One of the best parts of being in the Tourism industry for many years has been the people I have met. Our industry has an endless list of talented, hardworking, fun loving and creative professionals. I decided that I would interview my friends and give you a peek into their lives and careers. Feel free to ask questions in the comments section, and I will follow up with the guest interviewed. This week we hear from Kristen Doss, Director of Sales for Blue Man Group Chicago.
Tell us a bit about how you got started in the tourism industry.
In my professional life, I have always worked for open run theatrical productions. As such, you must depend heavily on tourism to fill the seats since after a long enough run, you begin to exhaust the local market. I began doing domestic tourism shows such as ABA and NTA in 2001 to attract the motorcoach market that frequented Chicago.
What is your current job and what are your primary responsibilities?
I am currently the Director of Sales for Blue Man Group Chicago. I am responsible for managing the group sales department that works heavily with the domestic tour and travel operators. I also oversee individual sales, which entails working with third party sellers, online travel agents and tourism partners. In the last several years, I have been tasked with working with the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois to increase our foreign visitors through FAM trips, tradeshow attendance and co-op advertising.
What are some of the changes you have seen since you began your career?
When I began my career, there were no deal sites or online coupon codes to contend with at every turn. The emergence of this consumer attitude of never paying full price definitely makes it difficult to find a balance between filling the theatre and getting enough money per ticket to make a profit. It is something we are constantly tweaking and working with depending on the time of the year and customer demand.
What tourism trends are you seeing that will impact your job and how you work in the next 2-3 years?
For international tourism, everything is a bit in flux right now. The dollar is stronger than it has been in years and that has immediately affected our inbound sales. Canada has taken quite a hit on conversion rates as has the UK and the rest of Europe. As these are top markets to Chicago and therefore our show, we need to fill the gap in the short run with domestic tourists while staying the course internationally because these markets always historically rebound.
It’s vacation time – where do you go?
I have an incurable case of wanderlust. The question is more where wouldn’t I go! I love Latin America and the dollar tends to go far there. Rio de Janeiro is my favorite city in the world so if I could only go one place for the rest of my life, it would be there.
What is your favorite app and tell us a bit about it.
My favorite app is called DuoLingo. It is a language learning app similar to Rosetta Stone but it is entirely free. You are able to set your daily goals and it will remind you if you have missed your language practice for the day. I have completed their courses in both Spanish and Portuguese and while I wouldn’t say I am at all fluent, I can manage in both languages.
What is your favorite tradeshow and why?
My favorite tradeshow is SYTA, the Student & Youth Travel Association show. Our biggest clients are the tour operators that handle student travel, with some of them bringing us close to 200 groups per year. As such, I have worked with most of these clients quite extensively for many years and this show feels more like getting to see my friends than work.
What advice do you have for someone just getting started in the tourism industry?
First of all, congratulations for finding yourself in the greatest industry in the world! My advice would be to never be afraid to ask for help. The tourism industry can be very confusing and complex, especially when dealing with international sales. I found myself at my first ITB in Berlin with absolutely no idea how I was meant to sell to these German tour operators. I was lucky enough to be mentored by amazing Mary Twomey of Tourism Solutions. She was a veteran of the industry and without her gracious help, I am not sure I ever would have figured it all out!