Expedia Hires Google Travel Advertising Director Rob Torres

Skift Take

The pandemic waylaid Expedia Group’s 2019 vow to reduce its reliance on advertising through Google. If Expedia seeks to resume working on that goal, it now has a key member of Google’s travel advertising leadership to help lead the effort.

Dennis Schaal

Expedia Group for several years has been trying to reduce its dependence advertising on Google to gain customers, and Expedia has signed on Google’s managing director of advertising and marketing to plot strategy.

Expedia Group announced Monday that Rob Torres has been appointed as senior vice president Media Solutions, which is its travel advertising program.

Torres worked for Expedia prior to his more than 15 years at Google, as vice president of strategic accounts. In that role from 1999 to 2006, he worked “closely with hotel partners,” Expedia stated.

Torres is a Seattle resident, where Expedia Group is headquartered.

The announcement didn’t give a reason for Torres leaving Google and joining Expedia.

“After nearly 16 years away from Expedia Group, I’m excited to return to the company with a focus on delivering creative and insights-led campaigns for advertising partners and contributing to industry growth,” said Torres said in a statement. “The travel and advertising industries have undergone transformational change during the past two years, from shifting consumer behaviors and expectations to the growing importance of first-party data and the rise of commerce media. It’s a pivotal time for destinations and travel brands, primed with opportunity to inspire travelers in new ways and capture pent-up demand, and I look forward to working with the Media Solutions team and our partners to drive meaningful results.” 

In 2021, Expedia’s advertising and media vertical generated $152 million in revenue, an 85 percent jump compared with 2020.

Like other big online travel companies last year, Expedia Group leaned into performance marketing on Google to capture travel demand. In 2021, Expedia Group’s selling and marketing was $4.2 billion, a 67 percent jump.