When you hear our co-founder on a podcast, read about us in the media, or attend a keynote by a Klook executive, our Global Communications team is probably behind it.
They work hand in hand with Marketing and regional Communications to craft meaningful stories that promote not just the Klook products but also our vision for the future of travel and experiences. Based between Singapore and Hong Kong, the team of five covers different functions but they regularly come together for a creative brainstorm over drinks.
Read on to learn about their day-to-day, what it’s like working at Klook and some great insights on how to start a career in PR and communications.
Eleven Liu
Global Communications Manager
What role does Global Communications play at Klook?
Global Comms work towards building and guarding our company’s reputation. Our reputation is cumulative and coming from various touchpoints ranging from the consumers, journalists, industry leaders, partners and investors.
We have the honor to work with almost all teams in the company to craft meaningful stories for the company from different perspectives.
How did your journey at Klook start?
When I accidentally came across Klook’s vacancy on LinkedIn, I was immediately drawn to the non-hierarchical culture, small team dynamics (back in early 2015 the entire Klook team was less than 20 people) and, of course, its big ambition for digital transformation on travel activities.
I was only the second hire in the Taiwan team so my colleague and I had a lot on our plates. Looking back, the most rewarding part is that I was exposed to a wide scope of marketing work and found where my passion lies: public relations. I enjoy persuasion and earning trust from journalists on behalf of Klook. I was transferred to Shenzhen in 2017 and to Hong Kong a year later, to pursue my passion for public relations while witnessing the fast growth of the company.
Can you tell us about your role? What does your typical day/week look like?
What I love about the work in PR & Comms is that there’s never a typical day or week. We juggle between handling media enquiries, crafting messages and narratives and looking for the next big milestone within the company that we can announce to the public. Having that said, I’m always on the hunt for new functions, product verticals, or just ultra-weird products on Klook’s platforms.
Particularly for my role now, I focus on Consumer PR and Internal Comms efforts on a regional or global level. I also work closely with our amazing local PR teams in Taiwan, Mainland China, Japan while supporting PR activities across the EU markets.
Is there a project you’re particularly proud of?
Klook’s Solo travel campaign that has unveiled people’s love-hate relationship with traveling alone. In the campaign, we uncovered that most people want to try solo travel but are held back by the fear of loneliness. The initiative provided us the opportunity to illustrate our commitment to serving all kinds of travelers, families, couples or solo, and helped us garner over 300 earned media coverage worldwide.
Consumer insight-driven campaigns are what excited me the most in PR & Comms. They are the ones that give us a shot to identify novel user behavioral trends and shape a new cultural norm amongst the travelers.
What is it like working in the Global Communications team at Klook?
Our team focuses a lot on collaboration. Even though each of us has a particular area of expertise and markets that we support, we pick each other's brains for news angles, ask for comments on campaign proposals, or insights on how to effectively work with the stakeholders.
We all have different backgrounds, personalities and interests. During our weekly news-sharing ritual (where everyone talks about any news that got their attention in the past seven days), what each of us brings to the table has never been the same!
What is one thing that makes working at Klook different from working at other companies?
As cliche as it may sound, I am a strong believer that passion matters and it’s a key reason why I enjoy my work here at Klook. Klookers do more than delivering the assigned tasks — we always go the extra mile.
Do you have any advice for someone who’s looking to start a career in Communications & PR?
Be curious. No one will just hand a good story to you — you will have to hunt them down or dig a bit deeper to get the insights of why an initiative matters to the consumer and/or the business world.
Only when you keep your curiosity burning will you be able to find out more than what’s on the surface. This is critical for you to tell a compelling story for the company and eventually, it will help you influence the journalists you’re pitching to. Always try to view a subject from different angles and always ask questions!
Kayley So
Global Communications Manager
How did your journey at Klook start?
I have been an avid traveller since my college times — I spent a quarter of it on the road. Prior to joining Klook, I worked at two airlines. Landing at Klook is probably one of the best decisions I’ve made.
Can you tell us about your role? What does your typical day/week look like?
The Global Comms team takes care of the communications works with our stakeholders, including media, customers, merchants and Klookers themselves. I’m mainly responsible for managing speaking opportunities for executives, running our LinkedIn page (have you followed us yet?) and working closely with Comms colleagues from Hong Kong, Korea, Australia and New Zealand and the EU markets.
What do you enjoy most about your role?
A Comms role at Klook doesn’t mean we’re restricted to work in communications only. I learn something new whenever working with different teams at the company. We are exposed to different experts in their own fields and it’s one of the beauties of working at Klook.
What is it like working in the Global Communications team at Klook?
Our team sits in both Singapore and Hong Kong. Due to the pandemic, we can’t meet face to face as often as before but it won’t stop us from having our favorite team building activity — virtual happy hour! And most importantly, we do team brainstorming for new initiatives with our drinks too.
What is one thing that makes working at Klook different from working at other companies?
The only constant here is change. There’s a saying that “growth and comfort do not coexist” which really resonates with me, particularly when we are in the travel industry and in these challenging times.
Do you have any advice for someone who’s looking to start a career in Communications & PR?
Be open-minded. How PR can be done has transformed completely during and after the pandemic. When we cannot control the macro-environment, at least we can ensure that our agility and open-mindedness help us adapt quickly to the fast changing pace.
Beatrice Goh
Senior Associate Global Communications
How did your journey at Klook start?
I've been a fan of Klook since day one and would use the app in my travels. So when a position at Klook arose, I knew I had to go for it. What also drew me was that the role would allow me to get a more global perspective about communications in each market.
Can you tell us about your role? What does your typical day/week look like?
While I support both corporate and consumer communications, my primary responsibility is to drive consumer communications. What this means is that we concurrently support our marketing efforts to help promote a new product or campaign to customers. For example, the Global Communications teams, together with the support of our local Communications teams and Marketing team, helped to drive consumer awareness of Klook Home through media wins!
We write a lot. But as much as we write, there’s a lot of research that goes into it. We speak to colleagues from various departments, such as the Sales & Business Development, Technology and Marketing teams to understand more about what they do and tease out what’s new and distinctive. We also work closely with the Marketing Analytics team to identify critical data that we can share. We then consolidate everything, highlight what’s unique, string them together into a compelling story and pitch it to the media or share it with the public!
What do you enjoy most about your role?
The variety in the work that we do keeps me going. No one day is the same, and we are always working on something different!
At one moment, we could be responding to a flurry of media queries, and in the next, we would be preparing critical messages for a milestone announcement.
What is it like working in the Global Communications team at Klook?
It is an absolute joy working with the Global Communications team. There's a lot of autonomy in the work that we do. However, the team is also always there to support whenever you need a helping hand.
We may also be based in different parts of the world (Singapore and Hong Kong) but that doesn't stop us from collaborating easily. We can share our opinions freely and bounce ideas off each other. No idea is too small or simple to act upon and grow. This is something I deeply appreciate about how we work.
What is one thing that makes working at Klook different from working at other companies?
To me, it’s the boldness to try new ideas. We are so unabashed to explore new ideas and test new things. The “act now, fail fast, pick up quick” mentality at Klook speaks to me. We wouldn’t know if something works unless we try! This is a breath of fresh air compared to my experiences with other companies.
Do you have any advice for someone who’s looking to start a career in Communications & PR?
In communications, the industry doesn’t matter (although you may have a personal interest in a specific sector). What matters is your hunger for knowledge. Being curious about everything is essential because every single detail is a storytelling opportunity. Reading widely also helps as this provides you unique perspectives, which are critical when you are thinking of new story angles to talk about the business.
It stands to reason that you must enjoy writing because it is our bread and butter. Taking the initiative to share your knowledge and perspectives is also vital as this can become a viable product that we can launch and share with stakeholders (e.g. media, partners, government bodies).
Today, big data is critical in a role in communications. We must be comfortable with data and enjoy identifying patterns to tell compelling stories. Ultimately, communications is about putting things that may seem unrelated into one cohesive narrative. After all, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
Ready to start your adventure at Klook?
Posted by Klook Careers
