Client Relations Assistant

Portland Brown Ltd; West of England; On-site; GBP 17,000 - 28,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

31 days holiday

Private Healthcare

Mental health support

Pension contribution

Training opportunities

Company socials

Job summary

Portland Brown Ltd is seeking a Client Relations Assistant to join our Bristol team, supporting clients, bookers and guests from the first enquiry through to their stay. You’ll manage phone and email enquiries, offering accommodation options that suit individual needs and budgets, and help manage reservations.

You'll collaborate with Reservations and Guest Relations to prepare ahead of guest stays, record information in Sugar CRM and ensure smooth handoffs to Operations and Finance.

Qualifications

• Excellent communication and customer service skills.
• Confident and friendly telephone manner.
• Strong administration and organisational skills.
• Great accuracy and attention to detail.
• Good interpersonal skills and ability to build relationships.
• Strong time management and ability to prioritise.
• Proactive approach and ability to work independently.

Responsibilities

• Manage phone and email enquiries from clients and bookers.
• Understand individual requirements and offer accommodation options that suit needs and budgets.
• Manage reservations to maximise occupancy and rates.
• Build relationships with regular bookers and key contacts.
• Understand requirements and preferences of key accounts.
• Record enquiries and bookings in Sugar CRM and share with Operations and Finance.

Skills

Excellent communication

Customer service

Telephone manner

Organisation

Attention to detail

Interpersonal skills

Time management

IT skills

Teamwork

Tools

Sugar CRM

Job description

Salary: up to £28,000 (dependent on experience)

Location: Bristol

Department: Client Relations

The Role

We're looking for a Client Relations Assistant to join our Bristol team, helping us look after our clients, bookers and guests from the first enquiry through to their stay.

You’ll manage phone and email enquiries from our clients, getting to know what they're looking for and offering accommodation options that suit their individual needs and budgets. You'll help manage reservations, maximise sales opportunities where possible and make sure every booking is handled accurately and efficiently.

Alongside this, you'll support our Reservations and Guest Relations teams to make sure we have everything we need ahead of a guest’s stay. This could mean speaking with guests before they arrive, capturing special requests, flagging VIPs or helping with requests from guests already staying with us.

You’ll also spend plenty of time working with our systems, making sure enquiries, reservations and guest information are accurately recorded in our CRM and that the right information reaches our Operations and Finance teams.

It’s a varied role for someone who enjoys talking to people, building relationships and finding solutions. We're looking for someone who is organised, confident on the phone, has great attention to detail and, most importantly, genuinely enjoys looking after people.

Key Responsibilities

Client Relations & Reservations

• Manage phone and email enquiries from clients and bookers
• Understand individual requirements and offer accommodation options that suit their needs and budgets
• Manage reservations to help maximise occupancy and the rates achieved
• Build relationships with regular bookers and key contacts
• Understand the requirements and preferences of key accounts
• Identify potential opportunities or risks within an account and flag these to the relevant Account Manager
• Ensure every point of contact reflects our ethos: 'we look after people'

Guest Experience

• Make sure special requests and guest requirements are captured and communicated to the right teams
• Be alert to VIPs, priority guests, extensions and booking changes
• Support Guest Relations with requests from guests staying with us
• When required, support Reservations with pre-arrival guest calls to make sure we understand any additional requirements ahead of their stay

Systems & Administration

• Accurately record enquiries, reservations and guest information within Sugar CRM
• Make sure Operations and Finance have the information they need to support each booking
• Review booking requests to make sure they follow Portland processes
• Keep booking and client information accurate and up to date

What We're Looking For

• Excellent communication and customer service skills
• A confident and friendly telephone manner
• Strong administration and organisational skills
• Great accuracy and attention to detail
• Good interpersonal skills and the confidence to build relationships
• Strong time management and the ability to prioritise
• A proactive approach and the confidence to think independently
• Comfortable working as part of a team in a busy environment
• Strong IT skills and confidence learning new systems
• Self-motivated, hardworking and enthusiastic
• Previous experience in customer service, hospitality, reservations or a similar client‑facing role would be beneficial

What Success Looks Like

• Clients and bookers receive a responsive, friendly and helpful service
• Enquiries are converted into bookings wherever possible
• Guest requirements are captured accurately and communicated to the right teams
• Strong relationships are built with regular bookers and clients
• Booking and CRM information is accurate and kept up to date

31 days holiday

Step aside statutory 28 days holiday, we give you an extra 3 days! Plus, a further 3 days are available to purchase! To sweeten things a little more, you get an extra day each year!

5-night stays in Portland’s London apartments

Fancy experiencing things from the other side? Be our guest! You can get up to 5 nights a year to treat you, your family or friends in a Portland apartment.

Portland Birthday Perks & Benefit Enhancements

Each year on your 'Portland Birthday', you'll get -

• A birthday treat on us
• A milestone gift at years 3,5 and 10

Other benefit enhancements include increased paternity and maternity leave, as well as our contribution to your pension.

Training opportunities

We strongly believe in developing our team from within and encourage an open door policy to talk about any potential training possibilities.

Private Healthcare & Critical Illness Cover

Our health care package provides access for you and your family to consultations, treatments and surgeries faster; we want you to feel looked after whatever life brings.

Mental health support

We've made you sure you can access a therapist anytime without having to speak to anyone at Portland.

Annual Flu Jab & Eye-test

We cover your annual jab and contribute up to £25 for an eye test, as well as up to £50 towards a new set of specs!

Company socials

All work and no play is no fun at all. So, we aim to make the time for regular social events where we can all have a laugh and get to know each other a little better.

Charity match fund

Making a difference matters. We'll match your efforts in raising funds for charity, doubling the impact!

Reservations, Client Relations & Partner Relations