First impressions mean a lot. So does establishing a strong cash flow, at pre-opening, opening, and  beyond. The best marketing tool for doing so, is a well conceived and executed media relations effort.

I don�t mean advertising. Buying an ad in a newspaper or on a website requires little more than writing a check, and anyone can do it.

I mean differentiation � truly and decisively stating what separates your hotel from its competitive set, what makes it the #1 choice in your market, and repeating the message again and again, in the media, online and anywhere else you find a receptive audience.

That is the work of public relations.

Opening in a Deep, Dark Recession

Nashville�s new Hutton Hotel (www.huttonhotel.com) faced a daunting task.

In the shadow of the collapse of Lehman Brothers, with the stock market down by more than half, and corporate meetings and the luxury consumer all but frozen - the 248-room luxury hotel that offers more than 13,000 feet of meeting space opened its doors in February, 2009.
It wasn�t easy. The credit for getting the doors open at all, belongs to the savvy ownership, management and sales team that was assembled to navigate the choppy waters. 

But it was clear to the team that if the hotel was to gain recognition and sell rooms, a public relations blitz would be necessary.

Here is what they did.

Finding the Right Message

The Hutton was designed with particular care, as a place of comfortable, easy luxury � neither staid and starched like many Southern grand dames, nor trendy and sleek, like a run of the mill �boutique.� 

The hotel�s owners also designed an environmental leader: dual flush commodes, bamboo flooring throughout the hotel, and automatic light switches highlight just some of the touches that makes it the Greenest hotel in Nashville, maybe in the entire southeast.

Then there is Nashville: Music USA, home to country stars and celebrities, boasting a thriving dining, cultural, university and business scene, have blunted some of the hard edges that slashed some other cities in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

All that remained was to tell the story.

�With Love From Nashville�

Step 1 - we brought the hotel�s ownership and management to New York City, for a series of meetings with top journalists in the trade, consumer and financial media.

To execute this kind of �media tour�, you need to have well groomed, articulate spokesman representing the hotel � and we were fortunate to have both.

Hutton management met with more than twenty different journalists at many leading outlets, in the course of four visits.

Results included an article in the Wall Street Journal, several meeting trade feature articles about the hotel�s meeting space, and recently, a nationally-televised appearance by the owner on FOX Business News (View video). 

We also designed and publicized a special �With Love from Nashville� weekend rooms package, including dinner at the hotel�s cutting-edge 1808 Grille restaurant, tours of local music landmarks, and an Amazon gift card for downloading the guest�s choice of country music.

This package garnered publicity and generated a significant number of weekend reservations.

�Air Hutton�

Hutton Hotel�s Luxury Green positioning was enough to interest not just the print media, but media �in the air� as well.

Early on, a noted international travel journalist visited the hotel and broadcast his weekly radio program from the hotel�s lobby. It was heard everywhere.

Still in the air, American Way magazine, the in-flight magazine for American Airlines, featured the hotel�s Green features in a full-page article in the magazine�s Up Front section. This means that over a two-week period, it was read by every passenger who checked the seat backs on American flights, coast to coast and internationally.

With Hutton�s Green reputation elevating �everywhere� in the stratosphere, it�s no wonder that Al Gore�s Climate Organization chose the hotel to host its annual Summit meeting in June!

Lessons from the Trenches: Spreading the Good Word

What�s next for Hutton?

The much-anticipated pick-up in corporate travel should be a boost, and the hard work of the talented local sales team is beginning to bear fruit. Thanks to the hotel�s standing as the only Nashville member of Leading Hotels of the World, the luxury traveler should soon start beating an even deeper path to the hotel�s eco-friendly doors.

As for the media, the momentum continues to build. Look for Hutton on the airwaves, in the national and regional press, and in the heart of the Social Media.

When planning a media strategy for your next hotel, you might consider taking a page from Hutton�s playbook. 

Michael Frenkel is president of MFC PR, a Manhattan-based PR firm that represents the Hutton Hotel. Reach him at [email protected].

Michael Frenkel
212-808-6556
[email protected]