Tour Operator Growth Podcast
The Tour Operator Growth Podcast is for tour and activity business owners who feel like they’re constantly juggling everything and still wondering why growth feels harder than it should.
Most tour businesses don’t fail because the experience isn’t good. They struggle because the business outgrows the systems holding it together. Bookings come from all directions. Marketing feels scattered. The website, the phones, email, reviews, and follow-ups all live in different places. And somehow you’re supposed to manage it all while still running trips.
This podcast was built from that exact reality.
The system behind it was created by a successful tour operator who hit those same walls and had to build a better way to grow without everything breaking. Today, Greg and Nikki from Resmark share the lessons, frameworks, and hard-earned insights from helping hundreds of tour operators simplify their business, get more consistent bookings, and regain control.
We talk about the real problems operators face: feeling stuck, feeling overwhelmed, hitting growth ceilings, relying too much on OTAs, or not knowing what to fix first. Whether you’re just getting started, trying to break through your next plateau, or already growing fast and trying to keep it all together, this show is built for you.
The goal is simple: help you build a tour business that grows in a way that’s sustainable, predictable, and actually enjoyable to run.
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Tour Operator Growth Podcast
Inside Your Ideal Customer’s Mind: Why Tours Get Booked
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Most tour operators think about marketing from their own perspective. But what actually happens inside the mind of a traveler when they start dreaming about a trip?
In this episode of the Tour Operator Growth Podcast, we flip the perspective and hear directly from a real traveler. Corey Jay, Marketing Director at Zebulon, joins us to walk through how she actually discovers, researches, and decides to book tours and experiences.
Corey works with tour operators professionally, but she’s also the exact type of guest many operators are trying to attract. In this conversation, she breaks down what sparks the idea of a trip, where she goes first when researching experiences, what builds trust with a tour company, and what instantly turns her away.
If you want to understand how your future guests actually think during the Dreaming Stage of the customer journey, this episode gives you a rare look inside their decision process.
If your marketing doesn’t build trust during the dreaming phase, your ideal customer will simply move on to someone else.
🎙️ Learn More About Zebulon
Website: https://zebulonllc.com
Follow Zebulon on Social Media
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zebulonllc/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zebulonllc/
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🚀 Take the Growth Engine Assessment to find out where you might need to improve:
https://www.resmarksystems.com/growth-engine-survey
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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ResmarkSystems
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/resmarkllc
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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/resmark-systems
📈 Want Help Growing Your Tour Business?
Visit https://www.resmarkweb.com
Book a call: https://www.resmarkweb.com/request-quote
Call or text us directly: 385-449-4079
Email Nikki: nikki@resmarksystems.com
00:00 Why the Dreaming Phase Matters
01:05 Meet Corey Jay from Zebulon
03:00 What Actually Sparks the Idea of a Trip
04:45 Where Travelers Go First When Researching Tours
07:00 What Content Builds Trust Before Booking
09:10 How Corey Evaluates Reviews and Red Flags
12:00 Do Ads Actually Influence Travelers?
15:00 Booking Behavior for Day Tours vs Multi-Day Trips
19:00 What Travelers Look For When They Land on Your Website
22:15 Why Storytelling Builds Long-Term Brand Trust
24:30 The Problem With Constant Sales Messaging
27:15 The “Secret Shopper” Strategy Tour Operators Should Use
30:05 The One Thing Tour Operators Must Get Right in the Dreaming Phase
31:20 What Zebulon Does for Tour Operators