CHICAGO: Edelman has launched a national tourism practice and tapped SVP Jill Collins to lead it.
CHICAGO: Edelman has launched a national tourism practice and
tapped SVP Jill Collins to lead it.
During her 15-year agency tenure, Collins has served as the de facto
tourism specialist in the firm’s Chicago office, working with such
clients as Microsoft’s Expedia.com web site, Virgin Atlantic Airways,
Budget Rent-a-Car and the Illinois Bureau of Tourism. Edelman already
realizes about dollars 2 million a year in tourism-related income out of
the Chicago office and about dollars 5.1 million worldwide.
Collins’ success in bringing in tourism PR business provided the perfect
base for an international practice, according to Steve Singerman, EVP
and GM of Edelman’s Chicago consumer unit. ’We’ll go out and merchandise
the success that Jill has had,’ he predicted. He added that he expects
to expand the practice into other Edelman offices around the world.
Collins has about 15 people working with her in Chicago and anticipates
more hires in the future, especially given the current surge in online
travel sites. The further advance of travel sites aimed at specific
ethnic or lifestyle groups also presents the new group with an
opportunity to cross-market its services with other Edelman
practices.
’There’s so much need out there in the marketplace,’ she said, pointing
to a range of potential activities including everything from traditional
media relations to Internet site launches. ’It’s a rich market full of
untapped potential.’
