Original post by Kage Spatz / Published in Authority Magazine

John Mast, Sr. is the Senior Director of Global Cruise Marketing for Expedia Cruises, a full-service leisure travel agency franchise backed by one of the most powerful travel brands in the world. Mast has been with Expedia Group for over 19 years. His current role includes overseeing marketing, franchise development, and public relations for North America.

Can you share a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had a love of traveling. It’s always been something that I feel in my soul. There’s nothing better than exploring a new place and experiencing that culture for yourself.

When I was in my twenties, I balanced going to college, traveling overseas, and working a number of jobs. Some of those jobs included working at ski resorts, golf courses, and a seasonal houseboat and recreational rentals business. While it took me a few extra years to earn my degree, I eventually graduated with a bachelor’s in business administration.

In the early 2000s, I joined my f1iend’s travel agency franchise to help them leverage the internet, which at that time was still new for many people, and reach new customers to sell travel experiences. I worked there for five years as the Director of Client Services before joining Expedia Group in 2005. The rest as they say is history.

Can you share a story about the funniest marketing mistake you made when you first started and what lesson you learned from that?

Not sure how funny this mistake is, but in the early days of marketing customization, we learned a huge lesson in data hygiene. We had built our own customer relationship management (CRM) platform, using it primarily for email marketing and direct mail campaigns.

Our travel agents were regularly encouraged to use the system and keep the customers’ records updated. There was a field set up in our CRM titled “do not contact,” which was for when people opted out or were no longer customers for whatever reason. We learned the hard way that people do not always use the CRM fields as designed – they can get creative.

One of our franchise locations took it upon themselves to add the term “deceased” in brackets beside the last name to remind them internally that the customer had passed away and they should not be contacted in the future. Eventually, we started getting complaints that our mail was still going out and being addressed, for example, as “Dear Bob Smith (Deceased)” – it was often going to their widows.

Needless to say, we quickly apologized and cleaned it up. Our team learned that data hygiene and good salespeople interfaces are a critical part of our operations.

Thank you for sharing that lesson with us! Are you able to identify a “tipping point” in your career when you started to see success? Did you start doing anything different? Are there takeaways or lessons that others can learn from that?

Someone told me early on that luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Even though I didn’t realize it at the time, my natural curiosity of the internet and digital channels prepared me for my career.

Looking back, we were essentially pioneers in the digital space for Expedia Group. They had a traditional marketing team in the early days focused on print, radio, and yellow pages. I was placed in the IT department as we worked with the digital team to get our websites up and running, source product and content, and build the CRM.

Little by little, we started incorporating email and digital advertising into our marketing strategy. Eventually, our digital team replaced our traditional team. At that point, I stepped into a role overseeing the brand and all the media, which is the role I serve to this day.

I think there are parallel opportunities happening today for younger entrepreneurs. It’s the early days of artificial intelligence – the next big thing that will likely affect all industries in some way. I think those who are curious about AI and engage with it sooner rather than later will set themselves up for personal and professional growth faster.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

It’s all in our brand promise – we are passionate local travel experts who are backed by the buying power and reach of Expedia Group, one of the world’s largest brands in travel. Going on a cruise can be polarizing – people either want to try it or have objections. Whenever they give it a try, they often love it.

One story that jumps out is about my good friend’s father. He went on a large cruise to Alaska but didn’t have a fun time and vowed to never go again.

However, he still had an itch to visit the Caribbean and I told him to call me the next time he decided to go on a cruise. When he reached out to me, I put him in touch with the Expedia Cruises Vacation Consultant team in his area and they worked their magic.

Our brand promise is to go above and beyond to create a personalized vacation experience you’ll remember for the rest of your life. We pride ourselves on asking better questions so we can customize the trip to each traveler’s needs and preferences. Our team is made up of experienced and passionate travelers. The expertise combined with the name recognition of Expedia makes for a winning customer value experience. People get the value they seek.

In the case of my friend’s dad, our team found Windstar Cruises to be the perfect fit for him. The ships are smaller with elevated food and service. Additionally, the atmosphere on board is relaxed while maintaining a sense of adventure. It’s an experience he loved so much that he has since gone on five more Windstar Cruises.

It’s not rocket science – giving people great service, listening to their needs, and ensuring they get the value they seek are the keys to a winning business model.

Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that will help people?

Right now, we’re merging all our digital channel efforts onto the Salesforce Marketing Cloud platform. With the advent of AI, data clouds, and advanced software, it’s never been easier and more possible to create and operate personalized campaigns.

Our teams will be able to produce far deeper customer experiences that are truly customized to fit the needs and preferences of each person. Plus, they will be able to do it much faster and rely on automation to do a lot of the heavy lifting.

None of us achieve massive success without some help along the way. Is there a person you are grateful for who helped get you to where you are?

It’s an easy choice – my fantastic mentor Tim Johnson, who is the Founder and President of Grey Worldwide in Vancouver. I met Tim when I was working at a local garden center in high school and living with his brother. He worked in the city at Grey, but would come out on the weekends and work with us. He shared stories about the agency business and projects he was working on – I found it truly inspiring.

I looked up to Tim and he served as an inspiration for me to go to business school. Throughout college and my career, we stayed in touch and have made it a point to meet several times a year to bounce off any ideas or ask for advance on how to handle specific challenges. We even did some work together with his team at Grey over the years.

He’s retired now and we stay in touch. 30 years later – he’s coaching me on strategies to plan for retirement. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Tim for taking the time to help me for whatever life has thrown my way.

Is there someone you consider to be your hero?

The obvious answer is my parents. They are incredible and taught me the power of hard work, a strong marriage, the importance of education, and carpe diem.

In terms of someone who I’ve been reading about who interests me – I’ll choose Anthony Bourdain. He seemed to have life figured out through his passion for traveling the world, trying different cuisines, and meeting new people. I would have liked to have had dinner with him and learn more about his experiences.

Beautiful. Let’s jump over to the main topic of this conversation. What advice would you give to other marketers to thrive and avoid burnout?

I think the concept of a harmonious work-life balance is a myth – for me, the answer is focus.

We’re all extremely busy and play many roles in life, such as a spouse, parent, son, brother, friend, pet owner – the list goes on. It can be overwhelming to have to balance all those responsibilities, while also maintaining your own health and life.

In my experience, I prioritize certain roles over others at specific times and focus solely on completing on that task. I also like to consider my priorities and rank them.

If I have a big project at work, I may have to cancel plans to see friends and tell my family I’m going to be working late a few days this week or away for a while. When it’s vice versa, I put work on the back burner and focus on living in the moment with friends and family.

From my own personal experience, I’d suggest to others that they don’t check their work email or any communications when on a family vacation. This will help avoid burnout.

One example from my own life is that when my son plays baseball, I prioritize getting off work early to watch as many games as possible. It’s important to be with a company that supports a flexible schedule.

I remember telling one of my old bosses that I needed to leave early for my daughter’s first grade holiday concert. He said I should go now – adding that it’s her only first grade holiday concert and that I should be there with her.

I encourage my team to follow this model – not living life with balance but with undivided focus in whatever you do.

Wonderful advice. There are hundreds of memorable marketing campaigns that have become part of the lexicon of our culture. What is your favorite marketing campaign from history? Can you explain why you like that so much?

There are many that come to mind. I think beer brands have been leading the way in memorable marketing campaigns over the years.

My favorite is an old Ranier Beer commercial with the motorcycle sounds. It perfectly captured the emotion and freedom of the Pacific Northwest while quenching the viewer’s thirst for a cold beer on a hot summer’s day.

Corona captured a similar feeling with one of their commercials when it showed two friends sitting on a beach skipping stones. One of them tosses their cell phone into the sea when it interrupts them while they were relaxing with a cold beer in paradise.

Switching to the food industry, there’s a simple yet memorable McDonald’s billboard that I pass on the way to where I ski in the winter.

The billboard has their iconic golden arches with a red background just before an offramp. The ends of the arches on the bottom left and right are extended with dotted lines into arrows in the shape of the exits on either side of the highway. With a simple glance, you can see they have a location nearby in both directions.

The only words on the billboard are the two location dots. It’s a simple and powerful ad that delivers their message in a nanosecond.

If you could break down a successful campaign into a “blueprint”, what would that blueprint look like?

Stick to the fundamentals. You need a clear target audience for your product or service, a compelling offer or reason to care, and B2C campaigns anchored by B2B outreach. Once you have that down – execute, measure, and reiterate.

The best example of how Expedia Cruises puts this into practice is our annual three-day sale with Princess Cruises, which is now in its 20th year. We partner with them to develop an exclusive offer that’s best-in-market for the whole year. Then, we create a 360-degree marketing strategy designed to attract new customers and ensure that our existing customers rebook every year.

They know it’s the best sale all year – they trust us and wait for it. Leading up to the three-day sale, we spend six weeks spreading the word through consumer media and sales outreach. This sale sets records in the industry and continues to grow every year.

We can’t do it alone – it requires an investment by us, our franchisees, Vacation Consultants, and the strong partnership with Princess Cruises. Everyone is committed and invested in making the sales successful. As they say, teamwork makes the dream work.

Consumers have become more resistant to anything “salesy”. In your industry, where do you see the future of marketing going?

For me, the basics of marketing are the same. It’s the way we communicate to consumers that has evolved. We see lots of success with short videos that solve problems and help consumers “see the future” of their vacation.

For example, we have a quadriplegic Vacation Consultant that does YouTube videos demonstrating how people with his disability can travel and offer all kinds of examples and tips. The content will spread on YouTube and find its way onto other social media platforms through people sharing it online.

With AI and technology targeting our videos for a specific audience – content will always be king. The ways we share it with our audience will continue to evolve and provide better results faster.

What 5 things do you wish someone told you before you started?

You’re in Control: As long as you’re working hard, networking, learning, and keeping an open mind – anything is possible. Don’t expect your manager or the HR team to write your career path for you – that’s your job.

Every year, I spend a day over the holidays to focus and ask myself if I’m happy with where I’m at professionally and personally. I set plans for the year ahead and commit to them for a full year. Then, I’m not second­ guessing things as the year progresses – I follow my plan.

Always Listen: Whether it’s to customers, teammates, or suppliers – make sure you’re listening to every word coming out of their mouth. You never know what you might learn from them. Listening is a crucial component for building relationships, strengthening problem-solving skins, and personal development.

For example, we always make sure to listen to our franchisees and see how we can best sell a new campaign to customers. Knowing that you are listening also improves morale at your workplace and encourages an environment where everyone feels valued and respected.

Nothing Lasts: It’s a fact of life that everything changes over time. No matter which industry you’re in it’s imperative to constantly learn and evolve. Go on social media and online publications to keep an eye on the latest marketing trends and behaviors.

Businesses that adapt and evolve their services and products with changes and trends are the ones that survive. That being said, quality work aligned to a clear strategy will do well no matter the outlet or year.

Crises Happen: Crises are often unpredictable, so it’s important to have a plan in place in case something does occur. Make sure to focus on what you can control in the situation.

I’ve lived and worked through numerous unprecedented events, such as 9/11, the 2008 financial crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Each time, we saw business stall – and we had to keep marketing to our customers and ensuring the message was appropriate. That was especially challenging during COVID-19. However, each time our business bounced back stronger than before and it helped us in the long run.

Stick to Your Guns: Many people are armchair marketers and have an opinion about marketing. It can be useful to listen to non-marketers and get their outside perspective on a campaign but don’t let them influence your strategy too much.

Trust yourself to make the best decisions for your business and be prepared to stick by them in the face of criticism and opposition.

There are a lot of golden nuggets there. Can you share a few examples of current marketing tools or technology that you think can dramatically empower small business owners to become more effective marketers?

I’d say CRM, marketing automation, and generative AI tools like Jasper. However, there are tool kits, like Shopify, that bundle all that technology and equip people to start businesses. Salesforce is doing something similar on a far greater scale.

While this technology is helpful for people across all industries – it’s important to remember that you still need creative, thoughtful, and powerful content.

I’d encourage marketers to stay focused on compelling and creative campaigns grounded in strategy. A whole bunch of cool ads that aren’t part of a larger narrative or driving the mission of the brand won’t create an emotional attachment to the business.

Absolutely. What books, podcasts, documentaries, or other resources do you use to sharpen your marketing skills?

I’d highly recommend the book Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t by Jim Collins. His flywheel model is timeless.

David Ogilvy’s Confessions of an Advertising Man was an incredible read 25 years ago and I recently re-read it. I was impressed by how much that book still resonates today.

Honestly, almost any podcast that aligns with your industry or problem is worth a listen. For example, Skift Podcasts are great for travel and technology.

One more before we go: If you could inspire a movement that could bring the most good to the most people, what would that be?

I’d personally like to see some form of international travel experience injected into the public education system and be required for all students.

Teach future generations to travel more and be open to new cultures and people from all walks of life. I believe traveling provides true adventure and opportunity for personal growth. Travel opens minds and helps bridge cultures.

I like the Mark Twain quote: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.”

Exploring the Expedia Cruises Franchise Opportunity?

Are you seeking a business opportunity that perfectly balances equity, lifestyle, and fun? The Expedia Cruises franchise opportunity empowers franchise owners to do it all! The power of Expedia’s well-known brand, commitment to exceptional customer service, omnichannel approach, and proven franchise business model has helped it grow into a leading travel seller in North America.

To learn more about the Expedia Cruises franchise opportunity, email jeff@expediafranchise.com, or call (778) 928-0053.