What’s hot for 2012

Current outlook

At the Visitor Economy Forum I attended last month, forecasters were cautious about the business outlook for 2012.  STR Global indicated that the majority of UK hotels are being affected to some extent by slowdown in demand, with major chains reporting evidence of people downgrading their grade of accommodation , and others deciding not to make a trip at all.

On the positive side:

• London has seen a 12% increase in available accommodation for visitors, with almost no adverse effect on occupancy levels – indicating increasing demand and prices holding firm.
• Budget accommodation is more in demand than ever, and site shortage has resulted in the likes of Travelodge expanding into spaces above high footfall retail premises such as supermarkets, particularly in outer areas of the capital.
• Budget operators are scouring the most attractive protected landscapes and national parks in the English countryside for suitable premises to take over and expand into.
• A new Premier Inn has recently sprouted on the rooftop level of the new Westfield shopping centre at Stratford International
• Unconventional online lettings agencies are springing up to promote apartments and homestays with easy access to London; but quality could be an issue. Look out for user generated reviews to counter this risk.

Business Opportunities

• Keep an eye out for  pop up shops and retailers – or even consider starting one yourself.  Taste of London pop up restaurant festival will be in Regents Park June 21-24. Presale tickets available online now.
• London 2012 merchandise is now on sale at John Lewis, Next, Adidas, The Post Office and official shops at St Pancras, Heathrow and Stratford City. Get yourself, your staff and your business dressed up for the Olympic torch relay when it passes by. No one in the UK should be more than 10 miles from the route, according to the organsiers.
• Obviously attractive popular official 2012 merchandise, like posters and pin badges are already on sale and may sell out nearer the time – so buy them now.
• Shop now for Union Jack accessories, window dressing and get thinking on how to celebrate the games with customers and staff.
• Editorial teams in the media are already out there looking for stories about places and happenings in Britain in 2012. If you’ve got anything  new, unusual or eccentric coming up, or if you win an award for something in your business – this is the year to share it with the world – and issue a series of news releases.  Dont forget to post them onto your website.
• This is likely to be a year of innovative and opportunistic developments like no other.
• New businesses may find it hard to get established unless eye catching promotions or discounts are offered. Social media makes it possible for a small business to make a big noise though.
• Don’t forget it’s the Queen’s Golden Jubilee (with an extra long weekend holiday in June to boot).
• Yet more opportunities await those businessses able to capitalise on the bicentenary of the birth of the novelist Charles Dickens, who enjoys a global network of fans. He travelled all over the UK, with many hostelries  he patronised still in business as hotels and restaurants. Visitor attractions in many towns and cities where he lived worked or set his novels (Portsmouth, London, Rochester, Broadstairs, all spring instantly to mind) are in line for a welcome windfall as well.

Regional winners and losers

Again, according to STR Global

• Of all UK cities outside London, Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow and Leeds are all prospering most.
• Brighton and York are also likely to do well thanks to strong demand boosted by steady year round visitors attending meetings conferences and business events.
• Edinburgh willl continue to suffer from remedial repair works to crumbling tarmac along the controversial Princes Street tram route (laid along  in the very heart of the city in 2009); and although work was suspended over Christmas and New Year, word has spread on social media of unsightly hoardings and traffic disruption. I saw it myself in the autumn, and it’s likely to discourage or disappoint some visitors until it completes in July.

Leisure trends

Olive Insight, reporting further on their ongoing research for Visit Britain, both during and in the aftermath of the last recession, have found

• More people are now ( 61%) worried about the economic outlook in Britain than they were during the recession in June 2009 (when the figure was 40%).
• Earlier research showed that there was a tendency for consumers to ring fence their spending on holidays; but somewhat worryingly, this appears to no longer be the case.
• More people than ever are now looking to stretch their budget by taking advantage of deals and special offers.
• Businesses take note! Propositions offering service upgrades, added value, an inspiration you may not have thought of for yourself, or an opportunity to enjoy a bit of self indulgence, work best.

Will Brits still go abroad?

Here’s a  round up of current thinking:

• Demand for domestic holidays in 2012 is likely to strengthen because of the economic situation
• Our current near-recession makes our  offering more competitive as a destination to visit.
• Research from  TUI claims that outbound demand from Brits is holding up for traditional summer destinations such as mainland Spain and the Balearics, for those who want to get away from the fuss this summer.
• I suspect that other southern European Eurozone countries with economic issues, such as Greece, and even Italy, may not be so lucky in the current economic climate.
• In my neck of the woods in Kent, people are feeling cautious about leaving the country; mainly because they don’t want to miss out in this year of a lifetime.

Can we help you?
Virtual Viv is part of the team at Manifold Associates, working in the UK and travelling the world independently to inform you with incisive commentary in words and pictures about news that matters. We want to help businesses  maximise the benefits of the forthcoming exciting months.

Our recent projects have included researching and authenticating, on behalf of Visit Kent, locations still recognisable today, that have associations with Charles Dickens in advance of the bicentenary of his birth. We welcome freelance photo journalism assignments and writing commissions. Vivienne Boucher has recently been comissioned to write a feature article about The Kent of Dickens, which has been published in the January 2012 issue of BBC Countryfile magazine.

Maybe you’re a business looking to capitalise on the opportunities that 2012 might bring to you. If so, please get in touch.

 

What hope for those seeking or offering accommodation for London 2012?

 

Are you among those who were successful in obtaining tickets for London 2012? Well I’m afraid that you’ve now got another challenge  on your hands if you’re planning a visit to London during the games! If you’re travelling a fair distance to get to the Olympic Park, or any of the other venues in  London or elsewhere, you’d better get thinking about your strategy for finding accommodation.

In this post I’ve tried to take a realistic view about alternative strategies that I feel could have a realistic chance of success. Accommodation providers should already be making efforts to market their accommodation  availability during both games periods next year. In an unscientific straw poll I found that at this stage much already appears to be sold out .

You might want to consider planning how you (or your guests) are going to get to the games venues by public transport or otherwise, and find out whether a day trip is feasible. No doubt you can also appreciate why it’s already very much in the interest of all accommodation providers to research and publish information online and offline for visitors about likely journey times, the convenience of their location,and how to get to  2012 games venues by public transport.

If you need to stay over, here’s Visit London’s official accommodation finder for London 2012

Many of the evening sessions at The Olympic Park in London finish late – around 10pm, and it already looks as if most events will be sold out, so you can be almost sure that it’s going to be a battle to find accommodation, unless that is, you’ve already booked an official package available through Thomas Cook which guarantees you accommodation linked to tickets.

Favoured locations to stay in the London area
Given an unlimited budget and a free choice, in London I’d recommend looking to stay towards the east of London, or Docklands, and choosing The City, rather than the centre of the West End, in the months of July, August and September, when the weather in London generrally tends to be both hot and humid. Hotels in these areas should already be emphasising the benefits of their location in their marketing materials, and illustrating it in images.

As part of the deal for games ticket holders at London venues, those lucky people  will all get free travel on London public transport for the day of the event they hold tickets for, making location slightly less of a consideration, although they’ll still need to consider traffic and travel time to the venue involved. Here’s information about the area of London covered by a Games Travelcard on the day, which might allow people to widen their search area.

Other considerations

Another possible option for games ticket holders might be to narrow down their accommodation choice to a particular area that they favour, and then walk the streets on their next visit to London (well before the games), to try and find likely looking prospective accommodation. Accommodation providers may therefore find walk-ins by prospective guests enquiring about London 2012 will increase, and need to consider how to handle them.

Being near any sort of waterfront is clearly a good option for accomodation, but it is only likely to be available at a premium cost.Most people’s first choice is likely to be anything on or near any part of the River Thames, a canal, or a green space. Proximity to Hyde Park and all the games venues will probably cost people a premium, as will a position on or near water or any of the garden squares dotted about in Kensington, Pimlico or Belgravia. But you’ll be lucky to find any accommodation at all in London at the moment; because huge allocations have already been snapped up by the games organisers for officials, sponsors and competitors; and the balance is probably being held by tour operators for their regular clients on scheduled tours.

At this stage, the situation is likely to be the same in and around other games venues such as Weymouth (sailing), and Windsor (rowing). With football tickets so far proving less popular, you might be luckier in those cities where matches are being played – at the moment – but even there I wouldn’t wait too long!

Possible strategies

If a prospective guest is prepared to pay upfront, they might just get lucky by being persistant with the hotel(s) of their choice by contacting them direct, as soon as their date of stay is known.

The alternative is for them to hold their nerve, register  interest on any accommodation web sites or written waiting lists they can find, that will accept their expressions of interest; and be prepared to take a chance later, immediatelywhen contacted, if an opportunity should arise. You can bet that some unsold rooms are likely released from allocations nearer the time; but the chances are that rates will remain high, and only the less attractive locations, and probably only the lowest category rooms within each property, will have availability at the very last minute.

I’m not sure I’d rate my chances for rooms during the games being available on Late Rooms or Last Minute.com; but they too could be worth trying nearer the time, as could multiple chains such as Best Western, Holiday Inn Express, Premier Inn and Travelodge in locations with good rail connections into the capital.

Alternatives to hotels during London 2012

1. Stay with friends or relations near a games venue (offer to pay)
   
2. Consider a home exchange
3. Look at apartments
4. Contact property management companies offering rentals
5. Dip your toe into the waters of alternative accommodation providers that I’ve picked up from the media. These all come with a ‘health warning’ because I haven’t used any of them personally:
   Camp in my Garden ; Air Band B; self catering and camping in Lee Valley Parks ; Silver Door; Go Native; Glamping; http://www.bedandfed.co.uk/;

Good luck!

Can we help you with marketing ?

Virtual Viv is part of the team at Manifold Associates, working in the UK and travelling the world independently to inform you with incisive commentary about things that matter in marketing.   Freelance assignments welcomed. Maybe you’re a business looking to capitalise on the opportunities that London 2012 might bring to you. We’re flexible and versatile. If you’d like to discuss how we might be able to help you with marketing, please get in touch.

PS To access a list of all my posts about the games, click on the words ‘London 2012′ under the heading ‘Tags’ on the right.

More information about The Boundary restaurant with rooms  in Shoreditch

 

 

The long haul traveller’s wish list

Having recently returned from a trip to Australia, I feel I’ve greatly improved my understanding of actions that businesses can take to improve the service they provide to long distance travellers; and what sort of offerings attract these sorts of customers in the first place.

Having found myself on the client side of the fence for a change, I thought I’d take this opportunity to share some of the lessons I learned during the course of my recent solo travelling. It was quite an eye opener. With London 2012 only one year away, I believe it’s definitely something all businesses ought to start thinking about. After all websites, and online communications generally, know no boundaries, and global travel and trade is easier than ever before !

Seven simple steps to a friendlier world

1. Smile, it makes everything easier, and people always appreciate a few simple words of greeting. Show yourself or other people on your website
2. Encourage everyone to use their language skills with the aid of national flag lapel badges and symbols on websites.
3. Make good use of multi lingual or pictorial information  or symbols and/or menus. Sales benefit because people can order and purchase with confidence. You get your message across more effectively.
4. Everyone travelling alone should receive a special welcome.  In restaurants singles should automatically be offered a seat at a table they can share with others if they wish
5. Offering FREE wifi is a major attraction to people
6. Listening is a skill that should not be underestimated, or taken for granted
7. A tip can be appropriate for particularly good service, or a job well done. Otherwise take the time to write a glowing online testimonial about it.

A helping hand for the long haul traveller

Long haul air travel is defined as involving a non stop flight of six and a half hours or more.  If, like me, you’re travelling to a destination that involves flying for over 20 hours to get there; you simply can’t make an unplanned trip back home without great inconvenience and expense, so there’s a huge up front investment of time and money on the part of the traveller to get all the important details of the trip sorted out in advance. There’s more at stake; so I’d urge everyone serving travellers to play their part in helping to ensure that everyone takes home the happiest of memories.

Here are my 25 top tips for maximum enjoyment of long haul travel. If you’re marketing something likely to be of interest to long haul travellers, you might find something of interest here too!

1. Get a personal recommondation  for a really expert travel agent to help you sort out the logistics. Get details of the local representative in each destination. They can be your real friend in time of crisis.
2. Do as much pre research as you can to determine your preferred route, destination and acceptable standard of accommodation
3. Work at getting any upgrade you can qualify for
4. Join the loyalty programme of all airlines and hotel chains you patronise
5. Take out a comprehensive travel insurance policy, just in case the worst happens
6. Find out the procedure to follow in case you have to change or cancel a flight or hotel reservation
7. Look up all possible friends in the places you’re travelling to, and listen to their advice
8. Reconfirm every tour booking 48 hours or 2 working days in advance
9. Find out exactly what the weather will be like everywhere you’re visiting, so you take the right clothes
10. If you’re travelling to or from Australia or New Zealand, avoid jet lag after arrival by making a 2 night stopover in Asia or USA en route both ways.
11. Upgrade to premium economy (or higher) on the long haul flights if you can possibly afford it.
12. Avoid all one night stays as far as possible (except on escorted tours, where other people can worry and help with lost luggage)
13. Get a tough but colourful luggage tag, so your case stands out from the crowd
14. Avoid hotel restaurants except for breakfast; but get recommendations about places where you can enjoy the local vibe
15. Only accumulate or buy stuff you can take home; or pay extra to ship special large items you can’t live without. Find out about unaccompanied excess baggage shipping and how overseas visitors get a tax refund on large items. Here’s information about how overseas visitors can obtain tax refunds for items purchased in the UK. Here’s information about reclaiming tax on items purchased in Australia.
    
16. Try to buy souvenirs that are made locally. Read my posts about souvenirs and postcards.
17. Ask for recommendations about local experiences or interesting places to visit
18. Follow interesting sounding directional signs
19. Invest in some digital luggage scales to minimise the headache of keeping within the airline free baggage allowance. Try Balanzza.
20. Don’t take more than 3 pairs of shoes
21. Look out for restaurant special offers on chalk boards outside the premises
22. Sign up for alerts on restaurant offers with Facebook deals and Living Social
23. Get an international subscription to ‘Global Gossip’ or set up Skype on your smart phone
24. Dont buy preserves, food or drink to take home that falls foul of airline liquid restrictions.
25. Delete the  out of focus digital photos you’ve taken as you go along

Looking for more inside information about marketing?

Virtual Viv is part of the team at Manifold Associates, working in the UK and travelling the world independently to inform you with incisive commentary about things that matter in marketing.   Freelance assignments welcomed. We’re flexible and versatile. If you’d like to discuss how we might be able to help you, do get in touch. Until next time, resolve to get more adventurous.

Britain – you’re invited! Opportunities for all

Running rings round tradition!

With 2012 less than a year away, I can feel the beginnings of a buzz in the air. The UK government has just published its long awaited tourism strategy; and in one of the first publicly visible actions to commemorate London hosting the games next year, the ubiquitous multicoloured rings have been suspended across the ends of the platforms at London St Pancras International train station.

St Pancras is the departure point for the Javelin high speed trains that are already running to Stratford International, home of the London 2012 Olympic Park, and the new Westfield Stratford City shopping centre that opens there in September this year.

Incidentally, the Javelin high speed trains also already make the journey on from Stratford International to Ebbsfleet International, Ashford International and other attractive places to stay in the county of Kent, such as Canterbury, Faversham and Medway. Read my previous post on the subject.

Exciting times for UK tourism

It’s an exciting time for everyone involved in the British visitor economy. There are lots of new opportunities for everyone to derive lasting benefit from having the eyes of the world, (and, thanks to digital media, more of them than ever before) on Britain. More information about London 2012.

What’s more, if you run a business involved in the UK visitor economy, you can sign up for a travel trade trade newsletter , access some useful free marketing tools, and tell Visit Britain news about your plans for 2012 at the Tourism2012games website. Businesses can also register to tender for 2012 contracts on the Compete For website; and anyone can subscribe to daily news about London 2012 at insidethe games.com. You might even want to become a retailer of official 2012 merchandise, or other souvenirs offering something typically British, yourself.  Read my post on what makes a good souvenir.

London 2012: growing visibility ‘on the street’

A store selling official games merchandise is already up and running at London St Pancras International . The huge range, also available online, includes everything from fine jewellery and tea cups to pin badges, stationery, oven gloves, sportswear, steel athlete construction kits, and even a book of keep fit exercises. With prices starting at £5, there’s something for every budget, and it’s ideal for people looking out for something different to take as a gift for people overseas. Here are some more of my ideas for typically British gifts, from a list of English fragrances to ideas about where to buy English food products.

Other official London 2012 shops can already be found at Paddington station, John Lewis Oxford Street 5th floor and Terminal 5 airside at London Heathrow Airport. In addition, Adidas is the official sportswear partner, and Next is the official clothing and homeware supplier for London 2012 (both have their own ranges; but note that not all stores carry the range yet, so check out the respective websites for details). More information about the official merchandise range.

More visible games related branding and outlets selling merchandise will no doubt follow, as London, and games venues in other parts of the country, start to get dressed up in anticipation. Britain is already getting into celebratory mood this year, starting with the Royal wedding, that will take place at Westminster Abbey on Friday 29th April, now a public holiday. Prince William’s fiance, Kate Middleton’s parents business Party Pieces is already selling commemorative accessories with a union jack theme , if you’re planning a party.

Get your games tickets sorted – pronto!

Now is also the time to apply for games tickets. They start at just £20 each, and all the information you need can be found at www.tickets.london2012.com

2012 logistics

I recently attended an industry workshop concerned with London 2012 at Windsor Racecourse, and was amazed and hugely impressed at the sheer scale of the logistical organisation already well in hand within the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in preparation for the London 2012 rowing events taking place there at Dorney Lake, part of Eton School . No doubt it’s the same at other locations. I know the sailing facilities at Weymouth are already fully operational and the White Water rafting centre is opening imminently at Waltham Cross.

There’s a lot to think about when organising any major international event let alone these games, from obvious things like security for participants, officials and spectators, to parking and traffic management, through to the less obvious considerations such as finding ways to ensure that daily life for local residents is disrupted as little as possible, while all the while encouraging local businesses to gear up to receive, and indeed welcome, increased call volumes, footfall and media interest.

The Windsor tourism team is already looking at working with social media, and is planning a smartphone app. I think there’s going to be a big opportunity for savvy businesses to harness social media channels to capture incremental business and passing trade, for example with the aid of smart phone apps and websites from providers such as Urban Spoon, Top Table, Groupon, Facebook Deals and Living Social. To preview the potential check out what Alton Towers theme park are already doing with social media.

Accomodation inclusive packages

There will also shortly be accommodation inclusive London 2012 ticket packages available from branches of Thomas Cook in Britain. More information.

Looking for insider information?

Virtual Viv is part of the team at Manifold Associates, working in the UK and travelling the world independently to inform you with incisive commentary about things that matter in marketing and the international visitor economy. Freelance assignments welcomed. We’re flexible and versatile. If you’d like to discuss how we might be able to help you, do get in touch.

Be a bystander in 2012… or sail into history?

A question of salt

This weekend I came to stay in Maldon Essex, somewhere I’d never been to before. I already knew about Maldon salt of course, I use it myself in cooking.  I half expected to see the salt factory, and take a tour, but there was no signage in evidence in the town, and there’s nothing on the website to indicate that it’s possible to visit, just lots of information including a video presentation about the manufacturing process, and a history of the business.

It was a sunny day, so, instead, based on a vague notion that Maldon must be on the coast or a tidal river,  I strolled down the High Street in seach of the quay from my base at the Blue Boar Hotel, a photogenic old coaching inn. Full of character, I was amazed to discover it even has its own on-site Farmers brewery, and, on the day I visited, a beer festival was in progress to re-inforce the point!

Summer attractions on the Hythe at Maldon

Passing by way of the well signposted local visitor information office, which although closed, distributes a free local guide, I soon found the quay, passing historic St Mary’s church on the way.

The Hythe is a lively place with several waterfront pubs, and posters advertising crabbing competitions (with monetary prizes) and other exciting sounding children’s adventure activities taking place locally. More information about visiting Maldon.

On the day I was there, river cruises were operating on the tidal river Blackwater, although I was unfortunately too late in the day to join one. However, one other interesting thing I found were plenty of advertisements from a company called Topsail Charters,  offering various adventures on board historic Thames Sailing Barges, one of which was tied up alongside the quay.

About Thames Sailing barges

I’ve discovered that, in their heyday, around 1860, there were up to 5,000 of these fine old ships, with their distinctive red ochre sails, operating as cargo vessels on the east coast of Britain, with the last few working until the 1960s. In Maldon the version known as a ‘stackie’ was used to transport bales of straw and hay, stacked to a level halfway up the mast, away from local arable farms.

Built for ease of handling, with a mast that pivots to allow them to sail under relatively low bridges, Thames Sailing Barges have a shallow draft and flat bottom. This means that they can rest without support on mudflats at low tide, in the shallow tidal rivers and creeks that are found along the Thames estuary. At the turn of the twentieth century the sailing barge fleet still numbered over 2,000 – but today only a handful of these traditional barges survive, restored and converted for leisure usage.

More pictures of sailing barges

Onboard adventures

With prices advertised for Maldon departures starting at £17 per head for a two hour two island cruise to £30 for a 3 and a half hour trip with a traditional ploughmans and apple crumble lunch, a cruise onboard a Thames Sailing Barge can be an attractive proposition. There are also various options for birdwatching cruises (sailing is almost silent, remember); and you can even hire out a barge out of season for a static self catering weekend if you’re worried about seasickness.

There are options for everything from team building events, to weddding receptions held aboard Thames Sailing barges. They’re available from Ipswich, London, Maldon or Tilbury, with operation broadly possible on the east coast of Britain between Aldeburgh in the north, down to Faversham in Kent in the south. More information and full details.
There is also a Thames sailing barge based at Whitstable in Kent offering summer cruises. More information

Thames estuary summer racing schedule

For a real adventure and fantastic photo opportunities, you can watch Thames sailing barge match races , held each summer.  Here are the remaining dates of the to be held in the summer of 2010:

* July 3 Thames (Gravesend)
* August 7 Swale (Faversham)
* August 28 Southend
* September 4 Colne (Brightlingsea)

Book well in advance if you’re interested in joining a racing barge for the day (for safety reasons on board participation is not permitted). Some of the races can also be followed on a spectator boat. These are annual events, so  check online for dates announced for future years.  Spaces for 2012 are likely to be particularly in demand in the weeks immediately prior to the London games, so I’d recommend planning ahead.

London 2012  – opening ceremony news

This week it’s been announced that Oscar-winning Danny Boyle and Stephen Daldry, will direct and produce the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for the London 2012 Games. Find out how to register your interest in booking tickets.

A standalone production company, London 2012 Ceremonies Ltd, has now been set up and will be based in Three Mills Studio near the Olympic Park in East London, which I saw on a recent visit. For more information about what’s happening on on the ground in East London and at the Olympic Park at the moment, see my previous post dated May 25 on the subject, visit the London 2012 website or Inside the Games, a news site.

How Viv can help you

There will be increasing media interest in stories about tourism and the UK visitor economy during the run up to London 2012 . Commission me to help you with writing  about, filming or  photographing your destination or business, or simply researching and writing punchy copy about newsworthy events you’re involved in organising.

I’ll cut to the quick and won’t go over the top with waffle, puff  or hyperbole. A true content strategist, I can package up information in the form of anything from website content or advertorials, to news releases or video scripts, to match your end user needs.  I’ll take real pride in doing a great job, so why not contact me at Manifold Associates to find out more.

Until next time…

How to get to London 2012

This week, as the official games mascots Wenlock and Mandeville were launched to the world, I had the opportunity to visit East London to see for myself the progress being made on the Olympic Park.

An unpromising start…

For those wondering if there’s anything interesting for members of the public to see yet, the answer has to be a resounding yes. In fact walking tours of the main site, such as the one I joined, led by an official blue badge guide, are now available.

The tours start from Bromley By Bow station(one of the stops on the District Line going towards Upminster). You might think on arrival that you’ve come to the wrong place, as you emerge from the station onto a dual carriageway, and believe me, the traffic noise is pretty horrendous, and the fragile looking skeleton of the Olympic stadium is only just visible in the middle distance.

Worry not. Hang on in there, and seemingly in a flash the guide leads you down a flight of steps below the road level. You then cross under the road, and pass down the side of a Tesco superstore occupying land reclaimed from former use as a chemical factory. This unlikely start then takes you over a bridge into a new side of East London, starting with The Three Mills, a conservation area and home of a restored tidal water mill on the River Lea, called House Mill. Incidentally the river Lea has been the beneficiary of a huge clean up operation, and is now part of a network of restored navigable waterways that are adding to the area’s emerging attractiveness.  Also nearby is a large park and the Three Mills film studios, Londons largest, but least well known.

Of the original three mills (one of which is now demolished),  House Mill has  recently been restored and converted into a visitor attraction, with the ground floor of the Millers House turned into a pleasant waterfront cafe.   Plans are afoot and money is being raised to convert the mill to generate hydro electricity in the future. It’s one of the  earliest known tidal mills in England, and was one of several providing flour for the bakers of Stratford-atte-Bow, who supplied bread to the City of London.

A surprising discovery in a watery grave

Our guide explained that the original plan had been to use the recently restored waterway network around the Olympic Park to transport visitors to the games; but this plan has not been actioned because of security fears.

Continuing along an adjacent waterway, we were astounded to hear about recent plans to  rescue the original Euston Arch, which was discovered dumped in a watery resting place here,  in Prescott Channel (NOT named incidentally, after a certain former UK deputy Prime Minister of the last government).

The Euston Arch originally stood  outside the London railway station of the same name, but was demolished in 1961 following the failure of a campaign to save it led by the late Sir John Betjeman. The campaign to rescue the arch and restore it to a position outside the current Euston station, is being led by historian Dan Cruickshank, who located the remains after some persistent detective work. Read about his campaign. You can support the campaign to re-erect the arch by contributing to the blog, or join the Facebook group.

The green way to Stratford

On our tour we also heard about the Greenway to the Olympic Park, a flat walking route for pedestrians to access it,  which will run all the way from Beckton on the north bank of the Thames in East London.  Our guide told us that the route is not yet fully complete as I write. However it seems that it could be a good move for Londoners in 2012 to get to the Olympic Park by taking the District or Hammersmith and City line tube to West Ham, one of the three designated Olympic gateway stations, from where the Greenway will be well signposted.

Another option for locals and visitors will be to take the tube to Stratford at the end of the Jubilee line, particularly convenient for the new Westfield shopping centre which is scheduled to open at the Olympic Park at the end of 2011; but I bet that’s going to experience a huge volume of passengers! Incidentally, having seen what it’s like at the moment, my advice is to not bother going to Stratford for shopping until Westfield opens.

Coming from Kent, it already seems to be obvious that the best way to get to the Olympic Park from there will be to leave the car at home, and take a Javelin high speed train to Stratford International, which links in to the other end of the Westfield complex from the Jubilee line station. Read my post about the high speed Javelin service.

At the Park site
The closest station to the stadium construction site at the moment is Pudding Mill Lane on the Docklands light railway; but that particular station will be closed for the duration of the games, because it will be unable to handle the large volume of visitors that would otherwise be experienced.

To view the Olympic Park construction site, including the stadium and the Aquatic Centre, already dubbed ‘The Pringle’ (owing to the shape of its curved roof like the eponymous potato crisp brand), a viewing platform, visitor interpretation centre and small cafe has been set up, called the View Tube, which can be booked for group visits.

In conclusion, a walking tour is probably the best option at the moment to find your way around the Olympic Park and receive informed commentary about the games.

News and information about London 2012. Or visit Inside the Games.

Can I help you?

Are you looking for insider information and informed comment about destinations or tourism in Britain? You could commission me as a freelance photo journalist, to undertake desk research or market intelligence  work. For more information contact me at Manifold Associates.

Until next time…

BA passenger strikes back!

I spent last week on the Italian island of Sicily.  All through the winter I’d been looking forward to a spring break touring the island, with visits to the outstanding archeological sites and other attractions, as part of a group of parents from my son’s school, accompanied by the enthusiastic head of classics.

When I first received the itinerary, I only vaguely noted we were flying British Airways to Catania, one of the two major airports on the island, the other being Palermo.  (In fact Ryanair have subsequently started to operate weekly flights to Trapani in the far west).

Worry beforehand

Although it wasn’t long before the Unite union strike ballot, and the possibility of strike action by BA cabin crew began to cast a long shadow over the trip, there was no question of cancelling or postponing.  There were simply too many people, and too much complicated diary juggling  involved, to allow for that.

We knew that the rules stipulated that unions have to give seven days notice of strike action, so it was with a huge sigh of relief as seven days before departure on 15th March came and went without an announcement, and more strike free days ticked by.  It still came as a hammer blow though, when on Friday afternoon 12th March (before we were due to travel out on the Monday of the same weekend), that we learned that the date of our return on 20th March was the first date to be affected by strike action.

It was decided we’d go ahead with the trip in any event,  and worry what was going to happen to the return flight later. I received quite a few phone calls and ‘good luck’ emails from friends and colleagues who knew I was travelling BA on the first strike day. Although we were due to return on a Saturday, so if the worst came to the worst those with work commitments theoretically had a day to play with, it was the worry of uncertainty that stressed everyone out, above all Caroline, the tour organisor who was also accompanying us – an unenviable task in this particular instance.

Draw on all available back up

While we sat back enjoying our tour (of which more another time),  poor Caroline had to spend hours on the phone to the tour operator through whom the trip had been booked, monitoring whether our return flight had been cancelled or not, and weighing up various alternative options.

It’s at times like these, that you thank your lucky stars that you have a tour organiser and a tour operator to sort things out rather than having to do it yourself – which I would’ve done had I booked my own flights direct with BA. At least most of us could get on with enjoyng our holiday!

What happened to us

Two days before we were due to fly back, on the Wednesday 17th March, ironically as we were strolling along the ridge to the temple of Concord, at the UNESCO World Heritage site of the Valley of the Temples at Agrigento, news finally came through that our return flight from Catania to Gatwick had been cancelled by British Airways.

After all the options had been examined, and the implications to our itinerary had been weighed up by Caroline and the tour operator,  the best solution proved to be an Alitalia Air One flight from Palermo to Milan Linate, and then a wait for a connecting Alitalia flight back to Heathrow.  Since our cars were all parked at Gatwick, where we’d departed from, BA were obliged to lay on a coach to take us back there on arrival, as well.

How the trip was affected

I guess we were pretty lucky as a group, to come away relatively unscathed from our experiences on this occasion. Sicily as a destination is fantastic, particularly at this time of year with all the wild flowers in bloom. However, every member of the group was still put to considerable inconvenience, in addition to the tour organiser who accompanied us. Here’s a summary:

• I personally witnessed poor attitude and service from BA cabin crew.  One member of the cabin staff on our outward flight to Catania had to be prompted on numerous  occasions to fetch a glass of water for a neighbouring passenger who needed it to take medication. She was made to feel a nuisance.
• The switch of airports for our return flight from Catania to Palermo meant that we lost about half a day in Sicily from  our itinerary. The direct consequences of this were:

1. we had to get up an hour earlier for breakfast on the last day in order to have any time to visit Taormina
2. we had to completely miss a trip to the finest Roman mosaics in Europe at Piazza Armerina (usually a highlight of any trip to Sicily, and one I was particularly looking forward to), in favour of a three hour journey across the island to Palermo.
3. as a result of the necessary changes to the itinerary, four members of the group opted to stay in Palermo for two nights and completely miss visiting Taormina
4. instead of a planned leisurely picnic lunch in the countryside on our last day in Sicily, we had to eat our sandwiches in a motorway service area en route to Palermo
5. the revised flights via Milan involved an earlier than scheduled take off, with an additional 3 hours travelling time, and although a coach was organised from Heathrow to Gatwick to collect people’s cars, the journey home ended up  longer and later  at night than had been anticipated.

With another British Airways strike starting tomorrow, you can probably expect to read more tales of woe in the media; but believe me, whatever happens, there will be plenty more personal experiences like mine that don’t get written about.   Visitors to Britain are probably having comparable experiences to ours, right here, in our home country. Unfortunately it’s almost bound to have a detrimental effect on perceptions of Britain abroad, and subtle but long term damage could be being done to the image of Britain as a destination. Not something we need with London 2012 coming up.

Did you enjoy reading this post? Virtual Viv could write an article or news release for your organisation. Photo journalism assignments particularly welcomed.  Comment about what I’ve written below, or contact me at Manifold Associates.

Until next time…

Could tourism be a winner in the election?

The coming battle

One thing’s for certain. Some time during the next three months there’s going to be a general election. All the indications are that it will be one of the most closely fought struggles to win  the ‘hearts and minds’ of the British people since the Second World War.

I wonder if tourism could become an issue in the campaign. It might not look likely at this point; but if and when a parliamentary candidate comes canvassing, we can be ready. The Tourism Alliance has produced a handy briefing document to mobilise everyone involved in the visitor economy, with its manifesto for tourism, which anyone can download. It demonstrates the hard facts of economic value we all help deliver. It’s somewhat annoyingly been deemed to contribute ‘invisible earnings’ to the economy. So, as an industry, let’s get more visible!

Why tourism deserves to be an issue

Get ready to lobby any politicians who come calling, with the central message that they need to ‘take tourism seriously’, (far more seriously than the current government  does at the moment). With London 2012 around the corner, we’ve got lots to shout about.

We simply can’t afford not to make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to showcase ourselves as a visitor destination, while we’re  centre of attention on the world stage.  We mustn’t pull any punches about why we’re an industry that deserves more government backing, whoever ends up in power.

What’s tourism worth?

The World Tourism Organisation confirms that the UK has the sixth largest tourism industry in the world (after France, Spain, USA, China and Italy). It supports 2.65m jobs, in 200,000 businesses, some 80% of which are classified as ‘small or medium sized enterprises’(SMEs). Among them of course is my own, Manifold Associates, so I feel perfectly entitled to have an opinion about our industry, which is worth £114Bn annually to the UK economy.

Key messages for politicians

• Tourism is fairly evenly spread across the UK. Its benefits can be felt everywhere from large cities to coastal  resorts, market towns and isolated rural communities
• It’s a service industry that’s highly labour intensive, offering excellent employment opportunities for young people. Employing a highly diverse workforce, it offers  greater  opportunities for part time employment than any other sector of the economy
• There are relatively low barriers to entry and considerable underutilised capacity, enabling the industry to respond quickly to changes in demand
• The high latent demand by visitors attracted by the country’s heritage, vibrant culture, sport, and education (including English language learning), combined with the powerful international appeal of London, means that the sector can offer a high and rapid return on investment
• The industry can deliver sustainable growth; but as a country the UK needs to take action to improve the competitiveness of our visa and air passenger duty charges, which don’t bear favourable comparison with the 25 EU countries included in the Schengen agreement
• Support is needed for wider delivery of programmes that assist tourism businesses to operate more sustainably and encourage inbound travel. This is a truly heartfelt plea, as training programmes that are helping to develop this potential already exist; but even I have to earn a crust, so, frustratingly, it just can’t happen unless these projects get more funding.
• Provide adequate funding for Visit England to capitalise on the opportunity to grow domestic tourism

Time for tactical marketing

With the election at the very most three months distant, now’s also the time to think about tactical marketing and PR opportunities coming our way.

Just last week, The Daily Telegraph gave national coverage to news that Robert Cook, boss of the Hotel du Vin and Malmaison brands, has already equipped his hotels near the three main party headquarters with red yellow and blue cushions carrying the message “when you stay at Hotel du Vin you are guaranteed a seat”.

Politicians of all persuasion, their agents and spin doctors will be descending on marginal constituencies across the land in the coming weeks, as soon as the election date is finalised, if not before. They’re all be on the lookout for campaign winning photo opportunities, and locations suitable for holding press conferences and media interviews. So there’s no time to be lost. Get thinking about the opportunities for your business, and update your contact database. Start making plans now, so you don’t miss out!

Practical help

Manifold Associates is here to help tourism businesses looking for hands-on help with media relations and marketing in the coming months. We also deliver training that gives even the smallest business confidence and practical skills to help you quickly get organised to start doing things for yourself.

Respond below, or visit Manifold Associates for more information about what we offer.

Until next time…

Does the postcard have a post modern future?

Will the postcard be dead by 2012?

One amongst  many questions now starting to exercise the brains of those involved in tourism industry planning for London 2012, is how the million or so visitors expected are going to communicate their experiences to friends back home. It’s a matter already under serious consideration by the publishers of greetings cards and picture postcards.

What, you might say, is the picture postcard not in terminal decline? There’s no doubt that more and more people are phoning, texting or picture messaging their thoughts, logging onto social media sites like Facebook, blogging travel journals, uploading photos onto Flickr,  or videos on  You Tube, or earning money from their writing published on Simonseeks?

Around two thirds of the visitors expected to travel to London and venues across other parts of England in July August and September 2012, will originate from within Britain, with the remaining third originating overseas. The question for publishers and retailers of cards is a prescient one. 

So, what  types of cards do people want to buy nowadays and why? Personally speaking, I still buy cards for various reasons: as souvenirs,  to paste up in travel journals or scrapbooks, to frame as pictures, use for competition entries, as bookmarks, or occasionally to send to friends back home while I’m away.

During my travels round Britain over the past few months, I’ve been doing some research on postcards, and have started to notice some new trends emerging. In spite of the rise of digital media options, smart phones and text message communication,  postcards continue to be widely available in England everywhere you’d expect, from post offices to bookshops, to greetings card shops and the stationery departments of large stores to retail outlets in malls and visitor attractions.

Trends in postcard sending

The postcard was first permitted to be sent through the post by Royal Mail in 1894. Royal Mail currently handles an average daily volume of 79m letters. This is 5m fewer than two years ago when volumes were at their peak. However, their figures also reveal that 135 million postcards are now sent each year, and somewhat surprisingly this is  30 million more than three years ago! Sales of postcards are even higher of course, since by no means all get sent through the post.

Brian Lund, editor of Picture Postcard Monthly, thinks that the sales figures might even indicate a return to the glory days of the picture postcard in post-war Britain, when sending them was the height of fashion:  ‘Back in the early 90s, when the internet and mobile phones took over, the number of people sending postcards dropped for obvious reasons – sending a text is easier and cheaper. But now people are realising that a postcard is far more thoughtful than a text message or an email, and that they can be displayed for all to see in the home.’

In the cause of research

I gathered information snooping round news stands at gateways for international visitors including Heathrow and Gatwick airports, and London’s St Pancras International station, as well as shops in various National Trust properties across the country, and by the new Surf Reef at Boscombe pier in Bournemouth, Dorset, as well as looking in on antiques and collectors fairs.

I have to apopolgise for adopting entirely unscientific qualitative research methods;  and freely admit that it’s possible that I looked at a biased sample and a statistically insignificant number of locations.

Postcards of the moment

During and following the recession, retailers have become more ruthless; and are only stocking postcard lines that sell. That’s helped weed out static and old fashioned styles of photography, something I’ve also noticed abroad.

With relatively few exceptions, I’ve noticed an improved standard of creative photography, and new creative treaments creeping in amongst many of the postcards now on sale, helping to keep displays appear more in tune with contemporary taste and maintainin buoyant sales.

Collectable cards

There’s room for nostalgia too, and you’ll sometimes find sections of the ubiquitous revolving card stands reserved for reproductions of sepia toned street scenes of yesteryear. In the same towns you may find antiques and collectors fairs featuring stalls selling the original postcards. There’s a lot of interest, as they’re part of history, yet most remain cheap to collect and display.

The exception are cards by Donald Fraser Gould McGill, an artist whose name has become synonymous with a whole genre of saucy seaside postcards, featuring an array of attractive young women, fat old ladies, drunken middle aged men, honeymoon couples and vicars in compromising circumstances.  Snap it up if you spot one!

New genres of card

What’s also been marked, is that creative treatments are no longer limited to photographs. Cartoon treatments of the local way of life, or a contempoary take on tradition, also have great appeal to visitors, especially if the subject matter is somewhat hard to photograph easily. A selection is illustrated above.

To see a fuller range of the latest cutting edge designs, as well as more traditional subject matter, follow these links :

• Pageantry Postcards
• Lee Gone Publications
• J. Salmon

Judges is one example of a firm of publishers that can help you create and publish postcards from your own photography, and I’m sure there are many more. If you’re a business, don’t forget to include your contact details and website address printed on the reverse side of the card, and ensure you make the most of it’s ability to become a fully fledged marketing tool.

In conclusion, I believe that all the indications are that the postcard is likely to live on in use for many years yet!

Until next time…

Snow business: thinking ahead for 2010

I’ve resolved to get more proactive in working with the media in 2010. Irrespective of being a private citizen, or representative of a business, we all have a role to play.  We can all contribute towards helping to further raise the profile of what the UK has to offer as a destination for both overseas visitors and domestic travellers, as we enter a new decade, one in which London will be at the epicentre of world interest, by the time London 2012 comes around.

What to do next

It’s definitely not too early to start working creatively and getting ourselves organised to  serve up a steady stream of news stories that will get us, or the business we represent, a share of worldwide media interest that will focus on London and the UK in general; between now and the opening ceremony of  the games on 27th July 2012. Read on to find out how.

Opportunities to benefit from London 2012

According to the official website, actual tickets for events will not be available until 2011. However, if you’re interested in getting involved on a personal level as a volonteer, you can already join the cast of thousands who’ve already signed up. If you want the inside track on news from the venues in London and beyond I’ve found a lot of interest in stories from Inside the Games, an unofficial site to which you can subscribe.  If you’re a business and you want to get involved or listed as a potential supplier and tender for London 2012 business officially, you can get more information on the Compete For website. Finally if you’re involved in the creative or performing arts sector you might be interested in getting involved with the cultural celebrations or the Inspire programme for non commercial enterprises.

Getting proactive with the media

I’ve chosen to remain near my home base following heavy falls of snow in Kent that have made headlines around the world this week, and I’ve been out taking loads of pictures.  You might ask why; but my reasons are manifold:

I’m thinking ahead to next Christmas, when I’ll have a stack of fresh, photogenic and seasonal images to use to accompany marketing communications planned well in advance of any seasonal weather ‘on the ground’.

I’ve added to my library of original images to incorporate in presentations and training manuals to illustrate points about things being ‘cold’ or ‘frozen’ or ‘low season’.

I’ve captured a range of images I can provide to the media to accompany news stories

I’ve practiced the facility I have to send images direct from my camera phone to the media

I’ve learned from the experience about what sort of images work best,  and about the limitations of my current equipment should I decide to upgrade

I’ve added to my database of media contacts hungry for news

Although the more negative coverage given to the weather in Kent has focused on transport disruption, I’ve particularly noticed how the media have an insatiable appetite for new images and business related or human interest stories to help balance and fill the airtime of the news programmes at any time when there’s a dearth of major news.

This is something of an ongoing opportunity, which anyone prepared to put together news worthy stories, or images ought to be ready to tap into. Things can happen very quickly if the media pick up on a story. By way of illustration, I was listening live to BBC Radio Kent as the sister of tearful perospective bride Karen Rawlings called up from her snowbound hotel on Friday at breakfast time to appeal for help with transport in getting to an isoloated rural Kentish church for her wedding later that afternoon. The appeal succeeded in saving the day, and not only did the wedding take place in the stunning rural surroundings, but the pictures were fantastic, and the event received national coverage on the evening television news bulletins. The value of such broadcast media coverage is immense.

Key steps to generating news and getting covergae

1. Always carry a compact camera or a camera phone, and be ready to be interviewed. Don’t fret too much about sound and image quality. If your story is newsworthy, the media want the story, and the pictures.
2. Build a database of media contacts. Don’t forget local radio and the local  broadcast news office.
3. Contact the media about any story to which you can contribute as an ‘expert’ commentator or add information from a different angle or viewpoint.
4. Enter for awards, capture images of the presentation cermony, and tell the media when you win.
5. If you’re a busness build a ‘fascinating fact’ file about all the areas of your business operation. The media are always on the lookout for anything new, surprising, or unusual.
6. Be ready to respond quickly to media interest whenever they  contact you looking for a story.

If you’re a tourism business in the South East of England, and looking for more guidance on working with the media, you can book a place on Tourism South East‘s half day training course on ‘Meeting The Media‘, which is part of the Hosting the World suite of courses.  Open course dates are available across the region in the New Year.

Have you received coverage as a result of working with the media? Let me know if you have any tips.

May I take this opportunity to wish you seasonal greetings and a wonderful Christmas and New Year holiday break. Until next time…