"idealo Reise is its own planet in the idealo universe."

Meet Sandra Dotan, Head of Content Travel, who describes her department as its own planet in the idealo universe. Learn more about how Travel is set up within idealo and what the teams are working on:

In which area of idealo do you work??

I'm working at idealo Reise (Travel) as Head of Content and have been here for three years now.

How?big?is?your?team?and?what?are?your?main?tasks???????

We are seven people, and, in a nutshell, we are constantly enriching the idealo flight and hotel price comparison websites.?Our job includes classic content tasks such as image selection, link building, and writing articles. Marketing is also an essential part of our work, including our own PR and social media activities. In addition, we work cross-functionally with the product department, so we are also involved in user journey tasks, such as creating headlines, labeling buttons and selecting phots on our website.

Besides that, we are also the direct point of contact for our customers, who can reach us directly at our customer phone; We answer questions and provide advice all about our product, whether it's about the booking process, current travel warnings or travel tips.??

idealo Reise is its own planet in the idealo universe.

How is idealo Reise set up at idealo???

idealo Reise is its own planet in the idealo universe. Some of our departments, such as development and content are similar to the idealo department setup.?Since we're a relatively small team of 70 people, it's much easier to keep track of who is responsible for what. In addition, some of idealo's work structures, such as "focus & flow," are implemented differently.??

What are the big projects you're currently working on?

Especially in the product area, the "corona break" was used intensively. In collaboration with the Data Lake and CRM Teams, we've designed personalized newsletters; the test phase started recently.?We're also working on projects with the main platform, like the integration of idealo Reise teasers on the general website.??

Speaking of the "corona break": How did the pandemic with its lockdowns and travel limitations change the work of your team and the travel industry?

To be honest, it was a real challenge for us as a team as Corona affected not only every one of us on an individual level but also our business results dropped. However, since idealo Reise is part of idealo and not a pure travel company, we've been in the fortunate position to being able to focus on improving our product and developing new features and we didn't have to let any people go.?In the first couple of months, we were also working hard on supporting our customers with receiving refunds for travel services that didn't take place.??

What makes your work at idealo so exciting? What motivates you?

On the one hand, we have a very special structure and a wide range of tasks within our own team which allows us to express ourselves in our projects and gives us the freedom to try things out.??On the other hand, we are an international and very diverse team, so our daily work routine is never boring or repetitive.?

Also, all our tasks are related to travel which I find truly awesome! Searching for the most beautiful pictures of travel destinations and collecting and sharing travel tips? Makes every day feel like a vacation!

What makes working at idealo as an employer special for you???

There is a very special tone at idealo, especially when it comes to giving and receiving feedback. Everyone is sensitized to this, and criticism is addressed openly; it's a very actively lived feedback culture. Also, I've never experienced passive-aggressiveness at idealo.

Since you're the expert, we're curious: What's your recommended travel destination by season??

Great question! In spring I'd spontaneously go for sunny Mallorca and in summer I'd spend time in the Dolomites (if you like hiking). Autumn is the best time (and temperature) for exciting city trips, for example London or Lisbon. Finally, to escape cold Germany in winter, I highly recommend long-distance trips, for example Dubai or California.?

Thank you, Sandra!

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