PR
Ten tips for getting yourself noticed: PART ONE In recent times, I have come across a number of really interesting projects – be they unusual tours, genuinely excellent B&Bs or quirky experiences. And there seem to be some common themes with them. Firstly, they’re small, independent operations run by one or two people without [...]
Targeting high-end travellers A common theme tends to emerge when I speak to tourist board representatives. The new strategy, it seems largely across the board, is to target affluent, high-end travellers. The idea is to look for those who spend fairly big while they’re on holiday rather than go for numbers and appeal to mass-market [...]
Continue reading about Why tourist boards shouldn’t forget about the backpackers
The freebie debate The debate about whether journalists and bloggers should accept freebies is so old and hoary that I’m reluctant to bring it up again. But my recent experience in Germany shed a bit of new light on it for me, so tough, back to the well-chewed territory… For those not in the know, [...]
Continue reading about Travel writing and freebies: The bias that matters
Yesterday, I received a truly staggering press release. The sheer number of words for a topic that no-one will ever write about makes it something of a beauty that ought to be cherished. In fact, it’s so good, I thought I might share it. The PR’s name has been left off, but everything else is verbatim. [...]
Continue reading about Korean Air and the world’s most niche press release
Round the world trip As some of my regular readers may be aware, I recently spent two months travelling around Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Singapore. I was on a somewhat whistlestop round-the-world trip, and I primarily did it because I had a number of commissions for various clients in the UK and Australia. [...]
Continue reading about Corporate blogging: Does it compromise a writer’s independence and integrity?
A PR’s job I am acutely aware that there is more to doing travel PR than forever leaping every time a journalist clicks their fingers. In fact, some PRs may argue that dealing with journalists only forms a small part of their job. But it is a part of the job nonetheless, and the whole [...]
Continue reading about One common mistake that PR companies make – and how to fix it
You’re currently reading the third draft of this post. It was initially designed as a name-and-shame hatchet job. I rewrote it once because I felt it may be a tad unfair, and I rewrote it a second time because I felt it may be a little hypocritical. In the process, I’ve become horribly confused about [...]
Continue reading about Sponsored posts: Where is the line between journalism and marketing?
Or The Curse of the Woman Who Didn’t Know When To Shut Up. Difference between bloggers and journalists A few weeks ago, the ever-excellent Matthew Teller hosted a debate on his blog about the difference between bloggers and journalists. It’s something of a hoary old debate, but some excellent points were raised. Key amongst [...]
Continue reading about Bloggers vs Journalists: Why bloggers are second class citizens
On the tourist trail Apologies for this blog being quiet of late – I am currently in the middle of a fairly exhausting jaunt through South Africa. As part of this trip, I have been doing a lot of tours, and as a result, have come to a conclusion or two about how tour operators [...]
Continue reading about How tour operators should deal with journalists
Blogosphere debate Jeremy Head has written a characteristically interesting post on whether travel content that has been paid for by a company can ever be objective. As part of the debate, he references Matthew Teller’s proposal about PR agencies and tourist boards paying travel writers for articles rather than the publications they are published in. [...]
Continue reading about Who will pay for travel writing? A potential compromise