Hospitality PR 101: How to Nail that TV Interview

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By Shae Geary, Senior Communications Strategist

Working with local TV stations is a great way to promote hospitality client partners. From special events to staycation specials, hotels and destinations often produce interesting fodder for morning news programs that want to share unique local personalities and fun activities with their viewers. Getting the attention of TV producers and reporters requires the right pitch, and there’s more than one way to do it. For a chance at an on-camera spotlight, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Visuals! Movement!

One of my most memorable segments involved a reporter broadcasting from a plush hotel bed on the deck of a newly opened ocean view hotel pool. It was not only quirky and fun, but also succeeded in showing off both the hotel pool and its world-famous bedding in a way that was more visually interesting than a bed in a hotel room. TV is a visual medium, so anything that plays to the camera, whether interesting, unexpected, unusual or just bright and colorful, has a better chance of nabbing a reporter’s interest. It’s equally important for segments to have movement and activity, such as a chef cooking up a signature dish or guests playing in the pool. In your pitch, offer some ideas for the types of activities that can be featured on camera. The more likely a reporter is to visualize the segment, the better your chances of securing coverage.

Bring The Hotel to The Studio

In-studio TV appearances are a great alternative when a TV station can’t come to you. In your pitch, offer ideas for bringing a destination experience to the studio. We recently had success working with a local TV station to promote a romantic sunset beach picnic program. The picnic scene was recreated on the studio’s back lot and paired with a live chef’s demonstration of making an easy, aphrodisiac inspired salad. It was a pretty close second to actually doing the segment on the beach and succeeded in conveying the program’s dreamy, coastal vibe.

Exclusive Access

Viewers love to go behind the scenes, so seize the day when the opportunity arises. To generate excitement and positive community buzz for a new TV show filmed in Oceanside, (one of our destination client partners), we invited a local reporter to spend a day on-set with special access to wardrobe, props, cast trailers and show producers. The segments were a hit because the audience was able to experience the show from a perspective usually limited to cast and crew. For a hotel client, ideas for segments could include access to an exclusive Presidential Suite or over-the-top guest experience.

Partnerships

If a hospitality client partner doesn’t have a particularly compelling story to tell, all is not lost! Linking up with complementary non-profits or local businesses can be just the ticket for nabbing some airtime. A good example is the recent partnership between Cape Rey Carlsbad resort and Project Mermaid. The ocean view hotel pool was the perfect backdrop for a live TV remote that highlighted special mermaid photo sessions, where a local TV personality joined in on the fun. The project helps raise money for ocean conservation, a cause also supported by the hotel. In each segment, the hotel was identified by beautiful shots of the pool and surrounding coastal view. The TV segments drew huge interest, as did social media posts from the shoot.

If you are looking to get your business on TV, let us help! We’d love to chat, so give us a call or visit us here.

Meet the Team: Kat – Communications Strategist

We’re giving you the inside scoop on the entire WOC team with our “Meet the Team” series. This month, the spotlight is on our new Communications Strategist, Kat Beaulieu.

Kat Beaulieu has been creating communications for diverse audiences since 1996. She cut her teeth working in the communications department of North America’s #1 ski resort – Whistler Blackcomb. Since then she’s worked with a variety of organizations, from schools to governments to international corporations. Kat’s background includes work in the specialized field of Human Resources communications, where she crafted employer brands and programs to attract and engage talent. Kat has developed employer marketing campaigns for digital and traditional media and has influenced audiences through social media, reputation management and internal communications strategies. Kat has a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the University of British Columbia. On weekends she enjoys pushing the limits of her communication abilities by practicing dog and horse whispering.

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What would you be doing if you weren’t at your current job?
Horseback riding.

What’s one word you would use to describe yourself?
Enthusiastive….I know that’s not really a word, but I wanted to say both enthusiastic and creative and was only allowed one word!

Fill in the blank. “If you really knew me, you’d know ____.”
I love to eat. A lot.

What super power would you like to have?
To make time stand still.

What would a “perfect” day look like to you?
Coffee. Horses. Lunch. Horses. Beer. Dinner. Sleep.

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in the past year?
“Fake it ‘till you make it.” I probably should contextualize that by saying it’s something that comes from my horseback riding coach, but has been remarkably effective in non-horsey situations as well. Except work of course. Would never fake anything at work. Ever.

Best vacation you’ve had?
There have been many excellent vacations. All have their awesome moments, so it’s impossible to pick one as the best.

What’s your most embarrassing moment at work?
Back in college when I was a server I accidentally spilled prime rib au-jus on the train of a bride’s gown while I was serving her at the head table. Yup. That really happened. I was mortified.

Favorite quote?
“Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.” Mark Twain

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would be cast as you?
Uma Thurman, because I look just like her. JK, it would probably be a muppet with fine stringy hair and spindly arms and legs.

What’s your drink of choice?
A cold, hoppy IPA.

What’s one thing you can’t live without?
Animals.

Favorite line from a movie?
“Have fun storming the castle!”

What do you like to do in your free time?
Did I mention horses?

San Diego Public Relations Agency CEO Joins San Diego Venture Group Board

Grant Wright joins leadership of premier venture capital community associationGrant

SAN DIEGO, March 29, 2016 – The San Diego Venture Group (SDVG) has elected San Diego public relations agency (W)right On Communications CEO Grant Wright to the Board of Directors. Additionally, Wright is leading a new sub-group of Board Directors dedicated to advancing effective communications for SDVG.

Previously Board Chairman of the Southern California Aviation Association for five years and Director for nine years, Wright was instrumental in helping grow that organization from an original small core of members to more than 600 corporate and 6,000 person members today. CEO of (W)right On Communication since 2004, he helped lead the San Diego public relations agency to become among the largest in California. In 2016, he was a finalist for the San Diego Business Journal’s Most Admired CEO awards.

“My goal with the San Diego Venture Group is to help steward the continued success of this excellent organization and introduce innovative communication methods to advance SDVG’s interests,” said Wright. “San Diego is home to one of the nation’s most exciting and growing entrepreneurial and venture capital environments. As evidence of the even stronger environment to come, Money Magazine just named San Diego the #1 US travel destination. SDVG is a great organization and I’m honored and excited to support it.”

(W)right On Communications, a San Diego Public Relations agency, specializes in public relations, marketing solutions and strategic communications services – ranging from social media marketing to multimedia and web development. (W)right On is exceptionally strong in technology public relations with experience working with the Internet of Things (IoT), major utilities, cleantech companies, and renewable energy providers.

“It’s an exciting time to invest in San Diego-based startups. We have an exceptionally strong and growing tech sector, in addition to one of the top three biotech centers globally. Just 90 minutes by air from Silicon Valley, we continue to exploit our proximity to the largest venture capital region on the planet,” stated Mike Krenn, president of San Diego Venture Group. “We are excited and fortunate to have Grant join the board. His expertise, passion for entrepreneurial ventures, and energy will help us build regional momentum.”

 

About (W)right On Communications

Founded in 1998 in Vancouver, British Columbia, (W)right On Communications is a full-spectrum communications and public relations firm headquartered in San Diego, California. Specializing in hospitality, healthcare, energy, technology and development, (W)right On has produced results-driven media relations, social media and promotional campaigns and programs for clients including hotels, hospitals, utilities, startups, developers and universities. To learn more about (W)right On, visit www.wrightoncomm.com.

About San Diego Venture Group

Founded in 1986, the San Diego Venture Group (SDVG) is a non-profit organization designed to bring San Diegans who are interested in new enterprise and the process of creating it together. With a mission to provide a networking forum for entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and advisors in an informal atmosphere where human expertise can foster new ventures, SDVG is comprised of professionals with bright ideas to share and the practical skills required to implement these ideas. For more information, visit www.sdvg.org.

How To Get More Done With Less Stress

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By: President, Julie Wright

Twitter: @juliewright

Delays are expensive. B2B marketers know this! When a product launch is pushed back, potential revenue is lost. When a prospect’s purchasing decision drags on, that’s money your company isn’t putting in the bank. So, yes, time is money.

That’s why the team at (W)right On Communications prizes productivity—so much so that we wrote an e-book full of tips for being more productive to share what we know. It’s called “How to Get 30% More Productivity from your Team in 30 Days.”

Public relations and marketing agencies are environments where time is an extremely perishable commodity. Like many professional services companies and consultants, we charge for our expertise but bill by the unit of time. As our colleague’s coffee mug states, “You have as many hours in a day as Beyoncé.” And that is the truth. It is what you do with that time that sets you apart.

So, to achieve the highest public relations and marketing communications ROI for our clients, we’ve found ways to get more done in less time and make sure that time is never wasted—ours and our clients. (Internally, this is known as our GSD philosophy.)

Here’s some data on why productivity matters:

  • 28% of the average office worker’s day is spent focused on unnecessary distractions.
  • 27% of office workers feel disorganized. (And an equal number must be lying or in denial!)
  • Over 30 hours a month are spent in unproductive meetings.

I can think of several people in my professional network who are so busy attending meetings that they’re not available to advance their real work (that’s where consultants like us can come to the rescue to take ownership of key projects and keep them moving on time and on budget).

For this post, I am going to focus on prioritization because it is essential to productivity.

You will get a ton more done in your day if you don’t overthink prioritization and instead make it a simple, no-judgment habit. In other words, make prioritization a no brainer. It’s easier than you might think.

Start by creating categories of work. Come up with three to five buckets for your tasks. Now prioritize those. The highest ranked should be the task that is most aligned with revenue or profits. What part of your daily work most impacts your company’s bottom line or your team’s goals?

You’ll be torn between two types of activities: those that drive short-term rewards and are very deadline oriented and those that drive longer-term performance and are not deadline-driven. It’s this second group typically has a much larger impact on your performance, your team’s or your company’s but falls by the wayside when the urgent gets all of your attention.

This is the tension between the urgent and the important that is a fact of business life.

But business is all about creating efficient systems. So set a policy for yourself to make handling these conflicting priorities a no-brainer. For example, plan to always prioritize 2 or 3 daily tasks from the urgent bucket and 1 to 2 from the important bucket every day. And if you’re not getting to the important task after three days, move it to the top of your list.

This blog post is a perfect example of that. Writing it is not urgent to my business today, but long-term it is very important to my business. Because of that I have prioritized it ahead of some client and other agency management tasks.

If a client called me right now with a crisis or urgent request that would become my immediate priority – prioritization needs to be somewhat fluid. What I like about this approach is that it brings a sense of order to the chaos which makes me feel better about my crazed work life and more in control of it.

Once you have prioritized the type of work you do every day and determine a policy for managing the urgent and the important, schedule five to 10 minutes at the start and end of every day to update and categorize your work.

The beauty of this is that each morning you can look at the day’s demands in a relaxed state of mind no matter how much work greets you. Give each task a category, rank your categories and then rank your tasks. Voila. There’s your list. You might choose to do this at the end of the day only so that your list is there for you each morning and you get the satisfaction of hitting the ground running—whatever makes prioritization easier for you.

I also like this morning ritual because it allows me to start the day feeling a sense of immediate accomplishment. (See our tip for Day 1 in “How to Get 30% More Productivity from your Team in 30 Days.”)

Do this prioritization process first thing before you even look at your email. You can look at your email later and make adjustments as needed. (See Day 2 for ways to minimize email distractions.)

 

A tool that I’ve been using is Todoist. I can easily move tasks around, assign or change due dates or create and schedule recurring tasks. Plus I can color code my priorities. The Todoist mobile app is especially handy for capturing action items during client meetings.

Despite all of my best efforts, there are too many days where I don’t even get to my to-do list. While we have identified and adopted many methods at (W)right On Communications for increasing our productivity, we’re always open to new and better ideas. Please feel free to comment and share ways you tackle your to do list!

Five Tips for Sparking Creativity

creativity Kara blog

By Communications Coordinator, Kara DeMent

Twitter: @KaraDeMent_

As a PR professional, it’s critical to be creative. Campaigns can live or die based on an idea.

But I have a confession to make: sometimes I struggle with creativity.

Creative ideas seem to come naturally for some of my colleagues, so it makes me anxious and nervous when I’m not producing them. I enjoy art, dance and writing; which are all creative activities, so why do I struggle so much with getting my own creative juices flowing?

Can you relate?

It turns out, a lot of PR professionals feel the same way. After digesting a copious amount of advice and best practices, I’ve learned five great tips for saying “goodbye” to those anxiety-filled creative blocks.

  1. Draw something – give your left brain a break and doodle! The right side of your brain is more visually oriented, so doodling can help “rev up” your creative engine. Drawing helps you relax and gives your analytical brain a break.
  2. Think outside the box – try viewing things from a different perspective. Think like your client, co-worker or audiences. Put yourself in their shoes. What do they like? What are their motivations? What’s in it for them? What’s the big picture? You never know what you might discover!
  3. Change your environment – move your creative thinking outside, to a coffee shop, or to a quiet room. Small changes can make a big difference. For example, the people watching & soft hum of noises at your local coffee shop may give you a different perspective than the office. In fact, Hollywood’s most successful writers often work at Chateau Marmont just for the inspiration. So, get out there and discover what makes you inspired!
  4. Take a break – step away from whatever project you’re working on and take a moment to collect and conquer. Sometimes a brisk walk and some fresh air can make a big difference.
  5. When in doubt, read! – read articles, blogs, and newsletters that you wouldn’t normally to give you different tips and perspectives.

Whether you’re brainstorming your next big strategy or social media campaign, consider these tips to tap into your creative side. If you’re still struggling with creativity, tap into ours! Feel free to contact us at info@wrightoncomm.com.

Meet the Team: Natalie- Communications Coordinator

We’re giving you the inside scoop on the entire WOC team with our “Meet the Team” series. This month, the spotlight is on our new Communications Coordinator, Natalie Meza.

Natalie has a unique perspective and passion for media. As Communications Coordinator, she supports (W)right On’s land development, energy, utility, technology, B-to-B, professional services, hospitality and non-profit clients. Natalie joined (W)right On from CW6 San Diego and worked in television production before that. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from UCLA and loves the outdoors, nutrition, crafting, and living the San Diego lifestyle.

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What would you be doing if you weren’t at your current job?

Traveling the world. I’ve always wanted to go to Spain, Greece, Italy, Germany, and really all of Europe. Learning about other cultures and ways of life is incredibly interesting, and I feel like we can learn so much from getting outside our own bubble.

What’s one word you would use to describe yourself?

Electric.

Fill in the blank. “If you really knew me, you’d know ____.”

That glitter is my favorite color.

What super power would you like to have?

Definitely flight. Since I was really young, I always dreamed of being able to fly.

What would a “perfect” day look like to you?

It would start with an easy hike somewhere in East County to watch the sunrise over San Diego. After that, brunching by the beach with friends, paddle boarding through the Oceanside Harbor, playing with puppies, something really tasty for dinner, then watching the sunset on the beach.

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in the past year?

To trust my instincts and believe in myself.

Best vacation you’ve had?

Cayman Islands last year. It was sunny, hot, and absolutely beautiful! Being on the beach all day is the perfect kind of vacation to me.

What’s your most embarrassing moment at work?

I honestly don’t know. I don’t get embarrassed very easily.

Favorite quote?

“Good things come to those who work their asses off and never give up.” – I have no idea who said that, but it’s something that really stuck with me the past two years.

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would be cast as you?

Amy Schumer. Hands down. Awkward, confident, hilarious, and an all-around fun person.

What’s your drink of choice?

Lemon Drop Martini

If you were stuck on an island and could only choose 5 CDs, what would they be?

  1. All of the Kesha albums, on one CD
  2. Jason Mraz Live from the Avocado Ranch
  3. One Republic Native
  4. Beyonce (self titled)
  5. A CD with all the John Williams soundtracks on it

Fill in the blank. “People would be surprised if they knew___.”

I’m obsessed with dogs, but I’m actually allergic to them.

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

Looking at your phone during a conversation.

What tv show/movie is your guilty pleasure?

I have too many to count

What’s one thing you can’t live without?

The Beach

Favorite line from a movie?

“Kevin’s a girl?” – Russel, from Up

And literally every other quote from Up

Do you have an office nickname? What is it?

No, just Natalie

What’s the best/worst gift you have ever received?

That’s hard to say. I like giving gifts more than receiving them, truthfully. I love giving people things that they didn’t even know they wanted, and they open it and are so surprised and happy. The only gifts I don’t really like are gift cards, because they don’t have a lot of heart behind them. I love anything that feels like someone put some thought into it.

What do you like to do in your free time?

I love going to the beach, spending time with my family, being outdoors, watching Netflix, reading, relaxing, being active.