In a sector as changeable as Travel and Hospitality, Corporate PR plays a vital role in shaping brand reputation. Effective Corporate PR strategies not only communicate a brand’s mission and values but also establish trust with stakeholders and customers alike.
Consider Corporate PR your moral compass, guiding a brand towards the horizon as changemakers, trendsetters or upholders of standards expected in a particular industry. From managing a news bureau to pursuing thought leadership, consulting with stakeholders to ensuring a brand is crisis-prepared, there are lots of avenues to Corporate PR that brands operating in the travel and hospitality space can find invaluable.
By embracing authenticity, engaging with target audiences on the mission behind the brand, harnessing the power of visuals and data, and staying crisis-ready, travel brands can leverage Corporate PR to help their stories but also shape narratives within the industry.
But why is Corporate PR essential for travel brands? And how can a brand harness its power to drive growth and profitability?
Corporate PR can be effective for…
1. Building Credibility
Travellers want to book experiences with brands they trust, that resonate with their values and make a positive impact on the communities they operate in. Effective PR strategies can help to build trust and increase a brand’s authority.
2. Enhancing Reputation
Corporate PR helps protect your brand from negative publicity by responding swiftly to crises, addressing customer concerns, and maintaining a positive presence in the press.
3. Navigating Regulatory Challenges
Corporate PR pros can help brands navigate challenges by ensuring businesses they work with are up to speed and remain compliant with changes to policy in the industry. It can also be a great vehicle for communicating commitments to ethical and responsible business practices in line with or perhaps even ahead of regulatory change.
4. Crisis Management
No brand is immune to crisis. From security incidents, fires, weather emergencies, employee indiscretion or health and safety emergencies, a robust Corporate PR strategy includes crisis management protocols and effective communication plans to mitigate the potentially negative fallout of a crisis situation. Corporate PR pros are equipped at foreseeing potential pitfalls and helping brands prepare for every eventuality – both operationally, and when it comes to handling the press.
5. Highlighting Sustainable Practices
Sustainability remains a key concern for travellers worldwide. Corporate PR strategies can help to spotlight a brand’s commitment to responsible tourism, ESG and CSR practices by communicating efforts to reduce environmental impact, support local communities, and promote ethical tourism practices.
In a dynamic landscape where travel brands vie for consumer attention, loyalty and trust are paramount. At the heart of Corporate PR strategies lies the art of shaping perceptions, fostering connections, and communicating the reality of a brand’s journey.
As an extension of the brand’s newsroom, a Corporate PR pro takes on the role of a storyteller, giving life to business-as-usual narratives that can help to make travel brands stand out in the crowd.
But as with every disciple of PR, there are rules of engagement…
Here are some of the do’s and don’ts for travel brands conducting Corporate PR:
DO: Prioritise Authentic Storytelling: The success of Corporate PR relies on weaving narratives that resonate with audiences, are topical or speak to current trends while balancing the key messages of the brand.
DON’T: Resort to the Generic: Cookie-cutter is out. As is relying on commitments that are effectively akin to industry or consumer expectation to drive coverage. Brands need to be tenacious with their commitments to have a chance of standing out in a busy media marketplace.
DO: Engage with Audiences: Corporate PR isn’t a monologue—it’s a conversation. Engaging with audiences through various channels and platforms enables travel brands to build relationships, gather feedback on their stories, and evolve their approaches to meet the changing needs and desires of both the media and the modern traveller.
DON’T: Be Self Serving: Corporate PR is about building relationships, not the hard-sell. In fact, trying to build brand or spokesperson recognition without a willingness to look outside of your own organisation for inspiration and speak on topics that aren’t simply shouting your own achievements from the rooftops will end up being fruitless. Strike a balance between showcasing your brand’s offerings and providing value to your audience through informative and engaging commentary.
DO: Leverage Data for Insight: Numbers tell stories too. Incorporate data-driven insights to substantiate your claims, showcase trends, and offer a deeper understanding of your brand’s impact. Tie this to trends or breaking news to secure opportunities to comment – but remember, you’ve got to be quick about it. Long sign off processes or roadblocks in accessing meaningful timely data will make scoring coverage tied to insight tricky for your PR teams.
DON’T: Be Inconsistent: It is important to establish and maintain a coherent brand voice and key messaging across all communication channels.
DO: Be Crisis-Ready: The world of travel is not without its challenges. Develop a robust crisis communications plan to handle unforeseen situations with transparency, compassion, and swift action, safeguarding both your brand’s reputation and the loyalty of your target consumers.
In conclusion, Corporate PR is not just a luxury for travel brands; it’s a necessity.
Whether you’re a well-established brand or a newcomer to the industry, it’s an investment in building trust, safeguarding your reputation, and driving business growth. Effective corporate PR can be the key to unlocking new opportunities in the ever-evolving travel and hospitality industry.
