A Hotel Publicist can work in an independent hotel or for a hotel in a major chain. Individuals might work in resorts, health spas, meeting complexes, or convention hotels. The individual working in this situation has varied duties. The major responsibility, however, is to publicize the facility. One of the duties of the Hotel Publicist is to develop and write stock press releases on the hotel. He or she must also write press or news releases on special events and promotions of the facility. For example, the hotel might host a beauty contest or a nationally televised golf tournament. In order to get the most publicity from the event, the publicist writes press releases and distributes them to the media. The individual is also responsible for putting together fact sheets about the facility.
The publicist working in a hotel setting may be responsible for taking photographs or arranging for photos of the hotel and any special events and promotions that take place there. One of the main duties of the publicist is to develop and put together press kits on the facility. He or she is responsible for sending press kits and press releases to various media. The individual must compile media lists for the general trade as well as for those specific to the type of facility. For instance, if the hotel is a health spa, the publicist sends information to health publications, travel publications, or women’s magazines as well as to the general press.
The Hotel Publicist should have a good working relationship with news editors for print, television, cable, and radio. It is also beneficial for him or her to develop a relationship with television and radio producers, guest coordinators, and print feature editors. He or she will then be in a better position to have stories placed in print, guests placed on talk and variety shows, and feature stories published.
The Hotel Publicist also works extensively with travel agents. He or she may set up “FAM” or familiarization programs so that travel agents can visit the hotel, use its facilities, and, it is hoped, recommend the hotel to their clients. A lot of work for the FAM program is preparatory. The Publicist must contact agents and find people who are willing to come during the specific time period of the program. He or she must work with other departments in the hotel securing a block of good rooms and planning activities, parties, dinners, etc. During these FAM programs the publicist is busy paying full attention to the agents. He or she may conduct tours or on-site inspections, answer questions, and attend cocktail parties or dinners with the agents.
The Hotel Publicist may work with chairpeople of convention groups, helping them publicize their meetings. Depending on the size and location of the hotel, the publicist may work with a “column planter” or gossip columnist. Through this person he or she can often place the name of the hotel in newspaper or magazine articles. Often the column planter works with the Hotel Publicist because celebrities frequently vacation there.
While the Hotel Publicist may publicize the fact that celebrities are vacationing at the hotel, he or she must often try to keep the fact quiet. In certain instances the Hotel Publicist works with the celebrity’s own publicist to keep vacation plans secret. Often hotels have celebrity entertainers in their showrooms or nightclubs. The Hotel Publicist may be asked to publicize an event to help bring in bookings or just to get some publicity for the hotel. The Hotel PR person may also work in conjunction with a celebrity’s PR people, helping them to do their job.
The publicist working in a hotel deals with a good number of travel editors. He or she may be asked to entertain such individuals, taking them to dinner or on tours and discussing the hotel’s high points. The individual may be responsible for the development of special events and promotions to help promote the property. He or she may also be in charge of implementing events, including supervising people who help put the idea into action.
Hotel Publicists may also handle public relations problems that occur in the hotel. This might include anything from problems guests have at the hotel to dealing with the press in case of an emergency at the hotel.
There is a fair amount of stress that goes with this job as a result of deadlines, items out of the individual’s control, and hotel management who believe they should be getting more and better publicity. Work hours can be long for the Hotel Publicist. On the other hand, many individuals feel that in this position they get a lot of experience in different aspects of publicity and public relations that they might not get in other PR work. They also enjoy meeting and mixing with people and can deal with unexpected problems that arise in the course of a day.
Salaries for Hotel Publicists vary greatly depending on the experience and duties of the individual. Salaries also depend on the size, location, and prestige of the facility. Salaries can start out at $24,000 to $30,000 for beginners. With more experience earnings can go to $65,000 or more.
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