Communications & Film

For the month of June, July, and August, the Communications team logged 106 media touchpoints, initiated 29 targeted pitches, and hosted 16 media on the ground in Greater Palm Springs.

Story support was provided to outlets including AFAR, New York Times, Luxury Travel Magazine, 7X7, Northstar Media Group, Inside Hook, Forbes, and Skift Meetings.

Significant coverage was garnered in publications including Le Figaro, Ultratravel (UK),Trail Running Magazine (UK), The Washington Post, Crave Magazine, West Palm Beach Magazine, TravelPulse, Forbes, LATV, Sunday Telegraph, AFAR, Roadbook (UK), CNT Traveller, Escape AU, Skift Magazine, and Santa Barbara Magazine. Our team and agencies worked together to secure more than 110 placements over the past three months.

The team was active with a number of initiatives that drew media interest. Press release distribution included the hiring of Will Trokey as National Sales Manager Northwest and Lauren Bruggemans as Director of Sustainability and Community Engagement. Both drew positive responses from meetings and trade outlets. In addition, we saw media pickup with the announcement of the Meetings Oasis Incentive, ESPA National Service Professionals week, and the launch of the Oasis of Art campaign, which included a kick-off event. 

In August, Film Oasis focused on building content for our locations library and images for the coming re-launch of the Film Oasis social media platforms. In coordination with all nine cities, we planned and executed a photo shoot that encompassed the entire Coachella Valley. We are now in the process of cataloging the shoot for the exciting update of our image library, which will be a great asset for any film scout looking to shoot in Greater Palm Springs.

In September, VGPS hosted a press conference to share findings from Convention Sports & Leisure's Case Study Assessment of Culinary & Hospitality Program Review. The study was intended to assist educational and visitor industry stakeholders in the Coachella Valley in building an informed recommendation for the creation of a dedicated Culinary & Hospitality program within the new West Valley campus of College of the Desert (COD). Media coverage included MSN, The Desert Sun, Look-Travels.com, NewsBreak, The Palm Springs Post, KESQ, Telemundo, and KPSP.

Also in September, the team will participate in the Society of American Travel Writers Convention meeting with 18 media one-on-ones and engaging with the meeting's 150 attendees. The team will also attend the Visit California San Francisco Media Mission and participate on a panel for the Wellness Tourism Association annual meeting. After a two-year hiatus, we are pleased to be hosting our Los Angeles media dinner and host Visit Greater Palm Springs Los Angeles Media Dinner at Workshop LA. Twenty-four media are scheduled to attend.

In Australia and the United Kingdom, we will be leveraging the release of the film Don’t Worry Darling, filmed in Greater Palm Springs. In Sydney, our PR agency will join in, hosting the premiere with NBC/Universal. In London, we will host a private screening for media and travel trade guests.

Other projects for the Communications team included participation in Destinations International’s Communication Taskforce, Society of American Travel Writers’ (SATW) DEAI (Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, Inclusion) Committee, Visit California PR Committee and Crisis Taskforce, SATW Webinar Committee, and Visit California Rural Region Committee.

Below are dashboards showing our year-to-date total PR Quality Score and article stats. The PR Quality Score measures content coverage on a point system based on story type, media tier, visuals, and coverage placement. Scores for earned media range from a low of 2 points to a high of 10 points

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