Journo Hacks, How to Be an Ideas Factory and the Benefits of Diversity
Darren is the founder of Out of Office, a specialist LGBT travel company, and owner of Travelgay.com – the world’s biggest LGBT travel website.
After a 10 year career as a successful journalist, Darren switched paths to become a travel entrepreneur and has never looked back.
Summary
We cover a variety of topics in the conversation with Darren, ranging from how to hire good people and grow a successful team to marketing tips and effective shortcuts.
Darren’s experience as a journalist brings a huge amount of insight into how to promote your business and get consistent news coverage in top publications and media outlets and we discuss the benefits of diversity and how that can elevate your business.
And Darren is only here talking because he won a competition – how different things might have looked if he hadn’t taken that small step (a running theme of the conversation and Darren’s progress).
Finally, Darren explains how Janet Jackson remains his benchmark for every challenge he encounters!
This one is packed with value from someone with a really unique story.
Enjoy!
0:02:33
What led you to starting the business after leaving education
0:04:15
Work experience Sky News
0:06:45
Travelling in Australia
0:10:00
Working at ITN
0:15:00
Janet Jackson
0:18:30
Moving on from journalism
0:20:00
The competition
0:26:45
Starting Out of Office
0:32:45
Hiring
0:40:00
Acquiring Travelgay.com
0:50:20
Working with investors
0:56:10
Marketing strategies
1:03:30
How he’s used his journalism background and how you to get coverage
1:12:50
Tips for good story angles
1:15:45
Look bigger than you are
1:20:20
Personal qualities that have led to success
1:27:00
Coming up with ideas
1:32:55
Advice to someone starting their own travel business
Links Mentioned
Out of Office
Travelgay.com
Stonewall
Crystal
Lost and Founder
Destination Delicious
“People are complex and different. It’s about creating and fostering diversity and inclusivity in the workplace. Develop and nurture people, create an environment where they feel safe and secure they’re much more likely to perform longer term.”
Darren Burn, Founder
Out of Office
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