Become a Home Based Travel Agent

It takes a special kind of person to effectively manage a home office. Some see this as an easy undertaking. After all, you get stay home, work in your sweats if you want, and even watch your kids from your living room floor. But the reality is that managing your travel business from home is a big job, and despite the many advantages, it also creates special challenges

One of the challenges of working at home is the need to separate work from pleasure. How do you divide your time effectively between the demands of work responsibilities, chores, family obligations, vacations and the list goes on? And how can you separate the entry of e-mails and instant messages when you know you have a deadline to meet? While these challenges may seem like a small price to pay compared to the advantage of working at home with no commute, it can still be very stressful and comes with it's own set of hurdles to overcome.

Does this sound familiar? A client calls and you are deep in the depths of selling them a two week river cruise, then out of nowhere, you receive an email from a potential new client who would like a call back right away to discuss a three week FIT to the UK. You have suddenly taken your mind off your client on the phone and you are now dividing your thoughts between the two. Hopefully, the client on the phone does not sense your mind wandering as you read you email, but what if they do? You find a way to end the call as best you can by not letting on that now have two things going at once. You switch gears, call the new prospect and begin to work on their trip. What happened to the other one? Before you know it, you realize you did not finish anything you intended to do and it is 6:00pm and the family wants dinner. Do you stick to your schedule and enjoy family time, then work all night to catch up on the day you lost?

Every one of us works differently and you probably have certain times of day where you feel you work more efficiently, so there is no wrong answer to this question. However, the worst thing to do is work to the point of exhaustion. If you feel tired or unorganized, it is unlikely you can really get much accomplished. The goal is to work smart, and in my opinion, working smart means staying organized.

Here are some tips that can help you stay organized and productive without sacrificing your sanity or sleep.

It is important to set boundaries between work and other responsibilities. Create a daily work schedule, taking into account the obligations that you may have. Plan a time to start work in the morning, time for lunch (not a working lunch in front of your computer), and a time to the end of his workday. Of course not every week, and not every project is going to fit into this perfect schedule, but at least if you have a basic structure in place you can more easily rearrange and manage your workload to accommodate those things that come out of left field.

Think short term - Make your last task a daily summary of your results and a preview of the upcoming week. Take 30 minutes to catch your breath, analyze your goals and make necessary adjustments. In making this last step of your day, you'll probably feel a bit more organized and able to relax during the evening.

Think long term - at least once a month, a little time to examine the direction of your business does, explore new ideas for growth and develop your strategy for success. Although you probably have a mental image of future goals, put this vision on paper can give you a measurable way to find your next class. It is also a good time to celebrate your achievements to date.

The goal is to free up time so that you can concentrate on what you need to do to make your travel business grow and prosper. If your business is profitable enough for you to recruit an assistant to help you exceed your daily tasks (filing, record keeping, phone calls, website updating, etc.), is a good investment. If this is not possible, then you can probably get help from friends or relatives who are willing to help out. You might be surprised at how fun it can be to work as a family on a mailing or other project. The time together can be very rewarding as you are all working toward the goal of helping your business succeed. If none of these scenarios are possible, take a long, hard look at your business and see whether there are tasks you can outsource.

I know for me personally, I am much more productive when I take some time for myself to refresh. I have a very hard time doing this though as there always seems to be work to do. I try to tell myself to stop and enjoy the fact that I do make my own work hours and that should mean play hours as well. In fact, you may find yourself more productive if you take a break sometimes. Go to the gym, go for a walk, meet with friends, and enjoy the freedom you have to set your own schedule and make your business what you want it to be, without burning yourself out in the process.

Joanie Ogg CTC MCC
Joanie Ogg Marketing Group
Editor

Joanie Ogg is a thirty-five year veteran of the travel industry and has been involved with the independent contractor evolution since 1988. She is the principal of Joanie Ogg Marketing Group, which specializes in consulting and speaking on the topic of Home-Based Travel. She also provides marketing and sales for wide variety of products under the umbrella HomeBasedTravelAgent.com.

A demonstrated industry leader, Joanie most recently served as the President of the National Association of Commissioned Travel Agents (NACTA) and TravelSellers. She and her husband Tom acquired NACTA in 1996 and sold it to The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) in 2000. Joanie’s tenure in the travel industry includes owning and operating one of the first successful host agency models. She has owned and operated several storefront travel agencies (both commercial and leisure), as well as a Hawaii wholesale tour company.

Her decades of success have garnered her numerous accolades over the years. Her accomplishments have been recognized by receipt of two Lifetime Achievement Awards from major trade groups, being named as one of the “100 Most Powerful Women in Travel” by Travel Agent magazine on several occasions, voted as “Travel Agent of the Year” by the readers of Travel Trade magazine, and has been recognized by many other industry organizations throughout her tenure in the industry. In 2008 Joanie Ogg was inducted into the CLIA Hall of Fame, an honor held by some of the most influential executives in the travel industry.

Joanie is a Master Cruise Counselor (MCC) and a Certified Travel Counselor (CTC). Joanie has co-authored two popular travel industry books for cruise specialists and home-based travel agents and has authored hundreds of travel trade articles. She has inspired tens of thousands of travel agents attending her presentations at trade events, cruise seminars, international trade gatherings and numerous local educational venues throughout the United States. With a time-honored background and forward-looking vision, she is often featured as a speaker at many of the travel industry’s major conferences and events. Joanie’s speaking talents are widely sought as a travel industry emcee by the most recognized travel organizations. She has emceed such events as Cruise-A-Thons, ASTA’s CruiseFest, The Trade Show, The Travel Institute Forum and all of NACTA’s National and International Conferences.


Home	FAQ	Advertise	Articles	About