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Get Press

Press is great for building expert status and if you work it right, it can be a lucrative and fun lead source for your travel agency. Below are some sources you can use to find all of the press in your area. Keep in mind that you will get the best results by submitting the press releases to your small LOCAL newspapers, publications, and local morning TV & radio shows.

  • Local Bookstore
  • Local Coffee Shops
  • Ask Local Health Care Professionals
  • TV Guide to Spot Local Morning Shows
  • Wikipedia for List of Local Radio Stations

Step 1: Create a Press List.

This is a list of 6-15 media outlets that have the attention of your dream clients. What does your ideal client avatar watch, read and listen to locally? Make a list of those media outlets. Think outside the box a little, for example, is your ideal client avatar into health and wellbeing? If yes, then you may want to pitch a health/wellness publication a story idea about eating healthy while traveling, or gluten-free friendly resorts, or resorts that offer organic foods, or resorts that offer alternative health and spa services, or how to make your way through Italy on over-the-top delicious gluten-free pasta and organic wine … something like that.



Step 2: Get a contact at each media outlet on your press list.

Below is little how-to guide for getting contact information.

​To find contact information for newspaper reporters:

  • Many times the article will list the email address for the reporter.
  • If not, look for their name and email on the contact page of the newspaper website.
  • If still nothing, call the newspaper and ask for the email address for [reporter] to send a story idea.

To find contact information for TV producers:

  • Your contact will be the producer for the particular show/segment that’s a good match for you. For example, if you live in the Philadelphia market and want to be an on-air guest expert talking about hotels that offer over-the-top perks for pets, or about exploring Cuba, or about the best resorts for family reunions, or some other topic that is ideal for their viewers, then you would pitch Good Day Philadelphia on Fox.
  • For local stations, call the main phone number of the station and ask for the email address of the producer for that show (example: I have a story idea for Good Day Philadelphia, can you provide the producer email so I can send it over?)

To find contact information for radio producers:

  • Check the website of the radio station and look for the contact information for the producer of the show you want to pitch. The contact tab/section works well, too.
  • If you can’t find the information online, call into the station and ask for the email of the [show] producer to send a story idea blogs/online news sites.

To find contact information for magazine editors and freelance writers:

  • Look at the masthead in the front of the magazine and identify the appropriate editor. If the magazine has section editors (like Fashion, Accessories, Beauty, Health, etc) and this is the section you would fit best, then you would pitch a section editor. Otherwise, you would either pitch the Articles Editor or the Features Editor.
  • Always work from the bottom-up if you have no contacts. That means if they have an Assistant Fashion Editor and a Fashion Editor, you would choose the assistant. Why? Because these folks have less responsibility, are more open to pitches, and their job is typically to curate your pitches and present them in pitch meetings.
  • Finding email contact information for these editors is easier than you think. Most national magazines are owned by a bigger corporation (Meredith Corporation owns Family Circle and Better Homes and Gardens, Conde Nast owns Vogue and Glamour, etc). Once you know the email formula for one of these magazines, it’s easy to plug in the editor’s name. For example, all of the magazines owned by Meredith Corporation use this extension: firstname_lastname@meredith.com.
  • If you don’t have the email contact information, simply call to magazine and ask the receptionist to provide the email address for [editor name] so you can send a story idea.
  • You also want to look for freelance magazine writers that cover your industry. Simply Google their name – most of these writers have a website with an email or contact form. Easy peasy!

To find contact information for blogs/news sites:

  • Check the website thoroughly – there is always a section for “Submissions” or “Contributing Guidelines.”
  • Use the contact tab if you don’t find any detailed information on submitting a story idea.

Step 3: Pitch the press.
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​Below are two different types of pitches you could make to the press. The first one is to pitch yourself as the expert that you are! Media outlets LOVE to get tips from experts in all sorts of fields (including TRAVEL AGENTS!!). Those types of stories tend to be popular in all forms of media. The second one is to pitch yourself to a freelance writer who writes for publications or websites that you want to be featured in. Below are proven email templates for you to use when making either type of pitch.

Template For Pitching Yourself As A Travel Expert

Template For Pitching To A Freelance Writer

Annual Publicity Calendar with Important Dates & Notable Events

5 Best Secrets for Making Friends with the Media

Grab-and-Go Press Pitches & Pitch Ideas

​Grab-and-Go COVID Press Pitches

Step 4: Follow-Up in a non-annoying way.
​
Pesky follow-ups annoy journalists/editors/publishers, but you can follow-up on your pitch idea in a way that’ll make them smile. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

  • You do need to follow up. Journalists have Inboxes clogged with hundreds of emails, so it’s quite possible they missed yours.
  • Not all journalists respond. It’s nothing personal. If they are interested, right now, they will respond. Otherwise, they are either not interested OR they are saving your pitch for a future story idea. So “no response” is normal for anyone doing PR (even the pros.) Just keep cranking out your pitches and press releases and you’ll eventually get bites!
  • Wait 5-7 business days to follow up after your initial pitch. Give them time to sift through and actually read your pitch and consider how it might fit.
  • Provide added value in your follow up message. Don’t just say – did you get my pitch? Give them your full pitch, or if you did a custom pitch for them you could provide an extra statistic, an additional interview, another tip – anything to make the story better or more interesting.
  • If you don’t hear back after your second follow-up, don’t sweat it! Pitch them again in a month or two with a new pitch.

The Best Follow-Up Script for Your First Follow-Up (5-7 days after your pitch)
​The Best Second Follow-Up Script for Your Second Follow-Up (4-6 days after your first follow-up)

Step 5: When you get a “YES!!”, leverage your coverage. If you are being featured in a printed publication, often times the publication will offer you discounted ad space adjacent to your coverage. If the price is reasonable and affordable for you, take advantage of their offer and before you design your ad, be sure to check out all of the tips we gave you on effective print ads.

TIPS FOR LEVERAGING YOUR PRESS COVERAGE

#1: Share It With Your Email List

Your email list is one of the most powerful marketing tools you have in business. These are the folks who have “opted-in” to receive information from you on a regular basis! Naturally, you want to share your latest press accolades with these folks (because chances are, they definitely don’t know where you’ve been featured!) You can include links to your latest press coverage as a part of your upcoming e-Newsletter issue.

#2: Follow-up With Those “On The fence”

Most likely you have people in your orbit who are interested in your services but haven’t booked their trip yet. For those folks, you need to follow-up with to get them booked, and press coverage is your shiny ticket! Share a helpful article you’ve been quoted in, a link to podcast you were interviewed on, an article in the paper that featured you, or a guest blog you’ve penned! All of these press mentions give you credibility + clout and make you look like a total rockstar when you follow up with people who are “on the fence” about booking with you.

#3: Share It On Social Media

Post about your press coverage on your social media channels and link to your coverage.

#4: Post It On Your Website

Be sure to include an “As Featured In” section on your website and insert the logos of all of the different media outlets you’ve been featured in. You could also link to some or all of the featured stories from your About Page.

#5: Spice Up Your Bio

Your bio should always stack your most impressive credentials, so give it a makeover and list out some of the amazing places you’ve been featured. Instant stardom!

#6: Send A Thank You Pitch

Even if you get the biggest, splashiest piece of press coverage – you NEVER want to be a one-hit wonder. Your goal is to get regular exposure in the press, not just “one big hit.” Regular coverage is what will bring in more visibility + credibility for the long haul … one piece (even if it’s a good piece) won’t do much for longevity.

With that in mind, try to turn each piece of press coverage into an opportunity for more. This is easily accomplished by using the “thank + pitch” method. When you write a thank you note to the journalist who featured you, mention a few other ways you can work together.

Example:

Dear xx,

Sending you buckets of thanks for featuring [explain feature.] I’d love to [what do you want to do next] and here are [2-3 new pitch ideas. To get pitch ideas look at the other press releases we provide you attached below].

If any of these sound like a possibly-maybe, let me know!

With gratitude,

[your name]

#7: Leverage Local Media to Get National Media

​Once you have some local media coverage, it’s much easier to get national media coverage. You can follow this same process when go after national coverage, however, in your pitch letter, include links to the local coverage you’ve gotten. Generally speaking, you will get more clients from LOCAL coverage than you will get from national coverage. People tend to think that if they just land that Today Show segment they will have sea of new clients forever more. It rarely works out that way. More often than not, you get more leads coming in from local coverage than you do national coverage. With that said, it builds a lot of credibility to have national media outlet logos on your website and links to national coverage you’ve gotten. So for that reason, we recommend going after some national coverage after you’ve successfully gotten some good local coverage.

A Few Free Resources For You

  • Annual Publicity Calendar – this is a PR masterpiece created by PR Expert, Selena Soo! It’s an annual calendar that gives you a schedule of notable events, important dates and pitch ideas.
  • Help a Reporter Out (HARO) – this is a free service you can subscribe to that tells you which media outlets are looking for experts to interview or for stories to run, and what types of experts and they are looking for. When you see a travel one that is specific to your niche, you can reach out and pitch them (exactly what they’re looking for and how to contact them is usually included in each post).
  • Hey Press – this is a free search tool you can use to find reporters who frequently write on topics related to your business. Type in your travel niche and you’ll get a list of reporters who could be good contacts for you.
  • Google Alerts – this is a free tool for monitoring keywords across the internet. You could set up alerts for keywords related to your travel niche to see which websites are running stories about it and who’s writing about it.

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