2019/20 MARKETING PLAN - NORTHUMBERLAND TOURISM
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NORTHUMBERLAND
TOURISM
MARKETING
PLAN
2019/20
1
WHO ARE WE AIMING AT?
In 2015 Arkenford re-assessed our database, to
give us an up-to-date picture of the visitor types
Cosmopolitans 24.2%
we are currently attracting.
Traditionals 19.8%
Questions were added to our visitnorthumberland.
com survey, which is completed online, as is the High Street 15%
Ark research, so we should bear in mind it doesn’t
cover non-internet users. Functionals 11.3%
Cosmopolitans are now our largest segment, Followers 9.8%
which shows that the marketing activity we have
undertaken previously to target this market has Discoverers 9%
been successful.
The markets that we will continue to target are:
Habituals 8.1%
- Cosmopolitans
Style Hounds 2.8%
- Discoverers
- Traditionals
Our marketing is also attracting the High Street market, which might indicate
that awareness of Northumberland as a holiday destination is growing.
8% Scotland
15.5% visit
with children
17% North
COSMOPOLITANS Time with
friends & family
To see
awe-inspiring
- 19% of GB population places
Peace &
- High social segment - 64% in ABC1
relaxation
- 11% are retired/not working
- 59% are aged 35+ LEISURE Fresh air
- Highest concentrations in North East, To have fun MOTIVATIONS & exercise
North West, Northern Ireland and London
areas To learn, be
fascinated & For the
absorbed views & scenery
DISCOVERERS
- Independent individualists Time with
- Little influenced by style or brand friends & family Fresh air
unless it represents their personal & exercise
values
- Value technology, new products and To have fun LEISURE
experiences
- High spending but intolerant of MOTIVATIONS
substitutes or image based advertising For the nature/
- Value good service To learn, be wildlife
fascinated &
absorbed For the
views & scenery
TRADITIONALS Time with
To experience
- 11% of GB population friends & family
life in the past
- Lower social segment - 55% in C2DEF
Peace &
- 37% are retired/not working Fresh air
relaxation
- 84% are aged 35+ & exercise
- Highest concentrations in South East, LEISURE
East Midlands, Northern Ireland and To have fun MOTIVATIONS
South West For the nature/
To learn, be wildlife
fascinated &
absorbed For the
views & scenery
Time with
HIGH STREET friends & family Fresh air
& exercise
- Source information from others rather
than discovering for themselves
To have fun
- Follow when a fashion has been LEISURE
established
- Brand and style more important than
MOTIVATIONS
functionality For the nature/
To learn, be
- Active with moderate interest in arts & wildlife
fascinated &
culture absorbed For the
- Will spend on luxury views & scenery 3
CAMPAIGNS
2018 SPRING/SUMMER CAMPAIGN RESEARCH
45% of people surveyed following the
campaign were planning to visit
51% of those that visited said seeing the
campaign probably or definitely turned a possible
visit into a certainty.
A journey through Northumberland reveals the warmth
of our welcome and celebrates our character. Slow down
and discover experiences. Average Length Return on Investment
Challenge your senses and feel the thrill of adventure.
£65.20 : 1
You, like us, can go your own way.
WIN!
3 night family
of Stay
4.63 nights
stay at Chesters
Stables at
WALWICK HALL
Estate
visitnorthumberland.com/itsinournature
Photo Credit: Sycamore Gap, Hadrian’s Wall (Mario Czekirda)
2018/9 AUTUMN/WINTER CAMPAIGN
OUTDOOR ADVERTISING
BUS REARS
40 buses out of Preston &
Morecambe for 58 days TYNE & WEAR
EDINBURGH (1 week)
METRO
LEEDS & SHEFFIELD (3 weeks)
(6 weeks)
SOCIAL MEDIA 7 PRESS
TRIPS
SPONSORED
CONTENT
& DIGITAL CAMPAIGN
DISPLAY MICROSITE
4
During 2019/20 we will run two campaigns, one in spring/summer to attract visitors to book
during the season. And the second in autumn to encourage shoulder season bookings.
Businesses can buy into these campaigns ensuring exposure to all potential visitors the campaign
reaches.
2019 SPRING/SUMMER CAMPAIGN
Inspired by Northumberland winning the BEST UK Holiday Destination in the 2018 British Travel
Awards we will celebrate just why Northumberland is the BEST UK holiday destination. From
our castles & coastline, to our history & heritage, Northumberland is a land just waiting to be
discovered. The campaign will run from April to August.
2019/20 AUTUMN/WINTER CAMPAIGN
Northumberland offers stargazing heaven and you don’t need to
be an expert or have an expensive telescope to enjoy this natural
beauty. Northumberland International Dark Sky Park covers 572
square miles and is the largest dark sky park in Europe, with pristine
skies. You can enjoy dark skies throughout Northumberland; the
Northumberland Coast is perfect for seeing the stunning Aurora
Borealis.
Our marketing & PR campaign, ‘Northumberland the land that’s just as good with the lights
off’, will run from October 2019 to February 2020. Our previous campaigns (From 2014) with
the same theme were well received therefore we will continue to build on the theme so it
becomes recognised clearly as Northumberland. In addition further areas within the country are
becoming aware of Dark Sky Status, so it is vital we continue to promote our offering to retain
our competitive advantage.
THE CAMPAIGNS
• Microsite located on visitnorthumberland.com - featuring the campaign partners; will
encourage visitors to discover more about the county’s offer. The microsite will be live
from April 2019 to August 2019 offering prolonged exposure for campaign partners. All
marketing will direct to the microsite.
• Campaign featured on the visitnorthumberland.com home page
• External advertising - currently being negotiated
• PR supporting the campaign
• Social media promotion, including paid for promotion, via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
and Pinterest
• Campaign email marketing
5
• Competition - used as a call to action and to capture data
PUBLICATIONS
HOLIDAY GUIDE
The Holiday Guide is distributed via high footfall areas, Tourist
Information Centres and posted out on request, continuing to be
popular with potential visitors. There was an 14% monetary decline
in advertising compared with the 2018 guide, however it still remains
popular and some businesses use it as their only form of advertising.
The 2019 guide is 84 pages, A4 and we printed 80,000.
For the 2020 guide the size and number printed will remain the same.
• May: Initial planning meetings, deciding editorial content (The editorial plan is
coordinated with campaign and other key messages. Editorial will be written in house),
appoint a designer
2017 ROI
• May to Oct: Sales of advertising space
• May to Nov: Design & proofing process
• Dec: Initial distribution of 2020 Holiday Guide & Bedroom Browser
£342.23:1
BEDROOM BROWSER
The Bedroom Browser is the front section of the guide without
any accommodation adverts and is supplied to accommodation
providers across the county. In addition it is distributed to places
where people will sit and read, for example cafes.
We printed 15,000 copies of the Bedroom Browser and will do
the same for 2020. In order to minimise costs this is produced in
conjunction with the Holiday Guide.
27%
of those that visited saw
the Bedroom Browser
In order to evaluate success of both the Holiday Guide and Bedroom Browser we run a
competition with separate URLs for the two guides. We contact those who have entered and
encourage them to complete a survey, from this we are able to determine the success and value
of the Holiday Guide & Bedroom Browser.
6
DAYS OUT & ATTRACTIONS LEAFLET
A map guide of Northumberland which includes lists/adverts of attractions, activities and food
& drink in Northumberland. 250,000 were printed in 2019 and they are distributed within a
three hour drive time of Northumberland and throughout the county. There was a 4% monetary
decrease in advertising compared with 2018.
For the 2020 guide the size and number printed will remain the same.
• May: appoint a designer
• May to Dec: Sales of advertising space
• Nov to Dec: Design & proofing process
• January 2020: Initial distribution of 2020 Days Out Leaflet
2016 ROI
£107.68:1
*2017 ROI will be available end of April 2019
As with the Holiday Guide and Bedroom Browser we will run a competition on the Days Out &
Attractions Leaflet so we compile a database of people using the leaflet. In 2021 we will then
contact these and ask them to complete a survey so we are able to analyse the success of the
We plan to maintain the size, quantity and Return on Investment of our three printed
publications for 2020.
7
COMMUNICATIONS PLAN
To ensure there is alignment between our social media, email newsletters, content on the
website and potential avenues for sales we devise and regularly refer to our content plan. This
highlights topics for each month relevant to the time of year.
8
WEBSITE
VISITNORTHUMBERLAND.COM
Visitor numbers to the website visitnorthumberland.com showed a small decline compared
with 2017, however durimg the last quarter of 2018 visitor numbers were starting to see an
increase. We continue to work on the website to ensure that it is fully responsive, secure and
meeting legal requirements as well as functionality improvements. However, the website is now
becoming a little outdated due to its age.
Businesses can advertise on the website in the form of listings (These can be basic or enhanced)
and by box advertising (Pay per click). In addition businesses are actively encouraged to list their
events free of charge on the website.
During 2019-20 we
will review the content
on the website (in line
with the content plan),
creating a development
plan to ensure that all
pages are updated.
Where appropriate we
will liase with specialists
to improve the quality
of the content. We will
continue to use social
media and competitions
to drive traffic to the
website. All other
marketing activity drives
traffic to the website, either to the homepage, to relevant
information or for the campaign to the microsite.
9
EMAIL NEWSLETTERS
OVER
35,000
CONTACTS
33.6%
35.9% CLICK
OPEN RATE THROUGH
RATE
We have a consumer database of over 35,000 people and periodically cleanse the database
to ensure it remains relevant and up to date. It can be detrimental to send out too many
e-newsletters so we ensure we carefully plan our schedule. We continue to carry out work on
segmenting the database and this is ongoing as it enables us to send more targeted emails. We
will continue to sell feature stories and bespoke newsletters whilst ensuring that we don’t send
out too many.
Statistics including open rate, click through rate and the most popular features are monitored for
each newsletter sent.
We also send out a monthly e-newsletter, ViewpoiNT, to Northumberland Tourism businesses.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Throughout 2018 we have
continued to grow our social FOLLOWERS
12%
media followers on Facebook,
Twitter and Instagram. During visitnorthumberland
2019/20 we will continue to
focus on these as well as always
8%
considering other social media
options such as Pinterest @VisitNland
As our follower numbers are
increasing we now charge for /visitnorthumberland 90%
promoted posts. During 2019/20
we will have a larger sales
focus on promoted posts. For
businesses that advertise with us
we will continue to do appropriate
BUSINESS ACCOUNTS
posts at no charge as they are
beneficial to ourselves as well as nlandtourism @NTbusiness
to the advertiser.
Northumberland Toursim 10PR
PR remains a powerful communication tool and an important focus of our marketing
activity. We have recently recruited a Content & PR Executive, having not had anyone in
position for 15 months.
PR Objectives
• To increase volume of coverage thereby increasing awareness of Northumberland and its
appeal.
• To increase quality of coverage for the county as an attractive tourist destination.
Pro-active PR
• Our communications plan outlines key events in the Northumberland calendar and
in-house pro-active PR will focus on this. The communications plan will be regularly
updated as businesses within the county publicise their events.
• Each month a round up press release will be issued by Northumberland Tourism to
encourage press trips and stories.
• Target national and regional press with regular releases.
Reactive PR
• Respond to Visit England/Visit Britain Opportunities.
• Respond to any direct enquiries, co-ordinating press visits.
Press Desk Service for the county
• Supplying quotes, contents and images and arranging
press trips for journalists. Where possible this will be
provided at no cost utilising in kind contributions from
businesses in return for press coverage.
Databases and relationships
• Expand and build upon our current relationships with
journalists and bloggers.
• Further develop our relationships and communications
with VisitEngland and VisitBritain to ensure they are aware of all our key
stories to enable them to promote Northumberland on our behalf.
• Continue to develop relationships with businesses and partners willing to host press visits
and provide competition prizes.
• Continue to build upon our relationships with the Northumberland County Councils
Comms team and PR teams of other DMOs.
Monitoring
• A log will be maintained of all trips and coverage directly generated.
• Vuellio, a media monitoring service, will be used to track and report on media coverage.
11OTHER MARKETING
ACTIVITIES
• Activity to leverage national tourism award winners
• Activity to encourage voting for Northumberland in the British Travel Awards
• Supporting key Northumberland County Council events
• Linking with VisitEngland’s marketing campaigns
• Promotion of additional anniversaries/key or new events relevant to Northumberland
MARKETING ACTIVITY
RESEARCH
For all marketing activity that we undergo we will carry out research to enable us to
continue to learn about our audience, including how long they stay, which demographic
they fit into and the impact of marketing on aspects such as their decision to visit.
Research will be carried out for:
• Autumn/winter campaign - APRIL
• Holiday Guide/Bedroom Browser - MAY SPRING/S
UMMER C
• Days Out and Attractions Leaflet - JUNE RESEARCH AMPAIGN
• Spring/summer campaign - NOVEMBER & ROI 201
8
• visitnorthumberland.com - DECEMBER 53% stayed
in the coas
V IS IT ORS
Hadrian’s
Wall and Ty tal area
s
ne Valley ar of Northumberland
visited Nor eas. 3% stay , 9% stayed
AVERAGE thumberla ed in the su in the
Following the research a one page summary PART Y nd during rrounding
their stay. area but
SIZE AVERAGE
will be made available to view on the 2.88 PEOP
LE
L ENGTH O AVERAGE TOTA
F L
STAY SPEND
corporate website, 73% said thei 4.63 NIGH
r most rece TS £707.33
www.northumberlandtourism.org.uk & August, nt
with Septem trip to Northumberla
ber & Octob nd
er being th took place outside of
e most po July
pular mon
ths.
INFLUENC
E
17 % of responde
of those ha nts vi
d already bo sited. 48%
considerin oked or w
g a visit be ere
campaign fore seeing
and 31% w the
ere still de
where to go ciding
.
OF THOSE
WHO
RETURN O VISITED
N £65.2
INVESTM 0 51% said seei
ENT :£1 the campa
ng 12%
said seeing
VIS
ITOR SPE probably or
ign the campa
ND GENE ign
RATED definitely tu influenced
£595,499 possible vi
rned a visit
sit into a
them
Northumbe to
rland
45% are plan certainty. over other
of those w ning to visit destinations
ere influen , if 51%
campaign
as above,
ced by the 8% said seeing
equate to
that would the campa 53% said seei
2,617 visits influenced
ign
th
ng
place, with still to take them in e campaign
a total spen stay longer fluenced th
d of £1.8 in em to
m Northumbe
rland.
visit more/
different
places.
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