As many of you are aware, our communications department's ongoing efforts include hosting a great many travel media representatives. The publicity generated by these media is extremely valuable - maintaining "top of mind awareness" for our destinations in an editorial context - and from a first-hand perspective.
For us, packaging a complete experience for them is a cooperative effort, and we thank all those who have participated in the past by donating rooms and meals, services and attraction admissions. We know that you appreciate the value of participation.
An example: In June we hosted a group of Canadian media women who spent 2 nights in Wilmington and learned to fly-fish with Nancy Murphy's staff at the Hungry Trout Fly Shop. They dined and visited attractions and spent a day in Lake Placid in addition to the fishing part of the trip. Many of the women had never been to the Adirondacks, despite the 2 hour distance from Montreal. They were enchanted, and will return and write more in the future. It turned out to be a very successful trip and resulted in some wonderful online articles and a nearly 3-page spread in Montreal's foremost French newspaper, La Presse, last month. And we're anticipating more. This kind of exposure wouldn't be possible without the assistance of our marketing partners.
While we can't make promises about the content of the resulting articles and TV pieces, it is our experience that most of the participating businesses are featured in the pieces. As a former restaurant owner, I know the elation and pride one experiences when seeing one's business featured in national or international media. In addition, you know you have assisted in positive exposure for the destination. This kind of 'advertising' value would be totally out of our financial reach were we to purchase the space.
We are compiling a database of businesses who are interested in the opportunity to host these media representatives. We base our "asks" on several criteria, which basically centers around the thrust of the article being prepared and whether the media person is looking for luxury or a budget experience. Some of you are already on our list, but if you wish to be added to our database of participating properties, please email me, Sue Cameron, at sue@lakeplacid.com. Even if you've participated in the past, we'd like to know your continuing desire to be included. We're looking forward to working with you!
-Sue Cameron is the Administrative Assistant at the Lake Placid CVB, and a native of Lake Placid