OSSN E-Agent Newsletter

Home-based agents will become the primary sales channel for several major suppliers. For example, Martin Deutsch reports in this issue of the “OSSN E-Agent” that home-based agents accounted for about 35 percent of Royal Caribbean’s bookings this year, compared to 65 percent from traditional storefront agencies and other avenues. Will 2008 be the year that home-based agents go over the top and sell more RCI cruises than any other distribution channel? Stay tuned

Our online competitors will continue hitting the wall. Unlike other segments of Internet commerce, travel Web sites – the Expedias, Orbitzes, and Travelocities of the world – are actually losing customers. A Forrester Research study released two months ago found that nine percent fewer people booked travel on the Web than in 2005. “Customers are tired of spending two or three hours trying to find the airline or hotel or vacation package that meets their needs,” a Forrester analyst said. Who’s picking up the slack? You are – by providing personal service levels to your clients that the online travel agencies can never match.

More direct-to-consumer travel schemes will emerge. We’ve seen several cases in 2007 of new Web sites and marketing outfits springing up to offer perks and rebates to consumers who choose to bypass professional agents. Unfortunately, this trend will continue next year, so we must stay alert to these scams and report them to OSSN and to major suppliers.

Home-based agents will turn the corner on adopting technology. By the end of 2008, more than half of North America’s home-based travel sellers should have a Web presence – a one-page brochure site, a full-blown online agency, or something in between to promote themselves as professional travel consultants. Also, we will lead the way in embracing new tech tools such as video to close more sales. (Watch us in January, in fact, as OSSN launches its first blog and introduces a new weekly series of video messages!)

More clients will be concerned about the environmental impact of travel. If you don’t know about carbon offsets and carbon footprints, get ready – because 2008 will be the year that many travelers will ask you about how their cruises and trips are affecting the environment. We’ll provide more education on this subject next year to keep you informed on this important issue.

Your selling skills will become as important as your destination knowledge. Here in Las Vegas, as travel agents walk by the trade show booths, the suppliers in those booths don’t have any honest idea of which agents sell a lot and which ones sell a little. Starting next year, you can expect to hear more talk in the industry about finding ways to improve agents’ selling skills (not just their product knowledge) and to measure agents’ sales.

The above predictions are my best guesses for 2008, but you can take one fact to the bank: OSSN and its members will lead the way in tackling these challenges next year!

From all of us at OSSN Headquarters, I wish you happy holidays and a great start to the New Year!

(Gary M. Fee founded the Outside Sales Support Network [OSSN] in 1990. Today, OSSN is North America’s largest home-based travel agents association. He may be reached at info@ossn.com.)

(Credits: OSSN; stock photos)