About Scenic Group:From humble beginnings in Newcastle, Australia, to a global company with business centers in Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, USA, Canada, and the UK, Scenic and Emerald Cruises are a true success story within the travel industry. The Scenic story began in 1986, when our founder Glen Moroney began operating coach tours throughout Australia, quickly expanding into New Zealand, Norfolk Island, and South Africa. By the end of the decade, Scenic was hosting tours to Canada and Alaska, and in 2008 we launched our unique Space-Ships and began offering luxury all-inclusive river cruises throughout Europe. In 2019, Scenic also launched the World’s First Discovery yacht, Scenic Eclipse. Emerald Cruises was formed in 2013 to offer a contemporary and inclusive cruise experience. Fast forward to 2023 and we have 9 Star-Ships sailing the worlds celebrated rivers and Emerald Azzurra, the first luxury superyacht, which joined the fleet in 2022. We are eagerly awaiting to add Emerald Sakura to the family, launching in 2023 to sail the coastlines of the Caribbean, Central America, Mediterranean and Adriatic Sea.Scenic Groupis looking to hire aRegional Sales Director(Midwest) to join our team. Thecandidate to be based near a major airport, within 50 min drive or less and living in the greater Chicago or Detroit area preferred.We are looking for a seasoned sales professional who can manage the business development (sales) with travel agency accounts. This includes initiating activities that drive sales and engage our trade partners. Developing and establishing solid key business relationships with known travel producers as well as mining for new business opportunities is a pivotal part of the role in order to achieve sales goals.You will be responsible for proactively finding and winning group business leads for both the Scenic and Emerald brands. Representing the company professionally at all times while taking an aggressive approach to sales growth is essential. Adept at public speaking, building presentations and informing through online communication platforms are all necessary skills to be successful in the job. As part of a team of sales experts, participation in weekly meetings, collaboration with peers and associates and frequent communication is critical in this role. This position reports to the Vice President of Sales USA.PRIMARY JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Communicates with agency owners, managers and advisors to keep Scenic/Emerald Cruise products top-of-mind via online live meetings, social media, phone, e-mail and in-person office visits.
- Motivates accounts/advisors with the intention to generate sales through consistent interaction, engagement and support.
- Plans and attends educational sessions, trade shows and consumer events in support of the account and Scenic/Emerald Cruises.
- Responds and follows up to agency calls, e-mails, questions and issues within 24 hours.
- Manages agency sales performance based on goals established by senior management through on-going programs (Travel Shows, Consumer Events, Groups, Promotions, etc.) and by encouraging product knowledge and expertise through the completion of product specialist programs.
- Analyzes regional trends to identify sales growth opportunities. Actively collaborates with the VP of Sales to develop new approaches to growing the business and increasing engagement.
- Develops and continues to find successful promotional practices and shares these successes with the sales team and the other departments as needed.
- Encourages agency participation in our group program to win affinity and speculative business. Continuous agency follow-up to ensure promotion of the group departure in order to meet the group sales goal and minimum requirements.
- Supports the development of annual marketing plans for select top accounts that receive co-op marketing funds. Marketing plans are developed relative to trade/deployment selling opportunities with direction and approval from VP of sales and in coordination with the trade marketing manager.
- Manages individual RSD co-op budget to engage accounts for training, conference sponsorships and advisor selling opportunities. RSD responsible for tracking and implementation of committed funds and resulting ROI.
- Motivates, trains, and assists agencies in utilizing company marketing tools.
- Coordinates with the trade marketing manager to review marketing& advertising creative prior to placement by the agency to ensure that all rate offers, trademarks, copyrights and legal disclaimers are correct.
- Manages the co-op reimbursement process ensuring all back-up is in order prior to submission and processing reimbursement within 45-days of marketing initiative completion.
- Manages travel& entertainment expenses to stay within company policy.
- Submits expense reports in a timely manner on a monthly basis (by 7th day of each month).
- Provide competitive sales, marketing, policy and product intelligence and shares with the VP of Sales on a weekly basis through the RSD reporting tool.
- Reviews and stays current on all company communications, policy changes, product developments and itinerary changes.
- Other duties and attendance at special events as assigned by the VP of Sales
Required:
- 7+ years river cruise or cruise industry experience
- 4+ years in sales
- Bachelor’s Degree
- Ability to grasp new topics quickly and communicate professionally with Stakeholder& SMEs.
- Strong presentation, organizational, written and verbal communication skills
- Ability to manage time and prioritize work autonomously
- Self-starter approach to work, with an eagerness to take responsibility and consistently exceed objectives
- Positive attitude, professional demeanor and adaptable to a changing environment
- Ability to provide and execute creative solutions to challenges
- Ability to multi-task and pitch in where needed
- Passion for sales achievement
- Eager to be a part of a fast-growing company
What we offer:
- Generous vacation and paid time off policy
- Medical/dental/vision insurance
- Commuter benefits
- 401k (match)
- Dental insurance
- Healthcare spending or reimbursement accounts such as HSAs or FSAs
- Retirement benefits or accounts
- Commuting/travel assistance
- Employee discounts
Job Type: Full-timeWork authorization:
