestaurant.com/Home_Page.php>

<http://www.pignpancake.com/>

<http://www.goosehollowinn.com/cove/index.html>

Travel News:

What do you do when you first arrive at a hotel room?


A USA Today opinion piece talks about how travel agents help you avoid hassles.

TSA easing restrictions for carry on liquids.

Delta and Northwest become one.

Runaway poodle causes delays at Boston Logan.

What is that strange object in the sky? A bird, a plane - no it's a Zepplin!



GotoMeeting is now available for the Mac. Get a 30 day free trial at http://www.gotometting.com/podcasts.

Learn, enjoy, produce and prosper!

Keep up with us on Twitter.com

Lorene's Twitter name is lorener

Barry's Twitter name is kantzb

Check out Lorenes travel agent website at www.sharptonguedconsulting.com.

Check out Blubrry. It's a great place to be a listener. You can comment on podcasts you listen to and you can sign up to be friends with the podcasters on the Blubrry Network. Go over to Blubrry, sign up and become my friend. I would like to get to know all of you!

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. You can email me at barry@hometravelagent.net or email Lorene at sharptongued@mac.com

Kat Fader
"Come With Me" (mp3)
from "Halloween Bloody Night"
(Tobacco Music)

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