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Joanie Ogg/NACTA Interview

What is NACTA?

NACTA, The National Association of Commissioned Travel Agents, is a national travel industry trade association representing professional independent travel agents, cruise-orientated agents, outside sales agents and ARC appointed agency partners.

How did you become involved with NACTA?

My husband Tom and I have been involved in training and education in the travel industry for many years now. About three years ago, we saw the need to create a tool for agents to use as a guideline when getting started as an independent agent. We wrote the book, ?How to Start a Home Based Travel Agency* with this purpose in mind. NACTA, which had been a strong industry trade association for ten years was located in Dallas and supported our book in their newsletters. The past executive director, Donna Sheriff, approached us to take over NACTA and the rest is history. We had always believed in the need for NACTA in our industry and we were thrilled to be able to grow the association through our industry connections.

How do you feel NACTA helps the OS/IC agents in the industry?

NACTA is committed to represent and assist the independent agent community. We work on behalf of our membership and the independent travel community to gain maximum exposure within the industry for this growing group of travel professionals and entrepreneurs. We offer support to our membership by member benefits such as: discounts on subscriptions and publications pertinent to the travel business; qualification of members for membership in a leading travel consortium; on-line sections on both CompuServe and America Online for communications amongst members; access to our domain on the Internet (www.nacta.com); a quarterly 20-page newsletter and more. We want to provide our membership with the tools they can use to grow their business.

Do you feel they are gaining more respect these days?

Absolutely! The independent agent is one of the fastest growing groups of travel professionals selling travel. With technology and advances in communications, being an independent agent just makes great financial sense for the agent and the host agency as well. I am asked by leading industry trade shows and consortiums to speak on the topic of independent agents at their national conferences. Attendees of these functions are agency owners, managers, inside agents, outside agents, independent agents and suppliers. Five years ago you did not see such recognition and support for the OS/IC agents. Yes, the respect they so deserve is certainly a reality today.

What advice would you give to an agent who is inside and wants to become an OS?

As in any career move. much thought and planning must be made to achieve the results one hopes for. Being an inside agent allows the agent to have the experience of the day to day operation of an agency. These tools can be most valuable when taking the step outside. These tools are only a small part of those needed to take the step outside, however. Assuming that the step will be on a commission-only basis or as an independent contractor, getting business can be the biggest challenge. Marketing becomes the key issue as does an entrepreneurial spirit and drive. Reading and studying all one can about taking the step outside and doing as much advanced preparation as possible is helpful as well. Again, our book, ?How to Start a Home Based Travel Agency* can assist an agent with answers to the many new questions that develop with such a move.

What about an agent who is just entering the field of travel? Do you think they would be better served by first working inside an agency?

If it is possible to say ?get your feet wet* in an agency environment, all the better for someone who is new to the industry. This is helpful in many ways, especially with the subtleties and lingo that our industry uses day to day. However, it is not always possible to have this ?training time* if you will. Financially and time-wise this might not be an option. I would certainly not discourage anyone who could work inside from just plunging right into the outside/independent arena. It is done with great success daily.

What kind of education do you feel is necessary for ANY agent?

Education is so very necessary for our success in the travel industry. Continuing education is equally important. After 25 years in the industry, I continually seek out education to further my knowledge and experiences. Education in the form of classroom training is always helpful if the curriculum meets your needs. Conferences, trade shows and seminars are yet another way to keep abreast of changes and learn new ideas and concepts about travel sales. Experiencing is certainly one of the best forms of education. Going to a destination and actually touching and experiencing the product your clients may purchase is an absolute must. Not only are you able to experience first hand, you might even have a great time enjoying the experience as well. The Fam Connection (http://www.famconnection.com) provides a much needed service to advise agents of opportunities to experience product and destination. It*s no surprise that we should want to travel if we are in the business of selling travel. It is much easier and one is much more convincing selling something or somewhere they have actually experienced personally.

Where do you see NACTA is five years?

I proudly see NACTA as a growing association of travel industry professionals. We will grow as a body of the industry with the most entrepreneurial and forward thinking group of travel agents.