AIR Takes Handful of Davey Awards
Proving again that beauty doesn’t have to take a boffo budget, AIR Marketing garnered five Davey Awards, an international competition that honors small agencies making a big impact. AIR was honored with a gold award for a direct mail piece entitled “High Performance Meetings” on behalf of Hamilton Park Hotel & Conference Center. The piece also won a silver award for copywriting. In addition, work done on behalf of the Arizona Kidney Foundation (Announcements/Greetings), L’Auberge Del Mar (Direct Mail) and Tarrytown House Estate & Conference Center (Green/Eco-Friendly) also won silver Daveys.
AIR Golden Again at Adrian Awards
For the third year running, AIR Marketing has been “golden” in the hospitality industry’s most prestigious marketing awards competition, winning a Gold Adrian Award for the company’s work on behalf of Cheyenne Mountain Resort. The winning entry, entitled “Where Inspiration Grows into Success,” took honors in the Group Sales category and is now eligible to be judged for a coveted Platinum Adrian Award, as well as Best in Show. In addition, AIR picked up a Bronze Adrian in the Group Sales category, along with interactive partner Cendyn, for their highly successful “Elect Benchmark” campaign conducted on behalf of Benchmark Hospitality International.
Held by Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI), the Adrian Awards are judged based on campaign performance and results, as well as imagination and innovative design. This year, more than 1,300 entries were submitted from around the world.
AIR Part of Latest Inc. 5,000 List
For the second consecutive year, AIR Marketing has made the Inc. 5,000 list of the fastest growing private companies in America. In order to qualify for the list, which is an expansion of the prestigious Inc. 500, companies must show consistent growth over a four-year span. Ranked as number 2,793 in this year’s Inc. 5,000, AIR was also recognized again as one of the top 100 businesses in the Phoenix Metro area.
AIR Marketing’s Amphitheater a Resource to Businesses
With 3,000 feet of space, seating for more than 100 and premium video recording and presentation technology, AIR Marketing’s Amphitheater is open to serve businesses and organizations looking for a place to meet. “The staff is excellent to deal with and they make our events feel like their events with a sense of ownership that all great business arrangements should have,” said Terry Cain, Vice President Operational Excellence, Avnet, Inc., which has used the Amphitheater for multiple meetings and events.
In addition to the Amphitheater, AIR Marketing’s spacious Gallery is available for catered lunches, social events and pre-function gatherings.
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IABC Makes the Call: ‘Personal Foul’ Campiagn Wins Copper Quill
The Phoenix chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators honored AIR Marketing and the Arizona Department of Health Services with a Copper Quill Award of Excellence in the category of “electronic communication, brand identification and community relations.”
Specifically designed to resonate with children ages 8 to 13, the campaign promoted both a cessation message (quitting tobacco) as well as a prevention message (keeping kids from trying tobacco in the first place). The Phoenix Suns Gorilla was the face of the integrated campaign that included TV, radio, outdoor and print ads, as well as an interactive “tobacco free” zone on the concourse of US Airways Center. The campaign’s landing page featured activities and a chance for kids to leave messages about why they thought tobacco use was a “Personal Foul.”
The campaign increased public awareness about the inherent health risks associated with tobacco
use and spread the word among youngsters that smoking or chewing “smells foul, tastes foul, and makes you feel foul too.”
AIR Marketing Adds Director of Interactive Marketing
In order to better serve its clients in the online space, AIR Marketing has added Shailesh Ghimire to the team as Director of Interactive Marketing. Shailesh’s experience and expertise in social media, electronic communication and online applications will help increase clients’ online exposure, while still adhering to AIR’s commitment to highly targeted, personalized marketing strategies.
“Most people know about MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and the like, and there’s a rush to have a presence there from a marketing standpoint,” Shailesh said. “But just because they’re there, doesn’t necessarily mean they’re a good fit for a client’s objectives. We’ll make the right choices and ensure campaigns seem natural and are not forced.”
Prior to joining AIR, Shailesh was in the Marketing and Sales Department of CTX Mortgage Company in Mesa, where he integrated Web 2.0 marketing techniques to the overall marketing process. Prior to that, he served as Internet Marketing Strategist at Hi-Techniques in Madison, Wisconsin. From 2002 to 2003, he was a research fellow at Consortium for Global E-Commerce at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
Hospitality Strategies for Current Market Conditions
Vice President and chief strategist David Ralls shared his top strategies for the hospitality industry in a recent article entitled “Keeping Market Share During a Down Economy.” Following is an excerpt:
In the “what do we do now?” Case-scenario, hotels with courage will win market share by focusing on the customer and keeping advertising budgets strong, in fact they may spend more. Eliminate marketing that is not working and be aggressive with value added offers that differentiate your offering from the competition. These efforts will capture the customers that are traveling who have a strong chance of staying with you again in the future when the market improves.
AIR Marketing Wins Platinum Adrian Award
AIR Marketing took home Platinum at the 51st Annual HSMAI Adrian Awards, recognized as the hospitality industry’s top marketing honor. Judged among more than 1,300 entries from around the world, AIR won this prestigious award for its work on Vail Cascade Resort & Spa’s group direct mail campaign, which resulted in a return on investment of 17:1.
AIR Makes First-Ever Inc. 5,000 List
With more than 125 percent growth over the past three years, AIR Marketing ranked 2,705 on the inaugural Inc. 5,000 list of the fastest growing private companies in America. T he Inc. 5,000 measures revenue growth in U.S.-based and privately held, independent companies that showed at least $2 million in 2006. In addition, AIR was recognized as one of the 70 fastest growing companies in the Valley.
<View Inc. 5,000 List of Fastest Growing Companies in America>
Article Celebrates AIR’s Entrepreneurial Passion
Knoweledge@W. P. Carey, the online news magazine of Arizona State University’s W. P. Carey School of Business, featured AIR Marketing in an article entitled Entrepreneurs Pursue Passion and Profits. Highlighting AIR’s recognition as the 2006 Monster Entrepreneur ASU Alumni Award, the article focuses on the company’s analytic, data-driven approach to marketing and advertising.