President's Message
As this issue of the "OSSN E-Agent" goes to press, Barack Obama has just won the U.S. presidential election.

Your 2009 Priority: Training
By OSSN President Gary Fee

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Because we work in an industry that's never settled, OSSN focuses a lot of attention on training to help you manage change in your respective travel businesses. In fact, one of the reasons I started OSSN way back in 1990 was to provide home-based agents more opportunities for honing their sales skills and increasing their travel knowledge.

As 2008 winds down and 2009 approaches fast, I'd like to remind you about several OSSN training avenues that you shouldn't miss:

* The Home Based Agent Show Online. We've partnered with Travel Industry Shows for several years running to support the two Original Home Based Agent Show & Conference events planned annually. In fact, we just finished a very successful conference in Baltimore that drew almost a thousand professional agents! (Mark your calendars now for the next conference in Chicago set for March. Go to www.TravelIndustryShows.com for the details.) But, we didn't want the benefit of these shows to stop once the trade show floor is taken down. That's why we're now offering (with the help of Travel Research Online) a virtual version of the trade show! At your convenience, around the clock, you can go to www.HomeBasedAgentShowOnline.com to visit the online booths of more than four dozen leading suppliers ready to share the latest updates and agent-friendly promotions that can help you close more sales. We're the first travel agent show to combine an in-person event with this virtual show floor. Check it out, and brush up on what these suppliers are offering for the new year.

* The OSSN online forum. This fall, we invested significant resources into upgrading the look and feel of the OSSN members-only forum. This online bulletin board system contains literally thousands of posts and questions from your fellow home-based agents - covering everything from the best local operators for a shore excursion in Santorini to new ideas for organizing a cruise night. Once you sign into OSSN.com as a member, you can click on the forum link to post your own questions or just browse the current conversations. Best of all, this information isn't coming from "industry experts" - instead, it's fueled by other working home-based agents like you.

* OSSN's Webinars. Several times a month, we organize online training classes with Web slides and audio comments from leading suppliers like Globus, Universal Orlando Resort, Sandals, Triton, TravelSafe, Unitours, Collette Vacations, Celebrity Cruises/Azamara Cruises, ClientEase, and NCL (to name a few!). You can participate in the live seminars - or, you can view the recorded Webinars (posted in the members-only section of OSSN.com) at any time.

* OSSN's chapters. We're very proud that OSSN offers more than twice as many local chapters around North America than any other home-based travel agent organization. These chapters take a lot of effort and expense to operate, and OSSN's chapter directors do a TREMENDOUS job for their members! Many chapters meet monthly or bimonthly throughout the year, hosting supplier reps and holding agent networking sessions so that you can improve your businesses. Go to the OSSN chapter directors roster to find the chapter nearest you. (And, if you don't have a nearby chapter, send me an email using the link below if you'd like to start one!).

In 2009, look for new training initiatives coming from OSSN. And, remember, these training programs mean nothing if you don't take advantage of them!

Gary M. Fee is president and founder of the Outside Sales Support Network (OSSN), North America's largest trade association for home-based travel agents. He may be reached at info@ossn.com.

(Credit: OSSN)