Sponsored by
This week I want to talk about something most of us advisors get wrong, not because we don't care, but because nobody ever showed us the difference.
It's not about what you sell. It's about what people feel before they decide to buy.
One story changed how I think about this.
I hope it does the same for you.
I know a woman who runs a DMC in Europe.
Small region.
Not the kind of place that shows up in Condé Nast roundups or gets pitched at many trade shows. She doesn't have a big team. She's not at every FAM trip. I'm not even sure she's on social media.
But she sends a newsletter every week.
Short. Never many words. Just one story. A village nobody's heard of. A family that's been making the same wine the same way for four generations. A trail that takes three hours and ends somewhere that makes you forget you were ever tired.
No itinerary.
No pricing.
No call to action.
Just the story.
I read every issue. I don't know when I'm going to that region. I've never booked a trip there.
But I can tell you right now, when that changes, she's the first person I'm calling.
Not because I've compared her to competitors.
Because she already owns a piece of my imagination.
That's not marketing.
That's something older and more powerful than marketing.
A few years ago, neuroscientist Paul Zak ran an experiment.
He showed subjects a short film; a father and his terminally ill son. Half saw a version with a clear narrative arc. Half saw a flat version.
Same people, same situation, no story structure.
Then he tested their blood.
The story group showed a significant spike in oxytocin. The trust hormone. The one that drives empathy, connection, and the willingness to act.
Stories don't just communicate. They change the chemistry of the person receiving them.
The DMC woman knows this.
Maybe not by name.
But she knows it in her bones.
Most travel advisor marketing does the opposite.
The destination.
The property.
The inclusions.
The tier.
Accurate, organized, and completely forgettable.
It reads like a well-researched menu. And menus don't make people feel anything.
There's a structure that fixes this.
Three steps.
I've watched people who use it instinctively outsell others with better product knowledge and longer supplier relationships.
Anecdote.
Before you describe the trip, tell one. Not a review. A moment. A past client who almost didn't book Bhutan and now says it rearranged something inside her. A couple who went to a small Portuguese town nobody recommended and didn't want to come home.
Ask yourself: when did I watch someone's relationship with travel change?
That moment is your story. Lead with it every time.
Amplify.
The story opened the door. Now make it personal.
What does this specific trip do for this specific client?
What have they been missing?
What does waiting another year actually cost them, not in money, in life?
You're not manufacturing urgency. You're making the real stakes visible.
Act.
This is where most advisors lose the close.
The proposal lands well.
The client is warm.
And the email ends with "let me know what you think."
That's not an invitation to act. It's an invitation to stall.
Give them one next step. Not options. One.
"I'm holding these dates until Friday. Say the word and I'll confirm."
The story made them feel it.
The amplification made it theirs.
The ask makes it real.
The DMC woman never mentions any of this. She just tells her story every week and trusts that the right people are reading.
They are.
And when they're ready, they know exactly who to call.
Have a wonderful weekend.
—Alex
Inside The Guild
A few weeks ago, I started working privately with a couple of advisors through something new: the Marketing Momentum Intensive.
It is a four-week, one-on-one coaching program for luxury travel advisors who want sharper positioning, stronger messaging, and a practical marketing plan they can actually follow.
Your work may already be strong. Your trips may already be thoughtful, polished, and worth booking.
But if your marketing does not communicate that clearly, consistently, and convincingly, the right clients do not feel it soon enough.
That is the gap this intensive is designed to close.
Over four weeks, we work directly on your business: your positioning, your messaging, and the disconnect between what makes your work valuable and what your market currently sees.
No group calls.
No generic curriculum.
No recycled advice.
Just focused strategic work to help your marketing reflect the level of business you want to build.
By the end, you will walk away with a clear 90-day marketing plan built around your niche, your strengths, and the kind of clients you want to attract more consistently.
If this is the kind of clarity your business needs right now, reply to this email with INTENSIVE and I'll send you the details.
The Key to Better aging: More NAD+
Most skincare works on the surface. Aramore goes where real aging begins: the basal layer of the skin, where new cells form. Backed by decades of research from Harvard and MIT scientists, Aramore is the first topical system designed to support skin’s NAD+ — the molecule your cells rely on for repair, energy, and resilience.
As NAD+ naturally declines with age, visible changes follow: dullness, uneven tone, fine lines, and loss of firmness. Aramore’s unique complex of NAD+ precursors, ketones, and fatty acids helps replenish cells at the source for skin that acts healthier and younger.
Clinically shown to improve tone, radiance, smoothness, and firmness as soon as 28 days.
📩 Share this email with your colleagues and invite them to join our expanding community of luxury travel professionals.
📫 If you received The Expert’s Guild Weekly from a friend and would like to subscribe, please do so here:
