BAG · Bob Rogers Travel · Performance Group Travel

Selling with Awareness

Directors don't buy trips. They buy a stress-free experience their students never forget.

Most sales methodologies teach people what to say. This one teaches people how to think.

▶ Watch first · 1 min
I. Intentional Awareness

There are three kinds of awareness. Tap each to open it.

🧭
Internal Awareness
Know for Yourself
How clear are you on what's important and why?
Before every call, meeting, or presentation.
Open ▾

Clarity

  • What outcome are they actually trying to create?
  • What would make this conversation worth their time?
  • What do I want to be true when this call ends?

Motive

  • Why does this matter to them — not just to me?
  • Why now? What changed to put it on their list?
  • Why should they believe I can help?

People

  • Who has a say, and what role do they play?
  • Who lives with this problem day to day?
  • Who haven’t I accounted for yet?

Measure

  • How will they know this actually worked?
  • How are they handling it today?
  • What number or outcome are they judged on?

Movement

  • What is the next step I’m asking for?
  • What’s the smallest commitment that moves this forward?
  • What do I owe them when we hang up?
CreatesClarity→Focus→Action
👁️
External Awareness
Read the Room
Who has a say & what role do they play?
What mode are they in & what's their win?
Open ▾
Who has a say?
Decision MakerGuardianUserCoach
What matters most?
MoneyTimeRiskStatus
Then ask

Decision Maker phrasing shown. Tap any question to see how it changes for the Guardian, User & Coach.

Defines the outcome — clarity

GuardianCompliance / Risk
What matters most — the experience, budget, or safety?
Ex: Budget, deposits, payment plan, safety, chaperone ratio
UserExecution / Experience
What do you want this trip to mean for your students?
Ex: The performance, the memories, the student bonding
CoachInfluencer / Alignment
What would make this a win for your program?
Ex: Program growth, the story students tell for years

Reveals the process — reality

GuardianCompliance / Risk
How are trip decisions & approvals handled today?
Ex: Approvals, fundraising, parent payments, board sign-off
UserExecution / Experience
How are you planning & paying for trips today?
Ex: Who plans it, past trips, chaperones, what’s stressful
CoachInfluencer / Alignment
How does the program decide where to travel?
Ex: How trips get greenlit, who champions travel

Identifies friction — truth

GuardianCompliance / Risk
Where does risk show up — payments, safety, cancellations?
Ex: Collecting payments, budget, safety, cancellations
UserExecution / Experience
Where does planning get stuck — payments, chaperones, logistics?
Ex: Planning stress, chasing parents, day-of logistics
CoachInfluencer / Alignment
Where do priorities split — experience vs. budget vs. admin?
Ex: Admin buy-in, “is it worth the effort?”, timing

Tests commitment — decision

GuardianCompliance / Risk
If we took planning & payments off your plate, what changes?
Ex: On-budget, protected, one partner, refund advocacy
UserExecution / Experience
If this were easier or fixed, what improves for your team and your customers?
Ex: Less stress, better results, happier customers, more time
CoachInfluencer / Alignment
If this succeeded, what would be possible for your team and organization?
Ex: Stronger influence, trust, momentum, long-term impact
CreatesContext→Understanding→Alignment
🎯
Situational Awareness
Solve for Improvement
Is this account worth pursuing?
The right business fit — and the right time to pursue it.
Open ▾
Right Fit
Are we the right business fit for this account?

Capability

  • Is there a real performance trip to plan?
  • Can we deliver the destination, dates, and group size?
  • Would the trip be measurably better & less stressful with us?

Value

  • Does the group size & budget justify the effort?
  • Is this recurring — annual trip, program tradition, referrals?
  • What does pursuing this cost us elsewhere?

Position

  • Can I reach the director who decides?
  • What’s our edge over other companies or DIY planning?
  • Is there a champion — a director who trusts us?
Readiness
Is now the right time for them?

Motivation

  • What went wrong last trip — stress, payments, a letdown?
  • What does DIY planning cost the director in time & stress?
  • Who carries the planning & payment burden today?

Commitment

  • Is there a budget or fundraising path?
  • Have they traveled with a company before — how did it go?
  • Who signs off — admin, boosters, the board?

Timing

  • What’s driving the timing — a festival, competition, performance?
  • Is the destination or peak travel date filling up?
  • What happens to pricing & availability if this slips?
Right Fit+Readiness=Opportunity Qualification
Curiosity + Empathy = Context
How you show up before the conversation earns you the right to ask.
Belief + Trust = Content
What you say only lands when belief and trust are already in the room.
Role + Mindset = Reality
Role = how they see the problem. Mindset = how they feel about the problem.
II. Simple Swaps

Change the word. Change the answer.

Same question. Different door. Tap any swap to open it.

Select a swap above to open it.
✕ Instead of
“Why did you pick that destination?”
✓ Try
“What led you to that destination?”
“What went into that decision?”
Why it works
“Why” asks people to defend a decision. “What” asks them to describe one. Same information — without the wall going up.
✕ Instead of
“Tell me about your trip.”
✓ Try
“Help me understand what you’re planning for your students.”
“Help me get up to speed on how the trip gets decided.”
Why it works
“Tell me” is a command — it puts you above them. “Help me” makes them the expert and you the student. People are wired to help.
✕ Instead of
“Why do you say that?”
✓ Try
“What makes you say that?”
Why it works
You get the story behind the statement instead of a defense of it. Use it any time they say something you don’t understand yet — it never sounds like a challenge.
✕ Instead of
“Why did you travel with them instead of us?”
✓ Try
“Help me understand — what made that the better fit vs. this?”
Why it works
Asks about the choice, not the person. You learn the actual criteria they decide on.
You’re not softening the question. You’re removing the reason to guard the answer.
III. Gold for Ghosting

A Communication Framework

Awareness earns the meeting. This earns the reply.

5-Steps to Earning a Response

How to get a response without chasing people.

Tap any step to open the swap — what to stop saying, what to try instead, and why it works.

Select a step above to open it.

The psychology

See it in action
Tap an example to read the full outreach.

A BRT sales rep reached out to a band director after seeing their program was invited to perform out of state next spring.

Good Afternoon,

Congratulations on your band earning an invitation to perform — that’s a milestone your students will remember for years. (This is a mutually agreeable fact) We’ve planned more than 10,000 performance trips over 45 years, and we handle every detail — including collecting payments from parents for you. (Provides a unique offer while acknowledging their achievement)

Would you be against a quick look at a custom itinerary and a simple payment plan for your group? (Get your Yes with their No) From there we can build the full trip end-to-end, or start with just the destination and dates — whichever is easier for you. (Allow two choices, no more. Always two never three.)

If we could put either option in front of you, what’s the best number to reach you at? (This is an easy to answer question)

Much appreciation,
Name
Title & Bob Rogers Travel signature line

OutcomeThe director replied that evening to set up a planning call.

A recent graduate from Embry-Riddle’s Engineering program was struggling to get responses to his job applications and resumes. After repeated silence, the outreach was going nowhere — so he changed the approach.

Afternoon Clay, (Email contact at Northrop Grumman he found online)

Congratulations on the launch of Lumberjack! (A mutually agreeable fact) As a recent Engineering graduate from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and having heard about its development just over a year ago, I can only imagine how rewarding this milestone must be for you and the team. (Sharing himself as the unique offer & appreciation of someone else’s accomplishment is always adding value)

Would you be against a quick call to share 3 or 4 key decisions that helped shape your career path? (Gets a Yes with their No) Alternatively, I’d be happy to stop by next time I’m in the area to drop off my resume in person. (Allow two choices, no more. Always two never three.)

What would work best for you? (An easy to answer question)

Much appreciation,
Jeremy Jackson

OutcomeContact responded next day, looking forward to connecting with JJ.

A Sales Manager at Medicus Healthcare Solutions received a list of contacts from a colleague who had recently attended a healthcare conference. Using the five-step format, he successfully engaged several of those prospects.

Good Morning Todd,

We both value clinical excellence and sustainable staffing models. (A mutually agreeable fact) As you spoke with Garrett Williams at a recent conference, I understand he discussed our Transition and how it works as a bridge when insourcing a service line or switching between groups. (The unique offer — delivered as information, not a pitch)

If there were a way we could enable Peace of Health Medical Center to make the move to an employed model, ensure full schedule coverage in the process, and improve read turnaround times — would you be against meeting with my VP and I on 11/17? (Got his Yes with a No — and opened with “If there were a way…” not “If I had a way…” which would have subconsciously implied Brian knew more than the prospect)

We will be visiting Peace of Health St. Johns from 11 – 1:30pm on 11/17 to discuss our program for multiple service lines there.

Shortly after we meet to better understand your specific needs, we could move forward with a detailed clinical discussion to assess how our solution would look in execution.

Would a meeting on 11/17, sometime between 3pm – 5pm or a dinner that evening work better for you? (Allow two choices, no more. Always two never three — and easy to answer.)

Much appreciation,
Brian

OutcomeContact responded & Brian began “Problem Solving,” going one for one out of the gate in his email follow-up that day.
Improvement starts with understanding. Reach Out. I Can Help. →