Laura Jeffrey Email & Phone Number

Pacific Northwest

Business Development Manager for an independent shore excursion start-up overing a third party shore excursion option to cruise line passengers in 5000 shore ex choices in 500 ports, and110 countries.

Portland, Or

Portland, Oregon/ N. California

Key Account Manager/Group Sales Manager – Develop strategic marketing strategies and implement sales initiatives for US and Foreign start-up and territory expansion projects on a contract basis; specialize in territory development and branding in North American travel trade channels for the Western Region • Utilize consortia contacts to access agency leads• Apply B2B and B2C prospecting knowledge for leads• Collaborate to create HTML marketing pieces and e-marketing• Hunt for large affinity cruise groups • Access MICE contacts to hunt for large groups• Complete complex contracts for Consortia, wholesale Tour Operator and DMC partners

San Francisco Bay Area

Increase revenue and market share across assigned territory including Northern California, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Alaska; develop brand champions in the travel agent community; support the brand by developing and promoting training events, agency visits, group development and marketing; facilitate problem resolution.

San Francisco Bay Area

Consulted for off-shore start-up and expanding travel companies.Developed business plan to launch online retail travel company with off shore reservations staff; scope included supplier negotiations, developing training manual and training off-shore; consulting on website build from content, functionality and look and feel;Developed sales plan for offshore-based Destination Management Company expanding from tour company business-to-business sales to retail travel agency direct sales in the US and Canada. Performed SWOT and Gap analysis to identify attrition and developed and implementation a sales plan to revitalize accounts.Developed strategic sales plan to increase sales for seasonal scenic railway; prospected for group direct sales, FIT agency and group sales

San Francisco Bay Area

Managed roll-up accounts representing 60 branches and 3 call centers. Prospected for new accounts, groups and charter opportunities. Developed new territory after successfully relocating from Portland to San Francisco. Built and grew market share through strategic development in CA, NV, AZ, UT, WA and OR. Developed market penetration across 85% of assigned accounts in 9 months.Exceeded sales goal and increased YOY (Year Over Year) revenue by 32%; starting with an account list and no contacts, built relationships with decision makers and developed brand champions. Increased YOY group sales 30% with a specialty in wine groups in 2010 – 2011 and by 71% for 2011 / 2012.Analyzed and reported sales data for ROI, yield, and cost of sale.Managed coop budget and empowerment fund; and conducted account business reviews.Developed territory account plans, account marketing / promotional strategies and implemented strategic consortia programs resulting in improved account relations and increased business.Conducted 80 in-office visits, product reviews / training, monthly off-site multi-account training events; and individual / multiple account consumer events, resulting in new sales.Crafted account marketing opportunities, negotiated co-op / event agreements, and resolved agency / guest challenges; prospected for new accounts and potential groups, especially among wineries and wine clubs.

Managed marketing and business development for 13 cruise lines and numerous tour companies.

Cruise Sales and Marketing, promoted to Leisure Business Development ManagerDirected Leisure Business Development across 11 branches in OR / WA / AK states.Created annual sales / marketing plan and co-op budget for 13 cruise line partners. Managed semi-annual sales blitz with $800K in combined sales by developing media campaigns which involved print, direct mail, web and broadcast media.Increased sales from $125K to $660K through creation / coordination of all aspects of multi-line cruise show.Planned and executed consortia, vendor and in-house promotions, increasing sales by 15%.Developed agent sales training including customer retention strategies, resulting in increased product knowledge and agent sales while decreasing cost of sale.Prospected / managed / hosted groups totaling 565 passengers in 2009 alone.Created group and promotion intranet tracking system that managed / tracked group finalization, sales by agent, cruise line and product, and source of sale, as well as streamlining cost of sale analysis and customer service.

Portland, Oregon Area

Managed Virtuoso marketing initiatives, vendor partnerships and co-op budget. Prospected for cross-marketing, community partnership and group business opportunities.Trained staff in selling skills managed marketing for cruise lines to our customers.Increased sales by 15% in 1st year, achieving top producer status with key cruise lines.

Exceeded personal sales goal by 125%; generated $2M in sales with $275K in revenue accounting for 30% of company business; 60% of sales were in the premium and luxury market.Prospected, hosted, fulfilled reservations and / or managed groups as large as 700 passengers.Selected twice for Condé Nast’s “Travel Guru” list.

Masters Degree, Science

Activities and Societies: Alpha Zeta Honor Society

Bachelor Of Science (B.Sc.), Horticulture Science