From left: Sarah Walker-Kerr, Katerina Dixon, Derryn French, Sarah Omolewu, Vivienne Gan and Shona Mac Sweeney.
How has hotel PR evolved from the process of gaining exposure for your property, to gaining guests?
Sarah Omolewu: Previously it was about how much exposure we received; now it’s about the footfall coming through the doors as a result of the PR campaigns.
Some of the marketing budgets have been cut, but with PR they’re looking for more of that ROI in terms of actual money. We’re doing things now with promotional codes and initiatives with social media.
We’re trying to find ways to track how much money is coming in, as opposed to how many people hear about what we’re doing.
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Derryn French: Gone are the days when you could do a ‘nice to have it’ advert and a bit of PR around it; I think now everything has to be around a call to action.
There really has to be a ROI and people are looking at how many people come into your hotel rooms, what the occupancy is and how that particular call to action is manifesting in terms of revenue to your hotel.
You now have to be able to justify what you’re doing to contribute to the success of the business.”
Sarah Walker-Kerr: Looking at the structure of PR globally, there was an article in The Economist about how PR has more of a presence in the boardroom. The role of PR is considered to be at a higher level nowadays.
People take more notice as well, and you have to be part of the strategy and decision-making processes in the hotel. You’re the one that has got one foot in and one foot out of the company, you’re that bridge, and the role is becoming more measured in terms of the property’s performance as well.
DF: I think you can also see it in that previously the PR or marketing manager used to be very much underneath the banner of the sales and marketing function.
But now I think that there’s been a huge shift in terms of where your position is in the company. I’m part of the executive team and part of every single strategy.
From that perspective I think there’s a generic change in how you contribute to the business.
Shona Mac Sweeney: I agree with that as well. There is a clearer understanding and appreciation of PR.
Katerina Dixon: We have a weekly with pretty much all our departments in the hotel. We used to internally promote guest relations managers into PR executives because there was an understanding that a PR entertains journalists.
That story is not there anymore. It’s not something where you just meet and greet and people, it’s about strategic thinking, how you are building a reputation of the brand and developing the positioning of the hotel.
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