Being unemployed sucks. It makes your mind stagnant and your skills rusty. Well, I am unemployed or not really. I don't have an employer, so I'm basically self-employed. I am a part of group that specializes in tours and events organizing. We called ourselves Travelling Flip Flops.
Our Flip Flops
During this time of global recession, where everything is in slow motion, we need to find means on how to make money. We chose the travel industry for instance. We are newbies in this business and its so hard to start because none of us had a management major in college. I had management subjects but then it focused on nursing management which aside from the general principles of leadership and management, everything else is different. One of us is an accountant, but she's too busy at work and I, the nursing graduate even did what an accountant must do.
First stop, we planned. It took us a lot of time to plan. But the planning started in high school. Those were the days when we sit around on our favorite spot under the umbrella tree and dream about putting up a beach resort with a bar and grill. I think that was the day we first planned. Then several years later, after the nine of us graduated we are finally making our dreams come true one step at a time. Planning was critical. We had several brainstorming over cups of coffee about our would-be name, tagline, logo, packages, itineraries and many more including colors for the business cards. Then after several weeks of constant updating we made our decisions.
Implementing was the next stop. On this stage we put into action our plans. for example, we wanted a website where we can promote and as the IT specialist Aileen made one using our name, the tagline and logo we agreed upon. Another example is we wanted different packages that will cater to different clients, on this stage we are going to make our quotations, the number of participants, the attuned accommodation and transportation.This is more complicated than I thought.
The implementation consisted of two parts. I call the first, "the making part". It's like the more complex planning part since we are more detailed. Since I was the one who brought up the proposal of the travel business, I was basically doing most of the tasks. From making packages, itineraries, looking for resorts, hotels, inns, transportation availability and other things that needs to be settled. As said earlier, we become more detailed. Example, I made a package for a family vacation. I had to bear in mind the following:
Finding clients was the second part. We have to promote first from our network of friends, school mates, their friends and office mates. Clients are demanding at times. They want prices right then and there. They want pictures of the places they are going to. They want itineraries as soon as possible. We all have the duty to promote the business. The internet aside from our network of friends is the best source. Clients expect the best from us. We promised to cater to their needs and we must meet their expectations.
This has been a busy week. To someone who's reading this, if you have suggestions on how we can make our business better and how we can make our tasks easier, please do comment.
Our Flip Flops
During this time of global recession, where everything is in slow motion, we need to find means on how to make money. We chose the travel industry for instance. We are newbies in this business and its so hard to start because none of us had a management major in college. I had management subjects but then it focused on nursing management which aside from the general principles of leadership and management, everything else is different. One of us is an accountant, but she's too busy at work and I, the nursing graduate even did what an accountant must do.
First stop, we planned. It took us a lot of time to plan. But the planning started in high school. Those were the days when we sit around on our favorite spot under the umbrella tree and dream about putting up a beach resort with a bar and grill. I think that was the day we first planned. Then several years later, after the nine of us graduated we are finally making our dreams come true one step at a time. Planning was critical. We had several brainstorming over cups of coffee about our would-be name, tagline, logo, packages, itineraries and many more including colors for the business cards. Then after several weeks of constant updating we made our decisions.
Implementing was the next stop. On this stage we put into action our plans. for example, we wanted a website where we can promote and as the IT specialist Aileen made one using our name, the tagline and logo we agreed upon. Another example is we wanted different packages that will cater to different clients, on this stage we are going to make our quotations, the number of participants, the attuned accommodation and transportation.This is more complicated than I thought.
The implementation consisted of two parts. I call the first, "the making part". It's like the more complex planning part since we are more detailed. Since I was the one who brought up the proposal of the travel business, I was basically doing most of the tasks. From making packages, itineraries, looking for resorts, hotels, inns, transportation availability and other things that needs to be settled. As said earlier, we become more detailed. Example, I made a package for a family vacation. I had to bear in mind the following:
- number of days to stay
- package rate
- number of participants
- accommodation
- transportation
- tour guide
- entrance fees
- food
Finding clients was the second part. We have to promote first from our network of friends, school mates, their friends and office mates. Clients are demanding at times. They want prices right then and there. They want pictures of the places they are going to. They want itineraries as soon as possible. We all have the duty to promote the business. The internet aside from our network of friends is the best source. Clients expect the best from us. We promised to cater to their needs and we must meet their expectations.
This has been a busy week. To someone who's reading this, if you have suggestions on how we can make our business better and how we can make our tasks easier, please do comment.
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