 |
|||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||
|
Case Studies Timescale: August 2007 – January 2008 (updated Feb10) In August 2007 Pennington PR were approached by a new company, Lapland UK, about promoting a new winter attraction which was set to become the biggest visitor experience in 2007. Objectives Strategy and Plan An imagination tour was organised for journalists to come and see the vision before anything was even built so strong was the vision of the creator Mike Battle. A launch press release was sent to national media and Pennington PR started to tell mums about the new attraction on blogs and websites including Mums.Net. Journalists who received the press release immediately started to book as did their families and friends and so word of mouth become a very important vehicle to selling tickets. It took just 5.5 weeks to sell all 35,000 tickets. Green elements included: a temporary site in the natural setting of Bedgebury Forest using an underutilised part of the forest usually only used for education in summer; the complete removal of the attraction after 31 December without leaving a trace; limiting times and numbers to prevent damage to the site; sourcing local resources including foodstuffs, staff and suppliers; down to details such as emailing press releases rather than posting them, and using biodegradable drinks cups. Measurement and evaluation During the event, which was attended by 160 media at a press launch, coverage was achieved in 22 nationals including The Sunday Times, The Guardian, The Observer, The Mail on Sunday, The Telegraph, The Express, plus almost 50 local publications. TV played a part in building brand awareness with, among others, a week long competition on ITV This Morning, coverage all morning on Christmas Eve on BBC Breakfast and BBC News 24 and BBC World plus Blue Peter, Newsround Wales, Reuters, ITV National News and BBC South East and Meridian regional channels. Please look at these links direct weblink-1 - direct weblink-2 for coverage by Kent TV. According to Kent County Council, in January 2009, Kent TV served 90,571 video plays to 91,367 unique visitors. The most popular film on the site was called Lapland UK 2007, with 69,469 views. Radio was used locally to get the green message across including a campaign to find Kent’s greenest family. At the end of the campaign there were 150,000 people on the waiting list for 2008. PR was also used to gain Corporate and celebrity bookings with the Crystal Lunch package which was sold once all the main tickets were sold. The event worked well for the Forestry Commission as well as it raised the profile to visitors who were not aware of Bedgebury previously – proof of this was shown by the doubling of the Friends of Bedgebury membership during December 2007. The need to influence stakeholders was demonstrated when local opposition by dog walkers and a small number of local residents meant that local councillors, the local MP and local communities needed to be positively advised about the merits of the attraction and negative arguments needed to be counteracted. Positive letters were written by supporters and printed in local newspapers; TV reports were encouraged to have a positive slant with emphasis being placed on a charity day held at Lapland UK for seriously ill children. Overall feedback was ultimately positive as witnessed by the waiting list for 2008 (see below). Results The PR also generated bookings (family and corporate) for Lapland UK’s VIP event which included breakfast or lunch at the Hotel Du Vin in Royal Tunbridge Wells. The Forestry Commission saw this as a positive event and talks hare being held as to how they might work with Lapland UK again this year. The PR also generated interest from other sites/attractions all over the UK who are interested in hosting the event in 2008. Measurement and evaluation (M = millions)
|
Recreation and Tourism Client with green credentials: Lapland UK