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"Becoming a 'Local Hero' when Marketing your Travel Business"

 

Ros: Hi everybody. It's me, it's me. It's Ros here from the Travel Agent Achievers podcast, once again, with a fabulous episode today. I know I say that, but they really are pretty cool. But today I am talking with a friend of mine called Hayley Osborne. Hayley is going to discuss with me all the things around local area marketing.

And I know as travel professionals, you either work from home or you work in an office, but a lot of us work directly with our local communities. So that's what Hayley and I are going to be talking about today, giving you some great marketing strategies, how to become number one in your local area online, and a whole bunch of other things.

But before we get to that, let me just tell you a little bit about Hayley. Not only is she getting married in a few weeks time, uh, which she and I have just been talking about, she has two very young boys. She's got Charles and Hector who are only a year and two years old. She works from home, she has a fabulous business where she does help small business owners through to multinationals with their local area marketing, plus a range of other things.

Now she's been in business since she was 25. She's continued to build three different businesses along the way, anything from fashion to candles and corporate and marketing some of the world's biggest alcoholic brands as well. Yes, she is a new friend of mine. Don't you worry about that. Now she has grown to multiple six figure businesses.

As I said, all whilst becoming a mom to her beautiful two boys as well. But during her corporate career and also with her small business as well, she's helped hundreds of small business owners grow their businesses by infusing their story. And personality into their marketing, coaching these businesses around becoming more aligned with themselves and what they do.

It's helping you with your confidence and getting yourself out there. She understands that small businesses are the backbone of our economies. Cheers to that and has made it her mission to demystify local area marketing. This is to help you reach more customers. And have a bigger impact. Now she's also got her own podcast, which we'll link to in the show notes called the Hayley Osborne show, sorry, Hayley Osborne show, which has got over 70 episodes so far.

She and I are on track and I know that we will both be hitting the a hundred episodes very, very soon together. She's been featured in some super cool publications. She's worked with some of the biggest businesses in Australia. She has her own membership program called superhero marketing, and this is where she teaches it.

Teaches service based businesses on how to become number one, as I said, in the local communities for both online and offline marketing. She wants every business owner to have a profitable business and get in front of their ideal clients and make sure that marketing is not the thing holding you back.

She wants to help you propel forward. So today, Hayley, welcome to the Travel Agent Achievers podcast. I'm so excited that you are here.

Hayley: Hi Ros, that, I'm flattered that introduction was beautiful. Thank you. I'm excited to be here with you as well. And yes, we are friends. We're new friends. And I think that this will be a long term friendship I feel because we're very similar and I love that.

Ros: Yeah, me too. I only, um, one thing that I, I say, and maybe I'm going to have to make this now, one of those podcasts that you have to put the X symbol on or that like, it's more than G rated. Yeah. I don't work with dickheads, basically. I have a no dickhead policy and that is certainly goes through every part of my life from friends to business and also having guests on the podcast.

So you, uh. Not in that circle, obviously you are one of the good people. And I love that we only met a few months ago, which is super cool. But what you said at that moment, when you and I were talking in Port Douglas, how you work specifically with businesses to help them be that superhero in their local area, like that just resonated with me because the travel professionals that I work with, a lot of them.

Are working from home, they, or they have an office and they are, you know, working with the people that are in their local communities and helping them explore this world and the planet that we live on. But they are initially, I think, not confined, but they like to specialise in that local area so they can meet people as well.

But before we even dive into all the cool stuff, Hayley, can you just. Tell me a little bit about your background, like marketing. You and I are marketing our jam. I love it. We both come from that background. Tell me a little bit about what you've done. 

Hayley: Yes. So I, my name is Hayley Osborne. I run a business called Hayley Osborne cleverly after myself.

And yes, I'm a marketer. I have. I have a long time ago. I have a marketing degree and I've worked in this space for about 15 years. So I have worked on some of the biggest brands in the world. Um, and that's how I started my career. So I was working on Jack Daniels, Southern Comfort, Shamboard. Um, and it was, it was beautiful.

And I had a fashion label as well. Uh, I think it was 2009. I was nominated for emerging designer of the year. manufactured in China, had national stockists. And then I realised the fashion industry wasn't for me, but I did this on the side still while having my corporate day job, you know, it was so fun and it really set me up.

And that was the year basically that Instagram started. And so coming into the corporate world and. Was like, Oh, you can start the Instagram pages for Jack Daniels and watch them bloom. And now they're like in the multiple seven figures, obviously for Australia. And then it's nice to watch it grow to know that, you know, and we think that these social platforms have been around forever and they really haven't.

And it's not that long ago. So I got to do that at the beginning of my career. And it really set me up to. Propel and set me up to be able to do what I do today. So I've been running my own business for six years now. And prior to that too, I had a candle business and, um, I was in Sydney. Now I've moved back to Adelaide.

And the reason for that was family. And I worked for the lead agency for foreign direct investment into the state. And I headed up the marketing team and everything kind of all roads led to Rome. And so when, you know, when your

Ros: Is that your favourite destination, by the way?

Hayley: It actually is. I lived in Rome for a year.

Ros: No way. Whenever I'm in Italy, whenever I'm in Rome specifically, I feel like I've lived there before. So you and I, you never know. We could have had a past life together in Rome.

Hayley: Oh my gosh. So. I'm, I'm not Italian, but I do speak fluent Italian. And I love that place. I'm actually marrying an Italian in a few weeks.

I speak better than he does.

Ros: What's your favourite food?

Hayley: I, look anything, really anything. I do like the gelati a hundred percent or anything, anything.

Ros: Anything Italian, bring it on.

Hayley: I know. I know. So yeah, all roads lead to Rome. And so we backtrack, I know it was like, let's press record because otherwise we could keep talking about all the things.

Ros: We will talk about all the things. Yeah, you are also super cool. So working with those big brands, like it. Nobody can see you and I today, but Hayley's jumped on this recording and she's wearing like this super cool Harley Davidson shirt, a cool jacket. I'm not as cool as Hayley, so your background I think has also led you to, to now, right?

Hayley: Oh, it, look, yeah, I think I'm very creative by nature. And so. Then working in government, I worked alongside like some ministers and the premier at the time. And that kind of set me up for the analytical side of me. And then, um, yeah, that one, yeah, that side. And so, but it wasn't enough because the creative in me kept jumping out and.

I think that the initial corporate world of Jack Daniels and that those big brands, they ticked both boxes, but then coming back to Adelaide and working on in government, I started a candle business and it's still around today. If you want to go and have a look, it's called Hayley Kate, the label. I get online orders.

I don't actually actively market that business just because you cannot do all the things. I have a young family. This is my main business, but I would go to trade fairs. Right. Cause I, I had stockists around Australia. Um, when I do something, I don't do it in a, in halves. I go all in or not at all. And so, you know, if any, anyone's ever been to a trade fair and I know that, you know, you go to a lot of different things like this, um, you are there with the same people for a week almost.

So you're talking. And so from there, I got. International clients on my own without even having a business, just because I was, you know, passionate about marketing and passionate about small businesses doing well, you know, like your introduction, they are the backbone of our economy. And I think it's my passion to see as many people.

Rise to the top as possible because there is room for all of us to coexist. And so like for this audience as travel agents, like you're not really competing against each other because you are, you're in, there's, there's no unique message. Anyway, there's just unique messengers. So your vibe will attract your tribe, like hands down all the time.

And there is room to coexist, but you've got to get really clear on what that looks like for you. And I often like to use the analogy, like how many coffee shops are there? There's so many, and they all do well because they all do things in their own way. Um, and you know, yes, it is the industry, everyone's sort of playing him with listeners today, but I think like stay in your lane because there's nobody in that lane and you've got to go really insular.

First on your brand to be able to have that outward facing, um, like those fireworks go off and yeah, you know, you feel really good about what you stand for and where you come from and who you help. 

Ros: This is exactly what I say as well. So I love that you have just mirrored some of them, the messaging that I use.

Why we, we get on so well, because from there is enough business to go around. Is what I say. And you like me want to see everybody that wants to build a business succeed. We want to see others rise to the top or, you know, reach their potential. And one thing that I certainly see with the travel professionals that I work with is I can see their potential often before they can see it.

And I love how you were also saying you.

Hayley: I think I've heard that before somewhere years ago, but it stuck with me because the more people that I help, the more that, that it's just highlighted and it's true. 

Ros: Because everybody is, is their own unique person. Um, and this is what I say for the travel professionals. People will buy off you for you.

Not necessarily, um, go to a specific brand. Like some people will. They'll go to a brand and find the brand before they find the person. But in general, they will come to you because of the way that you... book things or the way that you work or your personality or how you click with them. It is about building that relationship because we are all unique.

We are all different and nobody's, nobody's the same in this world. Like we're not all Barbie and we're not all doing the same thing. We are all unique and we are all. You know, wanting to do what we want to do work with who we want to work with. And I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

Hayley: No, absolutely not. I think it's really important. And I do think, you know, when you, you know, if you're listening and you think, Oh, but I don't know what mine is, you need to step away from the business and work on the business. And, you know, Figure that out. I think that's one thing that I do teach. So I have a membership, like you said, um, it's called superhero marketing and I'm very proud of that.

And I'm very proud of the businesses in there. And that's one thing that I do teach in the membership is how do you nail your. Message and so I use a framework in there called maps and I've built that and that's market audience problem solution. So when you can figure that out and that that's actually really hard to do.

And so, you know, if also, if you're finding that you've been in your business a while and you're kind of transitioning into. What that next phase looks like for you. It's important to revisit that because it does need to be nimble and it does change over time, but it is something that works really well.

And once you nail that, the rest of your marketing, the rest of your local area marketing becomes very easy. 

Ros: Do you think that local area marketing, um, because of our audience and those that we work with, the travel professionals are based all over the world. Uh, they either work from home or they work in an office, so they might be in a retail strip and they might have forward facing clients in a local area, but do you think that Marketing from a local base or being a local hero in marketing is possible for both work from home people and also those that have a storefront or office professionals.

Hayley: Yes, and the reason that I say that is because we have been gifted this thing called social media and that connects us more than ever. So whether you are based at home or whether you have a bricks and mortar, you can do the same thing in different ways. So you've got to figure out what that looks like for you.

Ros: So. What if somebody doesn't like social media?

Hayley:  Well, you got to go gorilla then, which means gorilla marketing. So, you know, the old fashioned way of letterbox drops and you know, that would be the most most, um, effective and cost effective way to market. I would say now the uptake on that these days. I don't know the percentage of it, but if you don't like social media and you work from home and you don't have a bricks and mortar, then you do have to go all in and put like.

You know, pound to the pavement because you won't necessarily be able to outlay six figures for a billboard or a bus shelter ad, right? Because yellow pages are dead, really, or online. And so one thing that I would say, if you don't like social media, figure out the reasons why and learn to educate yourself and upskill yourself in that area because you are doing a disservice to yourself.

Because there is something like... Or 62 Billion monthly active users on Instagram. I could be wrong. I used to do that start off the top of my head. It might've changed a little bit, but that's a lot regardless. Even if it's whatever, if you could get like 0. 001% of that market share, doesn't that light you up as a business owner?

Ros: And that's one quick, that is one question that I, I do. challenge my, my community on is how many people do you actually need in order to have the business that you desire? So if you're looking at social media and a lot of people get caught up in the numbers and say, Oh, but I don't have 10, 000 followers, or, you know, I don't want to see.

Spend five hours a day commenting and replying and all of those sorts of things on social media. Like it's a, it's a big time suck and we can go down rabbit holes over and over again on it because of the attention that it demands. But my, my challenge here is to. Working with people in their local area, I think it needs to be a combination of things.

So not just social media, and if you've got a few hundred people that are following on social media, I think that that's absolutely fine because you don't need to have thousands of thousands of people in order to get a 2, 000 booking, a 5, 000 booking, or a 100, 000 booking. But in a local area, it's a combination of things.

So I like the guerrilla marketing because it infuses yourself, whether it is a letterbox drop or joining a local networking group or, you know, enrolling and signing up to your favourite activity. You know, it doesn't have to be an all in on one thing, which is. One thing about marketing that I love, there are so many different choices and you have to work with what you, what you like.

Hayley: Yeah, that's right. I do think it's a combination of everything. And I do think you do. You should be putting yourself into local groups. It might not necessarily be for business, but I think it's important to infuse yourself in the community so that you can network. And one of the things I do like to say is.

If you can develop a really good word of mouth strategy for local area marketing, that is where the golden nugget lives, honestly. So what is, but what does that look like? What does the local area marketing strategy look like? Well, this is where your current customers talk about you and refer you. And.

You need to think about how you can go the extra mile right by that. I mean, be generous, be friendly, exceed expectations, do things differently. Think of ways that you can show up unexpectedly in your clients lives, whether that they be past clients or. New clients that have come in that are still on the fence.

Like how can you show up and make a difference in their lives? And I think that that part of marketing, like that X factor part of marketing is missing a lot in today's small business, because we could be doing so much more. And what that does are trigger memorable experiences, right? And so as small businesses, I think you need to get really good at storytelling and really good at evoking emotion.

Or feelings that make people want to talk about your business. And there is nothing better for small businesses than having a really good word of mouth strategy. And so you go back to basics and think about those things. Like for example, when business owners join my membership and I'm sure you do the same thing.

And I don't. Outwardly like market this, but I send them a welcome pack and in that is super cool things that are memorable that might make them a bit annoyed with me because it might make a bit of a mess, they're like, Oh, Hayley. And so that kind of triggers a, wow, maybe I'll share that on my social media, um, and so on and so forth.

So that's really important, I think. Something that I do and it gets people talking. And even if they are at the dinner table that night, Oh, look what I got. And this is what happened to me today. And then you tell your husband and then your husband goes to work and might tell like three other people. And then, so it just kind of bunny hops around and that is like beautiful local area marketing.

And then if you're listening to this too, and you have. A physical bricks and mortar store, then, um, you know, what can you set up in your space that actually will make people want to, um, take a photo in front of and share it with their audience? It's so simple. So if you can see behind me, I've got a beautiful big neon that is branded for me in my office.

Could you do something that is kind of. Shit hot right now to make people want to take a photo because this is not an uncommon thing now. We've all got phones. We've all got cameras. We want to share beautiful experiences and for travel agents, like, you know, you're sending people on beautiful experiences anyway.

So how can you bring that into your office? Somehow it is. Nice couch, a plant, a throne. I don't know what that looks like, but, and then you can, you know, speed up momentum around that and add hashtags and share it on social media and.

Ros: Yeah. So the repeat and referral business I think is golden as part of any marketing strategy, because it doesn't necessarily have to cost or cost a lot of money.

Um. One thing that just came up for me then was, uh, an advisor that I know very well, Seca, on his social media just yesterday, he posted that he went in and saw one of his, um, clients who had just come out of surgery and was in hospital and he took her in some flowers and she's one of his biggest referral clients, those little things that come through from a personal aspect, like, He's not doing it for any other reason than he cares and he really enjoys working with that person and really values them.

And so to take in a bunch of photos of flowers and just to take a photo of them together and acknowledge that, you know, they love working together or whatever it is, that whole. Message behind it, I think, um, you know, isn't as important as the fact that you're doing it and then you're sharing it because that provides so much more social proof and it also just talks about who you are as a person.

I love that. And to be able to see that, not just from him, but a bunch of our other members, the things that they do for their clients, it just warms my heart. And I think that that's a really important marketing strategy as well, when you look at the business side of things and, but also to be able to talk about that and say that it's okay, because there will be people.

Who are listening to this that say, Oh my gosh, I can't believe you're, you know, trying to expose your clients and, you know, say that you're doing something good, like, and trying to big note yourself. And that's one thing that really annoys me about here in Australia. I think we're just trying to tell the story.

And one thing that you also talk about is that storytelling. So. The side of storytelling for your messaging and your marketing really needs to come together because there's no other way that you can explain to your clients who you are without them actually experiencing something or seeing it. And this is where seeing it on social media is absolutely okay.

Would you agree with that or not?

Hayley: Oh, a hundred percent. And for those people listening that are like, yeah, but I can't just. Go on and post that. No, you can't. You need to have a think about, and I like to say, think about what your content pillars are, develop them clearly, set them up and have them as your fallback for when you need content, but it's consistent content.

And then when you do have an opportunity to take that photo that you were describing, it's just, that's just, it flows in beautifully. 

Ros: Can you just explain what's a content pillar? 

Hayley: Content pillar. Okay. So this, I love this topic because I have, so with the members inside my membership, there's so many light bulb moments that go off when we can go through this.

And I wish I could share like a slide with you of how it all fits together, but I can't, but I'll do my best to describe it. So. What you want to do is come up with ideas for photo topics and ideas for caption categories separately, and then they blend together. So it's your fallback. It's the consistency that will always win.

So I've got some examples because I love sharing examples because that way people can resonate. So for photo topics with, for me, I share pictures of myself because I am a service based business and I'm not a product based business. People respond to people and I have to share my face, you know, if you God, if you go and stalk me on my social media right now, you'll be like, Oh, she loves having photos of herself or like whatever, but I don't, but that is one thing that is very important as a service based business is to have that bank of photos.

And if you don't have it. Work with a photographer, get some great shots done. So they're your fallback. So you don't have to scurry and, oh, I need to put some makeup on. I need to take a photo of myself. No, they're there as a, a safety blanket. And then obviously neon plays a big part in my brand, so that is also a phototop for me.

Um, sometimes I share my family, sometimes because I do want people to know that I'm a mom. I do want people to be able to relate to me, and that's kind of, um, getting that kind of. Side of me out there. Now, I don't really share pictures of my kids faces on my social media and that's strategic. Like I don't want them all over, but it is important that to showcase that I'm a mom.

So if you're listening, don't be afraid to let that drip into your business. I think it's important. Um, and then every week, not so much recently, but I do go live with a series called that I have built because I realised there was a gap in the market that value needed to be added to my audience. And the series that I, I put together is called Marketing Gossip Superhero Styles.

And so every week it's short, sharp little live session with bite sized pieces of content. So the photo is around that. Then I post superhero jokes. So I've worked on this hard to come up with what these photo topics are for me. And they're funny. So as an example, I had Batman come in as a gif and then it said over the top with words, it's like, I tried to find the local fence company, but they didn't have enough posts and it's something that would go out on a Saturday and it's a bit of a laugh.

Ros: I’m laughing at it. I don't know whether my eight year old would he be like, Oh mom, that is such a lame parent joke. I like, I like it. I like it. 

Hayley: Yeah, I'll keep going. And so there's about 10 I would come up with, uh, my podcast, the Hayley Osborne show quotes.

Testimonials, yes. Or case studies, if you need to have them, that is social proof. Talk about your lead magnet. I'm sure that you teach your listeners about how to do that. And then sport. So sport for me plays a really big part in my life. And I do post photos of me either in the gym or whatever that looks like, because it does correlate to mindset for me.

And, you know, having strength and, um, all the things keeping fit and I think fit, fit body, fit mind kind of thing. So they're my photopic. So there's about 10 and then I go through and I've come up with some caption categories. So I'll just quickly, they're a little bit similar, but about me, because if people are coming into your world and then you, they want to know about you.

I talk about my membership, superhero marketing. I talk about my podcast tips and tricks. Behind the scenes. So this is all captions. These aren't photos, what I'm loving, my why motivation advantages and benefits and my services, right? So if you have them all on a table, I guess that one's horizontal, one's vertical, and then you match them up, you've kind of got a photo and a caption category to talk about and fall back on every single day, if you wanted to.

Yeah. Right. So adding in the picture of you and your client with some flowers, Is a no brainer and it works well because there's synergies that connect it all together. So that's what I'm talking about with content pillars. So I'm happy if like, you know, I say to my clients, take mine and morph them into your own, because some of these will correlate to all industries.

And, you know, yeah, so, and then come up with what that looks like for you. Jokes might not be the thing. Um, it could be something else. So that's, that's what I mean by content pillars. And it's a really great way to, I guess, teach yourself a little bit more about yourself. Pull things out of your website that you didn't think you needed to be said, but kind of need, need to be said.

Cause don't forget as business owners, we're so close to our business that we can't see it anymore, really. And so. It's nice to have these outside, you know, looks at your business to see, you know, you've, you've gone to the effort of putting together your website and you've got beautiful copy on there. So let that be the bones of how you develop your content pillars.

Ros: Yeah. I love that. I love the content pillars that you've put together. And that also just reminded me, um, which I will link to the show notes for everybody as well, is we've got a whole lot of social media ideas in one of our own travel agent achievers. Checklists and, um, and lead magnets, as you say, so people can just grab that and it helps take away the confusion or, Oh my gosh, I have to think of something else right now.

Um, but having those two different styles, so your photos and then also your captions and be able to immerse them together, that's a really good way of explaining it. And also. One thing that we talk about is the photos. I mean, we're in travel. There are image bank libraries from any supplier and any destination that you want to work with.

There is a ton of professional images out there, but when it comes to ourselves, a lot of advisors don't actually like to have their own. Photo taken, or it's like, why would I put myself on there? Like, this isn't about me. It's about the destination or the experience. But what I say is you need to have yourself in there because the differentiation, like you said before, you are unique messengers. Yeah. So every single one of us has to have those photos and we travel a lot. Or we are now. Yeah.

Hayley: Yeah. 

Ros: You had a photo shoot done whilst you're travelling because that's when you're also really happy. There are so many opportunities to do that. It doesn't have to be at home. It can be wherever you are and then save those images for later.

We actually had Claire Miles come into our Achievers Mastermind last month, who you also know, Claire. Yeah. She's taken a number of photos of me. She's coming into, uh, our, well, she's coming with us to Fiji, actually, as our photographer. That's right. Yes. I know. Super cool. And so we were talking about this exact thing, like you have to have photos of yourself.

It doesn't have to be, you know, made up that you've got the massive flowing dress and swinging off a swing in Bali or anything like that. But just be you and get some photos of yourself, but professional ones done. So that stands out because that, 

Hayley: And I think too, um, thinking about like the travel industry and things like that is there's so many different images from all over the world, the continuity of your business is you.

in say, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn on your website. That is the that's the grounding. That's the concrete slab, right? So another I'm all over the analogies. I just love them. But if you have a beautifully built concrete slab, your house is not going to fall down. And so, yeah, that's really, I hope so, but that's really important.

So. Yeah.

Ros:  Yeah. The foundations are really important. Okay. So let's jump to the other side. So what do you, what do you think are some common mistakes that travel businesses in particular make in their digital marketing strategies and how can we overcome them? 

Hayley: Yes. So, um, and I, I have a few friends in this industry too, and it's hot and cold. Why?

Ros: What do you mean? The snow and then the beach or what do you mean by that?

Hayley: So you go away and you do all the things and it might be March and you haven't posted since. But your business keeps running and in on social media. And so I think that there has to be some consistency, right? So not just when you're away, you have to maintain your social media.

You have to maintain, um, creating blogs. You have to maintain things because then that flows onto your search engine. Optimisation does wonders for your website. Um, there's little things like that. And when you maintain your social media, if you've got that Instagram feed linked into your website as well, that's an automatic thing that updates every half an hour without you doing anything.

Well, it should do. Um, and that acts like a really great. It's like form of SEO. So what happens in Webland is if you leave your website without updating it for months and months and months, it'll, your relevant score will be less and less. So Google has a relevant score ranking, and the higher your relevant score, the more you will appear on page one.

And the only thing that determines the relevant Gories, when you add content to your website, Google can't read images, but it can read copy. And so if you are adding a blog, if you are update your Instagram feed's, getting updated, all those things, it's, it's great for your business anyway. The gap in the market that I see is not enough consistency.

Yeah, it's not enough to just post when you're away. You've gotta do it all year round. You've gotta. You've got to keep doing it because people, they do want to see you when you're away, but who's to say you can't get a bank of images and just circulate and drip feed that through. I think that's really important. That's the number one thing that I see. 

And then another thing I see is if you've got, um, high level partnerships in your travel business, like you are a strategic partner with Qantas or whoever that is, put that in like, Lights light it up because they are also like forms of social proof that oh, she must, they, they must be good. He must be good. She must be good because they have those high level partnerships. And so they're really important to highlight too. And I do see a lot of people not doing that. Yeah. Who's made to do that? Well, who aren't you to do that?

Ros: That's right. Yeah. A really valid point there, because one thing that I know a lot of advisors have been doing over the last couple of years, and particularly this year as well, is attending functions, attending events, um, upskilling in there.

Knowledge with suppliers. So we get like destination specialist badges and certificates and those sorts of things, like we're not in school. However, we do get acknowledged for certain training that we undertake. I completely agree with you. I don't think there are enough people that are showcasing that in their marketing or in their social media, because it is social proof.

If, if, um, tourism Fiji says that they're a destination expert, then they must be.

Hayley: Mm hmm. Why wouldn't I go with them to book my trip?

Ros: Exactly. Now, we do this all the time. I was just doing one the other day for a supplier. I've got a group going to Tahiti in 2025, and I knew that I needed to upskill, so I did a couple of the training modules, and I got my certificate and badge. I haven't talked about that. Because I'm like, oh, that was just something that I needed to do to get to this place. But that's a really valid point. I think we all need to be doing that in the travel industry is actually showcasing our talents and knowledge and our expertise. And one way to do that is to say, yes, I have been acknowledged by so and so to now make it into this level.

It's exactly the same in the cruise industry, destination specialist suppliers, acknowledged for awards, um, you know, a range of different things. I think that's a really cool and valid point. So social proof.

Hayley: And if you've got connections for upgrades and things like that. Um, why wouldn't you be telling everyone that you can get them more of a premium experience than just run of the mill if, if that's your specialty?

I think that's really important and I feel like that's missing because I know if I was going to do that, why would I want to travel economy is fine, but if I could get VIP service at the destination, why wouldn't I want that? I'm going on a holiday. So it's important to showcase that and I think we do forget as business owners what, and until we start to say, Oh, we've done this and this and this, and this is our street cred.

Yeah. When you're in the day to day, you do forget that. So it's important to pull that out and highlight that because that could be the difference between like no sale and a $10, 000 sale. 

Ros: Yep. Absolutely. Oh, golden nugget there. And also thank you. That's just a complete smack in the face for me.

Hayley: Well, it's, you know.

Ros: I don't often do that as well.

Like I do it in with travel agent achievers, but not necessarily within my travel business. So, um, yeah, I'm just putting that out to my team as well because I share things within the team, but let's make sure that we get it out to the world. Every travel advisor listening to this, I know that you have upskilled recently.

You've got these certificates, you've got these badges. You are the expert in a specific thing. Whatever that is, a destination, a supplier, a specialty, just talk about it. Get, get that word out there. And also if you are able to get bonuses for a certain thing as well, because clients will come to you for the additional service that you're able to provide.

I love that. Absolutely love that. All right. Hayley, last lot, lot of stuff here. I think we've had, we've covered so much and I love that we're able to talk about all these different things. As we said, right at the beginning, marketing is your jam. Marketing is my background as well. So I love being able to have these conversations.

However, I want to talk a little bit about what you actually do. Now with your local area marketing, I do want to just point out that if there is anybody that is wanting to know a bit more about this, you have a great resource directly off your website. Can you just explain what that is?

Hayley: I do. I do. And it's right at the top. My website is hayleyosborne.com and it is the 10 Essentials Every Local Area Marketing Plan Needs Checklist. It's very accessible. You can't miss it. So download that if you want to, um, you know, if you're not sure about what your strategy looks like and you do want to start to, you know, be, uh, not just on social media, but in social media, it doesn't just cover that, but obviously it's a big part of our lives.

And I think. You know, as a marketer, there's lots of different things that you can do. And the thing at the moment that is the most powerful is social media. So why wouldn't you, even if you don't know anything about it, upscale, educate yourself so that you can benefit from the world's power, most powerful form of marketing that we've ever seen.

Ros: From a marketing perspective. I absolutely love it. Well, thank you so much, Hayley, for joining me today. If people want to find out a little bit more about you, obviously we're going to jump to your website, HayleyOsborne.com. We will add links and details in the show notes for everybody, but how else can everyone find you?

Yeah. So obviously I want to hang out on social media with you now.

Hayley: Hang out, come hang out with me. I'm mostly on Instagram. It's Hayley, H A Y L E Y K. Osborne, O S B O R N E, and I'm one with the curly hair, um, and that's where I hang out the most. I'm on Facebook and LinkedIn as well, but if you want to hear from me in your inbox every week, um, get yourself that local area marketing plan checklist, and then I, I have lots of golden nuggets that I share every week with my email list, um, and I think that they would benefit, uh, this audience. So. Do that. And I will also stalk you when you follow me. Cause I love seeing who my audience is. 

Ros: That's right. Hopefully give us those pointers to say, yes, do more of this. No.

Hayley: And I have a podcast too. So the podcast is called the Hayley Osborne show, and that's a really great way to learn about me and my zone of genius for free in your ears every Tuesday.

Ros: So yeah, yes, lots of good things happening there. We will link to all of that in the show notes for everyone. Thank you so much, Hayley, for joining me today. 

And if you liked this episode, no, I'm sure that you're going to love it. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast. Send us a review, rate us on iTunes and all your favourite places, because we'd love to hear from you.

I personally love to get the emails and direct feedback as well. So if you're wanting to know about a particular topic, or you want to learn more about what you can do specifically in your travel business, reach out to us at travelagentachievers. com, uh, you'll also find us on Instagram. Facebook and LinkedIn.

All right, everybody. Thank you. Once again, Hayley, thank you for being with me today, everyone. 

Hayley: Thanks Ros. 

Ros: Have an awesome day wherever you are. And I look forward to catching up with you very, very soon. Bye for now.