Andy Travis, sales manager north and Scotland, youtravel.com
What was your first job?
Bank clerk.
What was your first job in travel?
I started out as an overseas rep.
How did you climb the career ladder?
In my first year as a rep, I achieved top seller in my resort and knew that sales was a strength of mine.
As I progressed, I added problem solving, operational experience and business strategy to my skill set.
What does it take to be good at your job?
Dedication to your accounts, being able to solve issues quickly and efficiently, and having excellent product knowledge in order to direct your accounts to the best product.
It’s also important to listen to what customers have to say and act upon their requests.
What are the big challenges in your job?
Communication and not being able to see clients as much as I would like to encourage them to sell our product.
One-on-one sales is my strongest attribute, but logistically, this is difficult to implement.
What’s the best part of your job?
Visiting new and existing accounts, and building a business relationship with them.
I get satisfaction from help them to grow their business with us, and seeing them succeed.
And the worst?
Being remotely based and not having a team in close proximity.
If you weren’t working in travel, what would you be doing?
Running my own restaurant. I’d be the chef and my other half Gillian would be front of house.
Andy’s CV
- 2006: Sales manager north and Scotland, youtravel.com
- 2005: Key account manager north and Scotland, Med Hotels
- 2003: National account manager, somewhere2stay.com
- 2000: Overseas management, Cosmos Holidays, Greece, Turkey and Italy