One of the best parts of being in the Tourism industry for many years is the people I meet. Our industry has an endless list of talented, hardworking, fun-loving and creative professionals. I decided to 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 my friend Greg Eckhart of Travel Oregon. Greg and I are always at the same tradeshows- and I had no idea his background was so interesting!
Tell us a bit about how you got started in the tourism industry.
I was lucky enough to begin my work in the tourism industry as an unpaid intern with the corporate travel company, Rosenbluth International. When my internship was completed, they hired me, and I’ve been hooked ever since. At the time their HQ was in Philadelphia, PA allowing me the opportunity to travel there and train with a dedicated team of travel industry pros, focused on customer service. I worked with them for a few years and then moved on to a small mom & pop leisure agency in Savannah, GA selling everything from group cruises in the Caribbean to rail trips across Canada via Tauck Tours.
Having the benefit of knowing a GDS system inside and out, not to mention product knowledge for most major US-based tour operators I moved back to Portland in 2001 and was hired to work for the Portland Oregon Visitors Association. I was fortunate enough to spend 10 years there which included 3 years serving as Board Director for DMO’s with the National Tour Association (NTA). Fast forward to today and I’m entering my 8th year with the best destination management organization in the world, Travel Oregon. Our highly respected agency and the team have developed and executed a large and varying number of successful, award-winning global sales and marketing strategies. It’s an honor to serve with a deep bench of forward-facing team members, and I’m lucky to call them my colleagues.
What is your current job and what are your primary responsibilities?
I am the Director of Global Sales at Travel Oregon. My primary responsibilities include managing & directing our sales efforts in Asia and Oceania. In addition, I oversee two account managers serving and supporting our sales managers for the Americas, Asia, Europe, and Oceania.
What are some of the changes you have seen since you began your career?
The biggest change that I’ve seen is the immediacy of available information. When I worked as a leisure-oriented travel agent in Savannah, our agency held the keys to most information regarding international travel. Clients counted on us to provide exceptional customer service, reliable & timely information and ultimately connect them to unforgettable experiences. Now, most of those experiences and even some of that amazing hospitality and service can be found and booked via your iPhone etc.
What tourism trends are you seeing that will impact your job and how you work in the next 2 years?
Managing growth in tourism will continue to impact all of us. Guiding our travelers to new adventures while managing the expectations that WeChat, Instagram and other social networking services have set for our well-known experiences will be crucial to our success.
It’s vacation time – where do you go?
Anywhere! Our family loves to travel so name it and we’d likely go there.
What is your favorite app and tell us a bit about it.
I love Google Trips. It incorporates data from my airline app then pre-populates a local travel guide based on where I’m going. That guide is editable and changeable to my needs. If it’s a business trip, I’ll use the app to find good walks to take during short stints of any free time. If it’s a leisure trip with my family I can use the app to build out entire itineraries for our vacation.
What is your favorite tradeshow and why?
At the risk of offending others, I’d have to say Go West Summit. It’s all international buyers and media focused on the Western United States AND it will be hosted in Portland, Oregon March 2020!
What advice do you have for someone just getting started in the tourism industry?
It’s trite and somewhat cliché at this point, but the best advice I could give is to remember that relationships are everything in the tourism and hospitality industry. Never underestimate their power and never undervalue your relationships. Also, make sure to remember and repeat this mantra, tourism is a critical economic driver providing career track jobs to a dedicated group of innovative professionals.
From Sally: Do you have 2 minutes to answer 8 questions?
I am always looking for ways to serve my readers, and help tourism industry pros such as yourself become more knowledgeable and confident.
I developed a short questionnaire that should only take a few minutes to answer. As a bribe/bonus- I will send a $25 Starbucks card to one of you who takes the time to fill this out. Thanks in advance!