Blackpool Campaign Allison Donato
Current Situation Research Blackpool is a city located along the coast of England. In the 1700s, English upper class started traveling to seaside cities and Blackpool became a desired travel destination. However, in the end of the 1900s Blackpool suffered and visits decreased. Prior to the planning of this campaign, SWOT and PEST analysis were done along with extensive research into the target audience, unique features of Blackpool, and surrounding seaside towns.
Current Situation Problem The main problem Blackpool is facing is the reputation of the town. It has a reputation for being a worn out, party city. Blackpool has been struggling to maintain it s title as a premier tourist destination and has become a place for night time goers who are more interested in drinking. With this reputation, families may be deterred from visiting with their children on a family holiday. Challenge The challenge is to transform Blackpool back into the premier seaside destination it once was by targeting families who are looking to plan a holiday for all ages.
Current Situation Opportunity Blackpool is a historic seaside town with a lot to offer. It is a unique town with its own charm, but most importantly, it is a family friendly destination with a variety of attractions for all ages such as the Comedy Carpet, the Blackpool Eifel Tower, the Big One roller coaster at Pleasure Beach and many more. Blackpool also has many annual events such as Blackpool Illuminations and Blackpool Dance Festival. It has a beautiful seaside location with numerous accommodation options. Blackpool is home to some of the best hotels in the world and has won Trip Advisors annual Travellers' Choice Awards which is based on guest feedback. Blackpool is close to other cities (Manchester, Liverpool, London) which allows tourists to travel easily from these areas via train.
Campaign Objectives The main goal of this campaign is to change the reputation of Blackpool to a family friendly, seaside holiday destination. This campaign will Increase traffic on the websites visitblackpool and blackpoolresortpass by 5% through 2017 Gain national and international news coverage of the story Increase visitor traffic to Blackpool from the 1 st of June to the 30 th of September in 2017 by 5% compared to 2016 Increase the sales of the Blackpool Resort Pass compared to the previous season
Target Audience The brief stated that Blackpool is hoping to attract a new kind of family. I believe the market for multi- generational families has the most potential. Multi- generational families tend to plan their holidays around milestones like anniversaries, family reunions and birthdays. With this type of audience, activities for all age groups are often wanted. The wide range of attractions Blackpool has to offer means that people of all ages can find activities that will interest them. This will keep the entire family happy and satisfied which will lead to them making lifelong memories. This campaign will focus on multi- generational families from France, Germany, and the UK. France and Germany are the two countries that visit the UK the most, therefore it would be most effective to focus on them.
Target Audience Ideally, this multi- generational family would consist of a mother (40 years old), a father (42 years old), three children (a 5 year old, 10 year old, and 14 year old), and a set of grandparents on both sides. The mother, father, and oldest child are active on social media (Facebook and Twitter) and usually read news articles online. The grandparents keep up- to- date with the news via morning shows and daily newspapers. This family is active and is interested in arts, culture and history. Both the mother and father work full time. The children go to school. The youngest child is artistic and enjoys arts and crafts. The middle child is very interested in history and nature. The oldest child is athletic and loves being active with the family. The father s parents are retired. The mother s parents work (grandmother works within health care field and grandfather is a business partner). Each set of grandparents live in a different town. Since this multi- generational family lives in separate towns, they enjoy going on big holidays to spend quality time together.
Key Messages Create new memories in the old historic town of Blackpool. With many attractions and endless possibilities for family fun, Blackpool is the perfect destination to create lifelong memories. Ready for a Blast from the Past? Visit Blackpool and take a ride on the world s first electric steel tramway that was built in 1885. Come try the 89 year old ice cream recipe at the one and only Notariannis in Blackpool. You don t need to go to Paris to see the Eiffel Tower, you can see it in the heart of England in Blackpool.
Strategies Changing the reputation of Blackpool back to a family friendly holiday destination is vital. This campaign will use family related content and nostalgia to gain positive international and national press coverage in order to increase website traffic and awareness of Blackpool. This coverage will help aid in the restoration of Blackpool s reputation and result in families booking a holiday to Blackpool.
Tactics Special Event Blast from the Past in Blackpool Festival Blackpool is a historic town with some unique features. It is home to the world s first electric steel tramway, built in 1885, that still is in use today. 1891 1894 the Blackpool Tower is built. The famous Blackpool Illuminations was first switched on in 1912 and continues to be a popular annual festival. Notariannis ice cream parlor has been around since 1928 and still has customers coming back for more. The Blackpool Zoo opened in 1972. These are just a few of the historic features Blackpool has. This campaign will have a Blast from the Past festival that will feature the historic and unique features of Blackpool. This festival will appeal to the target audience by striking nostalgia with the parents and grandparents of the multigenerational family and creating a sense of curiosity within the children. Pictured left is Notariannis ice cream parlor in 1935. Pictured below is Blackpool Illuminations Festival in 1912.
Tactics Special Event Festival The festival will be described as follows.. Suffering from nostalgia? Join us on the weekend of July 21 st for the Blast from the Past festival in the historic seaside town of Blackpool. Reminiscence on memories from the 1900 s and create new memories with your family. Come dressed in your best wardrobe from the 1900 s and celebrate the history of Blackpool with interactive games, live music, food and much more. The peak tourist season in Blackpool is July and August, therefore this festival will take place on the weekend of 21 st 23 rd of July 2017. This festival will encourage tourists to dress up in their best blast from the past wardrobe from 1900 to 1970 s. There will be interactive games for children and adults, guest speakers, old photo galleries of Blackpool, old time cuisine, music and much more. This festival will engage with the entire city of Blackpool and encourage local restaurants and hotels to participate and dress up in the themed wardrobe. Notariannis ice cream parlor and other popular Blackpool shops will be encouraged to set up stands at the festival.
Tactics Media Relations Good Morning Shows, Newspapers, Magazines This campaign will use the Blast from the Past festival and family- related story (will be mentioned shortly) to create a buzz about Blackpool s unique history. This information will be send out to contacts in the media list from good morning shows, newspapers, and magazines in the U.K., France and Germany. The contacts within the newspaper and magazines are all travel editors who write about travelling in Europe at least once a week. By using newspapers and magazines that already focus on traveling, this campaign would reach the target audience most efficiently. People who read these newspapers and magazines are always looking for their next adventure. Having Blackpool featured in these newspapers and magazines would bring attention to Blackpool as a holiday destination. Morning shows and newspapers would relate to the grandparents in the multi- generational family. Since one set of grandparents are retired, they would be most likely to have a daily routine of watching morning shows. The set of grandparents who still work would be most likely to read daily newspapers. The online versions of the magazines and newspapers would relate more to the parents and teenager in the multi- generational family. The parents and teenager are active on social media and are usually on- the- go, so they would be more likely to consume news from online sources.
Tactics Media Relations Media Lists U.K. Sunday Times Travel Magazine travel@thetimes.co.uk Rebecca Myers (previously wrote about Brighton which is a similar town to Blackpool) email: rebecca.myers@sunday- times.co.uk The Guardian Isabel Choat (travel editor for The Guardian) email: isabel.choat@theguardian.com Phoebe Smith (writes about how to have a holiday adventure in the UK, award winning travel editor, editor of travel magazine Wanderlust) email: phoebe@phoebe- smith.com This Morning Emma Gormley (managing director for ITV Studios Daytime; shows airing morning and early afternoon) email: emma.gormley@itv.com
Tactics Media Relations Media Lists France Le Magazine du Monde Both magazine and newspaper, articles in sections about different cities, also featured on website as a visual article which shows images and videos, more appealing to look through and read Thomas Doustaly (travel journalist for Le Monde, has written about hidden places in Europe to travel to) Twitter: @Thomasdoustaly Telematin French morning show, in 2014 they launched a section to their show on Saturdays called C est Un Monde which means It s A World where they have correspondents all over the world reporting on culture, travel and markets Myriam Seurat (responsible for World Culture and Culture) Twitter: @MyriamSeurat http://myriamseurat.over- blog.com/contact
Tactics Media Relations Media Lists Germany Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper but has own travel magazine as well called SZ Magazine, there is a category in the magazine and on their website called Reise Irene Helmes (associate in the travel department) email: irene.helmes@sz.de Sarah Schmidt (write a travel column once a week) email: sarah.schmidt@sz.de Ktja Schnitzler (associate in the travel department) email: katja.schnitzler@sz.de Lufthansa Magazine- 1.54 million readers each month Heiko Hager (executive director for direct sales) email: hager.heiko@guj.de Jan- Eric Korte (director of brand sales) email: korte.jan- eric@guj.de Guten Morgen Deutschland https://www.rtl.de/kontakt Uwe Fohrmann (editorial director for Guten Morgen Germany ) Telephone: +49(0) 221-456- 6-0
Tactics Media Relations The Story This campaign will feature a family- related story about the history of Blackpool. The theme of this story will be nostalgia, a sentimental longing for a period of the past. The story will emphasize that the parents and grandparents of the multi- generational family can reminiscence on old memories, share those memories with the children and create new lifelong memories as an entire family in Blackpool. This will mainly target the parents and grandparents of the multi- generational family, encouraging them to take a family holiday to Blackpool and share their old memories with their children and create new ones.
Tactics Community Relations The Blast from the Past festival will be sponsored by the City Council of Blackpool. They will cover up to 20,000 pounds of the costs which will include guest speakers, live music, tents, food for volunteers and other festival necessities. The City Council of Blackpool will encourage local residents to volunteer and participate in the festival. When the local residents volunteer, they will feel as if they are helping to restore the reputation of Blackpool and bring more tourists to the city. To engage the community and local businesses in the area for the festival, the council will make agreements with local restaurants and hotels. These hotels and restaurants will be featured on the VisitBlackpool website. These hotels and restaurants will receive national and international publicity from this festival and have an increase in guests and customers.
Tactics Corporate Identity Changes to Website The VisitBlackpool website is easy to navigate with a simple menu. It is also very easy to find helpful tips and suggestions on where to stay, what to do and where to eat. However, some changes need to be made in order for the website to give the right impression to potential holiday goers. The header (pictured right) gives the impression of party and nightlife which is the reputation Blackpool is trying to get away from. Therefore, the header should be changed to one that emphasizes wholesome, family fun.
Tactics Corporate Identity Changes to Website Another suggestion to make the VisitBlackpool site better would be making the photos on the homepage of VisitBlackpool bigger and more representative of how beautiful Blackpool truly is. When you google Blackpool, so many wonderful images come up and the viewer can really get a good impression of the town. However, the photos on the website do not create the same feeling. This campaign suggests hiring a photographer to take new pictures and make them bigger on the site. This way, visitors on the website will get a real feeling of how beautiful and amazing Blackpool is. This is an example of how the new website would look with bigger photos.
Tactics Corporate Identity Above is the current Resort Pass page. Changes to Website The Blackpool Resort Pass page is clear and easy to navigate. It is easy to see which attractions are included in each pass. However, the photos could be improved. With bigger and clearer images of the attractions it would be easier for visitors to see. There should also be a hyperlink to each attraction by the Resort Pass options. Having links to each attractions allows visitors to get more information about each attraction before deciding on which Resort Pass to purchase.
Tactics Internal Communications Briefings and Guidelines This campaign will use internal communications to brief and inform the employees on renewing the reputation of Blackpool. This campaign will create more traffic on the Blackpool websites (VisitBlackpool and BlackpoolResortPass) and social media pages, which means the employees would need to be informed about the campaign strategies so that they can properly answer any visitor questions. A small booklet would be made for employees to use as a guideline to answer questions if there is something they do not remember.
Video Idea Due to the high costs of advertising on TV, this campaign will feature a 30 second video that will be shared on social media. The contacts from the media lists will also share the video. The first 20 seconds of the video will feature old black and white footage or photos of Notariannis ice cream parlor (1928), Blackpool Illuminations (1912), and the steel tramway in Blackpool (1885). It will then show a current multi- generational family laughing and having a wonderful time in Blackpool at these attractions and places in Blackpool. Combining the old and new footage of these places will emphasize the message of booking a holiday to Blackpool and sharing the history with your family to create lifelong memories. The last 10 seconds of the video will include a quick mention of the Blast from the Past festival and the official Blackpool website, encouraging viewers to visit the website and see what Blackpool has to offer.
Timing This campaign is aimed for 2017. Sending out press releases and talking to journalists would start at the beginning of August 2016. Stories regarding this campaign would be published in the first few weeks of March 2017. The video will be released 2 nd January 2017 and will continue to be shared and featured until the end of the campaign. The festival will take place 21 st 23 rd July 2017. The end of the campaign will be 31 st July 2017. Evaluation will start 7 th August 2017 and continue to 31 st August 2017.
Gantt Chart
Budget This campaign will have a budget of 45,000 GBP. A break down of the budget is as follows Special Event/Festival: 20,000 GBP Corporate Identity Photographer: 1,660 GBP Web Designer: 6,100 GBP Video Shooting: 1,000 GBP Editing/Production: 2,500 GBP Travel Expenses for Journalists: 10,000 GBP Total: 41,260 GBP This leaves us with 3,740 GBP leftover in the case of unforeseen circumstances.
Evaluation Google analytics will be used to measure how many unique visitors the websites (VisitBlackpool and BlackpoolResortPass) had in 2017 and compare this to the unique visitors in 2016. Where the visitors are from, how long they stayed on the website, what terms were used in Google to find the site and how many clicks each sub- page had will also be looked into. How many news stories this campaign gets and how many times Blackpool is featured on TV will also be measured. Statistics on how many Blackpool Resort Passes have been sold through the season of 2017 will be obtained and compared to the amount sold in 2016. How many impressions Blackpool has had on Facebook and Twitter will also be measured by using unique measuring tools that these sites have. By using these various measuring tools, we will be able to see the return on investment (ROI).
Conclusion By combining the strategies and tactics of this campaign, Blackpool will be transformed into a family friendly holiday destination and will regain its title as a premier seaside destination. We will put Blackpool back on the map and get rid of the poor reputation that has been holding the town down. Blackpool is back and it is better than ever! Thank you for your attention.