Do you remember your very first industry event? The excitement and overwhelm from looking over the packed schedule of events, collecting business cards like they were currency, sitting through every session you could, and returning home completely exhausted with a tote bag full of brochures and freebies.

Most of us in the travel industry have been there. We invest real dollars and real days into conferences, ship tours, and trade events without considering the ROI for our businesses.

Before heading to Amsterdam last week to attend and speak at ASTA’s 2026 River Cruise Expo, I invited Sandy Saburn (Chief Communications Officer at GTN) to join me on the Travel Business Unpacked podcast for a conversation on this topic, and we both agreed that industry events are only as valuable as the strategy we bring to them.

One of Sandy’s many areas of brilliance is the ability to distill complexity into clarity. Her simple framework — what she calls the three R's — is one I wish I'd had twenty years ago.

Before You Pack Your Bag: Research

Sandy's framework starts before you ever board a plane. Before committing to an event, ask yourself this single, honest question: What do I actually want to walk away with?

As a travel entrepreneur, your time is finite and every event carries an opportunity cost. You can't attend everything, so the events you choose need to earn their place on your calendar. Sandy recommends anchoring your year around two essential conferences — your host agency conference and a consortia event like Virtuoso Travel Week. These are the relationships and communities that will sustain your business long-term.

From there, the research gets specific. Who's going to be there? Which suppliers align with your niche? Which partners are preferred with your host agency or consortia? The advisors who get the most from any event are the ones who have a clear sense of which conversations matter most to their business right now and arrive with a list instead of a rigid agenda.

While You're There: Relationships

Yes, ship tours are valuable. Yes, supplier presentations are informative. But the most lasting return on your investment in any industry event is the relationships you build, not only with partners, but also with fellow advisors who understand the specific challenges of this work in a way that most people in your life never will.

When it comes to partner relationships, the advisors who get the most from their event time are the ones asking suppliers thoughtful questions: Who is your ideal client? What genuinely differentiates your product? How do you work best with advisors?

Additionally, Sandy brought up the important point that you don't need to personally experience every product you sell. The belief that you do can keep advisors in a posture of seeking discounts and FAM trips rather than building the kind of supplier relationships that actually move their business forward. Approach suppliers as a professional peer, and they'll treat you like one.

After You Get Home: Revenue

You arrive back home filled with inspiration and ready to apply what you’ve learned to your business. But the reality is that all the insights, the photos, the connections, the things that genuinely excited you, they all have a shelf life. If you don't act on it within the first week home, a lot of it disappears into the fog of everyday business.

Sandy's advice for practical and immediate follow-up is to carve out intentional time after the event to organize your contacts, follow up on conversations, and weave what you learned into your marketing and client outreach. That client who mentioned she's always wanted to sail the Norwegian fjords? She needs to hear from you now, while you're still genuinely excited about that ship you just toured.

The event only becomes revenue when you close the loop.

Putting It All Together

What I love about Sandy's framework is that it's really an invitation to treat your own business with the same care and intentionality you bring to your clients. Preparation before, presence during, follow-through after — it's not complicated, but it does require commitment.

Industry events are one of the greatest investments available to us as travel professionals. The knowledge, the relationships, the inspiration, all are there for the taking. The advisors who turn that investment into real business growth are the ones who show up with a plan, stay curious while they're there, and do the work when they get home.

That's the whole game. And now, thanks to Sandy, we all know how to play it.

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If you love learning from travel industry professionals like Sandy, tune into The Travel Business Unpacked podcast! Each episode dives deep into the real stories, practical strategies, and transformational moments that turn travel dreams into thriving careers. Listen and subscribe on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and check out Sandy's full episode here.