Since 2006 the crew here at The Flybook has been knee deep in all things tour operator, guide, outfitter, anything "charter", food tours, beer tours, gear rentals (SUP, surf, bike, raft, boat, canoe, horse, mule), lodging, dude ranches and even prison tours.  You name it, we've organized and booked it.  Most customers of these businesses have no idea the logistical roller coaster ("roller coaster" might be an understatement) that is an activity based business.  Below is an infographic that does a good job of displaying what taking a reservation during peak season feels like for an operator:

 

Typically when we share this graphic with tour operators they progress through 3 stages of emotion:

Stage 1: The Chuckle.

Most people are quick to laugh as if to suggest "Yes...that is exactly what peak season feels like."

Stage 2: Story Telling.

Once the laughter has subsided, folks begin to tell stories about reservations that substantiate the visual. Stories about reservations that went array, wild custom requests, nightmare payment collections, horrible staff scheduling predicaments, over bookings....you name it.

NOTE: We are still waiting to hear about a unicorn playing a part?

Stage 3: Hope.

The stories are a great tension release, but more importantly they provide fabulous insight into the pain points and needs that programs like The Flybook can help solve.

Running a tour company is not easy. Many think this is "just the way it is."  Not true.  The Flybook reservation software is designed specifically for tour providers, from the perspective of tour providers.

*Check out a previous post about the importance of asking "Tough Questions" about your business for additional insight about the need to adopt a reservation system