Michael Collins - TravelMedia.ie - TBEX Asia 2015 Presentation - How to plan the perfect press trip. At TBEX Asia 2015 Michael Collins discusses how to plan the perfect press trip. #TBEX #TBEXAsia #TBEXAsia2015 #TBEX2015 #Thailand #Amazing Thailand #Bangkok

3. Michael Collins
#TMevents @travelmedia_ie
#tbex @TBEXevents
@ThailandFanClub @ThaiAirways
presentation on Slideshare and as a blog post
http:/www.slideshare.net/TravelMediaie
http://www.travelmedia.ie/blog

8. Industry - Business Track
How DMCs and Tourist
Boards Can Creative
Successful Blogger Trips

9. Industry - Business Track
How to Create
the Perfect Trip
blogger - DMC

10. Bloggers v DMCs

13. Symbiotic Relationship
• Good
• Happy
• Hot
• Sweet
• Bloggers
Bad
Sad
Cold
Sour
DMCs

15. Push
v
Pull

16. Why is there an imbalance?
• Lack of communication. Both.
• BLURRED LINES.
• This is what we want? DMCs.
• This is why we are organising this trp.
• What do you want? Bloggers.
• Why have you accepted this trip?
• What do you hope to get from this trip.

17. What can DMCs do better?
• Early planning and engagement with bloggers. Listen.
• More bespoke trips, less group trips, more flexibility.
• Better balance between blogger needs and
commercial/organisers requirements.
• More free time.
• Better planning. More on this in a minute.
• Trips are an active media environment. No longer
passive. Preparation required.

18. What can DMCs do better?
What are the biggest bug bears that bloggers have about trips.
• Not enough free time. Less is more.
• Social time. Admin time. Down time.
• Everyone on the same story. Group trips v individual trips.
• Group trips less work, more economies of scale, but…….
• Handles, hashtags in advance,
• Amplification - partners need to engage, hotels, restaurants,
venues etc.
• WiFi, MiFi – everywhere, passwords, logins.
• Paid support. Facebook, reach your audience.

19. Quotes – for DMCs
“hotel inspections.
Oh, God, no!
They're for travel agents”

20. Quotes
“Ah, Jaysus, not another
church/cathedral!
If I see the inside of one more
church, I'll turn atheist.”

21. Quotes
“8am starts after 11pm
finishes. Are ye serious?”

22. Quotes
“Plus, I can't overstate the value
of free-time (and I'm not talking
45 minutes back in the hotel
between excursions). Free time,
a chance to wander alone, take
photographs…………………”

23. Quotes
free time - often, that's the
only chance a writer gets to
experience the more personal
encounters with a place and
it's people.

24. Quotes
a relaxed writer is a better writer –
if you're being frog matched from A to B at top
speed then the best you can ever really come up
with are bullet points which may make for
informative but very rarely entertaining copy.
Information you can lift from websites but
personal experiences are vital.

25. Quotes
“One of the most important things that
comes up time & time again....is, don't set up
a blog trip and then sit back and wait for the
bloggers to bring eyeballs.
Make sure that you and all your stakeholders
are amplifying every tweet, every instagram,
every post, etc.”

26. Quotes
“My advice would be for media and
organisers to work together on an
angle that suits the individual
publication beforehand. Group trips
serve a purpose, but they can also
mean several publications have the
exact same story.”

27. Quotes
Having a hashtag for the trip is
obviously a great thing. Not just for
trending, but it also helps the
journalists connect with their fellow
press trip attendees/organisers
through social media via searching
the hashtag.

28. Takeaways
Free time
Less group trips.
More tailored trips.
More engagement, pre, post, during.

29. For Bloggers
“-- Lads, that wee girl/guy from the
tourist board has paid for everything
all day -- for f***'s sake, put your
hands in your pockets and stand a
round at the end of the night -- he/she
has a budget to observe.

30. For Bloggers
Say thank you.
We are talk, we all know each
other.

31. For Bloggers
Evergreen.
“Share again and again and again, please.
Stats please, we’d love them.”

32. For Bloggers
”Remember you're enjoying a
privilege by being wined and
dined -- it's not a right.”

33. For Bloggers
“The tour guide: when he/she
eventually leaves you, pass the
hat around and stick 10 €$£
each in it to show your
appreciation.”

34. For Bloggers
“If the itinerary says 10am start, it
doesn't mean 10.15 or 10.25.
Be respectful to your hosts and
your colleagues and have the good
manners to turn up on time.

35. The Perfect Blogger Trip
“The perfect trip is one where
guests and hosts show each
other respect, and allow
breathing space”

36. ahhhhhh
ummmmmmmm

37. 7 P’s - #7PS
• Proper
• Prior
• Planning
• Prevents
• Piss
• Poor
• Performance

38. 7 P’s - #7ps
• Proper
• Prior
• Planning
• Prevents
• Piss
• Poor
• Performance

39. 7 P’s - #7ps
• Proper
• Prior
• Planning
• Prevents
• Piss
• Poor
• Performance

40. Case Study 1 – Press Trips

43. Lessons
• 7Ps.
• Follow well in advance.
• Engage well in advance – start the conversation
early.
• Research handles and hashtags.
• Tell venues, hotels, attractions media are coming.
• Get WiFi access / passwords.

44. DMCs, PRs can do more.
• They are now part of the conversation.
• No longer passive bystanders.
• Actively engaging, following, sharing,
RTs, Likes.
• Write a blog from the trip.

48. Case Study 2 - Events
Travel Media Awards Trended no. 1 on Twitter

49. How to Trend on Twitter - blog
#TMevents

50. Share Hashtags and Handles in Advance

52. Thank you to the media who helped me prep for today
• Brendan Harding @BrendanHarding
• Tara Peavoy @TaraPeavoy
• Laura Breslin @Mamma_Fairy
• Alastair McKenzie @AlastairMcK
• Tom Sweeney @ScottishTom
• Pól O’Conghaile @PolOConghaile
• Lucy White @LucyWhiteDublin
• Ian Scott @DubaiTourism

53. @niamhywaters
Lastly, thank you to my colleague
Niamh Waters,
back in Dublin, who got up at 5am
this morning to manage
@travelmedia_ie during this
presentation (why?).