Blue Ant Media has hired Laura Pearce as vice-president of brand strategy and fan engagement.
In the newly created role, she will be responsible for growing key Blue Ant media brands like Cottage Life, Oasis and T+E, and engaging with each channel’s dedicated fanbase across the platforms where it operates.
“As [Blue Ant has] continued to grow, and they’ve been launching and developing new brands, there’s been a need for another senior marketer who’s totally focused on the consumer business,” Pearce told Marketing. “It’s a great opportunity for me to come in when the company’s in a real growth mode and there’s exciting things happening with the brands.”
Pearce joins Blue Ant from AOL, where she was head of Canadian public relations and marketing for all of the company’s online media properties. While at AOL she handled outreach with the media, partner businesses and consumers. Before that she held a similar position at Postmedia.
At Blue Ant, however, she will be “100% focused” on consumers.
She said her title includes “fan engagement” to reflect the shifting consumer landscape, and the importance of connecting with fans through social media and other personalized channels.
“[Fan engagement] has become such a huge part of how brands have to interact with consumers, and I think notably for Blue Ant, because they have such targeted brands,” she said. “They’re really focused around people’s passion points — like a Cottage Life, or an AUX.”
Pearce will work from Blue Ant’s Toronto office and report to Jamie Schouela, EVP of marketing and communications. Schouela was hired last year to lead the company’s marketing strategy.
