Question Regarding expanding our business in USA

[e_badawi]

Hello all,
Me and my wife/business partner @Menna ibrahim are thinking about expanding our diving business from Egypt to USA.

We are Americans from NJ, moved and operating in Egypt for the past 3 years.
We have good traction from Germany and Russia. And we would like to expand our base here in America.

Any thoughts and feedback will be greatly appreciated.

 

[Rob9876]

Good insights indeed.
Just few comments on my side. There are daily direct flights to Egypt from multiple airports. JFK, EWR, and IAD just to mention few.

As an American who lived in Egypt now above 3 years, I can confidently say that English speakers are everywhere (with accent though) but indeed they speak the language.

Safety and security is pretty solid. and moving money between banks shall never be the absolute measure of safety. One street in Newark has many weapons with individuals than the total of all personal Egyptian personal guns together!

@tmassey definitely has some good points. And you provide some info that addresses some of that. But I have to say if you're looking to increase the U.S. visits to your business in Egypt you might see better Return On Investment by actually having a professional website that anticipates these types of questions/concerns and answers them in a professional manner.

I might book a weekend dive trip within driving distance with a dive op that only has a Facebook page, but I'm not basing my whole vacation halfway around the world on a dive op without a website that answers most of the questions I have. I'm fairly well-traveled and have also heard great things about Red Sea diving, but I still don't know (and it would be great for a website to answer):

• What airport would I fly into? I hear Egypt and Red Sea, but what city/airport do I need to fly into -- are there multiple airports nearby, is it Cairo? Make it easy for a new customer to know -- maybe a Frequently Asked Questions sections with a "How to Get Here?" answer.
• 
  
• How far from the airport to Hurghada? How would I get from the airport to where ever your dive shop is? As tmassey mentioned, I've heard there may be increased risks of bad people targeting Americans in Egypt -- how do I get to your location safely? Do you have a partnership with a shuttle service or do I just take my chances with a taxi?
• 
  
• Where will we stay -- do you have package deals that combine hotel & diving?
• 
  
• How safe is Hurghada? Will my wife be safe if she walks around town by herself while I'm diving?
• 
  
• What else is there to do in Hurghada for my non-diving spouse? Do you have (or have recommendations for) snorkel tours, eco tours, tours to ancient ruins, etc.?
• 
  
• What would a typical daily dive trip look like? Is it a 2-tank leaving at 8 a.m. and returning at 1 p.m., where I could have lunch with my non-diving spouse and have the afternoon to do other things? And will you pick me up from my hotel or do I need to somehow get to a marina?
• 
  
• Please list prices for everything (diving, classes, packages, gear rental, nitrox, etc.). If a dive op does not list pricing and expects me to call to find out, I just move on -- most never know they lost my business.
• 
  
• Many Americans don't have a lot of vacation time. Is it even possible to have an enjoyable 1-week trip (or 9 days -- 1 work week + 2 weekends) from the U.S. to the Red Sea? If so that might be a marketing approach.
• 
  
• If I plan a longer trip, how hard/far/expensive is it to the Pyramids or other ancient sites of interest?

I'm not asking for answers to all of these questions here -- but these are things that would be great for a web site to address preemptively to make it easier for U.S. travelers to want to come dive with you.

EDIT: Just did a quick Google search on Hurghada Scuba and the first 3 websites I looked at all answer most of the questions above. I would 100% choose any of them over a dive op with only a Facebook page -- I would never even contact the Facebook page dive op. (Those 3 random websites were Scuba Hurghada [I like their "A Day with Us" page], Diving Star, and Hurghada Diving}. These folks are making it easy to want to do business with them.

 

[tiacalypso]

@tmassey definitely has some good points. And you provide some info that addresses some of that. But I have to say if you're looking to increase the U.S. visits to your business in Egypt you might see better Return On Investment by actually having a professional website that anticipates these types of questions/concerns and answers them in a professional manner.

I might book a weekend dive trip within driving distance with a dive op that only has a Facebook page, but I'm not basing my whole vacation halfway around the world on a dive op without a website that answers most of the questions I have. I'm fairly well-traveled and have also heard great things about Red Sea diving, but I still don't know (and it would be great for a website to answer):

• What airport would I fly into? I hear Egypt and Red Sea, but what city/airport do I need to fly into -- are there multiple airports nearby, is it Cairo? Make it easy for a new customer to know -- maybe a Frequently Asked Questions sections with a "How to Get Here?" answer.
• 
  
• How far from the airport to Hurghada? How would I get from the airport to where ever your dive shop is? As tmassey mentioned, I've heard there may be increased risks of bad people targeting Americans in Egypt -- how do I get to your location safely? Do you have a partnership with a shuttle service or do I just take my chances with a taxi?
• 
  
• Where will we stay -- do you have package deals that combine hotel & diving?
• 
  
• How safe is Hurghada? Will my wife be safe if she walks around town by herself while I'm diving?
• 
  
• What else is there to do in Hurghada for my non-diving spouse? Do you have (or have recommendations for) snorkel tours, eco tours, tours to ancient ruins, etc.?
• 
  
• What would a typical daily dive trip look like? Is it a 2-tank leaving at 8 a.m. and returning at 1 p.m., where I could have lunch with my non-diving spouse and have the afternoon to do other things? And will you pick me up from my hotel or do I need to somehow get to a marina?
• 
  
• Please list prices for everything (diving, classes, packages, gear rental, nitrox, etc.). If a dive op does not list pricing and expects me to call to find out, I just move on -- most never know they lost my business.
• 
  
• Many Americans don't have a lot of vacation time. Is it even possible to have an enjoyable 1-week trip (or 9 days -- 1 work week + 2 weekends) from the U.S. to the Red Sea? If so that might be a marketing approach.
• 
  
• If I plan a longer trip, how hard/far/expensive is it to the Pyramids or other ancient sites of interest?

I'm not asking for answers to all of these questions here -- but these are things that would be great for a web site to address preemptively to make it easier for U.S. travelers to want to come dive with you.

EDIT: Just did a quick Google search on Hurghada Scuba and the first 3 websites I looked at all answer most of the questions above. I would 100% choose any of them over a dive op with only a Facebook page -- I would never even contact the Facebook page dive op. (Those 3 random websites were Scuba Hurghada [I like their "A Day with Us" page], Diving Star, and Hurghada Diving}. These folks are making it easy to want to do business with them.

Just in case you want to hear a European woman‘s perspective on these:

1. You can fly into Hurghada, the taxi trip to any hotel/AirBnB is about 20-35min depending on your accommodation of choice.

2. If you‘re wanting to stay somewhere that has walking access to small pharmacies and shops, stay in any of the hotels along a road called El-Mamsha. If your budget is small, consider The Grand Hotel; if it‘s medium, consider The Grand Resort and if it‘s large go with The Grand Palace or my personal fave, Pickalbatros Blu Spa (if traveling adults-only). If traveling with children, Pickalbatros White Beach. Al-Mamsha is safe to walk by yourself as a woman even after dark. It also has nice restaurants so you could opt for a nice AirBnB in Princess Resort for example (check an AirBnB host called Cello). I also like Desert Rose Resort if you want to be out of the city centre.

3. The easiest sightseeing is Luxor by car (3hrs each way). The pyramids are feasible but easier done by plane day-trip.

4. Every daily boat operator I‘ve ever dived with has included pick up via shuttle or taxi from my accommodation to the boat, included in the daily dive price between €60-80/two tank boat dive.

5. Boat dives usually return around 3-4pm, not 1pm lunchtime. Especially when the boat has many experienced divers who want to dive deep. Lunch on the boat is included.

6. Non-diving activities: your spouse could join you on Splash to snorkel where you dive. She could also visit Hurghada Museum, Hurghada Grand Aquarium, do some cheap shopping, take a bedouin tour, do a quad biking tour (I hated that but others love it) and so on. If you‘re in a big hotel you‘ll be swamped with staff trying to sell you activities.

7. I‘ve been to Egypt many times, as a team and as a solo European woman (white, blonde, blue-eyed). I‘ve never been targeted by bad faith actors. The handful of Americans I met diving in Egypt also didn‘t report being targeted by anyone. That said, keep your wits about you, people will try to sell you anything and scam you out of money because well, Egypt is poor, largely. The dive boat crews have always been fantastic though.

 

[e_badawi]

I really like your nuanced reply. I am European and spend 5ish weeks in Egypt, diving, every year and I have encountered a few Americans and Canadians, usually on LOB. When I am in Hurghada, I usually dive from Splash which is the OP‘s boat as per his signature. Splash always provided really good service to me and really good diving. I also know world record holder Ahmed Gabr occasionally dives with them. So I have no input about how they could expand their American customer base but I want to put in a good word for the crew of Splash.

Hello @tiacalypso ...
I don't know who you are since the profile name is just a code name. But THANK YOU so much for sharing your own experience on Hurghada Splash Boat.
It really made my day and @Menna ibrahim .

Maybe you already know, I am an American. Menna and I were thinking to build a partnership with large American account, or just start our own there, where we can coach and market for trips in Egypt on Splash as a daily boat or on our LOB.

Thanks again

 

[e_badawi]

Just in case you want to hear a European woman‘s perspective on these:

1. You can fly into Hurghada, the taxi trip to any hotel/AirBnB is about 20-35min depending on your accommodation of choice.

2. If you‘re wanting to stay somewhere that has walking access to small pharmacies and shops, stay in any of the hotels along a road called El-Mamsha. If your budget is small, consider The Grand Hotel; if it‘s medium, consider The Grand Resort and if it‘s large go with The Grand Palace or my personal fave, Pickalbatros Blu Spa (if traveling adults-only). If traveling with children, Pickalbatros White Beach. Al-Mamsha is safe to walk by yourself as a woman even after dark. It also has nice restaurants so you could opt for a nice AirBnB in Princess Resort for example (check an AirBnB host called Cello). I also like Desert Rose Resort if you want to be out of the city centre.

3. The easiest sightseeing is Luxor by car (3hrs each way). The pyramids are feasible but easier done by plane day-trip.

4. Every daily boat operator I‘ve ever dived with has included pick up via shuttle or taxi from my accommodation to the boat, included in the daily dive price between €60-80/two tank boat dive.

5. Boat dives usually return around 3-4pm, not 1pm lunchtime. Especially when the boat has many experienced divers who want to dive deep. Lunch on the boat is included.

6. Non-diving activities: your spouse could join you on Splash to snorkel where you dive. She could also visit Hurghada Museum, Hurghada Grand Aquarium, do some cheap shopping, take a bedouin tour, do a quad biking tour (I hated that but others love it) and so on. If you‘re in a big hotel you‘ll be swamped with staff trying to sell you activities.

7. I‘ve been to Egypt many times, as a team and as a solo European woman (white, blonde, blue-eyed). I‘ve never been targeted by bad faith actors. The handful of Americans I met diving in Egypt also didn‘t report being targeted by anyone. That said, keep your wits about you, people will try to sell you anything and scam you out of money because well, Egypt is poor, largely. The dive boat crews have always been fantastic though.

Hi @Rob9876
Your questions are ALL good valid questions. And your comment about a website is truly right on the money. We had a website in the past, but the person responsible for maintaining it sold our access to one of our competitors and it was a mess!
However, you can find us not only on Facebook, we are present on all socialmedia including Google business pages. When you google "Hurghada Splash Boat" you will see a lot of guest reviews.
I agree with you, none of these reviews hit any of your questions, so this is indeed on us. We will make sure to cover them in our platforms. As for the website, I think it is time to leave that bad experience behind and proceed to re-build that website again. You are not the first person to mention that issue.

Once again... @tiacalypso ... THANK YOU! for answering these questions. I will just add few more comments bellow.

1. You can fly into Hurghada, the taxi trip to any hotel/AirBnB is about 20-35min depending on your accommodation of choice.
Emad... You can also fly to Cairo, and we will arrange pickup @ 200 USD each way to and back from Hurghada (Up to 3 passengers). It is a 6 hours safe drive with a LOT of amazing mountains view.
As for accommodations, Booking, airbnb, and even us can arrange a stay for you based on required budget and activities needed. Some couples like an aquapark so kids may enjoy it while they are away diving. However, many others will bring the whole family in for at least a day as we do snorkeling activities too.

2. If you‘re wanting to stay somewhere that has walking access to small pharmacies and shops, stay in any of the hotels along a road called El-Mamsha. If your budget is small, consider The Grand Hotel; if it‘s medium, consider The Grand Resort and if it‘s large go with The Grand Palace or my personal fave, Pickalbatros Blu Spa (if traveling adults-only). If traveling with children, Pickalbatros White Beach. Al-Mamsha is safe to walk by yourself as a woman even after dark. It also has nice restaurants so you could opt for a nice AirBnB in Princess Resort for example (check an AirBnB host called Cello). I also like Desert Rose Resort if you want to be out of the city centre.
Emad... No comments

3. The easiest sightseeing is Luxor by car (3hrs each way). The pyramids are feasible but easier done by plane day-trip.
Emad... No comments

4. Every daily boat operator I‘ve ever dived with has included pick up via shuttle or taxi from my accommodation to the boat, included in the daily dive price between €60-80/two tank boat dive.
Emad... No comments

5. Boat dives usually return around 3-4pm, not 1pm lunchtime. Especially when the boat has many experienced divers who want to dive deep. Lunch on the boat is included.
Emad... No comments

6. Non-diving activities: your spouse could join you on Splash to snorkel where you dive. She could also visit Hurghada Museum, Hurghada Grand Aquarium, do some cheap shopping, take a bedouin tour, do a quad biking tour (I hated that but others love it) and so on. If you‘re in a big hotel you‘ll be swamped with staff trying to sell you activities.
Emad... No comments

7. I‘ve been to Egypt many times, as a team and as a solo European woman (white, blonde, blue-eyed). I‘ve never been targeted by bad faith actors. The handful of Americans I met diving in Egypt also didn‘t report being targeted by anyone. That said, keep your wits about you, people will try to sell you anything and scam you out of money because well, Egypt is poor, largely. The dive boat crews have always been fantastic though.
Emad... No comments