Service and Sales Advisor

Who are we?

Campus Living Villages is a global provider of student accommodation across four regions (Australia, New Zealand, USA and UK).

Who are we looking for?

We have an opportunity for a Full-Time Sales & Service Advisor based at our Manchester Support Office based in Salford Quays, near Media City, Manchester.

Working 5 days out of 7 days including weekends.

1. Key Accountabilities

Sales, Retention and Account Management

> Be the first line of contact with prospective students and their families (via Telephony, Email, Web chat and SMS) who are making accommodation decisions, throughout the sales cycle

> Provide expert advice on our villages which can positively influence buying decisions, maximizing conversion of enquiries to confirmed room bookings

> Support the sales and promotion plan, and work to achieve daily and weekly application and occupancy targets

> Provide students with support to ensure all booking stages are completed and all data is captured, prior to arrival, including but not limited to, guarantor and direct debit details

> Update and monitor prospect database and resident management system (StarRez) to enter, track and update customer status throughout the application and confirmation process

> Provide support to International agents, processing bookings, dealing with enquiries and resolving issues

> Maintain the room profiling and availability for our villages to ensure student can book through the online portal

> Provide support to the Village teams and University partners, processing allocations and chasing nominated students to completion

> Support with driving additional revenue through promotion of additional basket products and services

> Maintain the room inventory, pricing and availability for our villages through external channels such as listing sites, online travel agents and partner website to maximize room revenue

> Supports the sales function of the business working closely with the Village Directors and Teams to implement promotional plans and sales initiatives

> Follow up, in a timely manner, all open day, housing fair and locally generated leads, maximizing conversion to in room bookings

> Promotes and upsells summer extensions to current residents

> Process payments for academic and short stay transactions via SagePay (where applicable), ensuring outstanding payments are being collected in a timely manner and low debt levels are maintained

> Chase outstanding payments in line with the national debt process

> Supports the Business Development Manager in all short and summer stay enquiries, working closely with all staff across the business to ensure smooth running of the summer and short stay business

> Manage reservations by inputting into the Reservation Management System – ensuring accuracy and consistency throughout

> Contribute towards economic occupancy targets of all villages within the Customer Contact Village through achieving sales targets

> Consistently deliver excellent customer service, provide friendly and helpful support and a passion for sales

> Play an active role in the delivery and communication of major campaigns

> Ensure that high levels of detail and accuracy are applied to customer records kept within Zendesk, Siteminder, StarRez and all other systems which are used within the Customer Contact Village

> Assist in the production of timely and accurate reporting, including providing information on key areas of responsibility

> Proactively seek to identify and alleviate blockages in the sales process, selling directly to prospective customers at all times

> Assist in the accurate improvement and enrichment of web content, providing feedback to the marketing team

> Ensure all CLV marketing and brand guidelines, along with all associated policies and procedures, are followed and that information provided to prospective residents is both accurate and timely

> Ensure a positive impression of all CLV Villages is created for all prospective customers, parents and clients through the provision of excellent customer service, comprehensive viewing management, the delivery of consistent and persuasive sales messages and timely follow up procedures

> Promote a ‘customer first’ culture and ensure customer expectations are met or exceeded

> Be an expert in all StarRez processes relevant to sales, retention, accounts and service

> Assist with the coordination of operational workflows, and help to ensure effective communication between relevant staff

> Attend open days and provide in-village support as required, on an ad-hoc basis

Operations & Administration

> Support the development of new revenue streams and other strategic initiatives and projects

> Assist as required in market research initiatives that support sales performance

Compliance

> Support and comply with relevant CLV policies, including but not limited to health & safety, data protection, People matters and privacy policies

Legal

> Be fully conversant with the Village Residential Agreements, Village Rules, the Village Handbook and all applicable Rules and Regulations

Miscellaneous

> Any other reasonable duties as directed by the National Sales Manager and/or Head of Sales

> Proactively participate in CLV business-wide initiatives, as agreed with the Head of Sales.

2. Key Skills Required

Key Competencies

> Adaptability

> Building Customer Loyalty

> Communication

> Continuous Improvement

> Contributing to Team Success

> Decision Making

> Initiating Action

> Quality Orientation

> Managing Work

> Safety Awareness

> Planning and organising

> Driving for Results

> Building Strategic Working Relationships

> Aligning Performance for Success

> Facilitating Change

> Leading Through Vision and Values

Technical Skills

> Competency in a range of software packages including MS Word and Excel (Essential)

> Proven high quality written and verbal communication skills (Essential)

> An excellent eye for detail (Essential)

> Excellent customer service skills (Essential)

> Ability to meet tight timeframes without compromising accuracy (Essential)

> Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills

> Organised, with good ‘follow up’ skills and a determined approach to ‘getting to the bottom of things’

> Ability to prioritise and manage multiple projects

> Excellent organisational and planning skills, effective recording of information and ability to understand and compile research

> Possess the ability to act in an independent, and discreet manner, preserving the confidentiality of information

> Trustworthy, solution focused with a strong desire to help make things work

3. Qualifications and Experience Required

Experience

> Experience in a customer service, sales, marketing or business development and/or equivalent experience in a call centre environment, estate agency, retail or student lettings environment (Essential)

> English GCSE grade A-C (or equivalent) (Essential)

> Evidence of personal success in a competitive business environment (Essential)

> Experience in high level usage of online sales systems, databases and software (Essential)

> Experience in a fast paced sale environment (Essential)

> Highly aware of youth trends and communication preference (Essential)

> Team focussed, with the ability to work as a key team player to achieve collective goals (Essential)

> Demonstrate high ethical standards, integrity and commitment in all aspects of work (Essential)

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Salary: £21,500.00 per year

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift

Work Location: In person

Reference ID: SSA/080323/MSO