Episode Overview
Episode Topic:
In this captivating episode of TravelPreneur, we get into the realm of Curated Vacation Planning, a revolutionary approach to creating unforgettable travel experiences. We explore how bookitbox TRAVEL, under the leadership of Erica Carr, transcends traditional vacation planning by offering bespoke, stress-free travel itineraries. The discussion illuminates the concept of out-of-the-box vacation planning, illustrating how it not only simplifies the journey for travelers but also injects excitement and anticipation, elevating the overall travel experience. This segment is a must-listen for those intrigued by innovative travel solutions that promise to transform mundane trips into extraordinary adventures through meticulous curation and personalized attention.
Lessons You’ll Learn:
Listeners will gain invaluable insights into the art of Curated Vacation Planning, understanding its impact on the travel industry and individual experiences. Erica Carr shares her expert strategies on creating tailored travel experiences that resonate with clients’ unique preferences, highlighting the importance of personalization in the travel sector. The episode offers practical advice on implementing forward-thinking practices and systems that cater to growth and scalability, ensuring travel businesses can adapt to their expanding clientele while maintaining high-quality, customized services.
About Our Guest:
Erica Carr, the pioneering founder of bookitbox TRAVEL, is a visionary in the Curated Vacation Planning industry. With a passion for delivering exceptional travel experiences, Erica has mastered the art of crafting tailor-made vacations that cater to the nuanced desires of modern travelers. Her approach combines innovative technology with a deep understanding of her clients, resulting in perfectly curated trips that reflect each traveler’s individuality. The episode delves into Erica’s journey, her philosophy towards travel planning, and how her company, bookitbox TRAVEL, sets a new standard in the industry by prioritizing creativity, personalization, and meticulous attention to detail.
Topics Covered:
The enlightening conversation covers a wide range of topics central to Curated Vacation Planning, including the innovative delivery of personalized travel experiences, the integration of technology in enhancing the travel planning process, and the strategic growth of travel businesses. Discussions also touch on the importance of building a community through engaging platforms like social media and personalized communication, which are pivotal in understanding and fulfilling the evolving needs of today’s travelers. Furthermore, the conversation sheds light on how bookitbox TRAVEL remains at the forefront of the industry by continuously adapting to changes and maintaining a commitment to delivering bespoke, memorable travel experiences.
Our Guest: Erica Carr- Master of Curated Vacation Planning
Erica Carr, the innovative founder of bookitbox TRAVEL, stands out as a luminary in the travel industry, particularly in the niche of Curated Vacation Planning. Her entrepreneurial journey is a testament to her passion for transforming the travel experience through personalized, meticulously crafted vacation itineraries. Erica’s vision for bookitbox TRAVEL stemmed from recognizing a gap in the market for truly customized travel experiences – ones that cater to the individual’s preferences, interests, and styles rather than the one-size-fits-all packages that predominate the industry. Her approach goes beyond the conventional, intertwining the luxuries of tailored travel with the excitement of discovering new destinations through a curated lens, ensuring that each client’s journey is as unique as their tastes.
In her role at bookitbox TRAVEL, Erica has cultivated a brand synonymous with exclusivity, sophistication, and personalization. Her methodology integrates a deep understanding of her clients’ desires with innovative use of technology, creating seamless, unforgettable travel experiences. Under her guidance, the company has become renowned for its out-of-the-box vacation planning, delivering not just trips but comprehensive, immersive experiences that resonate with the individual traveler’s dreams and aspirations. Erica’s expertise and passion for travel shine through in her commitment to excellence and attention to detail, attributes that have earned her accolades in the travel community and loyalty from a discerning clientele.
Erica’s influence extends beyond her company, contributing significantly to the broader travel industry’s discourse on innovation, customer engagement, and the future of travel. Her insights, drawn from a rich background in travel and a keen eye for emerging trends, position her as a thought leader in the sector. She actively participates in industry events, sharing her knowledge and experiences to shape the evolving landscape of travel. Her foresight in adopting new technologies and her emphasis on building strong, authentic connections with clients underscore a forward-thinking approach to travel, setting a benchmark for personalized service and curated travel experiences in the industry.
Episode Transcript
Erica Carr: If you love your clients, and you treat them really well and you create amazing experiences for them, you will grow organically. That’s always number one. I always recommend hiring ahead of growth. It’s scary to hire before you can afford to hire, but you have to hire ahead of growth and also implement systems from the beginning that can scale and grow with you. Because once you’re a year in or you’re 500 clients, you don’t have time to go back and implement systems and processes. From day one, implement those things that will work for you right now with zero clients, and that will work with you in five years from now with 5000 clients.
Megha McSwain: Welcome to TravelPreneur, the weekly business show for the travel industry. I’m your host, Houston-based travel journalist, Megha McSwain. Each episode we’ll be exploring what it takes to thrive as a business owner in the travel industry. From conversations with leading travel business executives and industry-focused venture capitalists to exploring the innovations that are shaping the next generation of travel businesses. If it impacts the travel industry, we cover it here on TravelPreneur. Greetings travel enthusiasts, welcome to another episode of TravelPreneur. I’m your host, Megha McSwain. Today we have the pleasure of speaking with Erica Carr, the innovative founder of bookitbox TRAVEL. Welcome to the show, Erica.
Erica Carr: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
Megha McSwain: Erica, bookitbox TRAVEL offers a unique approach to vacation planning, providing travelers with a curated experience without the stress of intricate planning. Can you elaborate on how the concept of out-of-the-box vacation planning not only simplifies the travel process but also enhances the overall anticipation and excitement for travelers?
Erica Carr: Sure, we always say that our ideal client is someone who has traveled the meh way, and they’re just looking to elevate their overall travel experience, and a recent survey showed that it takes an average of 26 hours to plan a vacation the right way. And so as working professionals and parents, they don’t have that time to do it. So that’s where we come in and that’s our specialty. So our goal is really to just get to know our clients really well so that we can customize their entire itinerary the way that they prefer to travel.
Megha McSwain: And the physical bookitbox delivered to the traveler’s doorsteps before the departure is an intriguing and thoughtful touch. So how does this tangible element contribute to the overall vacation experience? Like how does it reflect bookitbox TRAVEL’s commitment to delivering excellence and attention to detail?
Erica Carr: Well, like you said, it’s just so out of the box. If you’ve ever gifted a trip, you print off the airline ticket or the hotel confirmation. For such a fun gift, it’s such a lame way to gift it. And so the box has become a really cool way to gift vacation. So we have a lot of husbands that are gifting trips to their wives for birthdays or anniversaries. Parents are putting them under the Christmas tree for the kids for the holidays. Vacation and travel are so exciting in and of itself. But to have this really fun, colorful, branded box show up on your doorstep could be something that you could use forever that just reminds you of that vacation that you went on with your family.
Megha McSwain: Aside from that actual box, how does bookitbox TRAVEL utilize technology and personalized communication to enhance the booking process and foster a deeper connection with travelers?
Erica Carr: We are all about technology and systems and processes here at bookitbox from the very beginning Our prospective clients are starting on our website, bookitboxtravel.com. They’re heading to the start planning form, and that form allows them to give us some preliminary information about who’s traveling if they have an idea of where they want to go, and from there, it just continues to be very much a hybrid of technology and personal touch. From there, our clients are electronically scheduling a consultation call with me directly through Calendly, which is our online calendar system, and we use forms and different software platforms to do things like collect credit card payment authorizations or traveler documentation details and passports, all of those sorts of things. But each and every one of our email communications to our clients are absolutely personalized.
Megha McSwain: As the founder of bookitbox TRAVEL, you wear a lot of hats in designing each client’s travel experience. So how do you infuse your personal touch and passion into every aspect of their vacation planning process?
Erica Carr: So we’re actually a team of eight now, and we have a travel design team who specializes in different types of trips and different geographies based on where they personally traveled. I, of course, am involved in every single client’s trip. So again, wearing that hat, always while curating a client itinerary or trip proposal. But we’ve all, as a team have traveled a lot to several destinations. And of course, that helps to give really great insight into how to manage a certain destination or what that adorable coffee shop is on a corner. And we also have travel partners all over the world that are in those destinations. So if it is a destination that I have not personally been to, or my team has not personally been to, we really lean on those partners because they are in the destination. They personally know the hotels and the guides and the drivers, and so they’re helping us to match our client with the right guide based on a certain religion, whatever their specific interests are, and just really curated specifically for that client.
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Erica Carr: Social media, obviously, has such a big role in any business. It’s really fun for us because again, it’s on the topic of travel, and so it’s just fun to be able to share what the latest destinations are, or new resorts or properties that are popping up on our radar, or even experiences that are happening at these resorts. Social media and our Inside the Box club emails are obviously just really great vehicles to share that information with our clients and prospective clients, and just keep them up to date on what all of the cool things that are out there for them to do.
Megha McSwain: So the vacation planning industry was ever-evolving. How does bookitbox TRAVEL stay ahead of the curve, especially after COVID? Things are just changing so fast with technology, with AI, with all of that. So how are you continuously innovating and adapting your services to meet the changing needs and expectations?
Erica Carr: So we attend a lot of industry events, ILTM, Virtuoso Travel Week. I am personally a part of several travel advisor groups within the industry. It’s really collectively bringing all of our knowledge and intelligence together to share amongst our kind of mini-communities if you will. Technology is part of my pre-bookitbox TRAVEL day. So I’m specifically interested in technology and what’s happening in the travel space. Lots of different ways. Our host agency gets to travel, the network is wonderful. They are, as a community, keeping up with all of the trends, and they keep us abreast of those new things that are out there as well. So it’s really from several different channels that we’re staying on top of all of the ever-evolving things.
Megha McSwain: And what is your vision for the future of bookitbox TRAVEL? Just looking ahead, how do you plan to solidify the company’s position as a leader in the vacation planning industry and continuously foster this culture of innovation, and exceptional customer service, and personal touches, things that people still want?
Erica Carr: So after COVID, whenever travel started to come back, I did have to make a decision on what the company’s path was going to be, and at that point, I decided I love the boutique that is really high touch and we know our clients really well. At that time, we implemented a minimum trip budget, and it really has helped us to narrow in on our niche and what our target ideal audience is. That has certainly helped. But moving forward, I come from a sales background, and it was every year you had a new sales quota and it was always so much more than the year before. And that’s not the strategy at bookitbox TRAVEL, really. Our goal is to ensure that we are in a position to service our clients the way that we service our clients, which is, again, that high personal touch. We don’t grow just to grow. We grow strategically. But again, a team of eight right now, and as we find the right people, we will add the right people to our team. But we don’t hire because we have this out-of-control growth. We’re really strategic about our workload and client load.
Megha McSwain: So as an esteemed figure in the world of travel entrepreneurship, what advice would you offer to aspiring travel innovators and entrepreneurs looking to redefine the vacation planning experience? What kind of tips or advice would you offer to them?
Erica Carr: I think the number one thing, whether you’re in travel or not, is loving your clients really well. If you love your clients and you treat them really well and you create amazing experiences for them, you will grow organically. And so that’s always number one for someone specific to the travel industry that’s coming in. I always recommend hiring ahead of growth. It’s scary to hire before you can maybe afford to hire or before you’re there to where you need that person, but you have to hire ahead of growth and also implementing systems from the beginning that can scale and grow with you. Because once you’re a year in or you’re 500 clients, you don’t have time to go back and implement systems and processes. So from day one, implement those things that will work for you right now with zero clients, and that will work with you in five years from now with 5000 clients.
Megha McSwain: Well, thank you so much, Erica, for explaining this to us. I really want to follow your social media now. I appreciate you sharing these cool things and just reminding us that when it comes to travel, there’s still so much we all need to see. It’s just never-ending.
Erica Carr: Absolutely. There’s a big world out there that’s just waiting for us to explore it.
Megha McSwain: Right. Well, let our listeners know where they can learn more about book box travel and where they can connect with you.
Erica Carr: So our website is bookitboxtravel.com. That’s a great resource. And then also we are on Instagram and Facebook at bookitbox Travel.
Megha McSwain: Great. Well, thank you so much. And to our listeners, please like and subscribe for future episodes. That helps us a lot and leaving reviews is a wonderful help. Erica, thank you so much. I look forward to talking to you again in the future.
Erica Carr: Thank you for having me.
Megha McSwain: You’ve been listening to TravelPreneur by travelpayments.com. Make sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast listening platform so you never miss a new episode, and we’ll see you again soon on TravelPreneur.