Role: Membership Manager
Company: Belfast Visitor And Convention Bureau
Track Record: As membership manager Lindsey supports around 500 private sector stakeholders from across the tourism, hospitality and retail sector while lending her support to the current ‘Backin’ Belfast’ campaign.
What does your job entail?
I look after BVCB’s 500 members who come from a wide variety of sectors such as accommodation, transport, retail, bars and cafes, conference providers and visitor attractions. It’s my job to ensure we’re delivering benefits to our members by promoting their products and services as well as keeping them up to date with upcoming marketing opportunities, member events or initiatives like Backin’ Belfast.
We host regular member social events as well as engagement and workshop events for new and existing members. These are an important vehicle for reminding members about the support they can avail of and providing updates on tourism trends as well as information on what’s happening in the city and how they can be involved.
Is it 9-5?
It varies quite a lot. There’s a lot activity beyond office hours as many of our members don’t work 9-5, especially bars and restaurants. We need to be flexible so we host evening events for those who can’t attend daytime events, or early breakfast briefings for retailers who find it difficult to leave their store during the day. I don’t mind though, as getting face-to-face time with our members is an essential element of the job and I’ve worked in the hospitality industry for so long that it’s second nature.
How did you get into this line of work?
I’ve always worked in the tourism industry in one way or another. When I moved back to Belfast in 2011 I worked for a local hotel brand in a sales and business development role. I was always out and about meeting people in the industry, many whom are now BVCB members, so it was a great introduction to the job I’m doing now.
Outline your career to date?
Once I graduated I moved to Edinburgh and worked in event management and then for an organisation called Unique Venues of Edinburgh, which promoted 26 different tourist venues in the city. I loved the job but was keen to move back to Belfast as it’s where I’m from.
Belfast has changed so much since I first moved away and every time I came home to visit family there was something new to see or do and the city had a real buzz with a new identity as a top visitor destination, which I was keen to be part of.
I moved back to Belfast two years ago and worked for a hotel chain before joining the team at BVCB last June. It’s been a really exciting time for BVCB – 2012 was such a great year with the opening of Titanic Belfast, the MAC and more recently the Crumlin Road Gaol – with so much to offer visitors, 2013 will be another fantastic year for the city.
Tell us about your qualifications/ training?
I completed a BA Hons in hospitality and tourism management at Northumbria University which has been a fantastic foundation for my career. I would encourage anyone who wanted to get into this industry to find a similar course.
What qualities are required for your job – personal and professional?
It’s essential to be able to build good relationships and develop a rapport with people from a range of backgrounds. The ability to listen to members and garner a good understanding about their business is very important. So as cliché as it sounds, excellent communication skills are the main building blocks for this type of job.
With 500 members to liaise with on a regular basis it’s also important to be organised and as my role also involves attracting new members I need good sales skills.
Overall, the most important quality is to be passionate about what you’re doing otherwise you won’t fulfil your potential or enjoy what you do, which is why I feel very fortunate to do something I love.
What are the biggest challenges and rewards of your work?
All membership organisations have to present a strong business case for membership and BVCB is no different. Membership fees are increasingly being scrutinised by organisations in a bid to manage and reduce costs.
Thankfully, everything we do is about increasing visitor numbers and spend to the city region so we are able to demonstrate a strong return on investment for our members.
There is perhaps a misconception that membership is expensive but once people realise that it’s only a couple of hundred pounds for most types of business they are keen to get involved.
As a public-private sector partnership, we have a positive emphasis on ‘Team Belfast’ and want our members to fell part of one big team which is committed to making Belfast a great visitor destination for business and leisure visitors.
It’s extremely rewarding to be part of that and I love getting feedback from visitors who have enjoyed their time in our city and can’t wait to come back.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I’ve been away for nearly nine years so I still love getting out and about, going to concerts and re-discovering Belfast. It’s important that I know what’s going on in Belfast so it’s great that it’s something I really enjoy doing.
Tell us an interesting fact about yourself.
Despite having never been in a canoe before, I’m taking part in a 60km canoe challenge on the River Bann at the end of April for Cancer Focus NI. I’ve been training by swimming and generally keeping fit but I still haven’t managed to get into a canoe yet!
Who has inspired you most in your life?
My two sisters are very inspirational. They both had children when they were young but worked really hard and went back to university to finish their education and are now in great jobs that they love.
One sister works in a rehabilitation role with young people who have been released from prison and my other sister develops art projects for young people in deprived areas. Both jobs are tough but very rewarding and I’m always impressed with how they have managed to balance their careers and family life.