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Editor's Corner
Welcome to the latest edition of The
Travel PR
Report.
Our last e-newsletter had so much information
that we
decided to divide it into two editions. This
edition is
devoted to marketing-related advice.
In
today's
economy, staging an event can be an expensive
proposition. To get the most out of the
event, think of it
in terms of branding, says Allison Saget, event
marketing consultant, who provides some good
food
for thought on how to get the most for your
event
dollars.
And when it comes to capturing your audience's
attention, what can be better than a short,
succinct
speech. Surprisingly, many people don't
realize that
silence - or strategic pauses - can be an
important
tool in your public speaking arsenal. Read
our article
below to find out more.
We've also included some bullets on what PR
can do
for you - possibly more than you think - and
some
stats on social networking to get your web
2.0 engines
going.
We hope you enjoy this edition of the Travel
P.R.
Report and look forward to your feedback.
Linda R. Kundell
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Event Success - Allison Saget |
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Allison Saget
Event Marketing Consultant
Saget is president of her own event marketing
consulting
firm and author of The Event Marketing Handbook:
Beyond Logistics & Planning. With 20 years
experience
in tradeshows, product launches, executive
functions,
and more, Saget has been involved in all
phases of
event
planning, including advertising, TV,
collateral design
and
production, logo merchandising and direct
marketing.
Part I of a two part interview (part II to
follow in Issue 4)
Q: What is the key to a successful event?
Understanding your company's or your
internal/external
client's sales initiatives and business
objectives are
the
fundamental key for a successful event.
Once you
understand these, the next step is making
them come
alive in an event.
Companies hold meetings and participate in
events
for
three primary reasons: Brand Recognition, Lead
Generation, and Thought Leadership (I call
this Event
B.L.T. - an integrated approach that helps to
shorten
the
sales cycle). In events, you cannot separate
these
ingredients.
Q: What do you mean by event branding?
Event Branding is about emphasizing the image.
Keep in
mind that the logo, the company name, the
product
name, and the positioning statement are all
part of
branding. In event execution, everything I
create is
branded - from preplanning phase to post-event
activities. There are two types of event
branding to
keep
in mind:
- "In-Your- Face" Branding.
Everywhere you
look
is your company name, your product name or your
graphic image representation (conference
brochure
ads,
napkins, banners and signage, and more).
- Subliminal Branding. Subliminal
branding
is
about making the image sparkle. Do this by
matching
the
image to the live presence of the
environment, but
remember the detail or logistics of
"in-your-face"
branding.
For more information visit www.eventblt.com
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Public Speaking Tip |
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Silence is
golden
The
importance of strategic
pauses
You've heard the old sayings, "And now, a
pause for
refreshment, " and "Silence is golden."
When it
comes to public speaking there's more truth
to those
phrases
than you might think. Pauses and silence are
strategic
allies in effective public speaking.
Just as in a piece of music, where "rests"
are an
important part of a whole, pauses and silence
are part of the "whole" when speaking.
Pauses give
your
audience time to digest what they've heard.
Pauses also add dramatic emphasis to what
follows.
Consider a phrase such as: "I want you to
think about
this. Are you better off today than you were
four years
ago?" By pausing after the first sentence,
you create
anticipation and a sense of drama for what is
to come
next.
How do you decide where to pause? It's easy.
If
you're
delivering from a text, look for commas and
periods.
Commas are your pauses, periods, slightly longer
silence. Otherwise, it's up to you to decide
where you
want to pause.
People often forget to breathe between
sentences,
and
by slightly pausing at the end of a sentence,
you not
only
give your listener time to think; you create
room for
yourself to breathe.
When people say "um" a lot, it's often
because they're
uncomfortable with silence and feel that they
have to
fill
every second. Remember, it's not necessary
to fill
every
second of your presentation. Pauses are
refreshing
and
silence is golden when it comes to building a
better
speech.
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Social Networking |
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At a recent US Travel Insurance Association
Conference Susan MacDermid, Senior Vice
President, Strategy, of Real Branding, defined
social media as people using technology to
get what they need from each other rather
than from companies.
Does this put companies out of the equation?
Not at all. MacDermid pointed to companies
that have had highly successful social
networking campaigns, among them Starbucks,
Lipton Tea, Target, and ABC.com.
According to MacDermid:
70% of Americans start their online
searches with Google.com
In 2008, 4 of
the 5 biggest players on the internet were
social networking sites
Facebook was the fastest growing social
network in 2008, with 150 million users, of
whom 52% were women
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What Public Relations Does for You |
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- Counsels on strategic issues and
public
perceptions
- Informs media and public about your
company or
association
- Monitors media, blogs posts for
comments about
your company
- Creates press materials, magazine
columns for
media use
- Influences public opinion through
well-placed
mentions of your company or association
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Buzzword |
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When writing for lay audiences, try to avoid
buzzwords.
Today's buzzword: Key
stakeholders-- used to describe
customers, audience.
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Refer a Colleague |
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If you enjoy this issue, feel free to share it with a
colleague. If you're not already a subscriber, it's
easy and it's free.
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About Us |
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Kundell Communications provides a wide range of
public relations and marketing communications
programs to the travel, tourism and lifestyle
industries, from targeted local efforts to
nationwide
multimedia campaigns. A training division
offers
seminars in public relations and public speaking
techniques. The firm brings more than 30 years
experience and a roster of top-quality
professionals.
Contact us at 646-495-5300 or 212-877-2798, e-
mail
Kundellcom@nyc.rr.com or
Linda@kundellcommunications.com
Editor: Laura Michonski
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