Jurisdictions looking to promote themselves are warming up for an aggressive marketing effort this year. And Bermuda's competitors can expect to see Bermuda more active in the battle for international business.

There is more of an appetite for news about Bermuda than was expected by Edelman Public Relations Worldwide, the firm contracted by the Bermuda International Business Association (BIBA) to market the Island and international business.

"We don't necessarily have to break down the doors to get a hearing,'' said Mr. Michael Morley, deputy chairman worldwide and New York president. "People really are interested. Bermuda might have been the first offshore jurisdiction, but you have got a lot of piranhas out there, now.

"There are many other jurisdictions, many other people making a lot of noise, with quite the degree of stridency and quite a lot of money being spent to make a name for themselves and attract your kind of business.'' Edelman Financial senior vice president, Mr. Elliot Sloane, sees issues such as Independence and the military departures as ones that will need more attention in 1995, because they are issues not just within Bermuda. He said it will be important to ensure that the right messages are communicated to the global business community as decisions are made here.

"It is very compelling to the international business community in terms of what happens to the Island,'' he said.

"And in general we are looking at doing events during the course of the year in London and New York, and in other key markets that will galvanise and create some sort of real momentum for Bermuda.'' Mr. Morley said, "There will be media opportunities, plus opportunities to reach right into the audiences in support of the business messages.

"But it is going to be a very competitive year. There is expected to be some heavy spending by other jurisdictions and quite a lot of activity. There is quite an aggressive market expected this year. And we have to respond to that.

"We won't be driven by it, but we will be alert to what they are doing. With the independence issue and other things we will be able to consolidate, protect and open up new areas.'' Nine months after BIBA took on Edelman, more journalists are writing about Bermuda and more local professionals in various business industries are being asked for articles.

Mr. Sloane reported, "We've had great success in reaching directly to the media, covering those industries through by-lined articles by BIBA executives, through interviews that result in stories that position Bermuda as a real competitor in that marketplace.'' Mr. Sloane said that Edelman was making in-roads and raising the bar of awareness, but that there was still much to do in the general awareness efforts and the programmes designed to highlight specific niche areas of concentration.

Edelman said that they are beginning to get more and more traffic on the 1-800 numbers they set up for business enquiries about Bermuda.

Mr. Sloane said, "Since our 800 number was launched in the US in the springtime, we rolled out a UK number and Canada came on line over the summer as well, there is a steady flow of calls coming in ... and that stream has not slowed.'' Canada has been targeted as having the highest awareness of Bermuda outside of the insurance market. The insurance industry is fairly well known. More calls come in from the US, though, as more US markets are targeted in the marketing programmes.

Edelman takes travel schedules of local business people and then provide support for media relations in those relevant markets, opening up opportunities for journalists to gain access to the travellers and hear the Bermuda message.

SPREADING THE MESSAGE -- Senior vice president of Edelman Public Relations Worldwide, Mr. Elliot Sloane (left) and Edelman deputy chairman Mr. Michael Morley.