Getting A Rocky Mountain Getaway Noticed

Challenge: Estes Park is a 100-year-old-plus tourist attraction. It calls itself the  “Gateway to Rocky  Mountain National Park (RMNP).”  Nestled in a high-mountain valley with spectacular mountain vistas, deer and elk saunter through the town’s side streets in summer and winter. Known mostly for hiking, fishing, horseback riding and sightseeing, there also are other family-oriented activities.

The town is small with two streets running its length. In summer they can be extremely congested. This can’t be fixed because of the cliffs arising on either side. Unlike other Colorado resorts, Estes Park is and always has been primarily a summer destination. Trail Ridge Road through RMNP closes in October and doesn’t open again until May. Without a downhill ski facility close at hand, winter activities are confined to snow shoeing and cross country skiing. Many of the shops close or only open on weekends. Estes Park has tried to extend their season, both fall and spring, with a variety of attractions and events.

Estes Park needs to get the word out. The Town has been the sole funding of marketing Estes Park since 1978. It wants to increase the tax base to enhance the lives of all residents. Tourism is the major vehicle for this endeavor. However, it must balance tourism with the desires and needs of its residents.

Solution: I was a travel writer for six years and received information about and invitations to visit hundreds of destinations west of the Mississippi. (That was the area I wrote about.) Never once did I here from Estes Park. That is horrible marketing and even worse public relations, as travel writers expect to be courted. We have far more choices for subjects to cover than any one writer can digest, so we lean toward covering exciting and alluring places where we know cooperation from the locals is available. Guess which places get written about? Those who are eager to help us write our stories.

In addition to contacting travel writers who cover the area, Estes Park should reach out to travel agents, in-flight magazine editors whose airlines fly to Colorado, and outdoor outlets that carry maps and brochures of getaways for their customers.

But sending an e-mail, brochure or marketing letter to a travel writer isn't enough. Like tourists, travel  writers need a compelling reason to visit and to provide an angle for their stories. Like all other brand building and marketing, Estes Park starts their reach out by identifying those writers and magazines that focus on the region and on outdoor activities. As I am in the role of advising Estes Park along with the other Brandingwire consultants, here is how a marketing kit for travel writers, outdoor writers, adventure travel writers as well as travel and outdoor magazine and newsletter editors should be built.

1. Create a colorful folder capable of including your marketing pieces. The front cover should feature a great headline, the Estes Park logo, and action photos of people having fun outdoors, as well as photos of visitors shopping and dining. The same photos should be available to writers and editors on request.
2. Inside the folder include a well-written letter, that contains few if any adjectives and no hyperbole. Writers and editors are a cynical bunch and are skeptical about being sold. They just want the facts, so give them the facts.
3. Answer these questions in the letter and keep the letter to no more than two pages. Use bullet points to answer these questions: Why would my readers care about Estes Park? Where specifically is Estes Park in relation to other getaways and scenic spots? What is there to do in and near Estes Park? What do accommodations look like? Where do I eat? What does Estes Park shopping look like? Is it easy for visitors to reach Estes Park?
4. Invite the travel writer or editor to visit Estes Park. Recommend accommodations. (Offer free accommodations, if the writer can accept them.) Offer to provide a tour guide. Offer to set-up interviews with colorful locals. Offer to answer any questions the writer or editor has and to provide photos to go with their article.
5. Provide directions on how to get to Estes Park by air, train, and automobile.
6. If you have a brochure, include that in the packet.
7. If a book or brochure about the history of Estes Park is available, include that as well. Many travel writers like to include historical information in their articles, especially if it is colorful.
8. Target the packet to those writers and editors most likely to cover Estes Park. Don't overlook guidebook authors.

With this strategy, Estes Park should be able to get the attention of writers and editors.

Here is additional background on Estes Park, if you are interested.

Get more high-voltage ideas at BrandingWire.com.

You might also want to read Seth's post about setting Expectations, which is critical to working with travel writers and editors.