Behind events and shoots in the trainees eyes

The common perception of PR people in the general eye is a person who handles events and photo shoots with this flair of confidence and they somehow look good with the chaos around them. Personally I still have that perception as I wouldn't mind having that presence when I work as a PR practitioner, but it would take time to develop that flair. But in this post I will be talking about the events and shoots happened during my internship.

Hotels are always packed with guests from different countries, ages and background. but hotels are quite commonly packed with events and even if fortunate enough photo shoots and filming shoots. Now let us focus on the events part of the post, as that is the really fun and exciting part of being in the hotel industry. Events can be quite happening and fun in the eyes of the guest or the people who are invited to it, but for people behind the event it can be a nightmare and sometimes a nuisance when there are late minute changes or unfortunate scenarios. I got to experience a few events that happened at the resort during Chinese New Year, such as the annual Chinese New Year dinner. the task given to me for that event was invitations which sounds like an assistant's job, but it is an important task as most organizing committees rely on your task to carry forward in their task. So faxing invitations can be a bit tedious, but the follow-up calls are more challenging to do as sometimes the calls don't get through or the person that you need to speak to is not around. As for the people that relies on you, they are people like the director of events, sales, even the general manager wants the updates and details of your follow-ups. How I managed to handle work was considered straight-forward as well as detailed for all to read from the excel sheet; the attending guest were categorized as VIPs or tour agencies, tally the the amount of guests coming and their contact details were updated as well. But one thing I found interesting is that by following up with the personal assistant of a minister or tour agency, you can network and gain contacts as future contact for the hotel or personal reference.

Now for my favorite part of my internship that is the photo or film shoots at the resort, I considered this an exciting experience for my internship as a PR student as well as a media student, The general type of photo shoots that I experienced are more towards food and beverage since that requires a lot of promoting, which is not bad since you can eat or drink after the shoot. But the highlight for the section is the events department's MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Conference and Exhibition) corporate video that was shot by two experienced directors from Mediavation Singapore, a production house that works with television channels such as E! Entertainment, NBCUniversal, Sephora and even did a corporate video for Curtin Perth's Mass Communications program a few years back. I had the chance to work with the director of communications in the resort but also these two directors as well. The whole shoot went on smoothly since my director and I always made sure the set up and the bookings are finalized as well as suitable for filming. What I have learn from the experience is that always think three steps ahead in planning a campaign video as the work can be done in an efficient way like not interfering other people in the surrounding; keep updated with the team involved and be open to sudden changes in schedules and circumstances where it will always happens. My part in the whole process was being the assistant liaison to the directors as well as being a background actress for the video. As PR student, the quote "do what you got to do" applies in this situation since this can get you exposed to a lot of experience of dealing with people and being confident to put yourself either in front of the camera or making decision on whether to do a sunrise shoot at 5 am in the morning or earlier.

Well that's all for now, stay tune to my last post which I will post photos during my internship to end my entry. Until then, thank you for reading.

Sincerely,
Lorraine Disimond
16863147
Curtin University Sarawak Malaysia.

Branding: you need to work closely with other departments

The PR branding department is actually giving a lot of authorities for interns like me to join some branding decisions and take charge of small campaigns. It brings me a lot of fun and challenges at the same time.

This week, I was assigned to take charge of another branding activity, which carrying goals of improve customer engagement and brand awareness. After analyzed the demographics and behaviours of our guests, we decided to have one month long activity during summer holidays.

That is to settle XBOX games in the room, which allows guests to have fun during their stay. The two outcomes that we expected from this activity, are 1) to get awareness on social media (for we are the first hotel doing this in China). And it will stabilize our position in the industry, that the young adults perceive this hotel brand as young and fun.

(XBOX Gaming. Source: Wordpress.com  photo by Polys Antoniou ) 

 First of all, we talk to market operation department, to see whether this branding activity is practical or not. And the response was negative. They had given reason like: 1). It is free. So it seemed not bringing profit and will only consume more human resources. 2). It will probably disturb the guests next door.

Immediately, we explain the purposes and possible outcomes of the activity. And within half day, my colleague and I went to one of the hotel branch to test the environment by ourselves. We use evidences to remove the worry of the operation department.

(Testing in room)

We talked to hotel branch. They allow us to settle the machine in one room for trial.

Then, we contact IT services to develop a page for customer to register online to join the experience.

We prepare a post to promote the activity on Wechat, with the link to the page for registration.

It turns out great and exceeds expectation! Over 300 customers were registered, with knowing that they will be paying a regular room charge. This activity brings 10000+ reads and hundreds reposts. In the week, our Wechat new followers increase more than 8000!

Shortly, I have my first XBOX guest come in, I prepare a letter on the desk to welcome the guests and remind them to tune down volume after 10 o’clock.

(My handwriting sweet reminder)

All customers that have experienced this XBOX took pictures and shared on their social media networks.

We made it! At the end of the activity, the marketing department approached me and said they are willing to make it into a permanent service. WOW! And guess what, they asked me to NAME THIS SPECIAL ROOM as I am the person who created it. I can even name after me. But I think my name is completely meaningless. Hahahaha.

I am so glad that I had never being treated like outsider. But of course, I keep reminding myself to work harder to contribute more. From this activity, I learnt communication and work with other departments are extremely important, because you are not going to success by your own!

Enjoy your PR day!

Claudia Xinyin Xie

Engagement: Spend little money to surprise guests

During my internship, there is no significant festival or big day. So, my task is to “make a guest a special day”. It is an ongoing weekly activity that to engage with guests and enhance reputation.

iu Hotel is a very new budget hotel brand under Plateno Hotel Group, the biggest hotel group in China and the top 7^th in the world. Since the whole week is raining quite often. I was thinking to decorate a romantic room. Hopefully this would make a couple feel warm and surprised.

On the Tuesday department meeting, I did a presentation to show my colleague about the idea.

 

Once my idea was agreed by my colleagues, I started preparation. And I was given 1000 Chinese Yuan (660RM) for this week’s special day.

Firstly, I select a hotel branch that is the nearest to our office, so that it is convenient and easier to be controlled.

Secondly, I communicate with the hotel branch manager about the plan and get her approval. And also she is going to reserve a room with a king-size bed for the day.

Thirdly, I list down all the things for decoration and gifts and careful decide where to buy or get sponsorship. We contact Daxiang, which is a very popular condom brand among young adult in China. That matches our target segment of customers. And we also have wine sponsor as well.

Fourthly, get everything ready one day before the activity. Check carefully to make sure they are safe and have least negative impact. For example, the sticker that we use to sticker balloons on the ceiling MUST be removable. So that it won’t hurt the surface of the ceiling. But it also has to be sticky enough to last at least two days so that it won’t fall down in the middle of the night to scare my guests. I was enjoying improving these details that my colleagues think I am quite considerate and organized ;)

To make it more efficient, I prepare a sketch of what to expect and the positions of everything.  

(bed deco)

The noon after guest check out, we went in to decorate the room. We took less than one hour to do everything and clean and leave. The hotel branch is satisfy with our works. And the night, we suceffully have a young random couple to stay in the room. I have heard the staff said that when the young lady open the guest door...Her mouth was like an" O" and said she love it so much. And of course both the couple and we post on social media and a lot of people reply to ask where can they get this! 

So this is the room and me holding the really nice flower....Just wish it was a better weather. But yes, we made a nice day and a nice memory for a guest. And less than half of the budget was spent. 

Have a nice day!

Claudia Xinyin Xie

Chivalry is far from dead

Warning: This blog entry may provide unrealistic expectations of romance.  

When my supervisor approached me with the task of writing a speech for one our clients to present to an array of HR departments I felt nervous yet full of excitement. Having never worked in the public relations industry, let alone any industry relative to my university study, I was thrilled to think that my work would be used in a real life situation. I am very grateful for completing my Commerce degree at Curtin due to its practicality however there is a definitely a different feeling of achievement when you enter the corporate world. This task was definitely the most enjoyable yet in my time at The Freeform and I look forward to sharing my insight into speech writing with you today. 

The client that I would be preparing this speech and presentation for was 2 Planets, a specialist romantic event planning company, ultimately targeted towards FIFO workers in Western Australia. The online service is truly incredible, allowing those who work long hours or maybe just lack a little creativity a complete get out of jail free card for those last minute anniversary gifts. Their products include ready-made packages with a choice of exquisite jewellery, spa treatments, flowers and more! Whilst also offering once in a lifetime experiences such as dancing lessons, getaways and wine and dine activities. More relating to the speech that I had been asked to write was the opportunity for 2 Planets to provide handyman services to a FIFO's partner whilst he is working away. 

Take a look at the 2 Planets website here! 

The brief was to develop a pitch campaign that can be used in presenting the 2 Planets service to mining, oil and gas organisations with a goal towards staff uptake and company involvement, essentially by including the 2 Planets service in their Employee Assistance Programs. It has been a fair bit of time since I had written my last speech in Public Relations Techniques 220, so this called for me to revisit the key skills. 

A speech - to be effective - must:

1. Be designed to be heard, not read.
2. Use concrete language.
3. Demand a positive response.
4. Have clear-cut objectives.
5. Be tailored to a specific audience

(Seitel 2004, 432). 

Taking all these '5 musts' into account, I began researching the audience, objectives and most importantly the speaker, as another important skill of speech writing is to get inside the skin of the speaker, as your words must match his/her personality. I have learnt a great deal during the process of this task, including gaining an insight into world of mining, oil and gas, the FIFO lifestyle, speech writing and much much more! 

Until next time...

Thank you for reading!

Rachel Chandler

campaign, campaign, campaign!

Hi Everyone,

The past couple of months I have been completing my internship with the Perth Wildcats. After a few weeks of settling in, meeting everyone (including the players!) and seeing how everything works in the background, I have been fortunate enough to participate in some of the campaigns the membership department have undertaken in the last few weeks.

The first campaign that I was involved in was created in accordance with one of the Wildcats sponsors. It is called the Single Seating campaign. Ever since the beginning of the club, one of the main problems the membership department has faced is selling the single seats. This is understandable, not many people want to sit alone next to two people they don't know. What the Single Seating campaign aims to do is to contact every member who has one vacant seat next to them and ask them if they know of any family or friends that would like to purchase a membership for that particular seat in return for some merchandise and a special offer from the sponsor. This campaign will hopefully increase membership numbers and the relationship between members and the club.

The next campaign I was involved in is called the First Year Club. This campaign is aimed at all the members who are new to the club and are in their first year. Each month the new members will receive a personalised letter from Tom Jervis who is also new to the club. Receiving a letter from a player will benefit stakeholder relationship on a personal level.

The latest campaign I have been working on is called the Six Name Campaign. This is where the club sends out a letter to all members asking to name six friends or family members who may be interested in a membership and in return will get a coffee voucher and be in a draw to win a brand new ipad. This campaign keeps members interested, creates awareness about the club and hopefully increases the amount of members for the club.

Hope you all enjoyed reading what I have been up to the past few weeks.

Nicole