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Celebrity Cruises rolls out dedicated podcasts for travel trade
Celebrity Cruises has become to first cruise line to launch a podcast dedicated to travel trade partners.
‘Conversations with Celebrity’, hosted by Leon Hand, Training Manager at Celebrity Cruises, is specifically aimed at educating, inspiring and entertaining trade agents.
It will air monthly episodes to update trade partners on the latest brand news and quick-fire training.
In addition, Leon will welcome a guest from the brand to dive deeper into their personal story and explain what travel means to them.
The brand’s venture into podcasts comes as the pandemic has seen the popularity of podcasts soar, with an increase of 24% over the past year.
About 7.1 million people in the UK now listen to a podcast each week.
"The beauty of a podcast is that it gets you away from a screen and you can listen anywhere, at any time. Responding to how our agents are consuming information right now is important to us and it’s clear many have increased their listening in lockdown," Hand said.
"Our podcast won’t just help our partners sell Celebrity Cruises, it will elevate their knowledge of the industry and underline our new luxury positioning. At a time when we are all distanced, I’m also hoping listeners will develop a connection to the personal and genuine stories told by each guest."
The first episode will introduce Jo Rzymowska, Vice President and Managing Director, EMEA for Celebrity Cruises, to listeners.
To complement the interview, Hand’s training session will focus on Celebrity Cruises’ new Always Included offering, with tips on upselling to Elevate and Indulge packages.
It aligns with one of two newly released courses in the Celebrity Passport training programme on Celebrity Central, allowing agents to equip themselves with the latest knowledge on Always Included fare inclusions, upgrade packages and The Retreat.
Included in the new Conversations with Celebrity trade initiative, Hand will also be hosting educational sessions via Facebook Live, as well as Facebook-exclusive interviews with key figures.
The podcast series is the latest of Celebrity Cruises’ new digital initiatives to support agents, following the launch of its Selling Guide and Power Up Points scheme last month.
The podcast will be available to stream on Spotify, SoundCloud and other popular audio streaming platforms.
The first episode is available now.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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