Turtle Bay Resort

CHALLENGE: 

Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu’s historic North Shore is one of the world’s last wild places. This fabled stretch of coastline has been the subject of heated debate and passionate protests due to a master plan that many in the community perceived as unsustainable for responsible growth and the protection of cultural and environmental resources. A conservation easement in 2016 ended the legal battle over the land, and the developer hit pause on moving forward with any plans for expansion. When new owners, The Blackstone Group, purchased the property in late 2017, it called Bennet Group to assist with the sophisticated and thoughtful strategic communications Turtle Bay Resort would require to be successful as development resumes at the resort later this year.

STRATEGY:

  • Tap into Turtle Bay Resort’s reputation as Hawaii’s most experiential place for adventure, escape and rejuvenation to tell the next chapter in the property’s history.
  • Assemble all resort teams – including public relations, marketing, sales, branding, advertising, social media and digital management – to develop one united superteam that leads a seamless launch campaign.
  • Work to more fully publicize the impact of the Turtle Bay Foundation and other partnerships with important nonprofit such as the North Shore Community Land Trust, Trust for Public Land and Pono Pacific.
  • Launch an information campaign and opportunities for community input and conversation via a town hall road show and community newsletter, among other tools. Make sure people really understand the acres preserved, units added, cultural and environmental protections added and other areas of impact, including traffic calming and fishing rights.
  • Make culture a focus. Assist the resort in hiring its first cultural advisor and weave in the history of the land into all messaging and programming.
  • Create an army of supporters among neighbors, community groups, elected and appointed officials and others. Brief them early and often, keep them abreast of changes and help them understand the broad strokes of what is happening at TurtleBay Resort. 
  • Take Turtle Bay Resort at its word, weaving in narratives about the strong history of farming, food, arts and culture to make the new property the immersive five-star resort it aims to be.

RESULTS:

  • Bennet Group has created – and is poised to launch – a plan in Q4 2018 that will accomplish all of the above.
  • Initial feedback from soft seedings with the “army of supporters” has shown 100 percent positive feedback and support.
  • The agencies and team are already, in advance of the new development campaign launch, working together more collaboratively than ever before.