A press release is an excellent way to turn seemingly mundane subjects into news that could reach your clients, partners and distribution channels.*
Before sharing some pointers on how to write one for your business, let’s look at the purpose of a press release. A press release is a piece of communication prepared by a company’s internal marketing department or external marketing agency, and then sent out to media organisations.
Popular topics for tourism and travel-related press releases include events, new amenities or tourism product expansions, managerial changes at hotels and lodges, industry statistics and annual reports.
The goal of preparing and sending out a press release is to attract attention to your tourism business via professional media. It’s the art of turning a simple development like complimentary Wifi at your establishment into the subject on everyone’s lips. Let’s look at how you could piece together a great press release for your business.
1. Select the right publication(s)
The best place to send a press release for a tourism business is to travel, tourism or tourism industry publication. Selecting the most relevant publication or media channels, however, is crucial. While searching for the right publication, you needs ask yourself a few questions. Are these publication using content related to my market? Who are their readers? Once you have identified targeted publications or media channels, see what their requirements are for submitting a press release.
2. The headline
Craft a short, simple and catchy headline. Avoid using big words and ambiguity. Steer away from encrypted headlines. It’s all about being straight to the point and specific. This is the first part of the release that the readers will see. You wouldn’t want them to miss it.
3. Make it newsworthy
This is the most important part of putting together a press release. Editors are constantly looking for content to drive up their ratings – get as many readers as possible. Here’s a checklist to see if your press release is newsworthy.
Novelty – Are there any new developments at your establishment? Have your competitors reported a similar development recently?
Public interest: Does your story affect a large number of people? A story about job creation is likely to gain more public interest than a story about a new swimming pool.
Events: Can you tie your press release to an event? If not, then create one. Think of something like a grand opening, grand closure or relaunch. Something that people could add to their calendar.
**Personalities: **If there is a celebrity or well-known figure linked to the story, add them to the release.
Share valuable information: Has your business conducted a survey recently? This would be an excellent to put out the findings from the survey.
4. Subtle up-selling
See your press release as an opportunity to upsell by mentioning parts of your product or service that relate to the core topic of the article. Beware of over-selling.
5. Quote someone
Quotes add a human element to your press release. Including a few quotes could save your press release from sounding too pitchy.
6. Double-check your spelling and grammar
This is inexcusable. Check your grammar and spelling, then check it again.
7. Use the correct case
Keep your press release simple by using the normal case. Avoid using the upper case as it could be interpreted as unprofessional, loud or offensive.
8. Add a company profile
Always end your press release with short bio of your business and the contact details of at least one representative .
9. Don’t send it as an attachment
Before you send your email, there are a few things you need to consider.
Journalists are busy people who not have time to open attachments. Some journalists are using mobile technology on the road and can’t open your attachments.
Emails with attachments could be blocked by spam filters.
Ensure your press release gets attention by pasting it in the email. Paste all the text, links and information related to the release. Paste a URL to your website or Dropbox folder for items such as graphs or photographs.
