South African Tourism Trade Relations Manager: Americas Vacancy 2026

Opportunity Overview

South African Tourism is seeking a dedicated Trade Relations Manager for the Americas region. This is a 3-year fixed-term contract position designed for individuals who are passionate about South Africa, travel, and tourism.

The role focuses on driving the organisation's trade and sales strategy and its implementation. South African Tourism is looking for a results-driven individual with strong interpersonal skills, business acumen, and creative flair to join their team.

Minimum Requirements

• Applicants must be USA-based citizens.
• Must demonstrate credibility and be results-driven.
• Possess strong interpersonal and influencing skills.
• Exhibit strong business acumen.
• Show creative flair.
• Mastery of CRM platforms such as HubSpot or Salesforce for tracking trade leads.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and execute a 3-year strategic trade and sales plan, with annual updates.
• Coordinate and deliver the seamless execution of the trade sales plan.
• Develop an annual calendar of activities to meet the plan's objectives.
• Produce periodic performance reports and provide feedback on monthly activations and annual trade sales plans.
• Develop a performance and Return on Investment (ROI) dashboard for all trade and sales engagements.
• Identify, manage, and participate in key trade events, including roadshows and trade shows.
• Ensure collaboration between trade sales and marketing communication plans for seamless market execution.
• Identify and maintain a database of all Trade and related stakeholders.
• Develop the annual Trade, Sales, and Stakeholder Engagement Plan.
• Cultivate new and maintain existing business relationships with travel trade and related stakeholders.
• Consult with trade on annual trade sales plans in line with SA Tourism objectives and key account management principles.
• Organise and attend regular market update events with the Trade.
• Develop a comprehensive communication plan for all Trade.
• Establish and maintain relationships with key stakeholders to promote the South African brand through collaboration and partnerships.
• Develop and maintain a strategy for working with the outbound and inbound travel industry.
• Identify the appropriate amount and mix of trade partnerships by target market and geographic source market.
• Negotiate and close collaborative sales agreements according to identified goals and outputs.
• Regularly review relationships with trade partners against performance and ensure contract deliverables are met.
• Ensure signed contracts are legally compliant and regularly updated.
• Submit periodic financial and performance reports to the Hub Head.
• Manage within legal parameters and according to company policy and procedures.
• Implement action plans for unacceptable variances.
• Manage and scale the B2B CRM database (e.g., Salesforce/HubSpot) to track, segment, and nurture relationships with US travel advisors, tour operators, and wholesalers.
• Design and execute data-driven digital co-op marketing campaigns with North American trade partners to drive bookings to South Africa.
• Lead the digital transformation of the US trade portal, ensuring updated itineraries, toolkits, and promotional collateral are easily accessible.
• Oversee and optimise the online South African Specialist training program to increase enrolment and completion rates among US travel agents.
• Produce, host, and analyse educational webinars and virtual roadshows using platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams.
• Curate and distribute highly segmented B2B e-newsletters (eDMs) and automated email workflows tailored to different tiers of travel buyers.
• Design targeted digital campaigns (Account-Based Marketing - ABM) that target specific high-value US tour operators and travel agency networks.

How to Apply

• Visit the official application portal at: http://www.southafrica.net/us
• Ensure your application is submitted before the closing date.
• Applications close on 17 August 2026.