As an Information Specialist at the Sacramento Convention & Visitors Bureau, I receive a number of the general questions directed to our office (along with my co-worker Nadine; there are also Information Specialists at our Visitor Center in Old Sacramento). What hotels are closest to the Sacramento Convention Center? Are there tours of the Capitol? What things are there to do in Sacramento with a 5- and an 8-year old?
Eight hours a day we man the phones prepared to answer any and all questions. There are questions I can answer in my sleep. Then there are the ones that throw us for a loop. Then there are the questions that prove to be really challenging, for example, finding the name of “that one restaurant near that one street with the funny looking tree.” All in all we're prepared to answer your questions and if we need help, we have a number of co-workers with a wealth of Sacramento knowledge ready to jump in and assist.
I was born and raised in Sacramento and thought I knew a lot about my hometown, but I have to admit that answering the phones for the SCVB has expanded my Sacramento knowledge tenfold. There was a lot for me to learn. Answering the phones for a tourism organization requires talent and some detective skills. You're the front line of the business. You’re the voice at the other end of the line and you are the face seen when guests walk in. You must be pleasant and helpful and know your stuff, and if you don’t know your stuff you need to be prepared to find it and remember it for next time.
This blog will highlight commonly asked, and the occasional odd ball questions - a sort of Sacramento Tourism Q&A. And if your question isn’t answered here, give me a call and we’ll get it answered.
