The Bermuda Tourism Authority’s public relations strategies appear to be paying off in editorial coverage that shines a brighter spotlight on the Island’s experiences and personality.

Between October 2014 and last month, the BTA’s public relations team has generated significant buzz with 131 articles online and in print, including high-profile cover stories. Over that six-month period, Bermuda has been on the cover of Conde Nast Traveler and Boston Globe Magazine; was named Outside magazine’s best island; and received multi-page features from New York magazine and Air Canada’s in-flight magazine, enRoute.

“It can take up to a year to go from pitch to publication with the big-name magazines,” said Victoria Isley, the BTA’s chief sales and marketing officer. “Based on the work we started last summer, positive things are happening. Earned media is an important part of our overall marketing mix and the momentum we are seeing is also reflected in our paid-media and social-platform growth.

“We work with many on-island partners and personalities to showcase Bermuda through these influential outlets. We then share with stakeholders the results of working with us and notify them about the overseas awareness we are building for Bermuda and for their individual businesses and experiences.”

When the BTA generates editorial coverage for the Island, each hotel, restaurant, tour operator or other partner included in the article receives an e-mail alerting them to the coverage. The coverage is also shared across BTA social-media channels. Dozens of tourism industry stakeholders have been featured in the 100-plus articles since October last year. Online there have been more than 360 million estimated impressions over that same time period.

Storylines have featured a wide variety of Bermuda experiences, from food culture and wreck diving to great golf and fashion inspired by the Island. “Bermuda tourism exposure has been essential to the growth of my brand internationally,” said Rebecca Hanson, creator of Bermuda TABS, the Bermuda shorts company. “My product is very much tied to the success of Bermuda and the efforts the BTA have taken to promote the Island have a positive knock-on effect — raising awareness and demand for a product that is synonymous with Bermuda. I am very grateful for their help and support, both as a Bermudian and as a local business owner.”

Ashley Harris, who runs Hidden Gems of Bermuda, said: “The tourism authority has provided a phenomenal amount of support for our relatively new tourism business. Hidden Gems has offered eco-excursions for less than two years, but it’s clear: among locals and visitors, people know who we are and the unique product we offer. We are very grateful for the positive support we get from the BTA.”

On culinary, Art Mel’s Spicy Dicy has been a media darling. Celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson told Forbes the Art Mel’s fish sandwich is “perfection”. Metro Canada’s travel writer Andrew Dobson said the eatery serves what many food and travel writers call “the world’s best fish sandwich”.

The BTA hosts scores of journalists who come to Bermuda each year to review its travel offerings.

Retailers, artists, restaurateurs, hoteliers, event promoters, excursion providers and many others have enjoyed editorial exposure facilitated through the BTA’s sales and marketing team.

Turner PR is the public relations firm of record for the BTA. Hired in June 2014, Turner aggressively pitches Bermuda to North American editorial decision-makers inside and outside of the travel industry. While Turner has maintained the attention of Travel+Leisure, Conde Nast and Robb Report, it has also expanded the interest in Bermuda to young, active, urban readers who are more likely to prefer publications such as Details, Elle Canada and Outside magazine.

Outside magazine named Bermuda as “Best Island” for adventure travellers and the BTA celebrated the recognition last month with a team cliff jump, a favourite activity of adventure travellers. That event capped a six-month stretch of public relations successes that began with Bermuda’s speedy recovery from Hurricane Fay and Hurricane Gonzalo.

In the meantime, Bermuda finished on this month’s top ten list of Trip Advisor’s 2015 Travellers’ Choice Awards for the Caribbean region.

Trip Advisor categorises Bermuda as a Caribbean destination and weighs the reviews and opinions the country receives from users, compared with island destinations to the south. Trip Advisor, the world’s largest travel website, uses an algorithm to determine winners, taking into account the quantity and quality of reviews and ratings for hotels, restaurants and attractions gathered over a 12-month period.

Hamilton, Bermuda, finished eighth on the list. See more about the Trip Advisor Top 10 Travellers’ Choice Destination Awards on www.tripadvisor.com/TravelersChoice-Destinations-cTop-g147237

• For more information about PR coverage gained by the BTA, click on the PDF file under “Related Media”.