Situation:

To launch its newly redesigned web site, luxury travel company Abercrombie & Kent created a unique “once in a lifetime” savings offer - and booking concept - to drive consumer traffic to the site and boost sales on select A&K itineraries.

Abercrombie & Kent launched their new website with the first sale on February 19, 2009 and after such great success, repeated the sale with different travel offers on May 14, 2009. Each sale was only for six hours, one day only, and A&K was relying only on an e-mail blast to travel partners and PR to drive the sales. In addition, details for the sale were only finalized one-week prior to the actual sale date. Sale details: the countdown sale began on each of the two dates at 9 a.m. CST with savings of 5% on five different itineraries. Every 30 minutes savings increased by 5% – to a maximum of 60% off the retail price at 3 p.m. CST - if the trip was still available. Departures were limited and offered on a first-come, first served basis and were only bookable via the company web site.

PR Objectives:

•	Sell out the trips on offer
•	Drive consumers to abercrombieandkent.com and landing page for “Once in a Lifetime” sales efforts
•	Impact bookings for selected trips, boost inquiries on complete A&K portfolio
•	Secure coverage of the sale in key digital media, as well as print coverage in The New York Times and Wall Street Journal

Strategies:

For each of the two sales, the PR team had a maximum of one week to pitch, confirm placements and report on hits. Short lead media – social media (Twitter/Facebook), online travel sites, blogs, and select newspaper travel sections – was the key to success. The team identified which outlets would have the most impact on driving sales, and the largest reach to consumers to “spread” the word. LDPR sprang to action and developed a media strategy document that including the following:

•	Social media “status and alerts” on Twitter and Facebook for quick story bites, and post link to abercrombiekent.com.
•	Viral strategy: Identify and pitch travel media who have their own online website and/or blog AND a Twitter handle, encouraging them to post on Twitter a link to their online/blog post about the A&K Sale. Retweet and repeat.
•	Tuesday’s Wall Street Journal “Travel Watch” column.
•	Sunday’s New York Times “Comings & Goings” column.
•	Targeted online media outlets included: travel websites, top newspaper websites, influential travel blogs, special interest blogs (family, adventure travel), and social media networking outlets, Facebook and Twitter.

Situation:

Legendary travel company, Abercrombie & Kent, entered the destination club market in the fall of 2008 with the launch of Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club. The members-only travel club already has more than 40 luxury private residences, villas and urban apartments located throughout the world. In terms of members, it’s the largest club based on an “equity model” (in which the club is owned by the members and operates debt-free) giving it a huge advantage in these recessionary times.

PR objectives:

• To create awareness for the fledgling destination club industry and the new A&K Residence Club
• To drive in-bound membership leads
• To establish A&K Residence Club’s “equity model” as the future of the industry, especially in a challenging economy

Strategy:

LDPR created a media outreach plan that targeted high net-worth individuals/families who travel three to four times per year. Messaging centered on the value an A&K Residence Club membership provides while establishing the “equity model” as the long-term future of the industry.

LDPR also capitalized on key differentiators in the A&K Residence Club including A&K’s signature “insider access” experiences, travel option flexibility (such as being able to exchange membership nights for A&K travel), plus a fair and balanced reservations procedure that handles occupancy issues at peak travel periods (holidays, summer, ski season, etc.).

Situation:

RockResorts, a division of Vail Resorts, takes great pride in its mountain hotels. While the four Colorado resorts in its collection in early 2008 were iconic properties, the company wanted to move the brand toward an even more upscale, luxurious experience. The underdeveloped area of Lionshead (approximately 15 minutes from Vail Village at the base of Vail Mountain) was the perfect place to start.

Changing the name to Vail Square, RockResorts built the first luxury resort to open in Vail in over 25 years—The Arrabelle at Vail Square. Since the property was such a departure for the company, it was important to generate the right media buzz surrounding its opening. LDPR was charged with positioning The Arrabelle as the big news in the Rocky Mountain area and in the ski-resort industry as a whole.

PR objectives:

• Secure feature placements for The Arrabelle at Vail Square in top luxury and travel publications
• Establish The Arrabelle as the leader in the revitalization of Vail
• Secure prominent coverage in travel trade publications
• Re-establish Vail as a luxury destination in top national travel magazines
• Drive bookings

Strategy:

LDPR created and hosted an editorial advisory board comprised of prominent editors to gauge expectations for a new five-star ski resort experience. We aggressively pitched top-tier media in the right target markets. We arranged a hard-hat tour of the resort for Colorado media in order to get them a sneak peek at the hotel prior to its opening to create some local buzz. And, in the first year of its operation, we organized 27 individual visits so the media could experience the RockResort’s magic first-hand.

Situation:

Canouan Island is one of the lesser recognizable names in the 32 islands that make up the Grenadines in the Caribbean. Those who have heard of it know the island for its privacy, beautiful location (a 45-minute boat ride from the one of the largest and most beautiful coral reefs in the world) and the luxurious Raffles Canouan resort. When Sports Illustrated expressed interest in shooting its highly publicized and annually anticipated Swimsuit Issue (February ’09) at Raffles Canouan, LDPR sprang into action.

PR objectives:

This was an excellent opportunity to raise Canouan’s profile. The reach was enormous and the demographics a perfect fit. LDPR’s objectives were to maximize the promotion power of a multi-page feature and possible cover that would “expose” Canouan Island to over 66 million readers and over 100 million online viewers. It was essential that Canouan’s messaging and call-to-action were prominently displayed.

Strategy:

1) LDPR created a contract with Sports Illustrated that clearly defined the exact exposure the resort would receive including a one-page editorial feature on the resort within the issue.

2) The team worked with the PR manager for the Swimsuit Issue to plan in advance for the media frenzy that ensues once the issue hit the stands.

3) LDPR also met with the Raffles Canouan sales team to plan and support their sales and marketing initiatives surrounding the Swimsuit Issue.

4) To supplement both sales and PR efforts, we worked with Raffles Canouan to create a unique web page for the Sports Illustrated issue and a special offer, “Canouan Island Un-covered” as a call to action for consumers.

Situation:

Architect David Sklar had a dream. He wanted to design and develop an eco-friendly, carbon-neutral, green island that was also 100% 5-star. The audience: affluent travelers and second-home owners who wanted luxury that came with zero cost to Mother Earth. Nowhere like this existed and it was David’s goal to be a pioneer and use Star Island as an environmental showcase. He came to LDPR looking for advice on market positioning and a worldwide publicity campaign.

PR objectives:

LDPR began the campaign well before groundbreaking, before there were photos or even defined characteristics. The goal was to establish the destination as the world’s first green island, as well as a leader in eco-friendly design and development. LDPR set out to capitalize on the media’s interest in environmentally sound practices, positioning Star Island as “the future of green travel.” Specific objectives included:

• Announcement coverage in top major US newspapers
• Coverage in major travel magazines
• Inclusion in regional and national magazine’s green issues
• Interview and profile stories on David Sklar
• Feature stories in environmentally-focused magazines and websites

Strategy:

LDPR stressed the innovation (green science) and the pioneering aspect of the project to whip up excitement in the media. We gave David media training, created a long list of brand responses and arranged interviews in many of America’s top media outlets. By sharing renderings, architectural plans, the planned technology, preliminary photos, and even arranging an occasional site tour of the empty island, we painted a “real” picture of the Star Island dream before it became a reality.

Situation:

The tourist board for Scotland, VisitScotland, had previously concentrated its marketing efforts on the Boomer and Senior markets. While these segments were still a priority, VisitScotland wanted to attract a broader demographic, including Generation X (affluent, urban professionals, 25-40 years). Not only are these X-ers the travelers of tomorrow, they are also a prime target for short, off-season CityBreaks to Edinburgh and Glasgow.

PR objectives:

To capture the attention of the Gen X’ers and channel them to VisitScotland's web site.

Strategy:

LDPR came up with the idea of capitalizing on the popularity of dating sites like Match.com by creating a similar web site for VisitScotland-DateAHotScot.com. Connecting to this portal, women in the U.S., Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, France and Germany could register and vote for their favorite "Hot Scot." The winner would receive a trip to Scotland to meet the man of her dreams.

The timetable for the publicity campaign was extremely tight (only six weeks) so LDPR went to work immediately, selling the story to short-lead media including daily newspapers, websites, radio and television. Assisting with the site, the team identified 20 "hot" Scottish bachelors. In addition to the contest itself, the site also drove home the key messages, positioning Glasgow and Edinburgh as hip and exciting destinations, with great nightlife and dining, daytime activities and plenty of hot Scots.

Situation:

The economic slump had begun and the dollar/pound exchange rate was threatening to stall the annual growth in tourism revenues. In response, the country’s tourist board, VisitScotland, announced a special yearlong celebration in 2009 designed to give people of Scottish descent and/or spirit a compelling reason to visit. Called “Homecoming Scotland,” the theme year was salted with over 400 events and many celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robbie Burns, Scotland’s most famous poet.

PR Objective:

VisitScotland, a long-standing client, required the agency to whip up a wave of excitement – positioning Homecoming Scotland as a once in a lifetime opportunity and “the year” to visit – and convert it into measurable results.

RockResorts wanted to increase shoulder-season revenues in its nine upscale resorts in various geographic regions throughout the United States and the Caribbean.

PR objectives:

•	To generate bookings through a creative PR-driven package
•	To build awareness for the RockResorts brand
•	To secure placements in national and target markets

Strategy:

LDPR got creative and came up with a timely "RockResorts Leap Year Package" that highlighted all properties and encouraged travelers to experience the resorts during their softer seasons. The idea was to capitalize on 2008's "extra" day by offering a free night stay at a RockResorts. All nine properties leapt at the chance to participate.

To maximize pick-up, the package was launched on February 29, 2008, to take full advantage of the media's thirst for leap-year stories.

Situation:

When the Resort at Paws Up opened in June 2005 it was the first luxury resort in Western Montana and an immediate hit with guests and the media. But nobody predicted that camping would become one of its top attention-grabbers and most sought-after room category. In the midst of Montana's breathtaking nature, the resort set up a cluster of six luxurious tents with its own restaurant and creature-comfort facilities. And, in the process, it started the trend of glamorous camping (a.k.a. “glamping”).

Although Paws Up was the first in the U.S., there was stiff competition from the Clayoquot Wilderness Resort, a luxury camping resort in British Columbia.

PR objectives:

•	To position Paws Up’s Tent City as the leader in the “glamping” trend
•	To feed the trend by securing feature stories on glamping in major national and top regional outlets including: newspapers, magazines, online and broadcast
•	To place a cover story on the glamping trend focusing on Paws Up in a national major newspaper
•	To position spokespersons at Paws Up as experts on the glamping trend

Strategy:

LDPR made sure that Paws Up "owned" the trend by:

•	Positioning it as the ultimate glamping resort, and using Clayoquot and other non-U.S. glamping resorts as other examples
•	Hosting individual media visits and one “Ultimate Glamping” press trip with A-list media attendees
•	Organizing desk-side appointments for Paws Up owners with top national publications
•	Pitching resort b-roll and a glamping release to national morning shows.
•	Leveraging Tent City's “Camping Butler” as an amenity unique to glamping at Paws Up
•	Creating a series of signature shots to boost media pitching efforts

Results:

After 30 years of handling PR efforts internally, Tourisme Montréal hired a PR agency to extend its U.S. media outreach.

PR objectives:

The goal was to get Montréal coverage beyond the travel pages, adding depth to the destination through its thriving French culture, style, sophistication and lifestyle attractions. Specific deliverables included:

•	Exclusive national newspaper features in non-travel sections
•	Feature stories in major design publications
•	Leveraging b-roll to secure broadcast placements for Montréal nationally and regionally
•	Feature stories in regional lifestyle publications
•	Interviews with a Tourisme Montréal executive in business sections of national publications

Strategy:

To get Montréal's "joy of life" to resonate with Americans in a deep and permanent way, the agency focused on romance, food, adventure, design and music. It then pitched these important lifestyle themes to top publications in each lifestyle category, delivering a range of story ideas to the relevant media. Targeting its efforts still further, the LDPR team devoted special attention on the north and east of the U.S. (Montréal's top regional/drive market).

Results:

Situation:

The challenge: most North Americans think of Australia in terms of the three “R”s: the roof (Sydney Opera House), the rock (Ayers/Uluru) and the reef (Great Barrier). Lacking one of these icons, Melbourne and its surrounding state of Victoria was being unfairly by-passed. It needed a greater share of the spotlight. Following LDPR’s unprecedented nine years as the agency for Tourism Australia, Tourism Victoria joined the LDPR family in July 2008.

PR objectives:

The primary objective was to raise the destination’s profile, positioning Melbourne and Victoria as Australia-in-microcosm with all the amazing Aussie experiences in one, easily seen state and/or one of the essential stops on the Australia circuit.

Strategy:

To raise the recognition factor in a significant way we needed exposure in large circulation, nationally distributed publications and programming. The exposure had to be broad but, to ignite real interest and create depth of perception, the pitches had to be focused. So we built our outreach around a handful of defined attractions like the penguins of Philip Island, the wonder of the Great Ocean Road and the remarkable food and wine opportunities in Melbourne. Our PR strategy included:

1)	securing mentions in the big-city newspapers and stories in the national magazines,
2)	using our strong contacts in national television productions like the Today Show, positioning the destination as an ideal location for the “Ends of the Earth” special with Meredith Veira and her fellow anchors,
3)	showcasing Melbourne’s notable chefs on a three-city media tour,
4)	targeting Anthony Bourdain and his “No Reservations” crew to film an episode in Melbourne,
5)	arranging for the food editor from the Melbourne Age, the city’s largest newspaper, to meet with American food/wine editors and
6)	looking for creative ways to shine the spotlight on Melbourne through its other ambassadors and personalities, and special offerings that would drive bookings.

Results: