Into the wild in style
The Resort at Paws Up
May 2008

Sunset magazine, the western regional lifestyle publication, has the perfect demographic for Paws Up, the luxury ranch resort in Montana. But the magazine was slow to commit to a story or visit the property. But after four years, a new editor finally went for the all-powerful travel trend of “glamping.”

Sunset asked LDPR for assistance with finding the appropriate freelance writer to do the piece for Paws Up. LDPR’s matchmaking skills proved successful when editor Rachel Levin and freelance writer Dina Mishev hooked up for the story published May 2008. Sunset readers reacted on the spot. The feature was linked to 165 phone inquiries and 30 reservations, resulting in nearly $100,000 in revenue to date.

Circulation: 1,238,608
Ad Value: $95,625
PR Value: $286,875

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Eden “rocks” the luxury market
Eden Rock, St Barths
Spring 2008

Eden Rock, St Barths was unveiling its newest accommodation in January 2008—the two-bedroom Villa Nina that would start renting in high season at a rate of $49,000 Euros per week—a steep price even for the luxury market. The challenge was finding an outlet that reached the upper-affluent consumer likely to rent the villa.

LDPR targeted Black Ink magazine, read by holders of the invitation-only “American Express Black Card,” positioning the new villa as the ultimate getaway in the Caribbean. The clincher for the editors was an over-the-top quote provided by Eden Rock owner David Matthews that demonstrated just how far the management at Eden Rock is willing to go to please their guests. The result was a one-page feature with gorgeous photos and a quote from owner David Matthews.

Circulation: 30,000
Ad. Value: $54,000
PR value: $162,000

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Swinging your way to a better physique
Grande Lakes Orlando
March '08

At a time when golf is not as trendy and newsworthy as it once was, LDPR was charged with increasing the coverage on Grande Lakes’ award-winning course and Golf Club.

The head golf professional, Kelly Sheehan, happened to be the first and only female head golf professional in the Ritz-Carlton organization. Although this was a hot button for the client it was not a strong enough angle to secure a major feature placement. So LDPR combined the concept with another trend -- fitness. Kelly had an exercise and wellness background, so LDPR worked with her to create a number of on-course exercises that golfers could do between holes.

LDPR had arranged for Sean Liphard, editor of H2O magazine, an Atlanta-based fitness publication, to visit the property for a general resort feature. Using the golf/fitness angle, the team leveraged this visit to introduce the editor to the new golf exercises. The result: a general resort feature in the January/February issue followed by a four-page color feature in the March/April issue. The spread included step-by-step photography of the exercises and a full-page color photo of The Ritz-Carlton, Orlando, Grande Lakes.

The circulation of H2O is 200,000 and targets the important Orlando feeder market of Atlanta. The total coverage resulted in 1.2 million media impressions and a total PR value of $114,000.

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Summer struggles
Tourisme Montreal/Orlando CVB
May 2008

In the face of the weakening US economy, Tourisme Montreal and the Orlando Convention and Visitors Bureau both launched campaigns to promote the value in their destinations and engage consumers in the experiences of each city.

In addition to regular media outreach, LDPR wanted coverage for the marketing campaigns, showing what both destinations were doing to respond to the situation. The agency approached an editor at The New York Times Business section, and worked to secure interviews with spokespeople from both Montréal and Orlando for a feature story focusing on “summer struggles for visitors” and how destinations were faring.

The New York Times, with a circulation of about 1.5 million, prominently cited interviews with both Tourisme Montréal and Orlando CVB throughout the feature story, a huge media success for two clients and the agency. Additionally, the story was accompanied by the lead image of Montréal’s news ad with “value” messaging. The feature story also ran on The New York Times Web site, with 2.8 million hits per month, and highlighted Orlando’s television ad via video.

Circulation: 1,495,048
PR value: $265,971
Ad value: $797,913

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Art took Eden Rock far from the travel pages, all the way to the Wall Street Journal
March 2008
Eden Rock, St. Barthes

The art world is shifting its sales strategy, selling even the big-name art outside the usual galleries and auction houses. Eden Rock, the luxurious resort in St. Barths, has been aiding this shift with its Artists Series that displays and sells the work of today's leading contemporary masters. Will Cotton, the New York artist known for his surreal candy landscapes, was to stay at the hotel for the entire month of February and display his collection in March.

Quick to take advantage of this interesting story angle, LDPR approached the weekend edition of The Wall Street Journal, offering an exclusive interview with Cotton. The result: a placement both in the hard copy of this national newspaper (which included a photo of one of Will’s paintings for sale at Eden Rock) and online, which featured a slideshow of nine Will Cotton paintings for sale at the resort. This news item reached over 15 million readers and carried a PR value of $137,000. Even better, the resort received many inquiries from interested collectors.

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Circulation: 20,500
PR value of $32,880
Ad value: $98,640

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A marriage made in…Paris!
Concorde Hotels & Resorts
March 2008

Concorde Hotels & Resorts, a well-known Paris-based hotel company in Europe, was relatively unknown in the US. The company hired LDPR to introduce the brand to American travel agents, meeting planners, leisure travelers and business executives.

When the brand’s chief operating officer, Marie-Béatrice Lallemand, announced she was coming to New York, LDPR set up appointments so she could meet with high-level travel agent trade media, meetings media and national travel magazines and tell her story of the growth and future of the company.

Kerry Medina of Vacation Agent interviewed Ms. Lallemand and ran a two-page feature interview story in March. The article was an in-depth look at Concorde Hotels & Resorts as seen from the eyes of Ms. Lallemand. All important aspects of the hotel brand were highlighted within the story.

Circulation: 30,535
Ad Value: $27,945
PR Value: $83,835

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Wall Street style
The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples
July 2008

LDPR handles the publicity for both The Ritz-Carlton Beach Resort and The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in Naples, Florida. As one of he brand’s flagship properties, The Beach Resort always receives a steady stream of coverage, but there have been challenges in broadening recognition for the Golf Resort.

The media has not been covering golf resorts with the same tenacity as in the past, but The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, one of the top in Florida, has a relaxed and stylish atmosphere and offers more than golf with shared amenities with the Beach Resort. When pitching media, it was important to deliver the message that a stay at the resort has something for everyone: golf, spa, the beach, great food and an assortment of activities throughout the year.

Seeing is believing, so LDPR invited the travel columnist from TraderDaily.com to experience the property for himself. This Web site reaches a very targeted group of affluent Wall Street traders, a niche market for the property. The visit was scheduled for when the property was hosting its “Giveback Getaway” to the Florida Panther Refuge, so the journalist could further see how the resort goes “beyond the green.”

The end result was a story that hit on all the key message points. The resort’s proximity to New York, use of the beach and spa at the sister property and yes, world-class golf.

Circulation: 1.8 million hits per month
Ad value: $8,990
PR value: $26,970.

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Words on the Web
Peter Island Resort
May 2008

Peter Island Resort premiered its ultra-luxury villa product, Falcon's Nest, in May of 2007. The spectacular villa is so exclusive and high-end that finding the right media with the right audience was crucial to help book the accommodation and meet the marketing goals of the villa and the resort overall.

In addition to consumer print publications with affluent readerships, LDPR wanted to blanket all forms of media with information about Peter Island Resort and the villa program, especially Falcon’s Nest. The agency targeted Indagare.com—a subscriber-based luxury travel Web site that makes vacation recommendations to their over 1,000 members. Indagare.com was offered an exclusive first-hand experience of Peter Island’s first-class service, amenities and spa treatments and was able to review the resort’s newest addition, Falcon’s Nest.

The result was a glowing review on the Web site, which included numerous photos, as well as information on the resort, the spa, the cuisine and the villa rental program.

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The race to become the world’s first fully sustainable green island
Star Island
April 2008

Star Island came to LDPR in October 2007 with the goal of being positioned as the world’s first fully sustainable “green” island destination. This eco-luxe private island community and boutique hotel planned to break ground in The Bahamas in June 2008 with an opening date of late 2009.

Promoting a hotel before it even breaks ground is always challenging. Another obstacle was that the media was wary of "greenwashing" and unwilling to give the project coverage until it proved itself. So LDPR began pitching some creative angles, including a race to become the world's first green island. Among the competitors: Leonardo DiCaprio and Richard Branson.

LDPR pitched this story angle to a freelance writer from ABCNews.com, the online home of the ABC news network that gets more than a million hits per month. The result: a story titled “Who Will Create the First Green Island,” which positioned our client, David Sklar, as one of the top three contenders against DiCaprio’s Blackadore Caye and Salt Cay Island in the Turks & Caicos. This online feature coverage accomplished two goals for Star Island: it elevated the project’s status and gave it credibility for pitching additional coverage. The PR value was $21,990 and the client could not have been happier.

LDPR Broadcast Highlights

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Love stories
Hotel Jerome, Snake River Lodge & Spa and Scotland
July/August 2008

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During a fact-finding lunch, LDPR discovered that The Knot/The Nest, leading sites for weddings and newly weds, were looking for different romantic destinations for upcoming broadcast segments with their “editor experts.” The agency reacted instantly, listing good reasons for coverage and sending b-roll from a selection of its clients.

As a result, Hotel Jerome was featured as the “eco-friendly” option and Scotland as the “romantic fairytale” option in an NBC “Saturday Today in New York” segment on destination weddings. Not only was this excellent coverage in a top market for both clients, but it also addressed RockResorts’ hot, current initiative: promoting “green” efforts from the property to the brand level. Additionally, Scotland was the only destination highlighted in Europe for a romantic wedding and honeymoon spot. The second segment ran on CW-11 Morning News featuring Snake River Lodge as the first option for his/her duel vacations for a “Golf Guy and [a] Spa Girl.”

The Knot PR managers ultimately expressed great appreciation for LDPR’s product knowledge, fast turn-around and assistance with the segments. The relationship with these editors is now a stronger one and will no doubt result in additional broadcast coverage for other agency clients.

Circulation: 265,457
PR value: $48,876
Ad value: $146,628

As spring and summer family vacation time became top of mind, the economy was the issue of greatest concern for travelers. It was expected that tourism would be affected, but the family vacation remains one of “life’s necessities.” LDPR was faced with the challenge of securing a major national broadcast hit to impact summer bookings and show how Orlando was poised for growth and optimistic for the future in spite of any signs of recession. We armed ourselves with compelling facts; a great spokesperson, Gary Sain, President of the Orlando CVB, and identified the right outlet to deliver the message that it is still possible to visit America’s top family playground in tough times: Fox Business News “Money for Breakfast.”

LDPR worked with the Orlando CVB to compile an extensive list of value offers at all price points, packaged and presented to show how far $600 or $1,200 will stretch in Orlando. This gave us the necessary hook to pitch the producers of “Money for Breakfast,” and secure an interview for a live segment on Fox Business News.

The result: On air for over five minutes, Gary Sain was able to cover all of the important message points, including value, new development and visitor projections.

Ad value: $5,950
PR value: $17,850

Using Scottish fashions to introduce Scotland Week to the public.
Tartan Week Re-Branding

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Every year LDPR works with VisitScotland to promote Tartan Week. The agency's job is to drive potential travelers to the Scottish Village in Vanderbuilt Hall, Grand Central Terminal, so they can experience a taste of Scotland. In 2008, our challenges were three-fold: 1) Tartan Week was re-branded Scotland Week 2) the Scottish Village, used to anchor the event, was canceled due to construction in Grand Central Terminal 3) VisitScotland had a mandate to promote their "Homecoming 2009" celebrations as part of the event in New York. Without the Scottish Village in place to drive traffic and connect with the public, LDPR had to find other ways get Scotland’s news out to a large audience.

Coverage on national television was the perfect solution. On behalf of VisitScotland, LDPR reached out to our great contacts at the TODAY Show and worked with their producers to create a Scottish fashion segment on the “history of tartan.” To weave in the "Homecoming 2009" message we included a real Scottish Clan Chief outfitted in his family tartan and full regalia. We also secured a place for Scottish kilt designer, Howie Nicholsby, to commentate on the fashions and offer a brief history of tartan. An LDPR staffer was chosen as one of the models for the different outfits.

Four minutes of air-time spotlighting Scotland Week and the Homecoming message on national television. This hit reached a viewership of 9,111,984 and had a PR value of $1,237,500.

The Outback Goes Mainstream
Tourism Australia
October/November '07

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Australia enjoys a fantastic reputation among Americans as a land of laid-back attitudes, rich cultural history, world-class beaches and urban, sophisticated cities. As the PR agency for Tourism Australia for the past nine years, it has garnered a tremendous amount of publicity in travel, lifestyle and trade publications. However, in 2007, Tourism Australia asked us to focus our efforts on a large, far-reaching broadcast feature that would highlight the best of Australia, as well as support two of their “hot buttons” for the year: its World Heritage Sites and the fact that Australia is close enough to the US for a week-long holiday.

We decided that a national morning show would be our best bet (huge audience with national reach). The viewers would consist of both avid travelers (who may have already visited Australia and are looking for a reason to return), as well as potential travelers who see Australia as an "aspirational" destination and just need that extra nudge to get them on a plane.

LDPR pitched The CBS Early Show’s on-air weatherman Dave Price. We knew he was a big fan of Australia and that the show was planning its 2007 “All-Access” season -- a series of segments in which one lucky winner accompanies Dave on a trip of a lifetime. The only catch: the trip had to be completed, start to finish, in four days. Although travel to Australia from North America takes two days (because of the time difference), we were convinced we could make it work.

We worked tirelessly with the producers to create the perfect itinerary that would wow their television audience with uniquely Australian icons and experiences such as the Great Barrier Reef, Uluru (Ayers Rock), Sydney and the Opera House. These areas also happen to be World Heritage sites, so we were able to work that messaging in, as well as the fact that the entire trip – from the reef to the rock to Sydney – was done in just 2.5 days!

The result: an eight-minute segment with a viewership of 3,574,158 and an PR value of $966,294. In addition, information on planning a trip to Australia was included on the CBS News Web site and a special thank-you was given to both Tourism Australia and Qantas on air.