Using AI to Craft Your Authentic Travel Brand Story
Introduction to the Holiday Booking Blitz Challenge
This training comes from a live session in the Holiday Booking Blitz Facebook group—an annual challenge focused on helping travel agents meet or exceed their year-end goals. Q4 (October, November, December) is when many businesses, including travel agencies, generate a significant portion of their annual income.
The Power of Your Travel Origin Story
Learning from Sahara Rose DeVore
Sahara Rose DeVore, founder and CEO of the Travel Coach Network, emphasizes the importance of discovering your travel origin story—your "why" for starting in travel. This deeper motivation should inform all your content creation and client communications.
Why Speaking Beats Typing
When you speak your thoughts, feelings, and beliefs, the result is far more powerful than typed content. Traditional academic writing teaches us to think in main ideas and supporting theses—rigid and structured. But copywriting and content creation should come from the heart, be spontaneous, and flow as stream of consciousness. Social media thrives on authentic human-to-human connection.
Demonstration: Creating Content Through Voice Typing
The Voice Typing Process
Tools Available:
- Google Docs: Tools → Voice Typing
- ChatGPT: Built-in dictation feature
- Google Gemini: Real-time dictation (shows text as you speak)
Example: Ireland Travel Origin Story
The presenter demonstrates speaking naturally about their Ireland travel experiences, covering:
Personal Ireland Travel History:
- Visited Ireland 6-8 times
- Attended St. Patrick's Day twice
- Loves returning for festivals and different seasonal experiences
Seasonal Experiences:
- March/April: Lambing season, better weather than expected, baby sheep in rolling fields
- Summer: Longer days due to northern latitude, warmer temperatures, more crowds due to school breaks
- Fall (Samhain/Halloween origins): Moody atmosphere, heather gone to sleep, misty landscapes, beautiful green contrasts
- Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival
Authentic Cultural Moments: Story about attending a canceled Céilí (traditional dance) but ending up spending the evening with local musicians from Comhaltas (similar to VFW). Despite being American, experienced genuine Irish culture and camaraderie.
Diverse Destinations:
- Cliffs of Moher
- Giant's Causeway
- County Mayo
- Monkstown (Dublin suburb)
Key Insight on Personalization
Every client wants different experiences. The same person can take two completely different trips to Ireland. Confidence comes from knowing you can create special, customized experiences whether it's someone's first or fifth trip.
Using AI to Refine Your Content
The Process
- Brain Dump: Speak stream-of-consciousness about your travel passion
- Paste into AI Tool: Use ChatGPT or Google Gemini
- Give Specific Instructions: Request different versions for various purposes
- Review and Edit: Refine the AI output to match your authentic voice
Example Prompt Structure
"Take this stream of consciousness brain dump about my travel brand origin story and create:
- One version for podcast interviews
- One version for media pitches to traditional publications
- Five Facebook profile post ideas about Ireland"
Sample AI Output Results
Origin Story for Podcast: "I always laugh when people tell me they went to a destination once... I've been to Ireland at least six, maybe seven or eight times at this point. I've honestly stopped counting. Every trip feels like meeting an old friend with an entirely new personality."
Facebook Post Hook: "The trip that changed everything. I'll never forget my first night in Ireland (well, my last night on my first trip) when a canceled Céilí turned into an unexpected evening with local musicians. It was unplanned, unpolished, absolutely magical—the kind of moment that only seems to happen in Ireland."
Advanced AI Refinement Techniques
Context-Specific Editing
The presenter demonstrates asking AI to refine content for specific audiences. Example: Adjusting the Ireland origin story for people considering moving to Ireland (not just traveling):
"Help me refine this origin story introduction for an audience of people who are not just looking to travel there, but possibly move there. They're probably going to be taking several trips to see if this is the country for them."
AI Refined Thesis: "Ireland is not a checklist item—Ireland demands a deep relationship. You need to see if you love the pulse and the quiet everyday life."
Using AI for Video Outlines
For YouTube videos and structured content, use AI to create outlines, then reference them while recording to stay on track and avoid rambling.
Critical Best Practices
What NOT to Do
- Don't use the same prompts as everyone else
- Don't copy generic AI outputs without personalization
- Don't rely solely on templates (except for calculations)
- Don't skip the brain dump step
What TO Do
- Start with authentic personal experiences
- Speak your content first, then refine
- Use AI as a refinement tool, not a replacement for your unique perspective
- Stand out by building on your unique expertise, education, and perspective
- Take time to think through your "why"
Tool Recommendations
Free vs. Premium Options
Google Gemini Benefits:
- Many premium ChatGPT features available free
- Real-time dictation
- Website search capability for context
ChatGPT Premium:
- Advanced features
- Multiple conversation threads
- More sophisticated outputs
Building Your Standout Brand
Your Unique Value Proposition
As a business owner, you must communicate why people should book with you. This requires:
- Sitting with your travel origin story
- Understanding your deeper motivations
- Articulating your unique expertise
- Sharing authentic experiences and perspectives
The Human Element
Your unique expertise, education, and perspective cannot come from prompts or random AI outputs. It comes from you—from bringing your experiences to the front of your consciousness and awareness, then using AI tools to refine and polish that authentic foundation.
Additional Resources
Sahara Rose DeVore's Travel Coach Network:
- Travel Coach Certification Program
- Focus on coaching, transformation, and travel
- Excellent for developing branding and messaging
- Media training and placement expertise
Holiday Booking Blitz Challenge:
- Annual challenge during holiday season
- Community support for year-end goals
- Practical application of these techniques
Final Thoughts
Taking the extra time to create authentic, personalized content—even if it means 10-12 minutes of recording and refining—produces significantly better results than using generic templates. When you're willing to put thought, love, and heart into your content, it stands out in a crowded marketplace where too many travel agents are using identical prompts about identical places.
Your authentic voice, combined with AI refinement tools, creates content that resonates emotionally with potential clients and communicates your genuine expertise and passion for travel.