Stop Posting “Just Booked.” Tell the Decision Story Instead | PLOT: Part 2
The Social Takeoff Podcast with Kelli Hayes SmithShow Notes
Travel agents, your booking is probably not the most interesting part of the story.
In Part 2 of my PLOT Framework series, we're digging into the P: PICK, and the Decision Story hiding inside the proposals and bookings you're already creating.
Because a “just booked” post tells me what happened. A Decision Story tells me why it happened.
Why did you choose that resort over another one? Why did you tell your client to spend more on the hotel and save somewhere else? Why did you rule out the option they originally thought they wanted? What did you know, notice or consider that helped you make the recommendation?
THAT is the part that shows me your expertise.
And we're also talking about why I've changed my mind about the educational content I used to tell travel agents to create. When information was harder to access, sharing information could help demonstrate what you knew. But your clients now have Google, AI and endless information at their fingertips.
Your marketing can't stop at “look what I know.”
It needs to let people watch what you do with what you know. In this episode, I'm unpacking how to: Tell a Decision Story instead of a Booking Story Turn educational content from telling your expertise into showing it Find the PICK hiding inside even the most “run-of-the-mill” proposal Use three questions to uncover the actual story: What did I pick? Why did I pick it? What would have made me pick differently? Find the piece of your decision your potential client wouldn't know to consider Take ONE Decision Story and turn it into carousels, Reels, talking-head videos, emails, LinkedIn content and long-form content Build PLOT into your workflow so creating marketing content stops feeling like an entirely separate job
I also walk through one Decision Story and show you exactly how I'd change the angle and format to use that same story across different platforms.
Because that's the bigger goal of PLOT: Story first. Format second.
You don't need to sit down and come up with an Instagram idea, an email idea, a LinkedIn idea and a blog idea.
Do the work you're already doing. Find the PLOT. Then decide where you want to tell the story.
Next week, we're moving to L: LISTEN and the Client Story: the questions, conversations and things your clients say that are already giving you another entire category of content.
Your homework: Pull up your most recent proposal and ask yourself: What did I pick? Why did I pick it? What would have made me pick something different?
Come hang out with me: 📲 Instagram: instagram.com/kellihayessmith 💻 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kellihayessmith
More from The Social Takeoff Podcast with Kelli Hayes Smith
You worked hard to earn the client. So why would your marketing stop once they book? In the final episode of the PLOT series, we're talking about the T: Tiny Detail. And this one is a little different. Instead of finding another piece of content to post on social media, we're using the tiny details you learn about your clients to create better loyalty marketing and turn first-time clients into repeat clients. Because by the time someone has planned and taken a trip with you, you know A LOT about them. You know what they loved, what they didn't love, what they were willing to spend more on, what surprised them, what their kids couldn't stop talking about, what they would never do again, and maybe even where they're dreaming about going next. The question is: are you actually capturing that information and using it? In this episode, we're talking about how to: • collect Tiny Details before, during, and after a client's trip • use post-trip feedback to build a living client profile • create personal, one-to-one touchpoints that don't feel like sales pitches • segment past clients based on what they actually care about • make mass email marketing feel more personal without pretending a first-name field is personalization • use your CRM to help you remember what your brain absolutely will not • create marketing that makes your clients think, “She knows us.” Your CRM shouldn't just tell you where someone traveled. It should get smarter every time they travel with you. Because the proposal gives you marketing material. The relationship gives you marketing intelligence. And some of the most powerful marketing you do may never be posted publicly at all. This is the final piece of PLOT, and it's all about keeping the clients you've already worked so hard to earn. Come find me on Instagram: @kellihayessmith https://www.instagram.com/kellihayessmith/
Travel agents, when I say Challenge Story, I am NOT telling you to wait until somebody loses a passport, gets stranded somewhere, or has a full-blown travel emergency before you have something worth talking about. Most of the obstacles you solve are a whole lot more ordinary than that. The budget doesn’t quite match the wish list. The better flight costs more. The resort your client found on TikTok doesn’t actually fit the vacation they described. The perfect family resort doesn’t have the room setup they need. Two people on the same trip have completely different priorities. Nothing went wrong. Something just made the answer less straightforward. In Part 4 of my PLOT series, we’re unpacking O: OBSTACLE → the Challenge Story. We’re talking about how to recognize the ordinary obstacles hiding inside the proposals you’re already working on, the difference between a Challenge Story and the Decision Stories we talked about in Part 2, and why showing the problem-solving between a client’s request and your eventual recommendation can make some of your most valuable work visible to potential clients. I’m also breaking down the boundaries I think matter when telling these stories, because this isn’t about manufacturing drama, making a client look difficult, sharing private information, or positioning yourself as the hero who swooped in and saved the day. And we’ll get practical about turning one Challenge Story into a talking-head Reel, carousel, B-roll Reel, email or Stories. Your assignment this week is simple: go back to your last proposal and don’t look for what went wrong. Look for what wasn’t completely straightforward. What did you have to solve, balance, adjust or work around? That’s your Challenge Story. Ordinary obstacles count, too. CONNECT WITH KELLI Instagram: @kellihayessmith LinkedIn: Kelli Hayes Smith
Show Notes Travel agents, some of your best content is already happening in conversations with your clients. The question is: are you listening for it? In Part 3 of the PLOT framework, we're digging into LISTEN and the Client Story.
SHOW NOTES Travel agents, what if your biggest content problem isn't that you don't know what to post, but that you aren't recognizing the content you're already creating?
Most travel advisors think they need better marketing.