One sure way to fail with Tripology…drum roll please.

Imagine you’re a consumer and you want to go to the Greek Islands.  You’ve done a bunch of research online and you are frustrated with all the information at your fingertips. You are inundated with all the mundane, generic travel information because you must have visited ten, fifteen or maybe even twenty sites! Then you stumbled on Tripology, which promises to connect you with up to three travel specialists that are expert in the exact trip you are looking to take.  “Fantastic!” you think to yourself.  So, you take ten minutes or more out of your day to fill out the Tripology trip request form on Tripology.  Finally, someone will answer all your questions.

Imagine the anticipation you feel while you’re waiting for a response from the travel specialists.  They are, after all, going to help you plan your vacation and you’re very excited about your vacation.  You’ve worked hard and you deserve some time off.  This, you hope, will be a trip of lifetime memories. You are so busy though that you really do need someone to help you plan this trip.  You don’t want to leave it to chance, yet you don’t really know who will be responding to you.

The hours pass and then you see not one, but two responses in your email box.  (The following are real emails sent by Tripologists, but the names have been changed to protect the person I unfortunately have to criticize).  The first one reads:

Dear John:

I am one of the owners of Freedman Travel, headquartered in New Mexico. Freedman Travel specializes in “custom travel for the independent spirit” and I am delighted to help you plan your upcoming trip to Greece. Along with Italy and France, Greece is one of our all-time favorite destinations.

We have extensive travel experience in Greece, as well as having sent many happy travelers there. I personally have visited the country twice. We are familiar with most of the Greek islands and enjoy the diversity and personality of each. They can be quirky, charming and stunningly beautiful. My personal favorites are Santorini, Paros, Sifnos, Kea, and Ios. Delos, while uninhabited is an important and very interesting side trip. You can take one of the many tour boats over and back, and there are guided tours available as well. This is an island preserved by the Greek government as one of the most important archaeological sites in Greece. This is a must see excursion.We have wonderful relationships with many suppliers and can offer you a charming traditional hotel, a more main stream hotel, a 5-star luxury/historic property, or a villa, to suit your travel-style.

John, in reading your trip request I see that you would like to stay in Athens a couple of days then head to Crete and end your trip in Santorini. This is an excellent plan and, depending on schedules you can fly or ferry to Crete and Santorini. On Crete you may want to rent a car and explore independently.

You have given us some great information, but it is our preference to begin each trip with a phone call. In it, we will get a better understanding of your travel preferences. I called you earlier today and left a message and will reach out to you again later.  In the interim, of course, please feel free to call me directly.

We look forward to working with you on your trip. If you haven’t already done so, please visit us on our website at: (web site url).

You then open the other email and it reads (again, a real email sent by a Tripologist):

John,

I received your lead from Tripology. I’d love to talk to you about your trip to Greece.  When might be a good time for me to call you? 

Alan

So, which Tripologist would you call back?  I don’t know about you, but I’d call Jennifer.  I actually called Alan to ask why he sent such a short note.  He said he was busy.  Jennifer, as it turns out, was also busy.  However, she’s compiled a series of responses in MS Word that she cuts and pastes to create unique, relevant responses.  She obviously adds some custom information for each response.

The first email you send to potential clients is your calling card.  Don’t blow it.

Happy selling,

John