NEWH - November 2003 - (Page 57)

industry partner education… 10 insider tips to getting published by: Michael Adams Hospitality Design Magazine One of the joys of working for a magazine like Hospitality Design is the opportunity to see new work by our infinitely creative readers. Without input from designers and architects, we would have nothing to publish, and we cannot hope to have enough eyes and ears around the globe to find the projects we admire. But too often we find that designers simply don’t know how to go about approaching us or, once they do, what to send, when to send, and a host of other issues. What follows is a list of helpful hints to make the process easy for all concerned. Know the publication you’re interested in reaching. Don’t waste your time or theirs submitting projects that aren’t part of their mission statement. For example, HD does not publish retail stores or office spaces, so sending that kind of project to us is a non-starter. Call the magazine for an editorial calendar to find out what they’ll be covering in a particular issue. This allows you to target a specific issue that may be devoted to “senior living” or “restaurants.” Magazines have varying lead times for their submissions. Calling an editor in March for consideration in the April issue isn’t going to get you very far. We like to see potential features at least eight weeks before publication date. If there’s no one at your firm responsible for media relations and marketing, working with a public relations company is often helpful. A good pr firm can target your project effectively, and may have established good relationships with the editors. They can also be efficient in helping facilitate the details of the process – setting up interviews, getting sources, helping with fact-checking, etc. – when the designer is too busy. Hire a first-class architectural photographer; it’s the best investment you’ll make regarding publication. A great project can look second-rate with mediocre photography. Since HD and other magazines often don’t have the budgets to shoot every project we like, we depend on the property or the designer/architect to supply the photos. eyes at poolside – but they don’t really show the scope of the design. (We rarely publish photos with people in the shots.) A side note, it’s important to have more than a handshake agreement with the photographer regarding publication rights. The subject of who controls the publication rightsand at what cost-should be put in writing before you send the material out to editors. Be honest about where in print the project has appeared before. We don’t want our readers to see a project they may have already seen-or are about to see-in a competing publication. A photo or two that has appeared in a local magazine or a magazine that isn’t devoted to design is fine. Just be sure to let us know. But if the project appears in two design publications simultaneously, and you haven’t been candid about it, you’re likely to sour relationships with both publications. Send images in a format favored by the publication. (Call if you’re not sure.) The digital age has made it a lot easier to send images to us via e-mail for consideration, but these are not easy to pass around to the staff for general consideration.(The old slide seems to be going the way of the dial telephone.) Color prints are fine; in fact, I prefer them. Some of the digital images we may be able to use for publication, but it’s possible we may ask for 4 x 5 transparen- Hire a first-class architectural photographer; it’s the best investment you’ll make regarding publication. Michael Adams Be sure that these photos are not what we refer to as “brochure shots.” These are photos that may look great in a marketing campaign – the close-up of the single rose on the pillow, lovers looking longingly into each other’s 55

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NEWH - November 2003

NEWH - November 2003
Contents
Letter From the Editor
Hospitality News
On the Road Again... IHM&RS Show
Tips on Specs... Guestroom Lighting
Spotlight on the UK
Spotlight on Greater New York
Random Thoughts... Designing Today’s Boutique
Boutique Chain – Is It an Oxymoron?
Developing Boutique Hotels in Historic Structures
Unique Boutiques... The Story of Watertown
Approaching the Design of a Boutique Hotel
What Sets a Boutique Apart from the Rest?
Simplifying CEU’s
Small Business Advice
Industry Partner Education
Sources & Credits
Bios

NEWH - November 2003