Since a very young age I have always dreamed of running my own business. It always fascinated me because of the ability to make decisions that would impact the people I served (customers), the people that worked for/with me (employees), and my family. There was something about that type of responsibility that made me smile. As life went on and the days passed I found myself doing the things that most people do. Waking up, commuting to work, being stuck in a position that offered no end and wondering which fork in the road I did not take.
Fortunately for me, I was able to get a career at TravelHost as the VP Sales and Marketing where part of my responsibility is to work with our current publishers (entrepreneurs / business owners) and develop a marketing campaign to bring the TravelHost business opportunity to the public. In this role, I get to fulfill that dream of running my own business because I get to collaborate with people who are interested in running their own business and make decisions that are going to impact their life and families, the people they serve (clients and travelers) as well the people they hire to work with them. The dreams as a kid, and the lessons learned while earning my MBA at Iona College are being realized today.
When I was asked a couple of days ago about what I do, I could not wait to answer the question because I was so excited to tell the story of my role. From there the conversation went towards whether or not they could be a publisher and it got me thinking about what a job description for a publisher / entrepreneur would look like. Most people are going on LinkedIn to look for their next career instead of what their next opportunity is because they have been caught up in the notion that they need to climb the corporate ladder instead of building their own ladder and being in business for themselves.
Take a look at the job description and ask yourself: If I read this without knowing it was a business opportunity would I apply?
Job Brief
We are looking for high-performing Publishers to help us meet our ambitious market expansion goals. Publisher responsibilities include owning and operating your own business, developing and executing a distribution strategy, growing sales and providing key stakeholders an opportunity to meet a traveler’s wants and needs.
Responsibilities
- Own and operate your own business in your designated community / market.
- Develop and execute a distribution strategy for The Premier Destination Resource™ in your community / market.
- Leverage website, mobile app and social media news feeds to connect businesses to travelers
- Build and maintain strong, long-lasting customer relationships.
- Partner with customers to understand their business needs and objectives.
- Effectively communicate the TravelHost of YOUR COMMUNITY / MARKET value proposition through proposals and presentations.
- Understand print and digital landscapes and trends that can have an impact on strategic direction of accounts.
Requirements
- Business Focus. Profit-oriented, plan for growth, clear goals and alignment with business operations.
- A self-awareness and conviction in ability to succeed.
- Creative Thinker. Ability to balance present and future using a simple structure and ability to prioritize.
- Collaborate with TravelHost Headquarters to map a process to success.
- A focus on the big picture and attentiveness to the ever-changing advertising landscape.
- Have faith in ones-ability to succeed with a can-do attitude.
- Knowledge-seeker. Anticipate and use knowledge to drive for in-depth information.
- Be an ambassador for the brand by being enthusiastic about your community / market.
- Relationship-builder. Develop mutually-beneficial agreements with like-minded business owners.
- Risk-taker. Have a confidence and will to win.
There are times when it is not that easy to just say yes because of the risk involved and the uncertainty of what is around the corner. To that, TravelHost does offer something that other business opportunities do not. We provide new publishers with an unparalleled First Year Experience (FYE) on-boarding and launch plan. The FYE platform provides the publisher with a detailed, relevant and timely self-paced method to quickly create the best possible, profitable multi-media platform in their market. It is heavily augmented with active business coaching by highly qualified senior headquarter staff members.
As luck would have it, I was reading my daily selection of newsletters and found this article from Libby Sile titled 5 Advantages of Being a Franchisee versus an Independent Business Owner. While TravelHost is not a franchise, the principles in the article still apply. The instant brand recognition, the networking and shared resources help to mitigate the risk of being an independent business owner as Ms Sile points out in her article.
Leaving the rat race of corporate America can be a tough decision but it can also be the most productive decision of your life.
Jason Bahamundi
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