Cajun 2 Wheels, Inc.

TX2Wheels · 07-17-2006, 10:10 AM

Last March 2005 my brother and I started a small Segway rental business in Galveston, TX. Man have we learned a lot. First off we had the idea to do tours of the Historical Strand District and went about learning as much as we could. Shortly after starting the tours, one of our customers remarked to me that he didn't want to listen to this "crap" he just wanted to ride. That got me to thinking and did a little survey during the subseqent tours. at least 95% agreed that the Segway ride was more inportant than doing a tour. Further most stated that providing a nice area to ride was what they liked about our tour. What I have tried to do now is find little know facts about the area and use that while riding. We have a lot of repeat customers so I guess we are doing something right. Still I want to do more than just a ride. One suggestion from a waiter at one of the upscale resturants was to do a ride that involved stopping at various resturants and have an appittizer at one and salad at another followed by the main course and then dessert at another. Sounded good to me just would like to get feed back from the group.

Sincerely,

Jay "2 Wheels" Guillot

pam · 07-17-2006, 10:56 AM

It would certainly be unique. I'd think you'd want to confirm with each restaurant that they would allow the HTs in or provide parking within view, and probably have a fixed menu, so you could control your time. But that's just my thought.
Pam

Desert_Seg · 07-17-2006, 11:30 AM

Jay,

This is something we have incorporated into our tour routes. Good thing about this is that the Restaurants usually will give you YOUR meal / drink either free or at a hugely discounted rate.

Steven

Florida Ever-Glides · 07-17-2006, 01:42 PM

I have looked closely at doing both lunch and dinner tours and am not yet sold on the idea. Many guests will want to drink alcohol, others will not want to be rushed on a schedule. and by the time you add the additional costs for the meal/drinks for many the experience is priced too high. I am looking at other ways to increase our tour numbers by implementing brand new 'unique' methods to increase our numbers by 50% next year. If it was easy, everybody would be doing it.

The reason people want to just ride the Segways vary, but on a tour it's all about the 'experience' you give them. If you don't present the tour so it is fun, enjoyable, and educational/interesting for ALL ages you will end up with guests that are bored in the first five minutes. Thats when they tell you that they just want to ride the machines. It is the #1 priority to make the tour the best possible and certainly better than any other type of tour in the area.

Hint: If you offer too much (i.e. tours, sales, rentals, aftermarket products) you risk the old saying: Jack of all trades, master of none...

"If you do it better, it will get bigger"....

TX2Wheels · 07-17-2006, 03:38 PM

[quote=Florida Ever-Glides]I have looked closely at doing both lunch and dinner tours and am not yet sold on the idea. Many guests will want to drink alcohol, others will not want to be rushed on a schedule. and by the time you add the additional costs for the meal/drinks for many the experience is priced too high. I am looking at other ways to increase our tour numbers by implementing brand new 'unique' methods to increase our numbers by 50% next year. If it was easy, everybody would be doing it.

The reason people want to just ride the Segways vary, but on a tour it's all about the 'experience' you give them. If you don't present the tour so it is fun, enjoyable, and educational/interesting for ALL ages you will end up with guests that are bored in the first five minutes. Thats when they tell you that they just want to ride the machines. It is the #1 priority to make the tour the best possible and certainly better than any other type of tour in the area.

TX2Wheels · 07-17-2006, 03:39 PM

Very well said. I talked to my partner and brother and we pretty much came up with the same thinking. The other idea I had was to change venues, especially for repeat customers. I do a lot of dialogue with my riders, filling them in on resturants and other events that are going on in the area. But I am open to any ideas so stay tuned and thanks for the input
Jay
Hint: If you offer too much (i.e. tours, sales, rentals, aftermarket products) you risk the old saying: Jack of all trades, master of none...

"If you do it better, it will get bigger"....[/quote]

TX2Wheels · 07-17-2006, 03:42 PM

Please read the message from Florida EverGlides. Cost and time come into the picture. That is the fly in the ointment, so to speak. Advertising on the Segway make also present another avenue for more revenue. I have one large entertainment facility entertaining the idea of doing ads on my Segways and also handing out promo leaflets.
Thanks for the inout
Jay

Stewbonz · 07-21-2006, 08:35 AM

" ...you will end up with guests that are bored in the first five minutes.Thats when they tell you that they just want to ride the machines. It is the #1 priority to make the tour the best possible and certainly better than any other type of tour in the area."

I don't know where you come up with this stuff Tom.
My first ride was in a hotel room and I couldn't get enough.

Paris Segway Tours rides past the Louvre, Notra Dame and numerous significant tourist sites and the customers don't even want to stop riding to view the monuments. They say that it's 95% Segway interest.
I agree.
My customers had the opportunity to take the machines to Thai Palace's and Ancient monuments but preffered the Bangkok Back Streets Ride.
Our little detour thru a poor area, drinking moonshine with the locals turned into the hit.

Florida Ever-Glides · 07-21-2006, 11:55 AM

Jeff,

I've recently had several guests on our tour that had taken City Segway Tours around the country and the world. And the funny thing was, that ALL of them said that our tour had much better training and the tour experience was much more interesting. Enough said.

The less said by a guide during a tour allows the tour company to hire people who don't have to learn anything about the area, and just do a little pointing. They can hire 'cheap' college-type' people.

If you drank alcoholic beverages (moonshine) with your guests, and they got back on a Segway, I'll be the first to say that I'm glad you're no longer in the tour business. That was just plain stupitity. I think that everyone here will agree. If you also smoked the local Thai Weed on the tour, no doubt they would have loved it too...

Stewbonz · 07-21-2006, 08:01 PM

Might sound stupid to you Tom, but my customers loved it.
Tastes like a Thai Yagermeister...and good for you too they say.
Some of my guests came over and over for the health benefits.
A sip of the local stuff is somthing your guests will never do I'm sure.
Maybe you should loosen up a bit. Nobody got drunk Tom and we broke out the Bong AFTER the tour...

My Bangkok Segway Tour is a blast!
We ended up at birthday parties, weddings, even saw a baby being born on our ride.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/youngj...1f.jpg&.src=ph

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/youngj...a0.jpg&.src=ph

I don't appreciate being called stupid Tom.
By the way.
Is there somting you want to share with the class about your Miami Segway Tour? Went BROKE I hear?
That explains all those extra machines sitting around, eh?

07-17-2006, 11:30 AM	#3
Desert_Seg Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Posts: 837	Jay, This is something we have incorporated into our tour routes. Good thing about this is that the Restaurants usually will give you YOUR meal / drink either free or at a hugely discounted rate. Steven __________________ Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body. But rather, to skid in sideways, cigar in one hand, favorite beverage in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming...WOW!!!! What a ride!!

07-17-2006, 01:42 PM	#4
Florida Ever-Glides Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Sarasota, Florida, . Posts: 1,059	I have looked closely at doing both lunch and dinner tours and am not yet sold on the idea. Many guests will want to drink alcohol, others will not want to be rushed on a schedule. and by the time you add the additional costs for the meal/drinks for many the experience is priced too high. I am looking at other ways to increase our tour numbers by implementing brand new 'unique' methods to increase our numbers by 50% next year. If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. The reason people want to just ride the Segways vary, but on a tour it's all about the 'experience' you give them. If you don't present the tour so it is fun, enjoyable, and educational/interesting for ALL ages you will end up with guests that are bored in the first five minutes. Thats when they tell you that they just want to ride the machines. It is the #1 priority to make the tour the best possible and certainly better than any other type of tour in the area. Hint: If you offer too much (i.e. tours, sales, rentals, aftermarket products) you risk the old saying: Jack of all trades, master of none... "If you do it better, it will get bigger".... __________________ Tom Jacobson http://www.floridaever-glides.com

07-17-2006, 03:38 PM	#5
TX2Wheels New Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: La Porte, TX, USA. Posts: 8	Well said [quote=Florida Ever-Glides]I have looked closely at doing both lunch and dinner tours and am not yet sold on the idea. Many guests will want to drink alcohol, others will not want to be rushed on a schedule. and by the time you add the additional costs for the meal/drinks for many the experience is priced too high. I am looking at other ways to increase our tour numbers by implementing brand new 'unique' methods to increase our numbers by 50% next year. If it was easy, everybody would be doing it. The reason people want to just ride the Segways vary, but on a tour it's all about the 'experience' you give them. If you don't present the tour so it is fun, enjoyable, and educational/interesting for ALL ages you will end up with guests that are bored in the first five minutes. Thats when they tell you that they just want to ride the machines. It is the #1 priority to make the tour the best possible and certainly better than any other type of tour in the area.

07-21-2006, 08:35 AM	#8
Stewbonz Advanced Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Bangkok, Thailand Posts: 1,545	" ...you will end up with guests that are bored in the first five minutes.Thats when they tell you that they just want to ride the machines. It is the #1 priority to make the tour the best possible and certainly better than any other type of tour in the area." I don't know where you come up with this stuff Tom. My first ride was in a hotel room and I couldn't get enough. Paris Segway Tours rides past the Louvre, Notra Dame and numerous significant tourist sites and the customers don't even want to stop riding to view the monuments. They say that it's 95% Segway interest. I agree. My customers had the opportunity to take the machines to Thai Palace's and Ancient monuments but preffered the Bangkok Back Streets Ride. Our little detour thru a poor area, drinking moonshine with the locals turned into the hit. __________________ JEFF JARVIS Bangkok, Thailand thailandsegwaytours.com

07-21-2006, 11:55 AM	#9
Florida Ever-Glides Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Sarasota, Florida, . Posts: 1,059	Jeff, I've recently had several guests on our tour that had taken City Segway Tours around the country and the world. And the funny thing was, that ALL of them said that our tour had much better training and the tour experience was much more interesting. Enough said. The less said by a guide during a tour allows the tour company to hire people who don't have to learn anything about the area, and just do a little pointing. They can hire 'cheap' college-type' people. If you drank alcoholic beverages (moonshine) with your guests, and they got back on a Segway, I'll be the first to say that I'm glad you're no longer in the tour business. That was just plain stupitity. I think that everyone here will agree. If you also smoked the local Thai Weed on the tour, no doubt they would have loved it too... __________________ Tom Jacobson http://www.floridaever-glides.com

07-17-2006, 10:10 AM	#1
TX2Wheels New Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: La Porte, TX, USA. Posts: 8	Cajun 2 Wheels, Inc. Last March 2005 my brother and I started a small Segway rental business in Galveston, TX. Man have we learned a lot. First off we had the idea to do tours of the Historical Strand District and went about learning as much as we could. Shortly after starting the tours, one of our customers remarked to me that he didn't want to listen to this "crap" he just wanted to ride. That got me to thinking and did a little survey during the subseqent tours. at least 95% agreed that the Segway ride was more inportant than doing a tour. Further most stated that providing a nice area to ride was what they liked about our tour. What I have tried to do now is find little know facts about the area and use that while riding. We have a lot of repeat customers so I guess we are doing something right. Still I want to do more than just a ride. One suggestion from a waiter at one of the upscale resturants was to do a ride that involved stopping at various resturants and have an appittizer at one and salad at another followed by the main course and then dessert at another. Sounded good to me just would like to get feed back from the group. Sincerely, Jay "2 Wheels" Guillot

07-17-2006, 10:56 AM	#2
pam Administrator Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Niceville, FL, . Posts: 3,261	It would certainly be unique. I'd think you'd want to confirm with each restaurant that they would allow the HTs in or provide parking within view, and probably have a fixed menu, so you could control your time. But that's just my thought. Pam

07-17-2006, 03:39 PM	#6
TX2Wheels New Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: La Porte, TX, USA. Posts: 8	Very well said. I talked to my partner and brother and we pretty much came up with the same thinking. The other idea I had was to change venues, especially for repeat customers. I do a lot of dialogue with my riders, filling them in on resturants and other events that are going on in the area. But I am open to any ideas so stay tuned and thanks for the input Jay Hint: If you offer too much (i.e. tours, sales, rentals, aftermarket products) you risk the old saying: Jack of all trades, master of none... "If you do it better, it will get bigger"....[/quote]

07-17-2006, 03:42 PM	#7
TX2Wheels New Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: La Porte, TX, USA. Posts: 8	Please read the message from Florida EverGlides. Cost and time come into the picture. That is the fly in the ointment, so to speak. Advertising on the Segway make also present another avenue for more revenue. I have one large entertainment facility entertaining the idea of doing ads on my Segways and also handing out promo leaflets. Thanks for the inout Jay

07-21-2006, 08:01 PM	#10
Stewbonz Advanced Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Bangkok, Thailand Posts: 1,545	Might sound stupid to you Tom, but my customers loved it. Tastes like a Thai Yagermeister...and good for you too they say. Some of my guests came over and over for the health benefits. A sip of the local stuff is somthing your guests will never do I'm sure. Maybe you should loosen up a bit. Nobody got drunk Tom and we broke out the Bong AFTER the tour... My Bangkok Segway Tour is a blast! We ended up at birthday parties, weddings, even saw a baby being born on our ride. http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/youngj...1f.jpg&.src=ph http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/youngj...a0.jpg&.src=ph I don't appreciate being called stupid Tom. By the way. Is there somting you want to share with the class about your Miami Segway Tour? Went BROKE I hear? That explains all those extra machines sitting around, eh? __________________ JEFF JARVIS Bangkok, Thailand thailandsegwaytours.com

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