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How to survive your first group press trip

 

Ready for the opening party of #MustSeeMenorca with @traverseevents @spain @turismomenorca @portbluehotels ☀️⛴

A post shared by Jess Buck|JourneyswithJessica (@jessica16_x) on

 

Press trips. The holy grail of the blogging world, and they’re so sought after that bloggers literally compete with each other in a bid to get picked by brands and companies. I’ve never had the opportunity to attend one before, but if you’ve followed my blog lately you’ll know that I was recently invited on my first EVER group press trip, and what a trip it was! Along with 59 other bloggers, Instagrammers and Youtubers, I was invited to explore the beautiful Spanish island of Menorca as part of  the #MustSeeMenorca campaign with Jet2, Traverse, Turismo Menorca and Spain. As this was my first ever group press trip I was totally unaware of what to expect, and was a little nervous to begin with, but once I embraced everything and felt more confident, I found myself having one of the best week’s of travel I’ve ever had! If you’re about to jet off on your first group press trip and aren’t sure what to expect, these top tips might help you get through it…

 

Understand the brief before you go

 

 

This is single-handedly the most important thing you should do before accepting an invitation to attend a press trip. Check the brief that the company have sent you, go through it with a fine toothed comb and make sure you can deliver what they have asked of you before you go on the trip, and before you start to create content. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, or to tell them that you can’t deliver on a certain aspect of the brief, as they may be able to work around you so that you can come up with a compromise together. If a company have asked for daily Instagram posts whilst you’re away but all you’ve done is one tweet every other day, it’ll just reflect badly on you and look as if you haven’t checked the brief at all. Also, check that you know the right brand accounts to tag if you’re posting on social, and know what relevant links you need to include in your content. It’s something so simple, but it’ll really help to make sure you don’t miss anything and that you stick to creating the content that both you and the brand want and need.

 

Interact with fellow attendees online 

 

 

This is something I swear by, and I do it every time I’m going on a group trip or event, not just a press trip or a work related activity. I think there’s something about making friends with people online that helps you to feel less nervous about meeting them face to face, as it takes away that feeling of being total strangers and meeting for the first time. I always search the hashtag of the event/trip before attending so that I can see who else is, and say hi that way.

 

 

Before attending Traverse16 for the first time I searched the hashtag on Twitter, found a lovely girl called Lucy who was also going for the first time, chatted online with her for a bit and she then invited me to stay at hers so we could attend the conference together. Fast forward a year and Lucy and I have attended many other blogger events at the same time, become firm friends and have even taken a little holiday together! That’s the power of social media, it brings people together who have similar interests and opens up new opportunities – and sometimes it’s definitely who you know, not what you know, that can make all the difference.

 

Don’t be afraid to be a little nervous

 

Cave parties in #menorca are my favourite🍾 #MustSeeMenorca #igersmenorca

A post shared by Jess Buck|JourneyswithJessica (@jessica16_x) on

 

Press trips are naturally very daunting, and often a little scary. Most of the time you’ll be going on trips with bloggers who have been doing this for YEARS and are total pro’s at the whole networking thing. At the other end of the scale though, there are always people like me who will be on their first ever press trip and that’s totally OK – we’ve all gotta start somewhere! Don’t be afraid to show that you’re a little nervous, it makes you human, and your fellow bloggers will admire you for being so honest.

 

 

Before the #MustSeeMenorca trip I posted in the Facebook group just to introduce myself and said that I was feeling nervous as my blog is so small compared to some of the other big bloggers that were attending, but I received lovely comments and messages from other attendees saying that there was no need for me to nervous, or that they were feeling the same too, and that they were really looking forward to meeting me. Little things like that make the world of difference and my nerves soon turned into excitement as my confidence was increased in no time!

 

Document everything as you go along

 

 

Make notes, take photos, record videos. Do everything you can to capture as much content as possible whilst you’re on the move. Even if you’re not required to post anything whilst you’re away, keep things for yourself so that you have a database of notes and images to work from when the time comes for your content to be created. If the deadline is a week or two after the trip has ended, chances are you’ll have forgotten some of the most important aspects that you wanted to write about, so by keeping that database you can keep your memory fresh, and your content will be as accurate as possible. Don’t forget to keep your phone location switched to ON so that you can record destinations as you go along without even realizing it – super handy when you come to post a photo on Instagram two weeks later and can’t remember the name of the location!

 

 

Be honest and open with your group at all times

 

 

Luckily, I’m a terrible liar and am pretty transparent. I’m always open and honest with people, and I know they find it easy to tell when I’m upset, or when I’m not well. On one of the days of the #MustSeeMenorca trip I felt really poorly, had a banging headache and could barely open my eyes. One of the girls quickly noticed I wasn’t quite right and nodded to one of our group leaders for help. I was taken out of the sun and offered a bit of respite for half an hour where I had something to eat and had a sugary drink to make myself feel better. Within half an hour I was fine and was able to re-join the group, but it made the world of difference knowing that I could take that time out without feeling bad about letting anyone down, and could focus on getting myself better for the rest of the day.

Coincidentally, I think some people from our group thought that I might just have been drunk/hungover on that day as we had just left the gin distillery, which probably didn’t help! When I re-joined the group for dinner a couple of people had asked why I had been poorly, and I mentioned that I suffer with headaches on a daily basis, although some days are worse than others. It was at this point that I decided to open up to a small number of my new friends in the group and I started talking to them about my medical condition, and how it affects me in day to day life, as well as when I’m travelling. After a few minutes they were really supportive and I think they really respected that I had opened up to them. It made them understand why I had taken time out of the trip that day, not that I needed to have a reason to justify myself, but I’m a very honest person and I think they appreciated that too, just like I would have done if someone else had been in my position that day! If you’re feeling down, you’re feeling poorly or you’re just feeling not quite right – TELL someone, and don’t suffer in silence. You are not alone.

 

 

Special thanks to the lovely Nicola, Pete, Pedro, Nienke, Steve, Eileen and Georgie who listened to me rambling on that lunch time 😉 It really meant the world to know I could open up to you about something so personal to me. <3

 

Most importantly… just be yourself

 

 

This goes without saying. You do you. Just be yourself. Don’t try to act like someone else to fit in with the crowd – this isn’t high school! Get to know as many people on the trip as possible, say YES to as many activities as you can, embrace new experiences, make new friends and push yourself out of your comfort zone. If you can do all of these things whilst staying true to yourself then you’re on to a winner and will get the best possible experience from your first group press trip.

 

 

These steps really helped me to have the best time away during my first group press trip, although I know people work in different ways and no two press trips are ever the same. I feel very fortunate that #MustSeeMenorca actually felt more like a holiday than a press trip, and it allowed me to make new friends, grow in confidence and enjoy exploring the island. It didn’t feel like work one bit, but I know many trips have strict itineraries, deadlines and a set amount of required content, so by following the steps above you can prepare yourself to get as much out of the trip as you possibly can.

 

 

I hope these tips have been helpful! Have you ever been on a group press trip before, or are you planning on attending one in the near future? Let me know your thoughts as I’d love to hear from you! My next group press trip will be to the gorgeous Swiss resort of Nendaz in July and I’ll be working with the Travelopo team and 4 other fabulous bloggers to bring you some exciting content – watch this space!

Love Jess x

NB. All photos are my own, unless the embedded Twitter posts say otherwise. Thanks also to Spain for the featured image! A big thank you again to the wonderful teams at Spain, Turismo Menorca, Jet2 and Traverse for hosting my first group press trip, and for making it so special!

 

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EXCLUSIVE: INTERVIEW WITH AWARD NOMINATED BLOGGER TAYLOR HEARTS TRAVEL!

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Hi everyone,

As mentioned on a few of my previous posts I am delighted to bring you an exclusive interview with Char from the award nominated blog Taylor Hearts Travel which was carried out recently! Char has been blogging for the past year and has already built up an impressive social media following as well as being shortlisted as Best Female in lowcostholidays Best Blogger Awards 2014. You can view Char’s website here:  http://taylorheartstravel.com/

It was an absolute pleasure to interact with Char, she was very professional but extremely down to earth and gave me a real insight into her exciting life; I even picked up a few blogging tips for my own site! So here’s the interview in full.. enjoy!

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Q1)      Hi Char! When did you know you wanted to start travel blogging, and how did you take that first big step? Did you work in the travel industry previously or have a completely different job? I note that you have a full website for Taylor Hearts Travel rather than just a WordPress or Tumblr blog – are there larger benefits for doing this? Did you have a small blog to start with and then grow it from there?

A) It was just after I returned from Peru. I’ve always, always loved travelling and friends have often said I should work in travel. The idea of a travel blog pinged into my head and I decided to do it! There are no major costs in starting a blog, it can fit in alongside a full time job and it’s a great way to document travels. It was a no brainer for me – I had nothing to lose. My memory isn’t the best, so I love being able to keep track of my favourite travels and recommendations. I work in the sport industry, so it’s very different to travel. I started my contacts list from zero and have really enjoyed meeting fellow like-minded travellers. I started on a WordPress hosted site and then moved over to a self hosted one after a year or so. To be honest I wish I had started on the self hosted one, but at the time I had no idea how long I’d be blogging for or what would come of it. If you host it yourself you have more say in terms of creativity and advertorials.

Q2)      How important is social media for generating interest on each of your blog posts? I can see that you are using Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram etc and I wondered whether or not this was the single most powerful way to grow your online presence? I’m thinking of getting an Instagram account for my own blog so I’d love to hear your thoughts on this particular app.

A) I think social media is really important. It allows me to share my posts to my audience, but also a wider one if I use hashtags or someone shares/retweets it. It all moves very, very quickly and I love that aspect of it. I’m quite a visual person and people often comment on my photos, so for me Instagram is a dream. I love seeing other people’s pretty pics and again, using hashtags, it allows me to meet more people.

Q3)      Are you blogging full time and getting paid for it, or do you have another job on the side as your main source of income? Many bloggers I have spoken to simply blog as a hobby but I’d love to know the percentage of bloggers who actually get paid to travel and review their trips as this is the sort of industry I would like to start getting in to. I currently have over 27000 readers on my Trip Advisor account and was voted in the top 2% in Oxfordshire so I’d like to put that to good use!

A) Like most, I currently have a full time job, as well as another full time job (my blog!). I probably spend more time than most on mine, but that’s just down to my personality. If I’m going to do something, I do it 110%. I really go for it. I have no patience whatsoever, so I’d rather do it, than spend years planning it or worrying about what-ifs. I’ve made a lot of contacts in the industry and have worked with some amazing brands. Sometimes they might approach me and other times, I pitch to them. I think it’s all about being professional, committed and reliable. If you deliver what you set out to do, then chances are people will notice and existing clients will come back again. One of my favourite quotes is ‘Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground’. Well done re your readers on TripAdvisor! I was also really into that site and wrote loads of reviews, earning the badge of being in the top 3% on the site. Now that I document my trips on my blog I don’t really write as many for TripAdvisor, as I don’t have time, but also because as far as I understand you’re not supposed to write a review if you have a business relationship with the company.

Q4)      How often are you posting updates to your blog and social media outlets? I try to aim for once or twice a week with a few tweets/status updates in between but I realise that perhaps this isn’t enough. Do you also have any tips on the best times/days to publish posts so I can increase traffic to my blog?

A) Again, I’m probably in the minority here, but I aim to publish a new post at least four – five times a week, if not every day. I try to write the blog that I like to read. I hate it when I go to one of my favourite blogs they haven’t updated it, so I like to keep mine fresh and varied. I don’t think there is any right or wrong approach though. If there was, we’d all be doing the same and then that’d be boring! I think if you have an editorial schedule that works for you, then go with it. Don’t be distracted by what everyone else is doing (though it’s obviously helpful to learn from others). You can look at the analytics within Facebook/Twitter etc to find out what time of day most of your audience is online. Once you’ve worked that out, aim to share your info then. I think it’s also important to not run away with pre-programmed stuff. Yes, it’s helpful and time saving, but people also want to talk to a real person and see interactions. Keep it real!

Q5)      Finally, where are you currently blogging from at the moment? Are you all cosy back at home in the UK or are you on the move again?

A) I’m at home at the moment after returning from a weekend break in Paris and then one in Madrid. It’s only for a few more days though, as I’m off to San Francisco very soon. I’m manically trying to wash and repack everything! I note that your most recent trip was Madrid so I’d love to hear a short summary on the city – I was thinking of heading there earlier on this year but ended up in Barcelona instead! I’m sure Madrid would have been just as good though! Do you have any immediate plans for your next upcoming trip?I’d heard mixed reviews before I went, with the majority being quite negative. However, I absolutely loved Madrid. There are so many pretty cafes and restaurants, like the gorgeous ones you always see on Pinterest. Two days was definitely not enough – Madrid, I’ll be back. If you get the chance to visit, you should. The flights from the UK are so unbelievably cheap.

So there you have it, my interview with the wonderful Char from Taylor Hearts Travel in full – I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed putting it together!

Love Jess x

 

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