On 29th October 2020, the second-year students at SCMC had the opportunity to interact with Ms. Kalpana Champawat, an alumnus of Symbiosis, on the theme “Marketing and PR of Heritage properties”. The head of the Women Cell of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), Jodhpur, she is a consultant for Media and Public Relations at Mehrangarh Museum Trust and a Media Consultant to the Jodhana Heritage Resorts.
Ms. Champawat shared her experience and insights on her association with Mehrangarh Museum Trust through an inspiring video clip. She showcased various exhibitions, conferences, music festivals and the Jodhpur Rajasthan international folk festival and her love for art and culture was highly reflected in the video.
She initiated the discussion with the basics of marketing and PR and the difference between the two. Further on, she talked about the importance of recognising the USP of your product/ place. She reinforced that, as media people we should always keep an eye out to spot the unique factor effectively communicate it with our audience. She expressed how important it is to tailor a message according to audience perspective and needs. This would help us position and successfully present it in front of diverse audience.
Ms. Champawat also emphasised the importance of Digital media and its role to attract and engage audiences. By selecting the right digital platform and creating messages through audio visual communications, we can reach the targeted masses and communicate exceptional features of our product or place. She also shared how promotional videos create an impact on the audience in small span of time by being short and interesting to read.
Further in the session, she shed light on how Covid-19 has impacted the travel and tourism industry. However, she pointed out that we should turn this situation into an opportunity, to work on our brand and develop customer relationships through making promotional videos, virtual talks, virtual tours/walkthroughs, etc. which will help us engage with our audience and build a loyal customer base for the future.
‘Learning is a process,’ Ms. Champawat rightly stated and emphasised on being flexible, open to learn and accept new things. We learned about qualities we should inculcate to become successful media professionals. To do so, we should demonstrate presence of mind and strengthen relationships in the industry.
She wrapped up the lecture by answering questions posed by the students and summarised her experience on working with Heritage Property and keeping its values intact while being able to successfully present it to the world.
The session equipped students with a lot of insight on how to excel in the profession by learning consistently and accepting changes in the macro-environment.
Siddhi Shaha
(Batch 2022)
