Spring/Summer 2011 Newsletter Extended: Armstrong
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ARMSTRONG DELIVERS FOR SAN LUIS OBISPO VCB
By Kalli Sandberg (RPTA '14), Staff Writer
Recent RPTA ('11) graduate Jillian Armstrong spent the last quarter as an intern for the San Luis Obispo Visitors and Conventions Bureau (SLOVCB). Armstrong says that her interest in the SLOVCB was sparked by Molly Cano, the director of Sales and Marketing who was a guest speaker in Kendi Root's RPTA 317 class. “She talked about her job, and everything she said made me excited about the prospect of working there. I felt like Molly would be a great person to work for and so I really wanted to work for her too. Both of those things led me to get involved with the VCB as soon and as much as possible.”
Armstrong spent this past quarter working on two big projects. “One was to create five themed 3-day itineraries about the county that were put up on the website to give visitors an idea of what one of their vacations could look like if they were to come to the county. The other big project was to collect information about our members who get our sales leads. I sent out a survey to get information, and then I also updated our system that sends out our leads. I had to go through each property and retag all of them to make it a more efficient process. Additionally, we coordinated large groups coming to the county and arranged an event at Hearst Castle that was a huge success.”
Now that she has graduated, Armstrong is working at the SeaCrest Oceanfront Hotel in Pismo as a front desk agent to get front line and human relations experience. Additionally, she plans on managing ticketing for the “Savor the Central Coast” event to be held in late September. This second annual event is a collaboration between the SLOVCB and "Sunset" magazine. Armstrong feels that the SLOVCB gave her a good taste of what is available and allowed her to try new things and expand her interests. Her advice to students looking for work? “Have experience in as many different things as possible. The more diverse you are the more marketable you are to those looking to hire. It is a tough market out there and once you get a job, stick with it and work as hard as you can to prove your worth to your employer.”
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