Sales Director-National Accounts

Explore St. Louis•St. Louis, MO

16h•Remote

About The Position

The Director of National Accounts represents Explore St. Louis in the marketplace and works closely with internal teams, hotel partners, and community stakeholders to position St. Louis as a competitive destination for large-scale meetings and conventions. Success in this role requires a disciplined, outbound sales approach, strong industry relationships, and the ability to identify and close complex, multi-year opportunities. Explore St. Louis is the sales and marketing organization responsible for selling and promoting St. Louis as a convention, meeting site, and leisure travel destination. Explore St. Louis manages and operates the America’s Center Complex which includes the Cervantes Convention Center, the Dome at America’s Center, the Ferrara Theatre, and the St. Louis Executive Conference Center.

Requirements

Demonstrated track record of success in sales is critical.
Experience in proactive prospecting and sales strategy.
Proven success in selling large group, convention, or hospitality-related business.
Ability to identify and qualify new leads and move them through the pipeline.
Destination expertise and storytelling skills.
Strong understanding of the meetings, conventions, and tourism industry.
Expert knowledge of the local area, venues, hotels and attractions plus the ability to tell a compelling story explaining why the destination is a good fit for the group.
Demonstrated ability to develop new business through proactive prospecting and relationship building.
Effective decision-making plus excellent presentation and communication skills are essential.
Experience managing complex sales cycles and multi-stakeholder negotiations.
Solid negotiation and closing skills.
Competence in resolving objections, offering value-driven solutions, and closing contracts.
Ability to work independently while contributing to a collaborative team environment.
Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
Effective communication, presentation, and negotiation skills.
Proficiency in CRM and technology to manage accounts, track activity and analyze data.
Proficiency in MS Outlook, Word and Excel.
Time management and organizational skills.
Demonstrated ability to manage multiple leads and complex proposals for various groups simultaneously.

Nice To Haves

Strong preference will be given to St. Louis area residents.
Knowledge of the St. Louis area, hospitality industry and convention / tourism business is preferred.
Experience with Simpleview and Momentus Elite software is highly desirable.

Responsibilities

Represents Explore St. Louis in the marketplace.
Works closely with internal teams, hotel partners, and community stakeholders to position St. Louis as a competitive destination for large-scale meetings and conventions.
Identifies and closes complex, multi-year opportunities.
Develops new business through proactive prospecting and relationship building.
Manages complex sales cycles and multi-stakeholder negotiations.
Works collaboratively and effectively with local partners including hotels, venues, and city officials to host site visits and deliver successful client familiarization trips.
Manages multiple leads and complex proposals for various groups simultaneously.