1. What attracted you to this PR Manager role at Discover The Palm Beaches?
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Passion for Florida tourism and community storytelling - + Here's a recent event and publicity he generated for a local Reggae Festival. + Here's an event wrap up video Mike helped to produce.
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Longtime familiarity with local and regional media landscape
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A natural fit for my career history: real estate, hospitality, events, and earned media campaigns that connect economic growth with place branding
2. What’s your approach to securing earned media in a crowded news environment?I focus on emotionally resonant, data-informed storylines that tie into cultural trends, travel habits, and business investment. + Here's a micro blog template he set up for Boynton Beach.
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I never wait for press to find us—I create proactive campaigns and timely, irresistible pitches
Foundry, a CRM tech brand recently generate tons of buzz nationally
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Strong relationships: many of my placements have come from long-standing trust with local and national journalists
3. Walk us through a campaign you’re proud of that boosted economic or destination visibility.
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At Newmark, launched a media blitz around a downtown revitalization project that tied retail leasing to tourism growth—got coverage in South Florida Business Journal, Sun-Sentinel, and NBC6
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Partnered with city officials and local chefs to create a culinary-tourism PR event that resulted in travel and lifestyle feature stories and helped secure new tenants for a high-profile retail property
Some years ago, I was the Executive Director for Las Olas Boulevard. I helped to create, organize and augment a major street closure called Christmas on Las Olas. The event is a gigantic undertaking and involved schools, charities, churches and non profits from throughout S. Florida. Over 10,000 people converge on this even each year since then. We even created an artificial snow mountain from snow imported from Georgia! + Check out the event here.
4. This role requires translating data into compelling storylines. How do you do that well?
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I look for the human impact behind the numbers—jobs created, new flight routes, convention business volume, hotel occupancy, etc.
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Then I shape those into concise, headline-ready stories for trade, lifestyle, and business media
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Example: Took raw CRE analytics and turned it into “Downtown Reimagined” series for business press
I used to work for an Austrian Tech RFID company called Barmaxx. I had to literally translate German Techno Babble into cogent English. Their engineers were brilliant men, but needed my help in creating communications that resonated. + Here's a video I wrote and produced.
5. Tell us about your media training and press interview experience. How do you prepare spokespeople?
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I provide clear, concise talking points tailored to the outlet and audience
And speaking of tayloring. Wear something cool. Maybe some super cool, stylish Lagerfeld glasses that don't have to be prescription. Or a high end pocket square. The background is also important....play art director or have me assist you. Don't just let it be a 1987 book shelf or fake plants.
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Offer coaching on body language, soundbites, and handling tough questions
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Prepped execs at Cushman & Wakefield and Barmaxx for national tech and trade interviews—no PR misfires under my watch
6. How do you handle crisis communications?
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Stay calm, centralize messaging, and act fast
Most companies already have a crisis procedure book; read it!
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I’ve developed issue-response protocols and media statements for everything from earthquakes and hurricanes incidents at malls to protests from local community.
I believe in transparency and proactive outreach, not hiding from press
7. How would you support FAM tours and hosted media visits for The Palm Beaches?
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Coordinate immersive experiences that align with the press outlet’s beat and audience
At Florida Keys Outlet Center I served a dual role as GM and Marketing Director. I hosted numerous FAM tours. I would provide each guest with a pair of sunglasses, a specially designed shopping bag and a personal tour of the property. We had tourists from S. America arrive and buy huge, pricey suitcases from COACH and then fill it up with merch from Aeropostale, GUESS, NIKE, Hugo Boss, Hilfiger and others. They were reselling our good in S. America. Fine with me!
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I’ve arranged everything from press junkets to “walk-the-roof” retail property tours and behind-the-scenes convention previews
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It’s all about curation, relationships, and post-visit follow-up with timely assets. The guided tours would be carefully organized and presented, often with a store regional manager or GM available for questions. We also would arrange items or experiences to create a cohesive, high-quality outcome for our guests. The idea was for them to come back often!
8. What’s your experience with Groups, Meetings, and Conventions PR?
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Promoted large-scale events at shopping centers and office properties that doubled as convention venues
At the tech brands I worked at we attended conventions monthly, all year around; sometimes abroad
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Developed B2B PR collateral and media outreach for event space launches
9. What tools or platforms do you use for media monitoring and performance reporting?
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I’ve used Meltwater, Cision, Google Analytics, and SEMrush for tracking mentions, backlinks, and campaign ROI - I'm a power user with AI and google. I usually find what I seek.
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For internal stakeholders, I build digestible reports with impact headlines, reach, sentiment, and press value calculations
Here's a good example of a quality news recap I sent out previously
10. What makes you the ideal person for this role—right now, in this market?
I bring a unique blend of PR firepower, local insight, and creative edge
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I’ve already worked across real estate, hospitality, tourism, and tech—which gives me a hybridized view of economic development
During my career, I've been involved with at least 10 major shopping destinations, where events take place weekly. I've seen and accomplished quite a bit.
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I’m hands-on, deadline-driven, and still generating ideas at the pace of someone just starting out—but with the wisdom of someone who’s handled hundreds of media wins and crisis calls
