Tourism Marketing Director

The Louisiana Office of Tourism's vision is to market and promote the brand of Feed Your Soul showcasing Louisiana as a travel destination, increasing revenue generated by the tourism industry and contributing to the economic impact of tourism in all 64 parishes.

The Office of Tourism partners with tourism professionals and industry stakeholders in private and public sectors to extend and enhance their efforts to reach domestic and international consumers and travel trade.

This is a full-time position located at the Capitol Annex in Baton Rouge, LA.

Seven years of experience in tourism, marketing, public relations, or administrative services; OR

Six years of full-time experience in any field plus four years of experience in tourism, marketing, public relations, or administrative services; OR

A bachelor's degree plus four years of experience in tourism, marketing, public relations, or administrative services; OR

An advanced degree plus three years of experience in tourism, marketing, public relations, or administrative services.

EXPERIENCE SUBSTITUTION:
Every 30 semester hours earned from an accredited college or university will be credited as one year of experience towards the six years of full-time work experience in any field. The maximum substitution allowed is 120 semester hours which substitutes for a maximum of four years of experience in any field.

The official job specifications for this role, as defined by the State Civil Service, can be found here.

Job Duties:

• Directs and manages the Louisiana Office ofTourism's domestic and international sales managers.
• Originates, directs and oversees the implementation of a comprehensive national and international program to recruit new business to Louisiana.
• Directs the market development activities within the Marketing Division of the Louisiana Office of Tourism: International Trade, National Development, Heritage Tourism Development, Meetings/Conventions and Multi-Cultural Development and Marketing.
• Develops the budget requests for the Marketing Division and upon receipt of annual budget allocation, prepares working budgets for these development and marketing programs.
• Directly supervises the Domestic Sales Manager and International Sale Manager.
• Plans, directs and implements national and international market development. Organizes and participates in trade missions and direct sales calls with department secretary, assistant secretary and industry leaders.
• Participates in the negotiations with new businesses seeking to do business in Louisiana -such as expansion of direct air flights and cruise lines, as well as trade industry leaders such as tour operators and wholesalers.
• Analyzes research of travel and tourism marketing trends, modifies national and international programs to accommodate changes, and re-focuses the promotional campaigns accordingly.
• Tracks and monitors domestic and international marketing efforts to determine effectiveness.
• Responsible for determining primary and secondary domestic and international markets.
• Develops, implements positioning strategies to "brand" Louisiana as a travel destination and increase business to the state.
• Coordinates research projects that drive the advertising and promotional efforts, such as market research studies, advertising effectiveness studies, consumer advertising effectiveness studies, post advertising tracking surveys, econometrics analysis of the various Louisiana Office of Tourism advertising and promotion campaigns.
• Monitors industry analysis and economic impact of travel on Louisiana, including monthly lodging reports, impact of Louisiana Welcome Centers in order to evaluate and optimize advertising and promotion.
• Acts as a senior adviser to the Assistant Secretary for the Louisiana Office of Tourism.
• Acts as a travel and tourism liaison between the Louisiana Office of Tourism and the travel and tourism industry in Louisiana.
• Other Duties as assigned

Other Important information:

• Position is well versed in international and domestic trade and consumer shows; international markets; trade contacts; and other relevant information. 
• History of supervisory roles preferred.
• Must be able to work flexible schedule.

Position-Specific Details:

• Appointment Type: This is a full-time position. This position will be filled as a promotion of a current permanent employee of the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism or The Office of the Lieutenant Governor serving in a classified position.
• Work Schedule: This position reports in-office. This position may be required to work evenings, weekends, holidays, and/or overtime. This position may be required to travel. 
• Location: This position is located at the Capitol Annex in Baton Rouge, LA.

How To Apply:

No Civil Service test score is required in order to be considered for this vacancy.  

To apply for this vacancy, click on the “Apply” link and complete an electronic application, which can be used for this vacancy as well as future job opportunities. Applicants are responsible for checking the status of their application to determine where they are in the recruitment process. Further status message information is located under the Information section of the Current Job Opportunities page.

*Information to support your eligibility for the position must be included in the application (i.e., relevant, detailed experience/education). Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of completed education and experience sections. Applications may be rejected if incomplete.

The Office of the Lieutenant Governor and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism are participants in the E-Verify system for identification and employment eligibility purposes. 
Louisiana as a State, is a Model Employer for People with Disabilities.

For further information about this vacancy, contact:

Katelyn Wale
Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism
1051 North 3rd Street 
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
Fax: 225-342-7928
kwale@crt.la.gov