Using Group Members
as Guinea Pigs
In an ideal universe, dive instructors would only lead trips to destinations they have been to repeatedly, know like the backs of their hands and, thus, can help ensure group members have the best possible time. In the real world, this isn’t always possible.
If dive instructors had to pay their own way to destinations, before bringing groups there, they’d never be able to afford to run dive trips. Inevitably, the first time most dive instructors visit a destination will be while leading a trip there. This need not be a problem if the group leader does adequate research first.
For example:
- Don’t be the first person to lead a dive trip to a resort or destination no one has ever heard of. Stick with popular resorts and destinations, such as Bonaire, Cayman, Cozumel, etc., that have a good reputation for customer satisfaction.
- Talk to other dive instructors who have led trips to the destination. Look for feedback on Internet discussion boards and read everything available on the Web or in print.
- Spend time on the phone talking to the dive operator. Find out all you can about making the trip as smooth as possible for your customers.
Problems arise when would-be group leaders decide the best way to discover whether a destination is worthwhile is to have 15 unsuspecting customers pay the instructor’s way there. If you really want to find out that badly, do so on your own dime.
The most successful dive trip leaders spend roughly half their time taking customers to destinations with which they are already familiar. For example, John and Susie Wall of “The” Dive Shop, in Fairfax, Virginia (who have one of the most successful dive travel programs in the country) lead as many of six group trips to Bonaire every year. They have been doing this for so many years their efforts have been recognized by the Bonaire government.
People sometimes ask if John and Susie don’t get sick of going to the same destination time and again. John and Susie remind such folks that they are not doing this for their own enjoyment, but rather for the happiness and well-being of their customers. It’s the high level of familiarity that John, Susie and all their staff have with the island that helps make these trips so much fun.
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