Trade Sales Manager

• Responsible for increasing the market penetration for Air India and maximising ROI on the incentives offered in the market.
• Responsible for managing relationships with trade partners, such as wholesalers, distributors, retailers, and other businesses involved in the distribution and sale of Air India.
• Drive sales and revenue growth by effectively managing trade accounts, ensuring strong partnerships, and maximising product visibility and availability within the trade channels.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

Strategic responsibilities

• Increase Air India's market penetration by onboarding new travel agency accounts.
• Collaborate with the global sales teams to identify opportunities for global deals.
• Prepare proposals and negotiate incentive agreements with travel agencies, ensuring that the terms and conditions align with the company's objectives and meet the partners' needs.
• Work with the Regional Manager, Area Manager, or Country Manager to develop and deploy sales strategies to achieve the set targets.
• Work with the Regional Manager, Area Manager, or Country Manager to diversify Air India's agency base in the assigned geography and reduce inventory risks.
• Work with the Regional Manager, Area Manager, or Country Manager to penetrate customer segments such as retail and tour operators and develop new sales products.
• Develop comprehensive account plans to outline sales strategies, revenue targets, and actions needed to maximise business opportunities.
• Achieve individual/ team sales targets (monthly, quarterly, and yearly) for the assigned geography.
• Conduct market research to identify trends, opportunities, and potential risks in the assigned zone/city aviation market.

Trade Account Management

• Develop and nurture long-term relationships with assigned accounts, which can lead to better commercial outcomes for the company.
• Understand unique needs, preferences, and business objectives to tailor solutions that align with the airline's offerings and the client's requirements.
• Work closely with the Regional Manager, Area Manager or Country Manager to periodically monitor and evaluate the sales target achievement (monthly, quarterly, annually).
• Regularly communicate and update the agencies about Air India’s new offers, products, facilities, developments, etc.
• Deliver periodic product presentations and plan and host lunch-and-learn sessions with market and trade partners.
• Maintain excellent relationships with channel, trade, and corporate clients in the assigned geography. Regularly communicate with the assigned accounts about Air India’s new offers, products, facilities, developments, etc.
• Identify growth opportunities within existing accounts and pursue new business opportunities to expand the company's presence in the market.
• Collaborate with other departments, such as marketing, product development, and customer service, to ensure customer satisfaction and alignment of sales strategies.
• Monitor competitor activities and market trends; Advise the internal decision-making team about rewarding new routes and timings.
• Gather market intelligence and liaise with the marketing and pricing team to design and roll out promotional and discount offers to stimulate market penetration and build brand awareness.
• Develop comprehensive plans for clients to outline sales strategies, revenue targets, and actions needed to maximise business opportunities.
• Ensure all details of the managed accounts are captured accurately and are up to date in the CRM tool (Salesforce).
• Regularly review and adjust plans based on market dynamics and performance metrics.
• Ensure compliance with industry regulations and Air India policies and procedures.

Relationship Management

• Engage with clients and establish regular communication to understand their needs, address concerns, and gather feedback
• Support, nurture and develop the team members’ skills in all Distribution and Sales Support aspects

Any other additional responsibility could be assigned to the role holder from time to time as a standalone project or regular work. The same would be suitably represented in the Primary responsibilities and agreed between the incumbent, reporting officer and HR.