Alan Rust is the Chief Experience Officer of America Tour Company.
On this episode, he reveals why he left the corporate retail world to start his own tour business. He shares with us how he has grown his tour operator business on a budget of $5k.
Shane Whaley, host of the Tourpreneur Podcast pulls back the curtain on America Tour Company and Alan shares:
The Story of America Tour Company so far….
- Why he decided to become a tour operator.
- The mission of his tour business.
- How he had to pivot because of livery regulations in Nebraska.
- How this red tape led to him creating and developing a new partnership with a limo company.
- Why he allows guests to pick the times of their tours with America Tour Company.
- Why he decided to acquire a history tour operator just 6 months in.
- Why some restaurants refused to work America Tour Company
- Shane shares some sales ideas on how to counter the main objections.
- That 44% of America Tour Company’s business is corporate.
- How he works with OTAs and which ones are most profitable for him.
- Why he decided to work with Airbnb Experiences in Nebraska.
- The differences between working in corporate retail and as a tour operator.
- How did Alan Rust market his tours when starting out?
- Why Google Ads and SEO were so important.
- Why America Tour Company launched self guided tours.
- Why he uses Bookeo for his online booking platform.
- When searching for an online booking platform what his top 3 must have features and capabilities were.
- How he achieves work/life balance
- Books, podcast and apps that help him be efficient in his business and to achieve growth.
- And Much More!