Whatever you do, don't ever fall into the trap of looking at marketing as a luxury or the kind of cost that you can cut at the first sign of a sales slump.  Marketing is an investment in your future business.  No matter how successful you are, how experienced, the time of year, and how many clients you currently have, you always have to be marketing (off line & in person ideally; when and where ever you can, & online; Facebook, Twitter, Blogging, Linked in, your Meet-up.com, OSSN Forum, & the Home Based Travel Agent Community.)

Travel professionals, in all channels (Home Based, Retail, e-tail, and .com) should be focusing their current marketing on last minute spring and summer products, trying to sell as much 2011 product as you can in the current calendar year!  Look at the websites of the big TOE (Travelocity, Orbitz, and Expedia) and see what their million-dollar marketing campaigns are focusing on (BIG Europe sales, and last minute Spring Break Family Fun...just to name a few).   

Since marketing IS your business... A travel marketing mindset starts with a plan to ensure you are perceived as a true travel value-provider!  Good travel marketing is getting people who have a specific need or problem perceive that you know what you are talking about, like you, trust you and most importantly, want to do business with you.  Here are some proven ways to incorporate marketing in your daily business.

An ONLINE MARKETING STRATEGY uses some social media tools like; Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, an e-newsletter and your own BLOG as ways to create and then maintain personal and professional dialogue.  Follow me and listen/ watch how I try to implement the "The Art of Conversation Marketing" and create a feeling of community, engagement with you...my target market.  I try and interact with my target market to position me and my brand as a valued-source of travel business development and business coaching information.  Use the same concept ("The Art of Conversation Marketing") with the mentioned online tools to get in front of your target market and stay 'Top-of-Mind'.  The key here is to be sticky with your inner-circle, customers, and past clients about everything travel-related to your business.  Post travel related topics of interest on Facebook, tweet on Twitter temperature's in niche destinations you sell, BLOG about famous movie's like Mama Mia and Greece, comment and create dialogue regarding Hollywood celebrity's and how it relates to your niche product and destination you LOVE to sell...

Bottom line, get creative and stay top of mind with your target market, so that when they think travel and cruise, they think of you!!!

An OFFLINE MARKETING STRATEGY puts you in front on your target market as often as you can on a weekly basis.  That's right... I am asking you to leave the house and proactively promote you and your business off the computer!  Meeting people daily increase's your believability factor by 1000%.  People buy from people they personally like, know and trust... SO... go out and meet new people or stay in front of your current customer base/ inner-circle consistently and DO NOT give them a reason to go anywhere else!   

Personal service and attention to detail is a choice!   

Are you on track?  Your marketing mindset will work for you over time when you understand the concept that you need to be a trusted, liked, and highly-valued travel professional (also understand that it takes patience, and perseverance to develop it over time...nothing like this happens overnight!).   

Once people are sold on brand U, it's all about turning that stickiness into a system called a referral machine (A system in place to automate your contacts, and referrals).   

Your ideal marketing goal is to over time track, manage, and then gauge with a budget and calendar a marketing snapshot of the entire process... A true measure of marketing success!   

Cheers to your marketing mindset!