Travelling is always a great topic of conversation. Even more so if you are at the DLD Conference in Tel Aviv, where I met Yoni Passwell, CEO & Co-Founder of Voyjer, a startup that wants to change the way you do tourism.
“Our biggest accomplishment is happy customers. We are now seeing the wave of first customers coming back for their second trip. In travel, this takes about a year, and now we are so very proud to see this happen. Once you go Voyjer, you can’t go back!”, assures Yoni.
In 2015, Yoni Passwell and Amir Rosen started this company. Since then, they have been connecting locals to visitors. Today they are already active in East and Weat Coast of the US, France, Germany, Spain, the UK, Portugal, Japan, Panama and Guatemala. They want to continue expanding to the world. Here is how it all came about.
What is the project about?
Voyjer connects travelers with local experts for a true customized travel plan. Our local experts will craft a unique travel plan, detailing recommendations about where to go, how to get there, where to eat and more.
How does it work?
Very simple, go on to Voyjer.com, tell us all about your trip (who? When? Where? What?) and we will assign a local expert to plan your trip for you, you can then communicate with your local expert and ask questions. The service is a paid service and it cost $7 per travel day (e.g. for a 5 day trip $35).
How did the idea come about?
Many years back when I was living in China I was planning to travel with my family to Japan. Finding information was hard, and the information found was not right for our family and our needs. Luckily, I had a Japanese friend, Takei-san. We sat down with me for a short beer, and a few minutes later he had planned out our entire trip. It was very easy for him, as a local he know exactly where we should go. While visiting, we had a few experiences where we were the only foreigners, and those where the best places of our trip. Coming back home, I realized that everyone should have a local to help them plan their trip.
What is the next step?
We are continuing to grow the reach in additional destinations and add loyal travelers to our growing list of customers. We are currently seeking partnership with companies in the travel space.
3 things you would have liked to know before starting your own business
- They tell you it’s all about the team, it’s true!
- Nothing takes as long as you want / expect it to.
- Listen to all advice you get, but make your own decisions.
3 tools that help your business and you think every entrepreneur should know about
Other things all entrepreneurs should use:
- We use Google Drive for everything, makes swapping machines very easy.
- Master Google Analytics, it’s your compass
- Voila Norbert for finding emails of relevant leads.
Your motivating quote
First, find a friend that will motivate you and always believe in you. For me, it’s my wife, the one person that never blinks and truly has no doubt about the possibility of success.
As for quotes “never give up”, we have had agreements that took a year to close. Finally they are fruitful.
If you have a startup and want to get interviewed do not hesitate to contact us: laura.vaillard@medialoconsulting.com. We can also help with your PR and marketing strategy!