Ms. Lutz

Social Media & PR

Return on Relationships is the New ROI

By Didi Lutz, President, Didi Lutz PR

Measuring campaigns is one of the most important elements in evaluating a successful PR strategy. Your hotel should have a full social media presence at this point, and hopefully it has, so measuring PR and marketing campaigns now rely on a very different scale than before.

While previously we determined the success of media relations campaign by measuring column inches, photo inclusion, number of quotes, times the hotel was mentioned, and where the article was positioned in terms of layout, all of this has changed in the social media era. The heart of ROI for PR lies in the ROR – otherwise known as return on relationships.

ROI is the first thing hotel will measure in the world of PR these days, and how that success is defined mainly relies on the understanding the hotel executive team and PR team have. With PR evolving through social media and digital networks, is it really about ROI or ROR?

Return on Relationships is a term that has always been around in traditional PR, but has only recently taken on such a strong measurement role with the emergence of the social media monsters, from FB, Twitter, LinkedIn and the endless number of bloggers online. The idea is that bloggers and digital influencers, i.e., TripAdvisor reviewers, travel bloggers, Zagat members – anyone who has an account in outlets that impact your hotel’s reputation – have an opinion and are empowered to speak up through social media. Citizen journalism as it’s generally referenced, where anyone can write anything, is both scary and effective at the same time. The core of ROR is establishing and managing relationships with the right influencers to position your hotel in the most strategic way possible. How is this done in a universe of giants such as Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and LinkedIn?

My answer is: Use traditional PR methods but apply today’s technology to execute your strategy. The idea is to continue to build relationships and secure placements for your hotel, and garner positive reviews. But instead, your tactics will have to change. Bloggers should be treated like journalists. Bloggers have a faster impact, and far more viral legs than print publications. Learn to understand the difference between media outlets, and respect them for what they are. Embrace and nurture those relationships that make sense and add value to your property.

Measuring the influence your hotel has in the online space is vital, and the best way to do that these days is to have a PR professional who will: 1) be selective in terms of networks and who you reach out to on behalf of your client 2) keep your message solid 3) measure quality and digital potency of your message rather than track impressions alone.

These days, it’s all about content and how others engage with it, whether that means sharing, retweeting, commenting, arguing or starting new conversations. Messaging is probably the most important element to any marketing and communications campaign, as it represents the core of your PR strategy. Building the right message is easier said than done in the era of social media, when so much is shared and often times distorted.

Growing up in Athens, my grade school friends and I used to play a game called “broken telephone,” where the first in line would whisper a word to the person next to them and so on. By the time the communication reached the last person, usually with 6-8 kids playing, the word had changed completely! It’s a similar concept with messaging for a hotel. You want to ensure the proper channels are in place to carry the message forward by keeping it intact:

• Choose the right media for your message. This is a no brainer, especially when you know what social networks work best for you. Take the time to research if LinkedIn or Facebook or YouTube is best. They may all work, or only one. Maybe even none. You need to make sure before you send posts out to the digital space
• Prioritize what properties of your message you are willing to lose as the message is shared, and shared again. With FB and Tw, you expect anything you post to be fair game and go viral. Know in advance what you want people/fans/followers to talk about and what types of conversations you would like to see on social media.
• Find the right professional to represent your brand. Choose the right professionals to build your message. Message builds strong, viral content these days. If you don’t have content, then you really can’t share, so no one can talk about it, and web traffic drops. Instead, keep the buzz and momentum going with the right professionals who understand how to manage your expectations and help you form a strategy.

• Expect that social media will keep evolving, and so your message has to be multifaceted. Keep several angles attached to your message so you can refresh it with new content and conversations. The more angles your message has, the stronger and more interesting the story. If the story is interesting, then comments and sharing on social media will take place.

• Boost your credibility. Remember post things that your friends/followers are likely to share and be willing to engage in. Posting missing links, bad photos, or posting just to write something doesn’t qualify as good content. These days, you need to be on top of social media to have a following. Maintaining your credibility and reputation online is key.

Do keep in mind that building a message takes time and is a strategic integrated marketing communications process that will evolve as your hotel’s objectives and goals change. Being flexible as a hotelier and a PR person by making changes when necessary is helpful and can lead to success in the long term. And since messaging enhances branding, it makes sense to invest in a long term approach that will yield high ROR and ROI. Your hotel will continue to grow with the help of social media. We keep repeating that it’s not a fad, and the digital space will likely expand much further. As an industry that tends to adapt to new technologies late, it’s important to be aware of the changes are happening and how these affect your hotel. ROR is a key term that comes from traditional PR thinking, but has a far future reach in terms of success for campaigns. Consider what your goals are in terms of ROR and spend the time and money to find the right online influencers, whether they are high-profiled writers or bloggers. They both have power to talk about your hotel at different plateaus.

Didi Lutz is an internationally acclaimed hospitality public relations professional specializing in boutique hotels, luxury travel, destination and tourism communications. Prior to starting her own business in February 2005, Ms. Lutz was the Director of Communications for the Hotel Commonwealth, a 150-room luxury property in Boston. Within the first year of the Hotel Commonwealth's opening, she established the media relationship that led to worldwide recognition for the property as one of Ten Best New Business Hotels by Forbes.com. Ms. Lutz can be contacted at 561-628-7422 or didi.lutz@gmail.com Extended Bio...

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