Visitors Bureau Jobs

At Visit Ventura we thrive on creativity, fun, and forget-the-box thinking. Yep, we produce creative collaborations that have won all kinds of awards, including four Adrian golds from Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, an award that typically goes to giants like Visit California and Hilton Worldwide. But, just as important, we prop up cardboard cut out photos of ourselves when we were young(er) in fun places, circulate a treasured plastic piggy in random spots, buy spontaneous pizza, and make a habit of recognizing the fine work of our colleagues with, well, creative memes. Yep, we’ve won the Pacific Coast Business Times’ “Central Coast Best Place to Work” four years running, but we don’t believe there’s a secret to it. Awards are nice, but it’s the minutes in our days that matter. Foolish not to make them fun (and wildly creative).

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Job Title: Sales Manager/Business Development

Department: Sales

Reports To: CEO

Classification: Full Time, Exempt

Visit Ventura is responsible for promoting our coastal community as an attractive leisure and business travel destination and enhancing its public image as a dynamic place to live, work, and visit. Tourism supports a more sustainable Ventura by promoting travel to our natural resources, hotels, and local businesses; we strengthen the economic vitality and help sustain and increase the quality of life for our community. Through tourism marketing, we strengthen the economic position by increasing business and sales tax revenue and creating jobs.

The Ventura Visitors and Convention Bureau was founded in 1992 as an offshoot of the Ventura Chamber of Commerce.

Visit Ventura is a private, not-for-profit 501c(6) organization with a 13-member board of directors and a staff of 10. It is funded by a dedicated hotel tax and hotel self-assessed TBID.

Position Summary:

The Sales Manager is critical to the Visit Ventura team. This position requires a talented individual who can handle the below-mentioned responsibilities and other sales-related projects.

Seeking a high-energy, positive, and self-motivated individual who is just as comfortable jumping on a plane for a sales trip as you are in the office developing a proposal for a client. You have excellent communication skills, are innovative in your sales approach, and are the ultimate team player. You can adapt quickly to change and thrive on creating collaborative and productive relationships with partners, customers, and internal team members. It is an excellent opportunity for someone who is a relationship builder and likes to work in a fast-paced environment.

The Sales Manager should be organized, personable, creative, and have a problem-solving aptitude. They will thrive on multitasking, managing and overseeing projects, and day-to-day administrative duties. This role requires a flexible schedule to participate in local and industry networking and Visit Ventura-related events, which sometimes include evenings and weekends.

Responsibilities:

Lead Generation: Produces group business leads for Ventura hotels/venues to drive hotel room night occupancy. Proactive solicitation of new business and existing accounts is accomplished during in-and out-of-market sales calls/ sales missions, trade shows, and client events by creating presentations, conducting site inspections/ FAMs, writing communication, proposals, etc.
Business Development/Account Production: Identify and develop new market opportunities. Identify and pursue demand driver events. Maintain client database through CRM. Track leads. Track traces—file maintenance. Evaluate trends within your market.
Tradeshow Management: This includes managing tradeshow registrations and activating booths for conventions and trade shows. Represents Visit Ventura on the show floor, soliciting and collecting qualified leads and pertinent account info (booking venue, seasonality, space needs, peak room nights, etc.), distributes leads to Ventura hotel partners, manages booking cycle, and reports ROI.
Customer Service & Relationship Building: Act as a liaison between meeting planners and industry partners. Develop relationships and partnerships with area businesses and hotels related to the client’s needs. At all times, be attentive, friendly, helpful, service-oriented, and courteous to guests, customers, other employees, industry partners, etc.
Site Visits & FAM Tours: Meet and greet and tour onsite contacts. Manage arrangements associated with site visits and FAM tours of destinations, hotels, venues, etc.
CRM Management: Maintains sales database and lead tracking and oversees conference servicing requests. Maintain records of all client contacts, traces, and account management in Simpleview.
Assist Hoteliers in closing business through liaison work and working internally with the Marketing Department.
Track and measure sales performance, closed bookings, and RFPs to report out to the Board of Directors and Partners
Manage accounts in Cvent and respond in a timely manner to RFP’s
Newsletters – Meeting planners, Partners, and VTMD (Ventura Tourism Management District)
Gordon Research Committee management – large annual group staying for (3) months in (3) hotels
Additional responsibilities: Perform any other duties as requested by the President/CEO

Collaboration:

Work closely with the creative team on markets /timing and future placements based on tradeshow market outreach and driving short-term hotelier need periods.
Inspiration guide lead on timing and coordination with the publisher. This project is very collaborative and relies on the marketing team, office manager, and CEO for creative direction.
Participation in Ventura County Coast tradeshow committees and Quarterly Events Meetings to keep partners and hoteliers up to date on demand drivers
Support Communications/creative team in FAMs if needed.

Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, tourism, or a related field or equivalent experience
Minimum of two years of experience working in the hospitality industry (can include internships)
Strong computer skills, including mastery of Google Suite and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software
Excellent analysis, tracking, and reporting abilities
Superb oral and written communication skills
Available on weekends and evenings as needed
Valid Driver’s license and a clean DMV record
Strong understanding of the tourism industry
Ability to work independently and as part of a team
Strong organizational and time management skills
Thrives in a fast-paced environment
Communicate effectively and promptly to clients or employees of the organization.

Benefits:

Full-time/year-round position. Competitive salary and benefits package/starting salary depend on experience
Opportunity to work in a dynamic and rewarding industry with an award-winning team
Chance to make a positive impact on the community
Work in a beautiful coastal location
No relocation package is available

How to Apply:

Submit your resume, cover letter, and three professional references here

No telephone calls, please. The position remains open until filled.