Now Hiring - Travel Trade Sales Manager in Santa Barbara, CA

Visit Santa Barbara
The American Riviera

Travel Trade Sales Manager

Are you an independent Sales Manager with a passion to promote travel trade and tourism in Santa Barbara? We have the perfect role for you! Join our vibrant non-profit organization as a Travel Trade
Sales Manager and help us inspire overnight travel in our community.

What You'll Do:

• The Travel Trade Manager promotes Santa Barbara to the travel trade, including individual, receptive and wholesale tour operators, travel agents and MICE planners.
• This position generates incremental overnight bookings through 3rd party trade shows, VSB sales missions and client events and escorting client familiarization tours of the Santa Barbara South Coast region.
• This position develops relationships with local suppliers through referrals to hotels and other hospitality related businesses to increase the economic impact of visitors across the community.

STRATEGIC IMPERATIVE: Grow overnight demand for the destination.

• Generate sales leads for TBID hotel partners, including economy, midscale, upscale and luxury class properties.
• Organize, manage and participate in 3rd party trade shows, VSB sales missions and client events that often require travel outside of Santa Barbara.
• Manage hotel cooperative partnerships for VSB missions and client events and trade shows.
• Develop and escort site inspection trips and familiarization tours of Santa Barbara to familiarize prospective travel trade clients with regional hotels, restaurants, attractions and services.
• Exceed established sales goals for various client interactions, business referrals and tracked room night production.
• Produce timely and accurate sales reports, post-trip reports and periodic activity summaries.

STRATEGIC IMPERATIVE: Strengthen the organization’s effectiveness.

• Research market trends and recommend strategies to VSB leadership for new business opportunities for the Santa Barbara South Coast.
• Effectively utilize a customer relationship management system to track all client contacts.
• Maintain positive relationships with colleagues from competing organizations to learn trends, issues and best practices with potential impacts to our destination.
• Serve as an advocate of tourism development efforts for additional markets of cruise, air service development and film production.
• Positively contribute to the team culture while living up to the organization’s values.

STRATEGIC IMPERATIVE: Position and amplify the Santa Barbara brand to target markets.

• Build and maintain relationships with the travel trade, regional hospitality suppliers and competing destination marketing organizations.
• Create and conduct educational training programs for the travel trade. Virtual trainings involve creating PowerPoint presentations and presenting via Zoom, Microsoft Teams or other online platforms. Live trainings also involve presenting either in a client’s office or other location to medium sized groups. Strong public speaking skills and confidence are essential.
• Create and manage ongoing outreach to VSB’s Travel Trade database with newsletters, LinkedIn and other communication platforms.
• Craft and distribute timely destination newsletters to VSB’s travel trade clients that inspire incremental travel bookings .

What You'll Need to Succeed:

• Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing or related field (or equivalent in directly related work experience) preferred.
• Previous travel trade sales experience in hotels, DMO, attraction, destination management, travel agency or tour operator environment. Experience with MICE and group sales is a plus.
• Event and trade show planning experience is a plus.
• Strong organization and time management skills.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects successfully and to interact with a variety of people, exercising confidentiality and discretion when needed.
• High attention to detail, accurate documentation and follow-through.
• Ability to be tactful and courteous and display appropriate public image.
• Knowledge and familiarity with Santa Barbara as a destination.
• Adeptness with public speaking, both small and large groups.
• Strong communication (written, verbal and presentation) and customer service skills.
• Competent with Microsoft Office suite and current technology.
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
• Must have, or be willing to immediately acquire, a valid passport, California Driver’s License and auto insurance.
• Must be free to travel as needed both domestically and internationally.
• Position will require occasional weekends as well as early morning and late evening hours based on customer’s schedules and needs.
• Must have use of vehicle for business. Mileage for business travel is reimbursed by the company.

What Visit Santa Barbara Offers You:

• Compensation: $70k annual salary for a full-time, Exempt position.
• Benefits: Paid Medical insurance, paid sick and vacation time; 401(K) with an annual 3% company match.
• Working Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
• Location: Santa Barbara, CA (in-office position).

About Us:

Visit Santa Barbara inspires overnight travel to the Santa Barbara South Coast to enhance the community's economy and quality of life.

Equal Employment Opportunity Policy:

Visit Santa Barbara ensures equal employment opportunity without discrimination or harassment on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, race, religious creed, color, national origin or ancestry, gender, physical or mental disability, medical condition, marital status, age, sexual orientation, or any other basis protected by federal, state, or local law, ordinance, or regulation.

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