Destination Specialist

Avanti Destinations•Portland, OR

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Avanti Destinations is a leading travel company specializing in customizable travel to Europe, Central & South America, Asia, and the South Pacific. We offer a comprehensive range of services including air, rail, cars, hotels, sightseeing, transfers, and experiential travel options, with a focus on hand-picked, locally owned hotels and unique options for experienced travelers at the best value. As Avanti Destinations is rapidly growing, we are utilizing innovative technologies to ensure travel advisors continue to book vacations through our travel consultants. The primary duty of a Destination Specialist for Central and South America is to sell customized vacations to these regions. In this sales position, highly qualified leads from our network of travel advisors across the United States are directed to our inbound call center. As a Destination Specialist, you will be responsible for designing and executing bespoke travel itineraries to your specialist destinations. You will leverage your expertise and knowledge of specific destinations to create unforgettable experiences and increase sales and conversion rates within these countries. Your role will have a direct impact on the success of the department and company goals. Our competitive work environment requires Destination Specialists to be able to listen to the customer’s request, position products, and close sales.

Requirements

Advanced knowledge of Central and South America.
Proven history of successfully meeting sales goals in a retail or other sales environment
Experience and passion for delivering exceptional internal and external quality customer service
Skilled ‘relationship builder’; enthusiasm for making a difference in the customer experience
Excellent communication skills: verbal, listening and written
Polished telephone etiquette, upbeat and friendly personality
Demonstrate a professional and polished demeanor with a positive, upbeat, and friendly personality
Strong computer skills (MS Outlook, MS Word, MS Excel, MS Teams, Internet, etc.)
Excellent problem solving, complaint resolution and negotiation skills
Highly organized and detail-oriented
Able to adapt to changing policy and product in a fast-paced performance-driven culture
Demonstrate exceptional habits of dependability and attendance
Able to work any shift time during hours of operation (6:00 am - 5:30 pm Pacific, Monday - Friday)
Available for overtime hours, holidays, and weekends as needed
Have high school diploma or GED equivalent
Must be available for travel for 2 – 4 weeks of the year to relevant destinations to build up product knowledge.
Must have a valid passport to allow travel outside of the USA.

Nice To Haves

Previous call center experience preferred
Passion for travel; European, Asian, and South Pacific travel and/or geography knowledge a plus

Responsibilities

Designing customized itineraries for Travel Advisors.
Using the company’s proprietary software to build and price itineraries but also given independence to provide itinerary options that may be outside of the normal company product portfolio and processes.
Be responsible for the relationship with the Travel Advisor from the beginning of the quote process through the end of the booking process, taking full ownership of the booking through to the travelers return.
Communicating via phone calls and emails, sending follow-up communications on active bookings by email, and providing exceptional external and internal customer service.
Drive sales by identifying opportunities to upsell and cross-sell additional services or experiences that enhance the clients’ travel experience.
Responsible for creating small group bookings and managing profitability by understanding pricing fluctuations between group product and FIT product.
Expected to independently work with Destination Product Managers, sharing market trends, competitor offerings to determine product solutions based upon technical knowledge and customer interactions.
When required assist in developing relationships with the marketing team to Travel Advisors to raise awareness of the specialist destinations.
Representing the company as an ambassador for sales to the regions internally and externally while on educational destination trips.