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VistWiltshire helps tourism businesses make the most out of promoting their product

4 November 2010

VisitWiltshire, the voice of the county’s tourism sector, yesterday held its annual Tourism Forum which saw over 120 members from around the county attend to learn about how together they can encourage more visitors to Wiltshire.

Guest speakers at the Forum included journalist Sally Shalam. Sally is one of the UK’s best known travel writers having worked on titles including The Daily Telegraph, Evening Standard and currently writes a weekly column in The Guardian.

Sally provided VisitWiltshire’s members with an insight into how they can work with the media to promote their businesses, followed by a workshop on writing the perfect press release! Her workshop encouraged tourism providers from around Wiltshire to think about what makes Wiltshire special. She highlighted that the county is one of the most exciting in the UK, citing Stonehenge, the White Horses and Salisbury Cathedral’s Magna Carta as some of the most important attractions. She reminded businesses that they need to take time to highlight their key local attractions to potential visitors.

Other workshops during the day included a talk on how to use social media such as Facebook and Twitter. While VisitWiltshire actively uses social media to promote the county, many smaller businesses remain reluctant to embrace this shift in modern technology. However at the end of the day it became apparent that a number of members were planning to sign up and capitalise on this free way of promoting themselves.

This valuable Forum is a free event for members of VisitWiltshire with the aim to help them promote the county and bring in more visitors.

Wiltshire is a county that relies heavily on tourism, a sector which provides employment across the county. VisitWiltshire is aiming to encourage visitors to spend longer in the county, staying at hotels and B&Bs and self-catering plus dining in restaurants and visiting attractions.

Alun Williams, Head of Partnership for VisitWiltshire commented: “We hold these forums as a valuable part of the VisitWiltshire membership. It enables our members to come together, learn more about changes in the industry and feel the benefit of membership. It also allows them to voice their opinions about our plans for the future. These events are just one of many benefits of membership which also includes using us as their voice into the larger tourism industry and of course being featured in our brochures and website which are viewed by tourists from around the globe.”

For more information about VisitWiltshire and for businesses interested in becoming a member visit www.visitwiltshire.co.uk.

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For media information please contact Samantha Marsh or Ian Fulcher at Infinity Public Relations on 015395 30393 or 07711 265666. Alternatively email samantha@infinitypublicrelations.co.uk or ian@infinitypublicrelations.co.uk
4 November 2010