Following one of our Custard-hosted press trips in York earlier this year, we followed up with Senior Account Manager Maud to learn more about creating and managing a successful press trip for hotels.
Why would a hotel want to host a press trip in the first place?
The main aim of a press trip is to help promote your hotel or venue to those of influence in the media, helping to secure coverage in relevant media titles to the right audiences. To get that coverage though, you must have something interesting to showcase.
Your hotel on its own likely isn’t enough of a pull to make journalists want to come and visit. Press trips after all can often be more about the destination– the food, the sights, and the activities that accompany a fantastic stay at your hotel. You have to make journalists want to travel to your destination, so thinking about the bigger picture and how you create an unmissable trip that journalists won’t want to miss out on is key.
What should a hotel consider if they are thinking about hosting a press trip?
You and the hotel must remember that the journalists on your press trips are guests just like any other, although their opinions can hold much more sway if they’re going to produce a review afterwards!
As such, you firstly want to ensure the hotel can facilitate all of the journalists on the proposed date and that the hotel team will be able to provide the best service possible during this time. After all, you don’t want journalists coming to visit when not everyone is available or new trainees have just started – you want to ensure you’ve got a team to hand that isn’t just experienced in handling any situation, but elevating every experience.
Consider the food offering as well, will breakfast, lunch and dinner be available to the journalists staying at the hotel? These are all things that should be considered and agreed first before you even begin planning out the wider press trip.
What should a hotel consider when choosing places to visit as part of the trip?
Once the hotel aspect of the trip is confirmed, you can start fleshing out your press trip agenda. Consider the types of journalists you are inviting, what will appeal to them and what would they be excited to go back and write about? Think about the location itself too – what activities best represent and showcase the area? For our press trip in York, for example, we wanted to include activities that showcased the city’s rich history, incorporating visits to historical buildings such as York Minster, but also incorporate some surprises, such as a York chocolate tour.
Wherever you decide to take your journalists on the press trip, don’t rely on just turning up on the day – you’ll want to organise things way in advance and also look to build a partnership with these various businesses as well. Highlighting the benefits of the press trip to them is important when looking for any special touches that can be added as part of your collaboration.
Do you have any advice on creating these partnerships?
When looking to build these partnerships, I would advise to do it as early as possible. These things can take time, so don’t leave it until only a few weeks before. It’s important to have a rough idea of opportunities available as well as their feasibility before you even begin to get the wheels in motion.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to other businesses to explore opportunities, even if you don’t have any prior connection with them. With the press trip to York, for example, we reached out to the York Tourism board to try and secure access to key attractions for the journalists on the trip. It took multiple calls and emails with different individuals, but having pitched and positioned the benefits to them we were successful. This ultimately enhanced the overall experience for the journalists on the trip and led to stronger coverage being generated as a result.
It’s also important to keep the conversation going with your partners throughout the press trip process, even once you have secured what you need. Keep them in the loop of what’s happening and provide reminders of timings and such to ensure nothing is missed or overlooked. Don’t forget to share any results and your gratitude, for supporting future collaborations.
What should a hotel consider when choosing who to invite on the press trip?
When it comes to choosing who to invite on the press trip, it all comes back to the goals of your hotel or venue itself – what are you trying to achieve, and what type of coverage will help you achieve that?
You need to consider the publications themselves – do you want to only focus on trade or consumer titles, or do you want a mix? For the press trip to York, we wanted a mix to be able to talk about the hotel itself, but also to be able to talk about the wider location and its history.
It’s about considering the story you want to tell and then finding the best people to help you tell it.
How do you effectively invite journalists to your press trip?
When it comes to inviting journalists, it’s all about having a tailored approach for each of those you’re looking to invite. It is of course an added bonus to have strong relationships with such a wide range of publications across the UK, but this isn’t always essential.
What interests them and what do they enjoy writing about? Consider the publication itself – if it’s a trade publication for example, we would expect them to want to focus more on the design of the hotel, its recent investments and upgrades etc. – so be sure to include these points in your invite to give the journalists more reasons to attend.
It’s also important that you do your research beforehand. Has the publication or journalist covered something similar recently? Where is the journalist based and how far would they need to travel? This can help you filter out those journalists unsuitable beforehand, saving you time and effort.
Do you have any tips on making the trip extra special and making those invited feel special?
People, including journalists, like to feel special, so it all comes back to being personal in your approach with each journalist during the press trip.
Press trips may be a ‘work event’ but they’re still social events as well, so make sure you spend the time to talk to each of the journalists on the trip and check in from time to time. Remember that you are also building relationships, so it’s important to make sure they’re enjoying themselves and that coming on this trip was well worth their time.
Communication is key, so make it as easy as possible to get in contact with everyone attending and vice versa. This means more than just an email address – phone numbers are a must!
How do you effectively follow up after a press trip?
Once the trip is over, it’s important to be prompt in following up with the journalists – don’t be afraid to ask for deadlines and timeframes on when to expect to receive coverage.
Use the opportunity to thank the journalists for attending and also provide any additional photos or resources you may have to help with the journalist writing their articles. You may also want to reshare resources such as your press pack to ensure the journalist has everything they need to hand.
What things are often overlooked but shouldn’t be forgotten when organising a press trip?
Speaking with journalists throughout the year, one thing that is often overlooked is when choosing the date of your press trip. Just because a date might work for the hotel or venue doesn’t mean it will work for journalists. You need to be aware of the wider event calendar and what’s happening and consider what key events could get in the way of journalists attending your press trip.
I would also reiterate that preparation is key. Make sure you’ve spoken to all journalists the day before the press trip to reiterate the timings and say you’re looking forward to seeing them tomorrow. Make sure the hotel/venue team is also prepared and everything looks great – first impressions are everything after all!
It’s also important to have a ‘what else’ mindset when it comes to press trips, especially when it comes to inviting journalists. Just because a journalist isn’t able to attend doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t interested – is there any other relevant activity they might be able to support on? Could they be added to a database of potential journalists for future events?
And finally, how do you measure its success?
In terms of measurement, it primarily comes down to the amount of coverage you receive. If 10 journalists from 10 different media publications attend your press trip, you should then aim for 10 pieces of coverage, although there are cases you may be able to secure more if a journalist works across multiple publications.
Many journalists will also share their reviews on social media, so seeing how those posts perform is also a good way to measure the press trips’ success.
Remember, things can also be improved upon for next time, so don’t be afraid to ask for feedback from the journalists to ensure your next press trip is even more successful.
