The BTT Blog (Please add your comments)

Selling The Feel Good Factor - A Unique Combination

Sun, 06 Mar 2011 12:16:12 +0100

A Unique Combination

Business Travel Team is dedicated to providing expertise combined with personal service. "We like to think our success and growth is very much a result of the unique combination of hands-on professionalism, reliability and continuity that only a family business can offer� Says Kirstine who has worked in the business for over fifteen years and is a director alongside her sister Rachael with nearly twenty years in the company founded by their father ...

Selling The Feel Good Factor - The Pay-Off

Sun, 06 Mar 2011 12:09:28 +0100

The Pay-Off

So what can a company hope to achieve when opting for an incentive trip to an exotic location? "Some companies use incentive travel as a general morale booster, setting generous guidelines in terms of whose turn it is to take a trip. "This approach has its place,� comments Kirstine, "But in our experience, where sales targets are involved, tough rules have a galvanising effect in the shape of improved sales figures, with the result ...

Selling The Feel Good Factor - The Build UP

Sun, 06 Mar 2011 11:59:21 +0100

The Build Up

For any business manager, the build-up is perhaps as important as the trip itself. Announcing the destination of the incentive trip in a year�s time (say, to Mauritius) could be just the opening chapter in an, exciting year long story of smaller incentives, such as quarterly prizes of London theatre trips or £100 vouchers from major retailers. Nearer the time, the manager of the appointed luxury hotel in Mauritius could write to say ...

Selling The Feel Good Factor - Part 1

Sun, 06 Mar 2011 11:53:14 +0100

Selling the feel good Factor - Introduction

Ask Kirstine and Rachael White what they do for a living and they will tell you, half jokingly, that they sell dreams. What they mean is that they organise visits to some of the most romantic, beautiful, inspiring and thrilling locations in the world � places many people can only imagine visiting. But behind the glamour and excitement, Kirstine and Rachael have a very serious objective � converting the ...

Tour Operators' Margin Scheme (TOMS)

Thu, 27 Jan 2011 22:32:46 +0100

What is the Tour Operators' Margin Scheme?

It is a special scheme for businesses that buy-in and re-sell travel, accommodation and certain other services as a principal or undisclosed agent (that is, acting in your own name). In the UK this scheme is known by the abbreviated term �the TOMS�.

The TOMS is a simplification measure. In many cases it enables VAT to be accounted for on travel supplies without businesses having to register and account for ...

Number 1 - odd tour

Sat, 08 Jan 2011 12:25:11 +0100

I have recently come back a business trip to look at a new potential venue for and incentive travel group and to tell the truth it really was not that great an experience, I was to be honest really pleased that I had taken the time out to go and check ahead, it could have been an unmitigated disaster if I had done the groundwork.

Anyway it got me to think of what�s the ...

Incentive Organizing

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 08:53:19 +0100

Frequently the professional staffs at Business Travel Team are given a sad scenario from business owners. The scenario is similar regardless of the industry. The story is usually about young professionals that have considerable talent but seems to lack the motivation necessary to strive for the performance the company knows the professionals are capable of. How does it get to this point? The reasons are as varied as the subtleties of the situations; however, the ...

Motivational Programmes

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 08:42:32 +0100

These days it seems that the thing that everyone is concerned with is cost. Budgets are tight and it seems harder then before to make the type of opportunities that once existed not that long ago. A large part of why this happened is because the cost of doing business has increased. On the other hand the cost of attracting and keeping top talent has become harder as well as more expensive. What can you ...

Special Events

Fri, 24 Dec 2010 09:09:58 +0100

Are you looking for a special event that has proven to be a successful venue for securing new business connections? Say no more, Business Travel Team has the solution for you; why not organize a golf tournament. Golf has been a strong business tool that many professionals understand and utilise for business cultivation. As a tool Golf can help garner new business, network contacts or be used to propose new ideas to colleagues and work ...

Long Haul Destinations

Thu, 23 Dec 2010 09:15:30 +0100

As a corporate executive you are in charge of planning what could potentially be the deal that takes your company from obscurity to a company known by all. Making your company one of the top companies in your industry is no easy task. It takes plenty of time and effort from everyone involved. So far everyone has worked very hard and it seems that everything is working out just like you have planned. Part of ...

Destination Management

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 09:19:38 +0100

Did you ever try to get the entire family out of the door to some destination in a very tight time frame? Wasn't easy was it? There are so many little details that no matter how careful you are something forgotten or overlooked. Moving large numbers of people seems to always be fraught with some unforeseen surprises. Most of them are not nice surprises. Sometimes there is no way to plan for the sudden things ...

Inflight Entertainment

Fri, 17 Dec 2010 09:47:32 +0100

I expect to be flamed by cabin crew for this little article and that�s ok, because I don�t know the ins and outs of their duties on an aircraft and can only relay what I see and experience. This recently was my experience on a flight to Denver Colorado in Premium Economy, totally not life and death but fun to write down for others consumption.

Once we were all sat down there was very lack ...

Product Launch Events

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:33:19 +0100

You worked long and hard to develop your product line. There was so much planning and research involved that happily you are ready to see what people will think of your idea. Anxiously you wait for the day when you are ready for the great big launch. This will be the time when you will find out if your hard work will pay off and your product will be a success. A product launch should ...

Venue Finding

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:31:36 +0100

Now that you have your event in mind you need to find the perfect place so that the event will be one that goes down in the memory books. Corporate events big and small need to have special attention paid to the details. Although it might seem like a minor thing it is the little things that can go a long way in making the event that much grander. Gala events especially need that extra ...

Incentive Organising

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:27:52 +0100

Incentive as a concept is meant to compel the recipients towards a greater action through direct involvement. . The concept is simple; the participant gets something special for achieving some sort of benchmark goal. This is a perfect way for your work staff to not only feel that their efforts have been valuable but to also challenge them towards greater achievements professionally. Surprisingly under achievers and over achievers both have a level playing field since ...

Group Travel

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:23:58 +0100

Most of us dream about a time when we can enjoy a great get away complete with travel to places we can only imagine. There is something thrilling about standing close to a magnificent waterfall, or looking over the countryside while aloft in a hot air balloon. The travel is that much sweeter when it comes because of some career related endeavor, but doing it for fun is okay too. When the time comes though, ...

Delegate Management

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 14:13:02 +0100

You have finally managed to get guest speakers you always wanted to host your corporate event. This will probably be the biggest event your company has ever had. Even though the itinerary for the presentation is complete, and you have your entire PowerPoint presentation ready to go, there is still so much more that has to be done. Planning a large event like a conference or a large corporate event does not have to be ...

Getting more from your staff

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 10:25:48 +0100

One the most incredibly overlooked ways of driving a business to success, is to motivate staff to deliver "more�. It is not all about salaries, work conditions and the like. In a private survey carried out by Target Data Information amongst 120 SMEs with between £15m to £100m turnovers, the staff overwhelmingly wanted recognition from their bosses. However, that was not all! Getting people together at incentivised events was thought to be a great way ...

Finding the right venue for your event

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 10:25:11 +0100

Due to the current state of the economy, it is clear that the selection of the most viable and appropriate conference and event location is paramount.

Short-cutting this key part of the mix can be catastrophic. With the advent of internet, there is a plethora of sites purporting to make such a choice easier for businesses and organisations. However, caveat emptor (let the buyer beware). One of our new clients indeed used such ...