Marketing Update May 2017

 

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2018 Consumer Publications: Have your say on design and content
Advertising: Spring marketing campaign off to a great start
PR: Press releases picked up by the media
Website and Digital: VisitWiltshire launches new social hub
Travel Trade: Next Travel Trade meeting scheduled for Thursday 25 May
Online Photo Library: Make the most of this FREE promotional opportunity
2017 Familiarisation Passport: Now available with potential savings of up to £1,500
Marketing Services: Find out what VisitWiltshire can do to help your business

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2018 Consumer Publications

We are about to begin work on our main publications for 2018 – the Visitor Guide, Visitor Map and Travel Trade Guide – and would like to invite you to have an input into the design and content of them.

As these publications are to promote your business, we would really value your ideas and suggestions – things you might like to consider include:
• Format (eg A4, A5, foldout etc)
• Use of photography
• Editorial themes
• Copy style
• Copy content
• Brochure titles
• Map of Wiltshire
• Display advertising and partner entries

As we are starting the planning process for 2018, NOW is the time to let us know if you would like to see anything new or different – please email your thoughts to Jenny as soon as possible, and by Friday 19 May at the latest.

If you would like refresh your memory by referring to our 2017 publications, digital versions are available to view and download from our website here.

If you would like bulk supplies of the 2017 Visitor Guide and/or Visitor Map, these can be ordered free of charge from our distributors, Take One Media (if you are not already set up with their online ordering system please contact Jenny for details).

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Advertising

2017 Late Spring Marketing Campaign

Our Late Spring Marketing Campaign launched last month and runs through to the end of June 2017 under the heading: 'It’s time for Wiltshire, escape the everyday'.

The key message is that Wiltshire is an ideal destination for a well-deserved short break. Whether your ideal break is calming, comforting, refreshing or bursting with high adrenalin excitement, it’s time for Wiltshire.

A new social media hub - www.visitwiltshire.co.uk/social - has been launched as part of the campaign. We will be using the hub as a way to gather engaging images and video of Wiltshire via Twitter and Instagram, encouraging people to use the hashtags #timeforwiltshire and #wiltshirespring. This is being incentivised with a competition to win a Wiltshire short break, staying at Troutbeck Guest House, tickets to Longleat and £100 to spend at McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Swindon.

The following activity is also included within this campaign:

• Facebook Carousel (estimated 1.8m impressions /12k clicks)
• Facebook Canvas (estimated 170k impressions / 3k clicks)
• Facebook Video (estimated 400k impressions / 60k clicks / 6.5k views)
• Pre-roll on YouTube (estimated 90k impressions / 32k views)
For the above we are specifically targeting Mature Mainstream and Experience Seeker visitor audiences, within a two-hour drive time of Wiltshire. The focus is on individuals with an interest in UK short breaks, culture and history, countryside activities, food and drink and neighbouring destinations. These are running for three months from 26 April.   

Instagram                           
Sponsored posts are running for two months on Instagram highlighting the Instagram competition using #timeforwiltshire and #wiltshirespring (estimated impact: 490k impressions and 3.8k clicks).

Paid Search                       
Paid search is running for one month focusing on accommodation bookings within Wiltshire and around key member attractions/locations (estimated impact: 4k clicks).

 

E-newsletter
A VisitWiltshire themed e-newsletter has been sent out to over 94k people.

Digital lead generation campaign
A digital flyer is generating 6k leads from people pre-disposed to take a holiday or short break in the UK and has also been sent out as an email broadcast to 250k people.

 

Competitions
The campaign features two competitions, both of which are included on the website and the digital flyer:
• A general spring competition
• A social media competition on our new social media hub (see above)

Please encourage your visitors to share their images on social media using the two hashtags #timeforwiltshire and #Wiltshirespring

The dedicated web page for the campaign can be found here - all digital activity will be directed to this page.

Results so far
Initial performance from the Spring Campaign social media activity has been positive. During the four days for which the campaign was active in April it generated over 2k Facebook video views and over 3.3k pre-roll views. Click through rates for most elements - especially video and the Experience Seeker and Mature Mainstream carousels – were extremely strong.

Next month's newsletter will include results for the whole of May.

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PR

Press Releases
The following press releases have been sent out since the April Marketing Update:
Great Family Entertainment in Wiltshire this Half Term & Spring Bank Holiday
VisitWiltshire launches new social hub as part of a spring campaign
Devizes

Online Coverage
VisitWiltshire contributed information and images for an article by journalist Sally Shalam entitled Inspired British Breaks - Wiltshire which featured on the Hertz website.

VisitWiltshire's press release on Cricklade was picked up by the UK Towns Promotion Network and featured in their Discover Britain's Delightful Towns series.

Our press release about the new social hub was picked up by Swindon 24.

Bloggers
Jessica Munday who blogs at enjoytheadventure.co.uk will be touring Wiltshire from 19-21 May, staying at Harepath House and visiting Salisbury Cathedral, other attractions within the Close, Stonehenge and Longleat.

Thank you to all our partners for their help with facilitating such visits.

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Website and Digital

Social Media
Social media is a great way of optimising and driving traffic to your website, as well as engaging with visitors. VisitWiltshire uses Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google Plus, YouTube and LinkedIn.

Gold partners are able to feature their Twitter and Facebook feeds on their own entries – please contact Emma for more details.

Our new social media hub - www.visitwiltshire.co.uk/social - has been launched to coincide with our Late Spring Marketing Campaign. Going forward we will continue to use it to gather inspirational Wiltshire content - such as engaging images and video - via Twitter and Instagram and there will be opportunities in the future for VisitWiltshire partners to book advertising on it. Take a look at it here and do encourage your visitors to use the #timeforwiltshire and #wiltshirespring hashtags.

Twitter
As at the end of April 2017 we had over 21k followers on Twitter, an increase of 19% on April 2016. Please include #timeforwiltshire on your posts and we will retweet where possible.

Don’t forget that we also have a corporate Twitter feed: @visitwiltsbiz - follow us and keep up to date with our activities.

Facebook
As at the end of April 2017 we had over 13.7k likes on Facebook, an increase of 45% on April 2016.

 
Instagram
As at the end of April 2017 we had over 6.4k followers on Instagram, an increase of 112% on April 2016.

 

VisitWiltshire Website
We received over 104k unique visits to our website during April 2017. Of this, 67% were via mobile devices, including tablets (up from 57% for March 2017).

Top referrers for April included: twitter.co.uk, visitsouthwest.co.uk, facebook.com, gazetteandherald.co.uk and connectingwiltshire.co.uk.

Top content pages (excluding the main Home page) included: What's On, Easter, Things to Do, Events and the Time for Wiltshire campaign page.

 

Top product pages included: Downton Cuckoo Fair, Bowood House and Gardens, Chippenham, Longleat and Avebury.

The visitwiltshire website is packed with interesting and useful information - why not add a link to it from your own site, so that your guests can find out more about our beautiful county.

Visit Salisbury Website
We received over 24k unique visitors to the Salisbury site during April 2017 (this figure is included in the unique visits above). Of this, 65% were via mobile devices (up from 59% for March 2017).

Top referrers for April included: facebook.com, twitter.com, salisburychristmasmarket.co.uk, salisburycathedral.org.uk and salisburycitycouncil.gov.uk.

Top content pages (excluding the main Home page) included: What's On, Things to Do, Shopping, Food &Drink and the Salisbury campaign page.

 

Top product pages included: Downton Cuckoo Fair, Salisbury Charter Market, Salisbury Cathedral, Ageas Salisbury International Arts Festival and the River's Edge restaurant at the Legacy Rose & Crown Hotel.
 

Blogs
The following blogs have been added to our website since the April 2017 Marketing Update - please do share these if relevant via your own social media:
Top 10 churches to visit in Wiltshire
Fun for all the family this half term
A spotlight on: Bowood Golf Pro, Paul McLean
A tour of the wildflower meadows at Clattinger Farm
Salisbury Cathedral Graffiti Tour

Apps
All our partners have an entry on the Wiltshire App, giving visitors and potential visitors an additional platform to find your business. The apps can be downloaded for FREE as follows:
Wiltshire: Apple and Google Play
Salisbury: Apple and Google Play

To encourage your visitors to download and use the apps it would be great if you could include details of how to do this on all your communications - eg websites, confirmation emails etc.

Videos
VisitWiltshire's main videos, including our two new aerial films, can be viewed here.
Between them, they have received around 470k views, with an estimated reach of almost 1.7million people.

These videos are a great way of showcasing out beautiful county, so please share them on social channels and add to your own website (if you are unsure of how to do this, just email Emma).

Other videos we have produced can be found on our YouTube channel here.

One of the benefits of being a Gold Partner is the opportunity to include a video on your own entry on the VisitWiltshire website. If you haven't already done so and you have a video you would like to add, please email Emma with the YouTube URL.

E-Newsletters
The following e-newsletters have been sent out to consumers since our April Marketing Update, achieving open rates of up to 11%:
Share your spring images for a chance to win a Wiltshire prize
Beautiful bluebells and glorious gardens - win a family break to Wiltshire
Escape the everyday on a trip to Wiltshire - win a luxury spa break

The VisitWiltshire database now stands at over 95k names... and everyone who has signed up is interested in Wiltshire! If you would like your business to feature in one of our regular e-newsletters we can include you for just £110. Contact Fiona for more information.

Keep us in the Loop
We are always looking for fresh, new, inspiring content, so please keep us up to date with all your news. Please email Emma with the details.

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Travel Trade

Online Coverage
Our press release about the new social media hub was picked up by Travel and Tour World and Travel GBI.

Exhibitions and Events
So far this year the following exhibitions and events have been attended by the VisitWiltshire team and stand sharing partners:
• Excursions (Alexandra Palace, London)
• Britain & Ireland Marketplace (London)
• South West Group Travel Show (Cheltenham Racecourse)
• Explore GB (Brighton)
• ITB (Berlin)
• Great for Groups (Kempton Park Racecourse)

2017 Travel Trade Guide
A digital version of the 2017 Travel Trade Guide is available to view and download from our website here.

Strategy
The 2017 trade strategy has now been reviewed for 2018 and this will be discussed at the next travel trade meeting scheduled for 25 May 2017. If you require further information please contact Florence.

Travel Trade Package
VisitWiltshire has a Travel Trade Package for those interested in targeting the groups/travel trade market. Three levels of participation are available – please contact Florence for further details.

The February Travel Trade Activity Update and Meeting Notes can be found here.

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Online Photo Library

Our online photo library is a useful (and free!) way of promoting your business. Links to albums on it are regularly sent out to third parties such as journalists, bloggers, tour operators, group travel organisers, VisitBritain, VisitEngland and other VisitWiltshire partners. To take advantage of this opportunity, please forward your photos to Jenny with a note saying you are happy for them to be used in this way and she will upload them to the library for you.

Equally, if you would like access to our photo library for your own website, leaflets etc, just email Jenny with details of what you are looking for and she will send you links to the relevant albums.

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2017 Familiarisation Passport

Details of VisitWiltshire’s 2017 Familiarisation Passport were sent out to Partners before Easter. As well as more offers than ever before, the 2017 Passport provides record savings, with potential discounts worth over £1,500! A huge thank you to all those Partners who have kindly included an offer within it.

For 2017, instead of VisitWiltshire sending out printed copies in the post, the Passport has been produced as a pdf for Partners to download and print out themselves. This has the advantage of saving on printing and postage costs, and also means that all members of staff and/or volunteers at Partner businesses can have their own copy, rather than needing to share.

Details of what the Passport is and how it works can be found on our website here. Please note that passwords are needed in order to download the Passport and separate Offer PDF – if you are a VisitWiltshire Partner business, or work for a VisitWiltshire Partner business, and have not yet received an email telling you what these passwords are, please contact Jenny.

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Marketing Services

Do you need any help with marketing services - such as leaflet production, photography, social media or travel trade activity? If so, please contact Fiona for more information.

 

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