- Monday 1 July 2024
- 11.00am
- Zoom
- 1 hour
How to Get Ahead in Travel PR
Intent on climbing to the top of the travel PR ladder but need a leg up? This webinar is for everyone from PR rookies on the first rungs through to directors getting close to the summit. We welcome five top UK agency heads who will share their expertise in navigating a safe path to career success, and avoiding the bumps in the road! Essential viewing for every ambitious person working in travel PR!
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Listen in as our panellists offer their views on personal and professional development, client management, creativity and pitching. We’ll also widen out the debate to include the changing definition of what comms and representation agencies offer, and what skills today’s PR professionals need to keep pace with that evolution. Tune in to hear the secret formula to becoming a travel PR business leader of tomorrow…!
MEET THE SPEAKERS
![](https://travmediameets.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Amy-Skelding-headshot-large-1-300x300.png)
Amy Skelding
Managing Partner
FINN Partners Travel UK
Amy’s journey in the travel industry began with a passion for exploration and a keen eye for storytelling. As a precocious pre-teen (Amy’s words…), Amy was the child presenter of BBC Radio 4’s flagship travel programme Breakaway and reported across the globe, from Paris to New York, on what made these destinations worth visiting for kids. And so, the seed was sown for a lifelong love of travel and the never-ending search for ‘the story’.
Starting as the cocky intern (Amy’s words…) at bgb nearly 20 years ago, Amy moved on from franking the post and spray-mounting coverage to becoming Managing Partner of FINN’s Travel PR team in the UK and was recently included in the 2024 PRWeek Power Book. Amy has worked in every job in a travel PR agency, from news story sell-ins to celebrity activations; with countless crises, proposals, awards, and press trips under her belt – you name it, she has done it and is known for her frank approach and insightful adaptability. She ensures that the stories of every destination and brand the FINN team touches are told with passion, creativity, and a commitment to making a positive impact on the world of travel.
![](https://travmediameets.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Fiona-Anderson-Headshot-large-300x300.png)
Fiona Anderson
Director
GEC PR
Fiona is a Company Director at specialist travel and lifestyle agency GEC PR. Fiona has enjoyed a 25-year PR career, and her travel client experience includes premium tourism brands that include Aitken Spence Hotels, Conrad, Kimpton and Hilton Hotels. Her agency works with tourist boards, hotels, and travel products that span the globe, and Fiona has also represented destinations as diverse as Central America, India, the Maldives, the Philippines, Jamaica, and Kyoto in Japan. Fiona is a Fellow of the UK’s Tourism Society, and is passionate about the transformative power of travel.
![](https://travmediameets.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/James-Brooke-headshot-large-300x300.png)
James Brooke
Managing Director
Rooster
James is a communications expert with almost 25 years’ experience, predominantly consultancy-side at both specialist and global agencies.
After exploring his passion for the seas, sailing across both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and working for the likes of Neilson and Sunsail, James spent five years at the travel PR and marketing agency McCluskey International, during which time the business tripled in size from a team of eight to 30.
Poached by the international consultancy FleishmanHillard to run their travel & tourism practice across EMEA, James managed the Egypt Tourism account globally across 30 markets and helped launch Etihad Airways.
Marking 15 years as Rooster’s MD in April 2023, James leads a team of 30 delivering impactful PR, Representation, Social, Influencer, Experiential, Creative, and Reputation campaigns for diverse clients across the Travel, Property, Consumer, and B2B/Corporate sectors.
James is honoured to be featured again in the PR Week Power Book 2024, the definitive guide to the most influential and respected PR & comms leaders in the UK.
![](https://travmediameets.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Jim-Odoire-Headshot-large-300x300.png)
Jim Odoire
Managing Director
Black Diamond
As one of the founders of Black Diamond, Jim has enjoyed a career of nearly 30 years in marketing. Over this time, Jim has helped steer Black Diamond from its roots in extreme sports content production to become a full-service creative marketing and communications agency specialising in travel and tourism. Operating out of offices in central London, Black Diamond’s 40 staff oversee a portfolio of 30+ global destinations. Black Diamond is a member of the International Tourism Group with agency offices across Europe.
![](https://travmediameets.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Jules-Ugo-Headshot-large-2-768x780.png)
Jules Ugo
CEO
LOTUS
Jules is CEO of award-winning strategic communications consultancy, LOTUS, and is one of the most respected and well-known PR practitioners in the industry, with twenty-five years in the field. Known for leading a results-driven agency that specialises in brand building, placemaking, and earned media delivery for the world’s flagship travel, hospitality, and lifestyle brands and destinations, Jules has a strategic mindset, global outlook, and track record for delivering high-profile international campaigns, often focusing on emerging and developing markets. Included in PR Week’s 2024 Power Book for the seventh year running, Jules is highlighted as a leading figure in the travel comms space. She has served on the PRCA Council, been vice-chairman of the PRCA Travel and Tourism Group, and is a regular judge for the PRCA Dare and PR Week Awards.
![](https://travmediameets.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Henry-cut-out-square.png)
Henry Hemming (Moderator)
Global Managing Director
TravMedia
Henry lives in East Sussex, is a keen photographer, nature lover and ardent Beatles fan (yeah, yeah, yeah).
What We’ll Cover
Essential for anyone intent on making giant strides in travel PR, the session will delve into the successes and failures of our experts’ careers and explore how PRs can thrive in the rapidly evolving world of travel communications. Covering personal and professional development, team management, and client handling, the panel will also explore how to harness new and emerging developments in the communications field, such digital, social and AI. For the ultimate roadmap to a dazzling career in travel PR, you must be in the room!
Core Topics
- Working within a team
- Managing clients
- Pitching to the media
- Personal and professional development
- Campaign management
- The importance of creativity
- Dealing with challenging situations
- How to get promoted
- 1 July 2024
- 11:00am
- Zoom
- 1 hour
Attending TravMedia Meets
TravMedia Meets webinars are free to TravMedia customers who have TravMedia Meets included in their subscription. For non-customers or customers who don’t have TravMedia Meets included in their subscription the cost to attend is £39pp per webinar*
*Non-customers may also be eligible for a free trial with TravMedia. Existing customers who do not have TravMedia Meets included in their subscription may upgrade. Contact Louise Napier for more information.