Shama Social Club × Gemini PR

The engaging concept of “Inspiring Neighbourhood Spirit” and connecting guests to each of Shama’s distinct neighbourhoods, Shama launches Shama Social Club, introducing an essential fabric of Shama’s portfolio proposition and key differentiator in Bangkok Thailand hospitality. The Shama Social Club enhances guest experiences, connecting them to each distinct neighbourhood.
The launch is built on Shama’s three main pillars – Contemporary living: Bespoke interior design that is practical and stylish, Without boundaries: Activities and programmes to acclimatise residents to the locale, and Thoughtful gestures: Considerate touches to help residents connect to the environment and feel right at home from the first day of their stay.

ONYX Hospitality Group, one of the country’s most long-standing and successful hotel, resort and serviced apartment Bangkok operators, needed a PR firm with strong media relations to support the launch of two new hotels, as well as usher in the introduction of the Shama Social Club concept in Thailand. The event was held at the newly opened Shama Yen-Akat, Chong Nonsi, Yan Nawa, in Bangkok’s famous riverside next to the Chao Praya (Chao Phraya) River.

Post Covid, hotel operators in the Kingdom of Thailand found they were competing in a noisy and crowded market once again, as they fought to capture inbound visitor stays and sales. Shama is a unique brand in the sense that it offers its own serviced apartments legend and feel (all of them new or newly rebuilt) available on either a short and long-stay serviced apartment Bangkok basis.

This offers guests flexible, creative and inspiring spaces to stay, which are also highly rated and really good value hotels in Bangkok, Thailand. Shama have all the essentials for business travel in Bangkok, are friendly to digital nomads because of their affordable Sathorn serviced apartment proposition, and are pet-friendly hotel in Bangkok, too.

In careful strategic consultation with the client, an all-day-long program of activities was created to place great emphasis the key brand hallmarks of Shama Social Club, as well as giving journalists in Bangkok a feel for each location, which had representatives at the event to showcase local crafts. It was also a brilliant way to introduce the city to the new Shama Yen Akat (Yen Akart).

A hard-working PR team on the ground must be available all day to manage the event, from the morning business briefing (press conference), through the market-stall-like booth displays midday to the night’s rooftop celebration event – a big program with a large number of media guests brought by Gemini PR Bangkok. As a top PR agency in Bangkok, Gemini sought to target a broad demographic of media, which were well represented across categories, including Bangkok business media and Thailand lifestyle magazines, as well as TV channels in Thailand.

Influencer marketing agency work in Thailand is an essential part of today’s modern PR campaign in Asia especially, for digitally savvy communication targets. Several “talk of the town KOLs” joined the program at the invitation of Gemini Public Relations. These included Youtube Vlogger star Forrest Lee (Travel Blogger from Los Angeles). The Shama Social Club meetup was joined also by: Instagram star @Engbypfah, who experienced the elegant, simply designed residences at Shama Yen-Akat, and balcony views from the units; Travel & Lifestyle Youtubers, who love to create video content on a wealth of interesting lifestyle topics for their following in Thailand and overseas (see images – many KOLS!); and Facebook blogger Lumpatiew, who enjoys social, fun-to-do activities around town. They were joined too by up-and-coming Instagram personalities such as @Gomeeteat and @Unfullice for an enjoyable social hangout, snacks & cocktails. The daytime and evening programme was also joined by esteemed news media, business editors and journalists, and lifestyle publications.

The KOL engagement program created by Gemini PR Thailand was designed to support Shama with its corporate messaging (brand messages for hotels) while also emphasising the lifestyle components of the new club launch, which connects all Shama properties in Thailand and overseas. We are leveraging Shama Social Club to emphasise the holistic community-based Shama experience, with a focus on acclimatising residents to the locale, but also expanding it to be an important neighbourhood feature for people in those communities. This means when a Shama property hosts activities, pop-ups or community-based events, local people are free to join too. This is how we generate connections for people in communities across our city, and this was part of our initial collaborative brief.

Gemini and ONYX joined together to achieve the mission, “We want to make Shama a thoughtful and valuable contributor to communities we touch; and so, it is our passion to be a present member of our community with an open warmth.” Therefore, each Shama is at the heart of each neighbourhood giving guests connectivity to local communities, proffering the Shama brand promise, Freedom to Explore. Our KOLs made the event go with a swing, while our media connections drove media results in the tens of millions of Baht in publicity.

Due to the sheer number of hotels and residences competing at every level of the hospitality industry in Thailand, it’s tough to know where to start when it comes to putting together and media and consumer outreach program for PR and marketing in Thailand.

Gemini has a team of strategic PR comms people with a wealth of experience in the industry. We have recently supported the launch of Yona Beach Club Phuket and the brand-new Stay Wellbeing and Lifestyle Resort Phuket. We also helped to launch many hotels in Bangkok, including Hotel Muse Langsuan, Radisson Blu Bangkok and Radisson Park Plaza, Regent and Amatara (“Immortal Water” campaign). Our past work has been ongoing for many years as the Thai PR industry’s premier hospitality marketing company, working with Berkeley Hotel Pratunam, Novotel Silom and Novotel Ploenchit, Nikki Beach, Peninsula Hong Kong, and many more.

The launch of the Shama Social Club in Bangkok achieved a massive over-delivery versus established KPI (SLA). A total of 23 media organisations joined the morning business briefing, while 23 different media and platform influencers joined the evening lifestyle program. Some of the great media partners who joined by Gemini PR invitation.

How do I get media to come to my event? How do I get journalists to come to my press conference? These are great questions! Please give us a call and let us show you how! We will handle everything for you, and always guarantee both a terrific media guest attendance and huge publishing results after the fact – and everything we do is backed up by real data and no inflated media values or fake media guests, which are typically used by the old-school PR agencies in Bangkok to falsify their KPI delivery. So we win!

For media inquiries, high-resolution images of our amazing past events, or further information, please contact Gemini PR

The campaign yielded an impressive net media value, prominently featured in 64 prestigious media publications (tripled over several weeks, eventually, to account for the three campaign elements, each with distinct featured media outlets). Notably, over 17 of these belonged to the coveted “Tier A” category, typically reserved for brands willing to invest significantly in advertising.

In terms of quantifiable success, the campaign achieved a remarkable reach in published media value when assessed through an “ad inches” exchange valuation. This outcome stands as a significant accomplishment for a rapidly growing tech firm, particularly one entering a nascent market.

Moreover, it is essential to emphasize that the efficacy of Public Relations services in Thailand extends beyond the technology sector. The art of persuasive communication, coupled with precise media targeting and distribution, holds universal relevance across industries. This versatility is underscored by our leadership in the realms of lifestyle, F&B, automotive, hospitality, and governmental PR.

In conclusion, Gemini PR is dedicated to delivering not only exceptional results but also accessible pricing for our clients through our “Press Release Distribution Only” packages. These are suitable for clients who have a limited budget and wish to spread their news far and wide and with maximum impact.

We are of course the best public relations firm in Thailand for more extensive programs, which can encompass event marketing, post event publicity, influencer marketing programs, brand ambassadors, product placement and out of home advertising, and many more.

We go the extra mile to make sure you shine at your events, placing you in the spotlight in front of TV cameras and facilitating direct interactions with editors and journalists. This strategic approach ensures that your brand’s media narrative is conveyed eloquently to your ideal target audience, backed by the authoritative presence that sets us apart from traditional, content-focused agencies of the past. We remain committed to propelling your brand’s image forward and forging a path to lasting success in the world of public relations.

To discover more about the future of the exciting Shama Social Club initiative, please visit Shama Facebook Page.