The days of the all-purpose general manager or director of sales who handles everything from day-to-day operations to marketing are going by the wayside in the hospitality industry,at least at the county’s large, full-service hotels and resorts.
While the Hilton Anaheim and Towers, Orange County’s largest hotel at 1,572 rooms, long has had a director of public relations, other county hotels are only recently following suit, adding PR and/or marketing directors to their management staffs.
“Hilton recognizes the important role of PR both at a corporate level and at our major landmark hotels with 1,000 rooms or more,” said Patrick Hynes, director of public relations for the Hilton Anaheim.
Hynes, who has held the position at the Hilton for 10 years, said his role is to create a positive feeling about the hotel, both in the community and with target customers.
“As my mantra, I like to use the simple definition of PR as performance and recognition,” Hynes said. “We’ve come a long way from the stereotype of smooth-talking schmoozers.”
Carrie Olson, director of marketing at the Four Seasons in Newport Beach since last year, echoed Hynes’ sentiments, saying there has been a big change in the hospitality industry’s attitude toward public relations in the past 10 years.
“The PR person used to be the social planner for the general manager,” she said.
Olson, however, oversees the Four Seasons’ sales, catering and public relations functions as well as marketing.
“When you look at (these areas), they all need to hold hands with each other,” Olson said. “You’re missing the boat if you separate them too much.”
Olson said all Four Seasons hotels have marketing directors, though the Newport Beach property was one of the last to add the position. The goal, she said, is for the marketing director to make sure each department is “under the same roof” when it comes to delivering the corporate message. Four Seasons, based in Toronto, also holds annual conferences for its PR directors, to facilitate the exchange of ideas.
Meanwhile, Lisa Poppen took over PR duties at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel this year. Poppen said all Ritz-Carltons have directors of public relations, even properties not in the resort category.
“(The company) recognizes the value of PR as an industry,” she said.
Now some smaller hotel companies are beefing up their marketing and PR staffs, too. La Jolla-based JC Resorts, parent of the Surf & Sand Hotel in Laguna Beach as well as resorts in San Diego County, created the position of leisure marketing manager last year.
“The position was created as I was interviewing,” said Eric Proffitt, who now holds that title. “The idea was to have a point person to manage PR and marketing functions. But the general manager is still the acting figurehead for the (individual) hotels.”
Other big players in the hospitality market handle PR differently.
David Horowitz, general manager of the Hyatt Regency Irvine, which at 536 rooms is the fifth-largest hotel in the county, said only the largest Hyatts might have a PR person on site. Typically, he said, Hyatts the size of those in Irvine, Newport Beach or Garden Grove would instead hire PR firms for specific needs, with general managers having the local authority to make the decisions. Horowitz cited his hotel’s recent move to take over management of the Oak Creek Caf & #233; at the Oak Creek Golf Course in Irvine as one instance when he used outside expertise.
And Ned Snavely, general manager of the Irvine Marriott, said he doesn’t know of any local Marriotts with PR managers on site.
But as more resort hotels like the Grand Coast Resort & Spa in Huntington Beach, the Ritz-Carlton in Laguna Beach and Capital Pacific’s resort in Dana Point come on line and competition for the travel dollar increases, more hotels may consider this option.
Hotel public relations has “a direct effect on occupancy, average room rate and revenue,” Hynes said. n
