cheapflights, the travel comparison site network and online flight advisor owned by Momondo Group, has further strengthened its marketing and customer proposition with the appointment of Sam Otter to the newly-created role of global head of customer and marketing communications.

Most recently Otter spent over three-and-a-half years at Virgin Holidays, latterly as head of marketing, after having joined as head of loyalty and insight.

She previously joined Virgin from mobile brand, o2, where she spent eight years in a number of roles, most recently head of direct marketing.

She began her career in the marketing department at the Walt Disney Company.

Otter takes responsibility for customer communications and engagement, including global offline advertising activity, reporting to global marketing director, Andrew Shelton, with whom she worked at Virgin Holidays, and who joined cheapflights in October last year.

cheapflights is already a leading travel search brand in the UK and US, and has rapidly-established itself as a top 20 online travel site in Canada, Australia and South Africa.

Now it is looking to increase the pace of the brand rollout with the launch of its next-generation sites and tools over the next six-to-nine months.

In October last year cheapflights parent, Momondo Group, announced a multimillion pound investment from Boston-based private equity fund, Great Hill Partners, valuing the pioneering online travel Group at more than £132 million.

cheapflights global marketing director, Andrew Shelton said: “This is a key appointment for cheapflights as we look to further build engagement in the UK, US and English-speaking markets around the world.

“Our growing suite of flight search and travel comparison tools is helping to empower the next generation of travellers; putting insights, travel advice and great prices at their fingertips.

“Sam is a talented, proven marketer and has an important role to play in helping us to build closer relationships with connected users around the world.

“I am delighted to be working with her again.”