State Association Spotlight, William Bloom, Louisiana Office of Tourism

What is your job title and responsibilities?

As the Sports & Outdoors Sales Manager with the Louisiana Office of Tourism, I lead efforts to promote and develop Louisiana regions/ communities as ideal sports event destinations. My strategy entails marketing, sales endeavors, and community outreach to increase acquisitions, relationships, and development. The results of my methodology, commitment, and partnerships have garnered a range of sports events in Louisiana that has generated economic impacts and enhanced our quality of life.

What was your first job in the industry?

I would consider my job as Assistant Manager and Branch Manager at Enterprise Rent a Car in downtown New Orleans as my first job within the tourism industry. New Orleans is a cultural melting pot that attracts people from any and everywhere, both domestically and internationally. New Orleans also holds a reputation for hosting major sports events. During my time at that Enterprise location, we serviced tourists daily and accommodated corporate agreements for major events.

What aspect of your job do you like most?

I sincerely enjoy being a resource for my DMO and Team Louisiana partners and community stakeholders throughout Louisiana. I want to help my partners and Louisiana stakeholders win economically and overall within our quality of life through business development and growth within our communities. When our partners succeed, all of Louisiana wins. I attribute this aspect of my station to the characteristics of servant leadership and authentic leadership.

Our team at the Louisiana Office of Tourism is committed to assisting our partners with business development and product development to grow their respective markets. We have a great team with incredible leaders encouraging a healthy collaborative workspace. As a team, we are always considering areas of opportunity and performance improvement to generate more strategies to give our partners competitive advantages and brand recognition.

This propels us to perform our job functions to the highest ability. My goal over the last five years in meeting these expectations is to establish authentic relationships by actively listening with a ‘yes mentality’ and an open mind with my colleagues, stakeholders, right holders, and industry partners.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

Growing up in the late 80s and 90s, I followed my father’s lead and became a serious New Orleans Saints fan. This was very unpopular at the time considering other winning franchises like the Cowboys and 49ers. Those were some intense seasons, so I wanted to be a running back for the New Orleans Saints to help my team win.

How did you get into this line of work?

Even though it was a tough decision, I needed to make a career move to reach new aspirations and a better work-life blend. I took the Louisiana civil service exam and applied for a new sales position within the Louisiana Office of Tourism.

I was confident in my sales ability to sell anything, so you can only imagine my excitement when I found out the position is in charge of selling and marketing 2 things that I love, sports and my state. I am truly grateful for this opportunity, and I love my job.

Please tell us about your role as Co-Chair of the Sports ETA State Association Leader Community.

This community was highly beneficial to me, especially during the initial year of the pandemic. We started to have monthly meetings to discuss trends, share resources, and offer best practices to navigate through an unprecedented time. Moving into 2022, I was completely humbled when I was approached to co-chair this community especially considering the great job of the past leadership.

Our objective as co-chairs was to continue the efforts of the past chairs as well as the mission of the Sports Events & Tourism Association in providing opportunities for education, advocacy, resources, and networking. This community holds a significant impact in its influence to create action and disseminate information throughout respective states. Another aim as we move into a new year is to generate more content and resources for sports tourism professionals and organizations.

Our community members hold a wealth of knowledge and experiences. As a community, we can produce tools and techniques, resources for data and projects, and lessons learned for all aspects of the business to assist and grow our industry.

What has been your biggest accomplishment thus far in your career?

Over the last five years, over every prior year, we, as the Louisiana Office of Tourism and Team Louisiana, have accomplished new goals and grown to new heights that It’s hard to identify one accomplishment. Over this past year, we have acquired and hosted more sports events within communities of all shapes and sizes. We took our sales and marketing efforts to international locations. We have garnered more brand recognition and participation from our partners within trade shows. We have expanded our advocacy and educational efforts to spur more onboarding and buy-in. As we look to the new calendar year, I am very excited that our Louisiana sports tourism efforts will grow even more based on our planning.

How do you manage your daily tasks?

I approach each day and project with organization, communication, and accountability systems, which I accredit to one of my past leaders. I succeeded in using this approach in my past station, so I applied the same concept to my current job. We have great systems in place operationally, and we have constantly evolving technology. For professionals within our industry, I describe our jobs as a series of projects. If we operate using organization, communication, and accountability, we maximize the probability of success and limit the dysfunction of pitfalls.

How do you stay on top of sports tourism industry trends?

I am a fan of data and healthy examples, so I maximize opportunities to acquire this information which may come electronically or in-person within trade show breakouts, educational summits, or with industry professionals. I lean heavily on my associations as well as sports tourism publications. I create email alerts for subject items and take advantage of opportunities to sign up for industry newsletters from stakeholders, competitors, rights holders, and industry partners.

How are you developing key partnerships in the marketplace?

I approach every touchpoint within our industry events to come back with takeaways and new relationships. Developing partnerships can be a series of attempts, but the first step is attempting. I think it’s best to have an open mind and a ‘yes’ mentality with business development. I also believe it is essential to be authentic and intentional in rapport. Lastly, healthy CRM practices and consistency will develop partnerships to new heights.

Who was your greatest mentor?

There are several individuals within this industry who I consider mentors. They have been great examples and guides in my career and have even provided valuable life lessons. My greatest mentor is my father, Jonathan Bloom Sr., who inspires me daily. He is always present when I need him. Throughout my life, he has provided me with a healthy example of manhood, fatherhood, leadership, humility, patience, integrity, and authenticity, among many others. Those qualities are characteristics that I want to have present for my 2 sons, so maybe they may see me in the same light.

What are the top 3 things you’d want to pass on as advice to a young, up-and-coming industry professional?

I advise first to be a student of sports tourism, the tourism industry, and great business practices. There is plenty of information or individuals who may offer this information. We must be humble enough to go out and seek this information or be willing to accept this information. It matters not the industry or years of experience; we are all still learning.

My second point is approaching the business with systems and a winning culture by consistently applying organization, communication, and accountability. This formula in daily operational practices can be used to the acquisition of events or hosting events that will lead to results and lessons learned.

Finally, I think it’s essential to make every attempt to establish relationships and authentic rapport. This should be an aim for stakeholders within our community as well as industry professionals. Before the business, people and organizations buy into you. As we establish relationships, we must understand that these are a series of attempts.

What are you most passionate about, and how did you get started with it?

I have many motives that draw enthusiasm, but I am most passionate about my family. They are my ‘Why’, who give me the most joy and passion. I love being in the market or at the office, but I am excited to come home to my wife and sons. My wife is my biggest cheerleader, and one of my many goals is to be a great example for my sons.