There’s little in the world of public relations that is as exciting as seeing a client on the cover of a glossy magazine. When a destination or hotel holds this coveted position, it means even more eyes are likely to see the story, which resonates into potential bookings. These stories are often a labor of love, taking over a year to come to fruition.
The following insights are helpful to remember when going after the cover of a magazine.
- Connect and create – After researching a wish-list publication’s editorial calendar, meeting with the right journalist to brainstorm potential newsworthy story ideas goes a long way. When the lightbulb goes off with the perfect story angle that makes sense for all parties, the real fun starts with press trip planning, interview coordination and ultimately fact-checking.
- Be a matchmaker – Executing comprehensive and thoughtful stories often feels like being a matchmaker by aligning client needs with the journalist’s needs, pinpointing the exact qualities and stories the client has to offer and linking them with what will resonate with the publication’s readers.
- Get the shot – While clients and publicists typically support journalist trips to the destination to immerse themselves in the story, it’s equally important to invest in the publication’s assigned photographer. Their itinerary requires customization, keeping in mind times for the best lighting, availability of any key personalities interviewed by the journalist and special attention to equipment needed for the trip.
Connecting with passionate storytellers, dynamic photographers, fact-checkers and all who contribute to magazines is more important than ever as some of the top pillars of print media make the shift to digital. When diving deeper to drum up compelling story ideas, you never know when one idea might just stare right back at you on a magazine rack.
Case Study on the Launch of Expressions of America at The National WWII Museum
In an effort to create an innovative way to teach younger audiences about the everyday men and women who lived through WWII, The National WWII Museum in New Orleans unveiled its newest attraction, Expressions of America, a first-of-its-kind nighttime sound and light show celebrating the power of individual Americans to impact the world around them during a time of monumental conflict. MMGY NJF was tasked to build buzz and awareness by telling the story of the new nighttime attraction to national and regional media with the goal of increasing ticket sales and building awareness for the Museum.
To achieve comprehensive coverage of The National WWII Museum and the launch of Expressions of America, MMGY NJF created targeted story angles focused on travel/tourism, technology, history and the Museum/attraction. Collaboration with industry partners such as New Orleans & Company as well as identifying spokespeople such as Linda Hope of the Bob & Dolores Hope Foundation, curator Kim Guise at The National WWII Museum, and Daren Ulmer, Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Mousetrappe and others was crucial in developing meaningful stories and capturing media attention. MMGY NJF utilized close media relationships to create opportunities and share this timely news with target media while also organizing a group press trip timed with the launch on Veterans Day, resulting in long-form feature stories in top-tier regional and national outlets.
The opening of Expressions of America owned the “Best Places to Travel in November” travel columns and was featured in syndicated online, print and broadcast coverage along with being featured in comprehensive stories as a result of hosting a group of 15 dedicated media at the premiere. Headlines after the premiere included anecdotes like “WWII Museum’s Expressions of America is a must-see for every American.” MMGY NJF achieved tremendous success in launching Expressions of America by securing a constant flow of positive coverage for the new show and The National WWII Museum, resulting in a total of 918,203,036 media impressions and 245,682,485 social media impressions to date. This was achieved in an array of target publications including National Geographic, Matador Network, Travel + Leisure and CBS News, which reached 3,181,293 viewers after affiliate syndication.