Tourism PR: How to Sell the City

Presented by John Marks, President and CEO, San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau by Allison Brown

Every city has a slogan. New York is "The Big Apple." Philadelphia is "The City of Brotherly Love." Chicago is "The Windy City." John Marks, president and CEO of the San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau, wanted to introduce students to his "City by the Bay."

Marks' presentation, "Tourism PR: How to Sell the City," clued students in on how to bring visitors to the city and keeping them coming back. His main message was "don't take your city for granted."

"Rankings count in all polls," Marks said, referring to the "Top Cities" listings that can be found in almost any magazine. The top four usually consist of San Francisco, New York, Chicago and New Orleans, with San Francisco and New York teetering back and forth between first-place statuses.

The first thing a public relations professional must do before selling the city to the world is sell the city to its people. Marks stresses the importance of the local communities and a focus on local people. San Francisco, for example, has the biggest China Town outside of China itself. It is also lucky to have the youngest guard ever to have worked on Alcatraz giving tours of the prison in his spare tune.

Recognize your city's icons, but don't forget that without a story behind it, there isn't much there. The Golden Gate Bridge is a San Francisco icon, but people need more than just a metal bridge to attract them to the city. They need stories.

Lastly, Marks had a few words of advice for students that could apply to any industry in public relations.

"Work smarter not harder. Be prepared for anything and everything. Don't hide from the media. You have to tell your story; don't let someone else do it for you. And most importantly, tell the truth!"