The worst opening line for an email.

September 19, 2024

Filed under: Writing Tips, The Power of Persuasion, Effective Communication — @ 2:32 pm

A side view of a black and brown dachshund dog looking sideways at the viewer. The text reads "Do you REALLY hope I'm well," which is the worst opening line for an email.

Let’s cut right to the chase: “I hope you are well” is by far the worst opening line for an email. Or a letter. Or a LinkedIn message. Or any really any kind of communication, but especially when you’re trying to get the reader’s attention for something important to you…a sale, a deadline, a call to action, and so on.

Here’s why, and here’s what to use instead.

WHY IT’S BAD

It is – by a landslide – the most commonly used opening line in communications. That means people see it so often, they’re desensitized to it. It’s become a trite, meaningless phrase.

And worse than that, because it’s so overused, it feels disingenuous to the reader. Like…does the sales rep hawking event space or the colleague asking for your input on a report REALLY hope you are well? In truth, it’s likely they haven’t given much thought your well-being. Rather, they have something they need to tell you or get from you. You know it. They know it. Hence, disingenuous.

Here’s why this is a problem: humans have tiny attention spans. We are distracted, we multitask, and (thanks to technology) we get bombarded with way more communication than we can handle.

What gets our attention? When something is DIFFERENT.

So if you want someone to pay attention to the message you’re sending – engage with it, feel something, do something, or even just read the damn thing – why start the communication with a boring sentence that’s predisposed to make their eyes glaze over?

This is especially true for folks who work in marketing, sales, public relations, and journalism. You should never bait your hook with a forgettable line like “I hope you are well.”

WHY WE USE IT SO OFTEN

It’s like a way for writers to warm up before writing. You sit down to your computer and you don’t quite know how to start your message, so you type out that nice, generic opening line to get your brain started. Then you can segue into writing the REAL part of the message.

It’s akin to warm-ups for athletes before a competition or singers before a show.

The thing is…warm-ups are boring to watch. Just like they’re boring to read. They should be done behind the scenes and be invisible to the audience.

But writers, just like readers, are distracted, multitask, and have tiny human attention spans. So when we sit down to write something, we just want to GET IT DONE. Sitting there, staring at the screen trying to think what to write? That feels like wasting time. We get antsy. We get impatient.

So we fire off some version of “I hope you are well” and it gives our brain that dopamine hit that says, “I’m not wasting time, I’m actually writing something.”

Rinse and repeat this pattern often enough and soon it becomes a mindless habit. And voila: the worst opening line for an email becomes your comfortable go-to.

WHAT TO USE INSTEAD

Oh… you wanted a one-size-fits-all answer? Alas, effective writing doesn’t come from a cookie cutter.

You can still have your warm-up. Just make it “thinking time” instead of an empty phrase irrelevant to your purpose. Indeed, the best result will come when you craft an opening line tailored to the relevance of your message. Some examples that have crossed my inbox:

From a job seeker: When I read your job posting, it stopped me in my tracks and made me instantly want to apply.
From an industry colleague: Your website sent me down a rabbit hole of joyfulness.
From a realtor: NYC real estate is a blood sport.

Yes, it takes a little longer to come up with an opening line that stands out from the sea of sameness. But isn’t it worth it if it grabs your reader’s attention? If they engage with your opening line, they’ll be more likely to keep reading. And if the opening line is related to your core message, you’re wisely priming the pump.

Still not convinced? I’ve got two words for you: PREVIEW PANE. In email, LinkedIn messaging, and most forms of electronic communication, the recipient’s inbox is often set up so they can see a preview of the message before opening it. DO YOU REALLY WANT THAT PREVIEW TO BE “I HOPE YOU ARE WELL?” Ugh, it’s a waste of coveted, influential space that tortures my little marketing heart.

Listen, if you are in a massive hurry and absolutely have to “show” your warm up to your audience, at least make it different than the overused “I hope you are well.” You can try either of these:

Happy (day of the week)! You could also use the month instead, if it’s the start of a new month.
Hello from (location)! This is useful if your recipient is far away (“Hello from NYC” to someone in Georgia) or even in a different part of your building (“Hello from the 4^th Floor!”).

But if you want to break the habit of using the worst opening line for an email, these additional resources will help:

Here’s how to stop being an impatient writer.

The power of 15 minutes in writing.

Five opening lines that sabotage your email’s success.

Just remember…you may indeed care about your recipient and hope they are well. Just do it at the closing. 😉

PS: don’t even get me started on email subject lines.

What makes a good tourism marketing hook?

August 22, 2024

Filed under: Marketing Strategies — @ 5:54 pm

WARNING: jaw-dropping tourism photo below. Get your bucket list ready.

In the tourism world, a “marketing hook” can be as small as a signature cocktail, or as big as…well, anything. Indeed, the first travel company that offers a four-night-stay on the moon will have a HUGE marketing hook. But clearly, that size hook is not available to everyone.

However, you’re in luck. Size doesn’t matter. What matters is that you HAVE good hooks. And that you know how to develop more (and more and more and more) given whatever circumstances exist.

For the purposes of this article, there are two kinds of marketing hooks: permanent and temporary.

PERMANENT HOOKS

Permanent hooks are built into the DNA of the organization and essentially define who you are. They’re usually BIG, and they can’t change much (if at all) over time. You’re basically locked in to tapping this hook for eternity. If you’re a hotel perched on the rim of the Grand Canyon…that’s your permanent marketing hook. You might have other things to tout – great food, sustainability programs, etc. – but your big, overarching, dominant hook is your location. That can’t be changed.

TEMPORARY HOOKS

Temporary hooks, on the other hand, can ebb and flow as needed. And don’t let the word “temporary” fool you…these aren’t necessarily linked to a duration of time. Rather, temporary means that they COULD be changed at any time, even if they do seem tied to your DNA. You might be a tour company that specializes in off-the-beaten path tours for solo travelers. But you COULD start offering family tours to major cities. Your brand positioning would just need to shift to accommodate the change. Temporary hooks can also be things you start and stop, like programs, trend tie-ins, menu items, seasonal offerings, renovations, and more.

Which is better for marketing, permanent or temporary hooks? Neither, in fact. A permanent hook has the power of evergreen relevance but diminishing news value over time. In contrast, temporary hooks may not have evergreen relevance, but they give you the power of marketing flexibility. You can adapt and evolve your hooks over time and keep your news fresh.

If you don’t have a permanent hook – because let’s face it, we can’t all be a hotel perched on the rim of the Grand Canyon – you can still crush it at marketing with creative and useful temporary hooks.

But even if you DO have a permanent hook, you’ll still need to tap into temporary hooks over time to keep yourself in the spotlight and give folks new things to talk about.

Currently, my favorite example of a permanent marketing hook comes from the Ovo Patagonia. Here’s why:

A glass and steel capsule, where guests stay at the Ovo Patagonia. The egg shaped capsule is set on a vertical rock face with views of snow capped mountains in the distance. This is an excellent example of a permanent tourism marketing hook.

This entire property was designed for an extraordinary and completely unique guest experience, but the property itself is one seriously enviable marketing hook (and on MY bucket list). Guests stay in an “ovo,” a private glass and steel structure with three interior levels and jaw-dropping views of Argentine Patagonia. It’s a completely magical place and it warms my marketing heart that they didn’t skimp on photography.

Ovo Patagonia is new, opening in December 2024, and with a design and experience like this, they can go a long time without needing any temporary hooks to supplement their marketing. But at some point, they’ll likely need fresh news if they want to recapture the buzz spotlight. They could add new ovos to the rock face, bring on a famous Michelin starred chef (even just for a summer…or have a rotating calendar) to elevate the in-ovo dining experience, offer packages with extraordinary experiences “on the ground,” install ovos in other dramatic locales around the world, create a publicity and social media platform for their Chief Ovo Attendant (a title I just made up, because I’m a publicist at heart)… the list is endless.

Winvian, a resort destination in Connecticut, also has an iconic permanent marketing hook, but brilliantly, it comes with a built-in blank canvas for temporary marketing hooks. The property is comprised of 18 distinctly different cottages, each an architectural masterpiece…a treehouse, a helicopter, a greenhouse, etc. But each time they launch a new themed cottage, they can get a pop of news from that temporary marketing hook, which further strengthens the positioning of the permanent one. I bow before such a strategic marketing platform.

Permanent tourism marketing hooks are never accidental or fleeting. They are enmeshed in the entity’s very creation. If you ARE the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, that’s your hook. If you set out to create a hotel like Ovo Patagonia or Winvian, your entire existence is intertwined with the permanent marketing hook.

But if you don’t have things like that in your DNA, you’ve got to make your own. Here’s some temporary marketing hook inspo from the field.

Highlight Interesting Jobs

There are specialty concierges aplenty in the tourism world, and they aren’t all called concierges. This piece by Thrillist highlights unique positions around the world like Cactus Caretaker, Ski Goggles Butler, and even a Resort Aunty.

Create Unexpected Spaces

Take one look at these photos and you’ll know why Oregon’s Portland International Airport is getting so much buzz. No one expects a forest in their airport.

On a smaller scale, but just as pretty, the Sunflower House at Billings Farm & Museum in Vermont provides a temporary marketing hook each August. A maze with 20,000 sunflowers is just so photogenic.

Tap Into Trends

Got a cool grocery store near you? Grocery store tourism is a now thing, my friends. Create a package with a special guided tour.

And towel animals are back at cruise lines and resorts. And the bar has been raised, thanks to TikTok.

Create Partnerships

Lots of resorts offer bike rental. Few offer Moke rental, like the Four Seasons Miami. It’s super cool and matches their vibe perfectly.

Veuve Clicquot has been offering a pop-up Hotel Clicquot for several years in Australia. They take over a luxurious residence and temporarily turn it into a branded hotel for 10 guests. If you have a large house or cottage on your resort property, that’s an opportunity for a pop-up takeover partnership…if not with Veuve, then with another brand that speaks to your audience.

I could go on forever with ideas, but the point is, opportunities for temporary tourism marketing hooks are all around us, all the time. Are these things actually useful programs, real jobs, and necessary design initiatives? Sure. But marketing them makes people pay attention to you, and that allows you to be in the right place at the right time to match up with a potential guest or visitor.

The point is…be different, be clever, have some fun. This is tourism y’all. We’re supposed to entertain people. And you can’t do that if you’re boring.

Still want more inspo?

Hats off to these four ambitious marketing programs.

How to steal travel marketing ideas.

What inspires word-of-mouth in tourism marketing?

Hats off to these four ambitious marketing programs.

July 22, 2024

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, Observations From the Field, This is Cool — @ 10:00 am

Ambitious marketing programs that succeed are the envy of marketers everywhere. This is especially true for marketers that face relentless internal roadblocks when trying to shepherd clever ideas to the goal line.

The most common roadblock? Execution logistics. Trying to bring BIG, BOLD ideas to life can be crippling for many companies, despite their dreams of being perceived as cool and clever.

And yet, some organizations DO manage it. This is why, when we see ambitious marketing programs thriving out in the wild, passionate marketers everywhere stand up and cheer.

These four had me cheering recently.

BARTER FOR A PIZZA? YES, PLEASE.

At NYC’s Unregular Pizza, the food is delicious enough to have expanded to four locations in just a few years (ahem, see photo above and tell me you’re not drooling). But that’s not what earned them a spot on this list.

Nestled into Unregular’s DNA is a barter program. Folks can propose to barter something in exchange for a pizza through the restaurant’s website. Barter applications are reviewed regularly and selected entrants are invited in to make the swap. Recent barters have included cartoon illustrations, rosemary sourdough bread, a rare 1929 Standing Liberty Quarter, a handmade bracelet, and an Irish-themed t-shirt, just to name a few.

It’s an utterly brilliant program, yielding social media gold, community engagement, and standout marketing power. Even better, it’s authentic to their brand: Unregular got its start in the owner’s home kitchen during the Covid-19 pandemic. He bartered his pizza creations with friends and neighbors as a way to bring some joy to the lockdown period, and when it transitioned into a “real” business, he kept the barter concept intact. Unregular, indeed.

MANGO-SCENTED NEWSPAPER? DELICIOUS.

Mango season is a thing, and in India the scent of fresh mangos is synonymous with summer. So when Indian quick commerce delivery platform Swiggy Instamart (similar to Instacart or DoorDash in the US) wanted to grab attention for their services, they leveraged that positive association in a BIG way:

They created front page newspaper ads that actually smelled like mangos.

With just 16 words of copy – and two of those the brand name itself – they leveraged two powerful senses to tickle the human desire for instant gratification. The glorious, juicy, and vibrant close up of peeled mangos, the seductive scent of the fruit, and the prominent key selling proposition “delivered in 10 minutes” all combined to make the ad beautifully done.

Was it expensive and complicated to put a scented ad on the front page of the Times of India, one of that country’s largest newspapers? For sure. But the payoff was worth it. People who’d overlook “normal” ads would be bound to sniff this one just out of curiosity. And they’d also be likely to share it with others (“here, smell this!”) because of the novelty. Hands down, a sweet success.

ODD JOBS IN TASMANIA? SIGN US UP.

The marketers of Tourism Tasmania are historically bold and sassy in their campaigns…like, they actually brand their winter as “The Off Season,” which gets an extra cheer from me. So it’s not terribly surprising to find them on this list for one reason or another. And this time, it’s for their Odd Jobs Program.

Yes, you can head to Tasmania to become a Wombat Walker and take this lil’ guy out for his daily fitness regimen. You can also become a Cave Conductor, Oyster Organizer, Paranormal Investigator, Puffer Nut, Sauna Stoker, Soaksmith, Star Seeker, Truffle Snuffler, or Wine Whisperer.

These 10 unusual experiences let people “swap their day job for an odd job,” which makes for enriching, memorable, and sometimes hilarious vacations. The campaign anchor was gathering submissions to award 10 lucky folks an all expenses paid trip to Tasmania to take part in their dream odd job, but the experiences are open to anyone who wants to make it part of their visit to the island, which gives the program marketing legs and staying power.

The landing page for the Odd Jobs campaign is just perfectly done – clean, clever, and provocative. And did anyone else notice that the collection of experiences just happens to highlight the diverse offerings of Tasmania…spa, culinary, wine, culture, landscape, nature, animals, agriculture, and more? <all the savvy marketers in the room raised their hands>

REWARD TOURISTS’ CLIMATE-FRIENDLY BEHAVIOR? SMART.

Copenhagen gets the brass ring here for ambitious marketing programs. 24 (so far) attractions in the city are participating in a trial tourism program called CopenPay. This program essentially gives tourists free stuff in exchange for helping clean up, protect, or maintain the city’s landscape, ecology, and/or environment.

Volunteer at an urban farm? Get a free lunch. Arrive by bike or public transportation to a restaurant? Get a free drink. Commit to collecting waste from the harbor? Get a free kayak rental. Bring some plastic waste to a museum? Turn it into a piece of art at a free workshop.

These and 20 other climate-friendly experiences are available to anyone, whether tourist or local.

The trial program of CopenPay is in full swing and runs for about a month, through August 11. This is super smart because they’ve built in a defined, expected pause to step back and evaluate what needs to be tweaked to make it logistically viable for the long term. And for a trial program, the landing page is really quite good. That bodes well for the success of the program, because if it proceeds to become an ongoing thing, I’m certain the marketing tools will only get better.

CopenPay is the kind of seemingly complex program that would normally die a painful death from execution logistics long before it got off the ground. But if you drill down to the actual elements themselves, it’s basically 24 attractions who’ve created offers that work for THEM within a general framework for a limited period of time…plus a landing page. The international media attention for this “little trial” has been stellar. And the best part? It could have been just as successful with only 10 experiences, and it will be equally fabulous when there are 50. It’s the concept—and the fact that they figured out how to bring it to life—that’s so magical.

All four of these ambitious marketing programs deserve our applause because they overcame what had to be a myriad of challenges to make it to the goal line. I wasn’t there for each concept’s ideation, but sweet lordy, I can hear the objections in my head…

What about insurance? Is that sanitary? Who’s going to read all the applications? It costs too much. Who’s going to manage it? What if we don’t get enough attractions to participate? How do we make sure all our partners who participate get equal ROI? Shouldn’t it be year round? Wouldn’t this be better as an app? We have no money to build an app. People will abuse this and take advantage. And on and on and on and on.

There is ALWAYS a way to bring a brilliant idea to life, no matter how complex it seems. Do it for a limited time, get a partner, start with one element and grow it over time, extend the runway, make it a contest…with the right attitude, there’s just always a way. Study the four examples here for inspo. There’s some serious cleverness to learn from within each program.

But for goodness sake, when you finally do shepherd an ambitious marketing program to the goal line, make sure you have damn good photos to promote it. Here are tips and more tips for that.

Related helpful advice:

The sweet spot between overthinking and under planning.

How to steal travel marketing ideas.

A brilliant tourism marketing case study.

What makes a great publicist?

June 14, 2024

Filed under: Public Relations — @ 9:48 am

Want to know what makes a great publicist? Study pigeons for a while and you’ll find out.

I’m currently engaged in a war with pigeons, who have recently decided that my NYC apartment balcony would make a fantastic community center. All day long, pigeons drop by alone or in groups to hang out. If there’s a pigeon travel guide out there, I’m certain that my balcony is a top listing and location coordinates are given. So it’s both a local hangout and a tourist attraction. Lovely.

One good thing has come out of this, however. When at war, it’s wise to study your enemy. And while studying the habits and characteristics of pigeons, I noticed that they have three things in common with great publicists: persistence, resourcefulness, and creativity.

A grey pigeon with a red eye on a blue sky background.

Wanted: Publicist Job. Will work for birdseed.

If you do PR as part or all of your job, you’ll need these three tools in your toolbox. Here’s how you can take a page from a pigeon’s book to hone these skills.

PERSISTENCE

No matter how many times I chase them away and how many different pigeon-repelling solutions I employ, they keep trying. Sometimes, they even have the stones to land while I’m sitting out there. It’s the very definition of “no fear.”

That is EXACTLY what’s required to be a great publicist. Not to keep hammering away at the same journalist with the same story, but to not get discouraged by rejection, roadblocks, or lack of response. When you have a story to tell, you have to pitch your heart out. If a journalist shows no interest in one story but the client really wants to be in that media outlet, come up with other stories and angles to pitch. Don’t give up and show no fear.

RESOURCEFULNESS

When I put (safe, humane) anti-pigeon gel on the outer ledge, they started landing on the railing base. When I put it on the railing base, they started flying over the railing and landing on the tables. When I noticed they usually land on the top railing corners and put stuff there, they started landing in the middle. No matter what roadblocks I threw in their path, they found a way around them.

Second cousin to persistence, resourcefulness is ESSENTIAL for what makes a great publicist. You have to be nimble enough to meet tight deadlines and unusual journalist requests, often under high-pressure conditions. You are not always given the tools, timing, or full details you need… and yet, you still have to find a way to make that story compelling enough to catch a journalist’s interest. And timing is SO important in publicity that you’re constantly shifting moving parts around to be ready in time for that event, that launch, that photo shoot, and that media tour.

Bottom line: every great publicist needs to have a little MacGyver in them.

CREATIVITY

When I discovered that they were trying to build a nest behind one of my chairs (perhaps the guidebook said rooms were available?), I was surprised at the materials being gathered there. Some twigs, a bit of red string, a plastic straw, an unbent paper clip, a bit of fluff, some crumbled paper… it was all very haphazard and “un-nest like.” But city pigeons are scrappy and they use what’s available to make it work. This makes their nests full of unexpected and creative things.

That level of creativity is what makes a publicist really shine. How do you take that nugget of an idea and turn it into a viable, interesting story? How do you build on this program to make it newsworthy again in year two? How do you make news for a client that has no news? Oh, this idea didn’t work? What’s the next idea…and the one after that? Creativity is the lifeblood of successful public relations. You’ve got to look at a lot of disparate things and see how they can be assimilated to build your nest.

As you can see, these three things – persistence, resourcefulness, and creativity – are codependent. You need all three to work together to bring newsworthy ideas to life and make them attractive to journalists. THAT is what makes a great publicist.

Listen, I have nothing against pigeons in general and wouldn’t mind sharing my space with them if they weren’t such prolific poopers. But I’ve worked as a publicist for more than 30 years, so I am well-matched for this war. These pigeons picked the wrong balcony to stake their claim. They’re going down.

Further related resources:

One small question can lead to BIG ideas.

How to develop creative tourism marketing and PR ideas.

How to steal travel marketing ideas.

How to sell your least desirable tourism product.

April 17, 2024

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, The Power of Persuasion, Branding Strategies — @ 5:11 pm

Nearly every hospitality business faces this challenge: how do you sell your least desirable tourism product? The smallest hotel room. The worst table in the restaurant. The windowless meeting room. Marketing folks NEVER put those in the spotlight for sale. In fact, they do their best to hide them.

But there’s untapped potential within those “flawed” products…and I don’t just mean by selling them at a discounted rate. With a little branding polish, they could become marketable AND generate more robust revenue streams.

The trick is…lean into the flaws. Don’t try to hide them. Make the flaws the sales hook.

That sound bonkers to you? It’s not, and here’s why.

WHO SELLS FLAWED PRODUCTS SUCCESSFULLY?

While the tourism industry isn’t fully adept at this yet – see below for tips – other industries are raking in the dough from selling their least desirable products. For example:

The diamond industry has “rebranded” flawed diamonds – those with a lot of inclusions, which are imperfections that look like chips, marks, and bubbles – as Salt & Pepper Diamonds. Instead of relegating flawed diamonds to the worthless pile, they virtually champion them. Marketing for these gems includes language like…

These captivating inclusion patterns resemble tiny salt and pepper specks scattered throughout the stone, ensuring that no two are alike and making your stone unique.
Salt and pepper diamonds symbolize the “wild child”…they’re fun and their flaws work to benefit the overall appearance of the gem.
Their quirky look helps couples match their unique love story with a similarly unique diamond, turning their “flaws” into their biggest asset.

In the handblown glass industry, uniformity can’t be guaranteed but there’s a certain standard of quality that must be maintained to make products “sellable.” Luxury brand Simon Pearce does a masterful job at marketing the glassware products that don’t *quite* meet that standard but are still perfectly usable products. Sold under the collection heading “Seconds,” the marketing for these products actually celebrates the flaws:

“Unique beauty lives in imperfection. Each Seconds piece captures a moment of the human hand at work, where unique conditions lead to slight variations and differences, preserved in glass… a thoughtful option for those who value character and an organic quality to their household objects.”

And of course, there’s the booming industry of imperfect foods – from produce to packaged goods and everything in between.

It’s a spectacular win-win that combats food waste. Indeed, there’s a wildly successful brand actually called Imperfect Foods (though they are not alone), and all of their products are considered “substandard” by the businesses that produce them because of:

Cosmetic imperfection
Contains leftover ends and pieces
Size or weight imperfection
“Ugly” produce – tastes as expected but looks deformed
Made with rescued or upcycled ingredients

And yet… there’s a market for them. And no one is trying to hide the flaws. In fact, the flaws ARE the sales hook.

HOW MIGHT THE TOURISM INDUSTRY DO IT?

Generally, the industry sells the least desirable tourism products in one of two ways:

Position it as a “value” item and charge less. This goes for everything from interior cabins on cruise ships to off-season time periods. The marketing focus here is on PRICE.
Provide misdirection by mitigating the perceived flaws with a special benefit. The clever folks in Nova Scotia do this by recasting winter as “lobster season.” They’re essentially saying sure, it’s freezing cold but this is when lobster is the freshest and most abundant… come up and eat!

Those two options require you to either give a discount OR create circumstances for misdirection.

But that third option – leaning into and marketing the flaws themselves – is underutilized and has great potential.

Consider these ideas:

Brand your “low season” and create excitement for what it is.

Vancouver Island promotes their Storm Season. This is not “come here during Storm Season and we’ve got a lot to keep you busy.” This is, “come here to experience the storms.” THAT is a perfect example of leaning into perceived flaws to sell your least desirable tourism product. Suddenly it’s not so undesirable because there’s a hook. You may not have awe-inspiring Pacific Coast storms at your location, so you’ll have to figure something else out. What can you highlight during your low season so you can make some noise about it? Is it Quiet Season, Astronomy Season, Windy Season, Unpredictable Season…hell, even Frostbite Season could have appeal if positioned properly.

Brand your smallest rooms as “Cozy Rooms” or “Tiny Rooms.”

Deliberately PUSH the fact that they’re small. Yes, they can be priced lower than rooms with larger square footage but by branding them, you’re making them more desirable. And you’re also managing expectations up front. You might say that these rooms are a more intimate size, perfect for snuggling up tight with your partner or kiddos. Also, could there be some kind of special perk for folks who book these rooms…one that allows you to sell it at a higher rate? Does the Cozy Room come with a Cozy Blanket to take home? Are the walls of the Tiny Room decorated with dozens of tiny paintings? Do guests of these rooms get a complimentary appetizer or dessert in your restaurant? The possibilities are endless.

Brand your noisiest rooms as “Night Owl Rooms.”

That room near the service elevator, or the one directly over the ballroom or bar area? You know… the one you get the most noise complaints about? How about you call it what it is and promote it as a room for folks who don’t like to go to bed early? This also manages guest expectations and will preempt many complaints. You might also offer a perk here to be able to charge a higher rate – complimentary movies/streaming after 11pm, minibar credit, special late night snack basket.

Brand your worst restaurant table as “The Family Table.”

Or call it whatever name you want – like if your restaurant name is Tom’s Bistro, call it “Tom’s Table” or “The Bistro Table.” The point is position it so that anyone who sits there is like part of the family. This is usually the table right near the kitchen doors and so lacks ambiance… but what if instead, you lean into how it’s closest to the action? Maybe guests at this table get a “whim of the chef” appetizer or amuse bouche that’s not served to the rest of the tables. Maybe someone from the kitchen comes out to chat with them for a few minutes. Like the kind of thing that would happen if the guest really WAS family. And suddenly…presto, you’ve got a marketing hook and you might even generate a waiting list for that table.

Brand your hard-to-find, windowless meeting room as “The Seclusion Room.”

There’s something mischievous about the idea of positioning such a room as a place where secrets can be discussed safely. A place where you won’t be disturbed or distracted. A place where groups can be sequestered for deep thinking, creative brainstorming, and concentrated strategic planning. You can have a little fun with this – playful do-not-disturb signs for the door, have special complimentary amenities available for this room (doodle paper and crayons anyone?), and offer upsells in keeping with the theme like a Seclusion Station with snacks/drinks that makes the meeting self-sufficient. It’s important to note that ANY meeting can book the Seclusion Room – they don’t need to be discussing secrets – but the branding has given the room a personality, and now it seems more desirable.

Got a challenge you don’t see here and want an idea? Drop me a line and I’m sure I’ll think of something. 😉

Most importantly, if you’re going to take an approach like these to sell your least desirable tourism product, you really need to lean into it fully. That means:

Promoting it on your website with the right language, images, and/or videos.
Describing it with the right positioning in your sales collateral.
Ensuring your guest services or sales staff is aware of the positioning and has the right words to sell it.

Need more tips like this? Here’s how to promote your brand’s weaknesses strategically.

How to steal travel marketing ideas.

March 22, 2024

Filed under: Marketing Strategies — @ 11:51 am

Contrary to the legendary commandment “thou shalt not steal,” it’s actually OK to steal travel marketing ideas. More than that… it’s necessary. And if you use the proper etiquette (four tips are shared below), no one will mind.

Why is it necessary to steal travel marketing ideas? Because of this one-two punch:

In tourism, we’re all selling the same sorts of things: summer vacations, oceanfront accommodations, culinary experiences, romantic getaways, learning opportunities, and so on. A tourism brand needs a constant influx of new ideas to set itself apart from its competitors.
And yet…COMPLETELY new ideas are rare. Sure, someday the first tour to Mars will be new (until it’s not). But 99.9% of the time, what you think is a “new idea” is just a variation on what already exists elsewhere. Like…oh you offer swimming with the pigs on your beach? Well, (here) you can swim with stingrays, and (here) you can swim with manatees, and (there) you can swim with dolphins. They are all variations on “swimming with the (creature).”

A painted image of the French writer and philosopher Voltaire alongside his famous quote "originality is nothing but judicious imitation."

It is literally impossible for a marketer to continually churn out completely new ideas. Frankly, a marketer would be lucky to put forth even ONE completely new idea in their lifetime.

Enter… stealing.

If the word “stealing” makes you feel icky, think of it as seeking inspiration. You’re simply taking an existing idea and adapting it to fit your own brand.

But let’s be clear here. I don’t mean innocent coincidences. I’m talking about doing this DELIBERATELY. Regularly. As part of your idea development strategy.

So even if you’re not ok with the word “stealing,” you might have to get comfy with “aggressively seeking inspiration.” Because this is a proactive effort that’s 100% necessary if you want to keep your tourism marketing – and offerings – fresh.

However, there’s a proper way to steal travel marketing ideas. You can’t just mimic EXACTLY what a competitor offers – same name, elements, pricing, timing, etc. – because that truly would be “stealing” and is just not cool.

These four tips will keep your stealing respectful:

#1 – TAILOR IT

Take a competitor’s existing idea and make it exclusively yours. Examples:

Their hotel is offering a family package that includes extra pillows and linens in the room each night to build pillow forts, with a social media contest for the best fort.

YOU think about the idea of kids creating forts and look at the huge courtyard space that your rooms overlook… and see a space for a bunch of small tents. And the idea of “Hotel Camping for Families Weekend” is born. Hire an overnight security guard to keep watch on the tents. Kids get the tents. Parents get the room. You can offer walkie talkies to families whose kids don’t have phones but want to keep in touch (or who just love the novelty of walkies). Build a campfire. Make s’mores. Play games. <charge a fortune, they’ll pay>

Or… their restaurant has a “Wine Down Wednesdays” special with a half-priced second bottle…so you – with your legendary and creative cocktail menu – offer “Tipple Tuesdays” with a half-priced second cocktail. First it was “theirs.” You made it “yours.”

#2 – FIND IT

Research brands just like yours but located in areas well outside of your geographic radius.

This actually *might* be the only scenario where it’s possible for you to completely mimic an idea. Like, does a small Maine inn really compete for business with a small Tasmanian inn? Not likely. Neither of you are trying to make international headlines with your offerings, so the exact same thing can coexist without conflict in two disparate locations.

Get in the habit of studying what brands like yours are offering in other areas. This works for lodging, attractions, restaurants, tour companies, destinations, associations, and more. It helps if you find a place that’s similar to yours – forest, desert, mountain, ocean, etc. – but it’s not necessary. A tour operator in a desert location may have a clever romance tour that could translate equally as well to a mountain location. Inspiration can come from anywhere.

#3 – EVOLVE IT

Use the magic question, “what could we do with this?”

Like a second cousin to “Tailor It,” this entails taking something someone else is doing to the next level. This evolution could be simple, like their restaurant offers a Pasta Lovers Night… and your restaurant evolves that into “Free Pasta Week,” where diners get a complimentary pasta appetizer with a purchase of (whatever).

Or, the evolution could be elaborate and daring. Like the time we suggested that Morey’s Piers & Beachfront Waterparks offer a fine dining “Breakfast in the Sky” gourmet experience on their Ferris wheel. Plenty of amusement parks were offering breakfast. We took theirs next level (literally).

Or, plenty of restaurants and catering venues offer an oceanfront dining opportunity. But in Nova Scotia, there’s a caterer that offers dining on the ocean floor. That level of evolution would be hard to beat… <checks notes, finds Dinner in the Sky>…or maybe not.

#4 – SHIFT IT

A competitor is doing something for THIS. You do it for THAT.

They have their chef give a weekly presentation to guests with cooking tips… you have your gardener give one on flower arranging.

They have a resident dog at their hotel, you have a resident dog on your cruise ship.

This is super helpful in the tourism industry because trends – especially media trends – tend to catch on like wildfire. When everyone and their grandma in the tourism industry were first crowning specialty “concierges” in their organization – Romance Concierges were a dime a dozen – we created the Sleep Concierge at the Benjamin Hotel in NYC. Concierges weren’t new, but this was a new type of concierge… and one that touched a pain point lamented by humans everywhere: how to get a good night’s sleep when you’re on the road.

Westin had previously debuted their Heavenly Bed, but the Sleep Concierge – and corresponding Sleep Program – at the Benjamin eclipsed that by a mile in editorial coverage (here’s one of the many New York Times stories about it over the years). That’s because it was an idea that was Tailored, Evolved, AND Shifted. A trifecta of idea stealing, if you will.

The point is, if you’re going to steal travel marketing ideas, don’t be a jerk about it with a blatant rip off. Be creative, use these four tips, and make the ideas your own.

Need more inspiration?

How to Develop Creative Tourism Marketing & PR Ideas

How to Create PR-Worthy Tourism Packages

One Small Question Can Lead to Big Ideas

Do you sabotage your own marketing?

February 22, 2024

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, Spending Budgets Wisely — @ 4:25 pm

You may be the best marketer on the planet and still inadvertently sabotage your own marketing.

How?

By being a marketing contradictionist.

Yes, that’s a word we just made up – a marketer’s prerogative, duh – but the meaning is pretty clear. It’s a person who acts in ways that go counter to their stated goals.

Tourism marketers do this often. Sometimes, they’re aware it’s happening but just can’t manage to tame the external forces causing it. But other times, they’re just not aware of their behavior or how it’s obstructing success.

So, the first step is awareness, y’all. Here are five common contradictory behaviors we often see in tourism marketers.

1) BUDGET NONSENSE

What do we mean by “nonsense?” When budgets don’t support the ACTUAL goals and objectives of the marketing plan. Some indicators here:

Budgets spent habitually despite goal evolution. For example, if we hear one more tourism brand say they want to grow their off-season…and then continue to spend the majority of their budget supporting high season…we’re going to scream.

Budgets that are spread too thin. Throwing a little piece of money at an initiative or marketing channel, without enough for it to make an impact, is a waste. Choose fewer things and do them justice.

Budget numbers are carried over from year to year with no particular allegiance to each year’s specific goals. The goals just get shoehorned in to fit the budget. Even if your total budget can’t change annually, you can always redeploy the line items to better support the goals.

Budgets with no contingency cushion. Worthy opportunities will pop up, so prevent “decision agony” by having funds available to take advantage of them.

2) FORMULAIC LOVE-HATE

This is applicable to recurring events and programs. I’ve seen countless marketers do the same…exact…thing every year, every season. It’s so easy to just follow a pre-scripted checklist for an event or package/program and then cross that baby off your list with relief.

But for recurring events and programs to grow – and increase ROI – they need to evolve. A new hook, new element, new name, new ANYTHING. Doing the same-old-same-old each time desensitizes your audience. And come on, marketers…we all KNOW THAT.

Hence the love-hate. We love formulas because they tend to make our jobs easier (oh so much easier when we don’t have to think!), but we hate them because we know they tend to sabotage our marketing success.

3) INITIATIVE PETTING

Second cousin to Budget Nonsense (because lack of money is often a contributing cause), “Initiative Petting” is when a marketer knows the value of a particular initiative but doesn’t devote the time/money to do it thoroughly. We call this “petting” because it’s like giving a dog a quick pat on the head distractedly while focusing on other things. Some common examples here:

Wanting to make a splash with standout PR, but watering down every package and program idea so they’re operationally easy but super duper boring.

Saying you’ve got to beef up your email game…but still writing drafts at the last minute to “just get it out the door,” ignoring previous engagement metrics when planning new content, and not doing any (or enough) lead generation to cultivate your list.

Treating your website like an online brochure (create it once, then let it sit until it gets stale and needs an overhaul) instead of a living, breathing resource that stays fresh.

4) IDEA ENVY

This one’s a snap to explain.

This is seeing cool things your competitors are doing – say, through their press coverage and social channels – and wanting to do equally cool things too. But then continuing to resist doing what it takes – operationally, financially, whatever – to make it happen.

It’s completely fine if you shoot for equally cool things but then realize that for whatever reason, you can’t do it. Budgets, labor, operational feasibility…they all may conspire to block your goal.

But then you have a choice to make: let go of your envy or remove the obstacles. That’s it, those are your two options.

Marketing contradictionist behavior is when you do NOT remove the obstacles but still push ahead unreasonably because you really really want it. In the end, it’s just a waste of time and money… and I’ve seen this happen too many times to count.

5) HURRY UP AND WAIT

We’ve all seen it. Heck, we’ve all DONE it. Push to get creative, copy, press releases, plans, or whatever done ASAP…only to then have them then sit in a pile for an eternity before being finalized and deployed.

Yes, we know there’s a deadline. Yes, we know other people may have moved mountains to deliver those things to us quickly. And yet, we let those items languish.

This kind of behavior isn’t usually malicious, but it can definitely sabotage your marketing. Why? Because it usually causes some kind of last-minute scrambling. And as we all know, last-minute scrambling rarely produces a successful ROI.

* * *

Listen, we’re not perfect at Redpoint. And heaven knows we’ve engaged in marketing contradictionist behavior ourselves on occasion.

But the point is awareness.

If you’re aware that your behavior is contradicting your goals, you can choose whether or not to do something about it. And that can help ensure you don’t inadvertently sabotage your own marketing.

Get more tips here with Five Ways Tourism Marketers Often Fool Themselves.

Using AI in tourism marketing requires secrecy.

January 17, 2024

Filed under: AI in Marketing, Digital Marketing, Writing Tips, Effective Communication — @ 12:34 pm

The successful use of artificial intelligence (AI) in tourism marketing rests on one key factor: secrecy. Not secrecy from your colleagues or organization…secrecy from your audience. You need your use of AI to be invisible to them for two main reasons:

Blatantly apparent AI-generated copy is generic and robotic-sounding. And even if it were written by a human, that kind of soulless, impersonal copy doesn’t engage the audience and wastes your time and budget. The rest of your marketing will have to work that much harder to spark a sale, let alone close one.
If they sense you’re using AI to influence their decisions – and done incorrectly, they will – you’ll lose their trust. People are increasingly sniffing out AI-generated copy and then doubting its credibility. Humanity just hasn’t yet reached the point where we’re comfortable being persuaded to do something by a robot.

Let me be crystal clear. Using AI in tourism marketing is smart. Tools like ChatGPT and Google’s Bard can be useful in many ways. But YOU have to be smart in how you use them. Until you become proficient in prompting and re-prompting to produce successful output, you are at risk for – essentially – sending out a stoic, unfeeling salesperson to promote your offerings.

And that won’t end well for you.

As a tourism marketer, you’re trying to sell potential guests an experience that makes (hopefully) everlasting memories and creates (hopefully) a lifetime relationship with them. Robotic-sounding, generic marketing copy is incapable of igniting the spark required for that love affair. And when used incorrectly, that’s EXACTLY how AI-generated copy sounds…like a robot wrote it.

To guard against this, you need to be aware of six telltale signs that content was written by AI.

Jodie Cook wrote a fantastic piece for Forbes on the subject, calling out these six dead giveaways:

Lengthy introductions (aka “throat clearing”)
Inclusion of ethical considerations
Generic thoughts and advice
Lack of personal stories
Specific go-to phrases
Signature structure

You can read the piece for more information on all six, but the three most prevalent ones in tourism marketing are lengthy introductions, generic thoughts/advice, and lack of personal stories. Let’s take a look.

Lengthy Introductions

I call this the “blah blah blah” introduction and AI is famous for churning it out. A rudimentary AI-generated piece, like that of many unskilled human writers, puts a bunch of fluff at the start and takes a bit of time to get to the meat of the content. Often it includes clichés (“Once you arrive, you’ll never want to leave!”), or broad-sweeping statements that mean nothing in particular (“Come experience the magic of the outdoors!”). It’s usually filled with a lot of long sentences and densely packed with a quantity of adjectives that would make a thesaurus blush. This is the written version of speakers who begin their presentation with excessive throat-clearing…it’s buying them time to get into the rhythm of their speech.

Generic Thoughts & Advice

OMG, if I see one more tourism organization proclaim “We have something for everyone!”… I’m going to scream. Even if you truly DO have something for everyone to enjoy, that sort of vanilla claim has zero chance of actually luring a potential visitor. Without specific prompting and sculpting on your part, AI programs like ChatGPT are likely to generate generic content like “breathe the fresh air as you wander through our beautiful forests,” and “hop on a boat to get out and feel the ocean mist on your face as you watch an orange-hued sunset,” and “sip and taste your way through our vibrant dining scene,” and – my personal favorite – “come away with memories that will last a lifetime.” None of that is specific and unique to YOU, so why should it compel anyone to choose YOU? It’s just…uninspiring.

Lack of Personal Stories

First cousin to “generic thoughts & advice,” a lack of personal stories isn’t meant so literally as in “a person telling a story about their experience with you.” That’s part of it, for sure. But on a broader level, it’s about your BRAND making a personal connection with the audience. Doesn’t matter if you’re a destination, hotel, cruise line, attraction, or even just a travel service…whatever. Sharing your quirks, your variety of unique Instagram-worthy experiences, and other stories that inspire them to feel a personal connection to you… THAT’S essential in successful tourism marketing. And it’s something you won’t get from AI-generated content without training it to write that way. It lacks the ability to do that on its own because by default, its process delivers one-size-fits-all content that’s impersonal.

And that right there is the problem. In the world of tourism, people are choosing where to spend their precious time and money, and this is VERY personal to them. Tourism is a passionate and deeply engaging purchase decision that goes way beyond transactional. They may not care if a robot wrote their appliance user’s manual (which is simply delivering information), but they sure as hell want – say – their honeymoon suggestions (which requires the dance of persuasion and has a lot riding on the outcome) to come from a credible source.

Which brings us to the best news of all, and a hilarious silver lining for tourism marketers. A brand is now no longer the LEAST credible source for promoting its own offerings. The “credible believability” pecking order currently stands like this, from most believable to least believable:

Someone I trust.
Someone I know casually.
A stranger unaffiliated with the product/service, which could be a media outlet or a random person on social media.
The organization itself.
A robot.

Y’all, we’ve moved up a notch. So don’t squander that gift by making it obvious you’re using AI in tourism marketing. Make that your little secret.

Not sure how to get started doing this properly? Check out these ChatGPT tips for tourism marketers.

Feel like you suck at writing and so you can’t properly judge AI’s output? These two quick reads will help you:

How to stop being an impatient writer.

Write better copy with patience and a thesaurus.

How “trigger phrases” sabotage effective communication.

December 11, 2023

Filed under: Effective Communication — @ 10:54 am

You may not even realize that you’re using trigger phrases that sabotage effective communication…but I’ll bet you realize when you’re on the receiving end of them.

For example, when you ask someone’s opinion on something and they begin their response with “If I’m being honest…” doesn’t that immediately ruffle your feathers?

Here’s why. The phrase “if I’m being honest” brings several negative implications with it:

It has a reputation of preceding bad news. It’s as if the person needs some kind of justification for delivering disappointing news, so they claim “honesty” as their reason.
It implies that the speaker isn’t always honest, but THIS time (because the situation is so bad) they’ll speak the truth.

So it makes sense that this phrase would put the recipient on high alert. People rarely (if ever) say stuff like “if I’m being honest, you look fabulous” or “if I’m being honest, that was the greatest presentation you’ve ever delivered.” When they are sharing what they think is good news, there’s no reason for them to invoke the honesty clause as an introduction. They don’t reach for justification to soften the blow.

The problem with using trigger phrases in our communication is that we intend for them to soften blows and/or get the recipient to embrace what we say. However, in reality, they do the opposite: they make people instantly defensive and usually causes them to resist what we say.

There are several reasons contributing to this reaction:

Trigger phrases are often insincere and the recipient knows it…probably because they themselves have used such phrases when THEY are trying to soften blows.
Often, trigger phrases signal that some type of disagreement is coming, or some other bit of negativity that challenges the position of the original speaker. These phrases have earned this reputation over time, so the pattern is easily sensed.
The overuse of trigger phrases has diluted their power and made them trite. So even when we really do mean them sincerely, they fall flat.

Here are a few other common trigger phrases that sabotage effective communication:

- With All Due Respect: The moment you say this, everyone knows you’re about to disagree with them. So why use this trigger phrase and get their back up? You can use your tone and word choice to disagree without being disrespectful. If you don’t feel comfortable just stating your differing opinion with no preamble, you can use a phrase like, “perhaps I can offer a different point of view here.”

- I’m Sorry: Ugh, talk about an overused phrase that’s become trite. The words “I’m sorry” are used to apologize for everything from spousal cheating to asking someone to repeat a sentence you didn’t hear. Some folks even habitually start random sentences with it for no reason (lookin’ at you, Canadians). It’s made the phrase fairly meaningless, so even when you’re being sincere, it doesn’t have the impact you intended. In fact, so many people sense this about the phrase that “how to apologize without saying I’m sorry” is one of Google’s most popular search queries. See how we learned that the hard way here and here are the tips we wrote for rephrasing to avoid those two words.

- I May Be Wrong, But: Besides the addition of that pesky word “but” (more on that below), starting a sentence with “I may be wrong” is like a first cousin to “if I’m being honest.” It shares that similar vibe of “I disagree with you and I need something to soften the blow, so I’ll throw you a bone that maybe I’m wrong and you’re right…but really we both know you’re wrong.” How you rephrase to avoid using it will depend on the situation, but “perhaps I can offer a different point of view” could work very well here also.

- You Need to Calm Down: When someone is agitated, telling them to calm down is more likely to trigger further agitation than make them calm. “You need to calm down” tries to appeal to their rational thinking. But agitation, anger, and frustration are emotions, and rational thinking is usually overshadowed by intense emotions. Try this instead. Ask “how can I help you calm down” or even just “how can I help you?” It shows you’re willing to help/listen, and it forces them to override their emotions and think about solutions.

- I Hear You: Chalk another one up to misuse. Somewhere in history, therapists and communication coaches suggested (and frankly, still suggest) that saying “I hear you” when someone is speaking signals that you’re listening. But – because we’re human and we can’t have nice things – this phrase has been so misused and overused that it’s actually devolved into a phrase that pretty much means someone is NOT listening, or at the very least is being dismissive of what we’re saying. It’s often a way for people to make a show of listening when really they don’t want to engage in whatever it is you’re saying. So, instead of saying “I hear you,” SHOW IT. Engage in the conversation with more than just pretense.

And finally, let’s talk about the peskiest word in the world of communication… BUT.

No word in the English language (and probably all other languages) triggers defensiveness faster than the word “but.”

“But” is a signal that negativity is about to follow:

Your presentation was great, but…
I was going to invite you to be on this team, but…
I loved your proposal, but…
That style looks pretty on you, but…

It’s possible to avoid using the word “but” in many circumstances. In some cases, just stop talking after the first phrase. You may WANT to add the negative phrase, but do you really NEED to add it? Are you really the person responsible for sharing that bit of negativity? And is that negative point fact or just your own opinion? Sometimes we offer opinions because WE want to, not because they need to be heard.

Another way to avoid using the word “but” is to choose your timing. You may very well have feedback to give on that presentation, and you might indeed be the appropriate person to deliver it. But does it REALLY need to be delivered in the same sentence as when you say the presentation was great?

My friend is a master at timing, particularly when it comes to her appropriate and selective use of the word “but.” Instead of saying stuff to her husband like “Those meatballs were great but next time use more cheese,” she says, “those meatballs were great” and then later, even days later, she says “I’ve been thinking about those delicious meatballs you made. Next time, can we try them with a little more cheese in the recipe and see what that does?”

It’s pretty brilliant. It shows her husband that she’s savoring them even days later, and that she loves his cooking enough to make requests and get him to experiment with recipes. She’s happy, he’s happy. No buts.

In some cases, the simple trick of replacing “but” with “and” is effective. Like, “your presentation was great and if you practice making more eye contact with the audience it will be even better!” See a few more of these “simply replace or drop the triggering word” tips here.

Overall, trigger phrases that sabotage effective communication are extremely common and frequently used. They’re phrases you hear – and likely use – all the time. But just because they’re used, it doesn’t mean they work. So, be aware of situations when you need to communicate effectively and try to avoid these phrases if you can. You’ll get a better result.

How to create PR-worthy tourism packages.

November 14, 2023

Filed under: Public Relations — @ 10:10 am

There is a secret to creating PR-worthy tourism packages. But first, let’s be clear. This isn’t about just creating tourism packages in general. Anyone can do that. It’s as simple as – for example – adding a meal to lodging or giving a third night free, and voila…you’ve got a package.

But a PR-worthy package? Something journalists will care about, and then write about and spread the word about? THAT takes some doing.

Picture this. You’re a hotel working on creating a dog-friendly package, and your BIG thing is that you’ve got branded dog bowls to put in the room and a little bag of treats given at check-in. You’re excited about it and can’t wait to send out the press release to the media.

Then you come across this article including photos like this one highlighting the Pampered Pup Program + Moving Meditation/Forest Bathing Therapy session for you and your dog at the Mandarin Oriental, Boston:

Suddenly you hear that sad trombone sound (womp womp) that accompanies the realization that your package isn’t newsworthy.

Listen, don’t be sad. That doesn’t mean your package won’t SELL. Put it on your website, send it in an email blast, share it on socials… it’s not “bad” or “wrong.”

It’s just not really that newsworthy.

So if your goal is to get media attention, here are four criteria to help you create PR-worthy tourism packages. If you’ve got all four of these criteria covered in a single package, chances are you’ve got a PR home run. But sometimes even having only one is enough if it’s exceptionally strong. However, if your package meets NONE of these criteria, then don’t waste your time with a press release. The news just isn’t there.

1) A CLEVER NAME

Tourism is a fun industry so a boring name just lacks allure. Calling a package with room and breakfast your “Bed & Breakfast Package” is just so blah. How about Pajamas & Pancakes? Even just calling it a “Sleep & Eat Package” would make it a bit more interesting because something that basic is unexpected. Things like Girlfriend Getaways, Romance Package, Family Fun… they’re all pretty yawn-inducing from a news standpoint. Try to make them less generic and more specific to what’s included in the package.

And it’s not even just for hotels. When creating a roundup of winter romance packages for the Miramichi region of New Brunswick, Canada, we titled the program “Making Whoopee on the Miramichi.” It’s different, and different has the potential to get attention.

2) UNCOMMON ELEMENT(S)

If boring names don’t get attention, boring elements certainly don’t. Again, remember that so-called boring elements CAN STILL SELL. Add a bottle of champagne to the room package…it can sell. Make it a bottle that’s engraved with the couple’s name and special occasion date…it piques interest. Add in a butler to serve it with a rare cheese platter and a trio of musicians to provide ambiance? NOW you’re talking.

The more unique, unusual, and unexpected your package’s elements are, the more likely they are to get media attention. Often those things can be operationally challenging, but there’s a reason the phrase “no pain, no gain” exists. For more inspiration here, see How to Develop Creative Tourism Marketing & PR Ideas and What’s a Newsworthy Animal Experience in Tourism.

3) A TREND TIE-IN

When trends are happening – whether it’s the Olympics, a new blockbuster movie opening, a holiday season, a viral TikTok trend, or whatever – if you can find a way to align your organization with them, you instantly raise your own newsworthiness. Journalists often want to write stories that tie into what everyone is talking about…and YOU could help them do that. The trick here is catching the trend when it’s on the way up and BEFORE it peaks. For example, Barbie (the movie) was released in US theaters on July 21, 2023. If you had a “Think Pink” package ready to promote in July as part of the movie release hoopla, great. If you suddenly decided to do a Barbie package a few months later in October… that’s random, with no timely hook or context to make the Barbie tie-in relevant.

This holds true even for seasonal packages… if you get your Thanksgiving Weekend Package (hopefully with a better name than that) out the door to the media the week before Thanksgiving, very few journalists will have time to write about it. They were covering that weeks (and months) ago.

A trend could be pop culture, seasonal, sports-related, something going viral on social media… anything that’s capturing the general public awareness.

More trend inspo here: How to Foster Good Timing in Marketing and How to Leverage a Travel Trend.

4) SIMPLICITY OF BOOKING

And finally, one of the most essential things needed to create PR-worthy tourism packages: make it easy to book. You’ve got to remember that the media outlet is the middle-man here, and journalists have limited space to use when communicating their stories to their audiences. If your amazing, creative, clever package requires a full set of instructions for how to book, or you can’t get it up on your website in time… or it’s on your website but not connected to your booking engine…or (insert other complex challenge here)… it makes it less attractive for a journalist to include. Don’t make it hard for them to communicate, and don’t make it hard for consumers to book.

Overall, it’s just important to remember that PR isn’t always the goal. You can certainly sell packages that aren’t newsworthy! And sometimes packages can be newsworthy even when you’re not trying… you may just happen to catch a journalist’s interest with the right topic at the right time. But if you are setting out to actually CREATE some PR-worthy tourism packages, these four criteria will help guide you toward success.