While a good creative concept requires that spark of imagination, the most successful B2B and consumer campaigns employ an added ingredient - planning and research. Having held this account since 2000, we can vouch for the importance of understanding the customer base in shaping the style and method of communications. The fortunes of this underperforming 5 star visitor attraction were turned around through a series of campaigns derived from an analysis of customer demographics and the retailers to establish ‘five key markets’. This provided much needed direction and an opportunity to improve the disappointing level of letting that hovered around 20%.
The initial strategy aimed to give a ‘face’ to each of these markets by running competitions through national and local press to find the individual who best captured the market profile - a simple way of injecting personality to the campaign. As fortunes improved, the strategy was developed to reflect the changing customer base and higher profile retail brands attracted to GGOV. Professional models were featured to add a new level of sophistication and remove the stigma of outlet shopping. The roll-out of the campaigns centred on the M6 corridor - with over ten million passing vehicles each year, this was pivotal to reaching the customers. 48 sheet posters were positioned in key motorway service stations and this was supported by leaflet drops at TICs and other visitor attractions. The results? Well, if we tell you that sales are up 74%, the village is now 100% let and has experienced annual footfall increases of 30% since 2000 then there can be little doubt that the client’s investment has indeed proved worthwhile. |
