Marketing Group

Role and purpose

To create life long customers for Swindon by: improving Swindon’s image; developing and delivering marketing activity; creating key messages and resources for organisations to adopt; and building a strong, clear, consistent, relevant and well-managed image.

Background

Swindon is experiencing a dynamic period of growth, dramatic redevelopment and increased business and leisure opportunities. It is essential to ensure the good news and strong messages regarding Swindon’s potential to become a major destination for business, retail and leisure visitors are successfully communicated to the appropriate target audiences.

The project originally titled Destination Swindon was set up to address the issues identified with this aim.

Consultants Beacon location were appointed to manage stage 1 of the project, which briefly comprised four elements:

• Perceptions Survey – robust preliminary research to provide an understanding of the current image and perceptions of Swindon from key audiences – Businesses, stakeholders and residents within Swindon; and businesses and residents external to Swindon.
• Marketing Audit – A review of current marketing activity within Swindon undertaken by a variety of organisations throughout the town
• Comparator Study - Review of best practice and structures in integrated place marketing in the UK
• Blueprint - Recommendations as to the smartest way to move forward

Priorities

The Swindon Marketing Group is working with experts from nPower and Nationwide to design a new hub website for Swindon.  The site will provide inward investors with all the information and contacts they require when looking at locating in Swindon.   

The group is also tasked with producing a 3 year business plan with the aim of developing a sustained, robust and effective ‘place marketing’ function.

Membership

The Marketing Group is being extended to invite people with relevant experience onto the group, and potential sub-groups covering specific activity areas are being developed.