Tuesday, February 21, 2006

M. Silver Associates Lands Eight New PR Accounts for 2006

UPSCALE PROPERTIES AND RESORTS SPAN THE REAL AND VIRTUAL WORLD

NEW YORK – M. Silver Associates (MSA) recently added eight new accounts to its award-winning stable of travel and tourism clients for 2006. They are: Cable Beach Resorts and Baha Mar in the Bahamas, Jumeriah International and the Essex House in NYC, the Alexandra Resort on Turks & Caicos, the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, FL., Intrawest, a leading network of premier resorts, and CondoCenter.com, an online aggregator of global condominium offerings.

According to Virginia M. Sheridan, president of M. Silver Associates, the agency will bring its 30-year track record in the hospitality industry to bear on these new clients. “Our work in 2006 will be among our most ambitious and challenging,” she said. “We will be developing and implementing awareness and branding campaigns to help these diverse properties and destinations flourish and profit in what continues to be an ever-more competitive environment.”For M. Silver, the diverse list of new clients underscores the company’s commitment to growth. “The travel and hospitality industry is just now emerging from several down and slow-growth years. Resorts and destinations are recognizing the need to distinguish themselves in unique and meaningful ways to capture their share of the tourism dollars. The ability to translate marketing efforts to the bottom line has always been the hallmark of M. Silver’s campaigns,” Sheridan added.

Jumeirah International, whose luxurious and innovative properties are recognized around the world, will be undertaking a major branding campaign on behalf of its first acquisition in the United States, the New York City-based, Essex House. Jumeirah properties include the architecturally distinctive sail-shaped Burj Al Arab, the multi-award winning Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Jumeirah Emirates Towers, Jumeirah Beach Club Resort and Spa, Madinat Jumeirah and Jumeirah Bab Al Shams Desert Resort and Spa in Dubai. Jumeirah has also expanded internationally, now managing the Jumeirah Carlton Tower and Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel in London.
Cable Beach Resorts (CBR), a subsidiary of Baha Mar Development Ltd, consists of three properties on Nassau’s Cable Beach in The Bahamas – the Wyndham Nassau Resort and Crystal Palace Casino, the Nassau Beach Hotel, and Radisson Cable Beach & Golf Resort. Together, the trio forms one resort complex with cross-property amenity privileges available to guests. Focusing on a $15 million capital improvement program, M. Silver Associates will once again help reignite this burgeoning vacation and gaming destination.

Baha Mar Development Ltd is currently undertaking the largest single-phase resort development in the history of the Caribbean and The Bahamas. Set to open in 2010, this $1.6 billion joint venture between Baha Mar Development, Ltd., Harrah’s Operating Company and Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc, will feature a 1,000 acre mega-resort with four planned hotels, a 65,000 square-foot casino, the largest in the region, and a Jack Nicklaus designed 18-hole signature golf course.

The Alexandra Resort & Spa of Turks and Caicos takes M. Silver Associates deeper into the Caribbean. The agency will introduce the resort to North American audiences. Built in 2000, The Alexandra is the newest resort of the Turks and Caicos islands, featuring spacious accommodations, international cuisine, an exotic, pristine location, and unparalleled customer service.

The Biltmore Hotel of Coral Gables, Florida named MSA to spearhead a new image building public relations campaign focused on re-vamping the hotel’s iconic status. The move comes as the property celebrates its 80th anniversary with comprehensive renovations and restorations, a new destination spa, a new sophisticated and elegant restaurant beside the largest hotel swimming pool in the U.S., an innovative new membership club and a $40 million makeover for its classic Dennis Ross-designed 18-hole golf course.

MSA will represent Intrawest, the leading network of premier resorts. The company’s diverse list of properties range from mountain top retreats to championship golf courses to sequestered beaches across North America. Whistler Blackcomb, British Columbia, The Village at Squaw Valley, California, Winter Park, Colorado, Stratton, Vermont, Montelago Village on Lake Las Vegas, and the Sandestin Golf & Beach Resort in Florida are among its signature properties. M. Silver Associates will utilize its experience in destination management and adventure travel to position Intrawest as the leading provider of unmatched, year-round vacation experiences.

Lastly, M. Silver Associates has been retained by The Condo Center whose website (condocenter.com) provides developers and sellers a forum to showcase their products to an international audience. Consumers can search for and learn about new condos in urban and resort developments across the country and around the world, accessible from any personal computer. M. Silver will call on its expertise in new product/destination launches to effectively position The Condo Center as a “one-stop global condo shop,” to the real-estate and buying publics.

In service for almost 30 years, M. Silver Associates Inc. has established itself as one of the United States’ leading public relations/marketing communications agencies specializing in travel and tourism and ranks among the top 100 agencies in the country. The firm’s roster of clients includes national and international destinations, leading hotels and resorts, airlines, attractions and the cruise industry. In recognition of its outstanding work, M. Silver has received critical acclaim from leading travel and public relations organizations with more than 270 public relations awards.

Headquartered in New York City, MSA also has an office in Fort Lauderdale serving national and regional clients as well as the agency’s Hispanic practice. M. Silver is also a is a partner in The Worldcom Group, the world’s largest consortium of public relations agencies for clients seeking greater international marketing support.

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Wednesday, February 15, 2006

M. Silver Associates Unwraps the 'Mummy' of all Guerilla Marketing Promotions

This winter, a small army of King Tut-costumed models hit the streets of New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Detroit, Boston and Washington, DC during peak rush hours to promote the arrival of the King Tut exhibition to Greater Fort Lauderdale, Florida. As a symbol of the warm sunshine in Greater Fort Lauderdale, the King Tut characters were handing out branded "hand warmers" with a King Tut message and the Greater Fort Lauderdale website address to more than 30,000 people. M. Silver Associates developed and executed this creative guerilla marketing initiative, which also featured the attention-grabbing "Beach on Wheels" -- a glass enclosed beach scene with real sand, palm trees, sea shells and other beach decoration on the back of a 22-foot truck. MSA used the "Beach on Wheels" as a backdrop to weather segments that were secured in each market, including interviews with Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau president Nicki E. Grossman. "These promotions," says Grossman, "are worth their weight in gold!"
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