This Much I Learned: TUI on how it made marketing future-fit

Covid was clearly a difficult time for all businesses, but it was sectors such as travel that suffered more than most.

TUI, like all in the category, was severely impacted by the challenges presented by the pandemic, with borders closing and international travel restrictions changing frequently.

The brand’s CMO Katie McAlister was right at the heart of the upheaval. Not only did TUI have to help existing customers navigate the fast-changing landscape resulting in holidays being cancelled or postponed, it also had to reassure future customers it was safe to travel when things reopened, all while keeping colleagues motivated.

She says the brand had a “really strong strategy” pre-pandemic centred on growth and broadening the business beyond package holidays, so the company also had to work out how it could emerge for Covid stronger, with a “different, repositioned TUI”.

The work McAlister and global brand and content director, Toby Horry, did during this period in terms of rallying the marketing team and succeeding despite the most challenging of circumstances helped the business achieve these goals, all of which led TUI to be crowned Marketing Team of the Year at the latest Marketing Week Awards.

McAlister and Horry join Marketing Week editor-in-chief Russell Parsons on the latest episode of our This Much I Learned podcast to discuss how they got investment to achieve their ambitions, the brand’s two-speed marketing approach and looking after team members.

From opening up about mental health issues to closing the career confidence gap, you can listen to previous episodes of Marketing Week’s This Much I Learned podcast on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud and Spotify.