Venues unite in £150m Covid fightback
NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau works to attract major national and international business events to Newcastle and Gateshead, offering expert advice and support, established partnerships with local academia, business and industry, and extensive local knowledge. It is the business events brand/service arm of NewcastleGateshead Initiative (NGI).
NCGB worked in partnership with the Meetings Industry Association (mia), the principal association supporting and growing the business meetings and events industry in the UK, and the keeper of AIM Secure – the UK’s only recognised quality standard for the sector.
The two aimed to deliver a project providing business support and training to 37 venues and hotels to gain the AIM Secure Accreditation from mia and to raise the profile of the destination, the project and the businesses taking part.
AIM Secure recognises an organisation’s desire to demonstrate a professional approach to the meetings and events business. It highlights dedication to offering an environment that is healthy and hygienic as well as commitment to do the very best for both customers and staff.
Our challenge was to work with both organisations and all participating venues to plan and deliver a four-month communication strategy to position NewcastleGateshead regionally and nationally as a safe place to host business events, and to drive business event enquiries to venues taking part in the project.
Over an 8-week campaign period
962,950
total audience reach with 15 appearances across 12 different publications.
8,000
impressions on social media.
57% increase
on web traffic between March 2022 and May 2022.
Highest
monthly business confirmed bookings value for 6 years.
Highest
monthly business enquiry value for 6 years.
Through a series of meetings with NGCB and mia members, we established the key themes and messages for the campaign. This was challenging at the time because of the emergence of the highly infectious new ‘Omicron’ variant of Covid-19 so we needed to build in flexibility into the messaging and our plans to allow for potential changes in Government guidelines and regulations. It was important to secure the buy-in and participation of the venues involved and to give them a sense of ownership of the campaign.
As a result, we engaged in a series of online meetings with the venues, outlining our approach to the campaign and giving a flavour of the kind of activations and promotions we were intending to carry out. We also got them to choose the name of the campaign brand – Tyne To Get Back To Business – from a range of options so that they had a real say in how the campaign was presented.
Selected Works
Barker and Stonehouse: Gateshead Store LaunchUnveiling the new £5m store in Gateshead.
Harrogate Spring Water - Mindful DrinkingBringing a taste of Royal Ascot to North Yorkshire.
The City Baths Newcastle X John LewisBringing a brand partnership to this historic leisure destination.
Barker and Stonehouse: A Story of SustainabilityA sustainable approach to furniture retail.
Grainger MarketEnhancing Newcastle’s Bustling Grade I Traders Market.
Anglo American:Powering cyber security.
Teesside UniversityCelebrating the Tees Valley digital community.
ProtiumStakeholder communications and engagement strategy.
North P&I:160 years of incredible maritime history.
Middlesbrough College:Finding brand purpose for a dynamic educator.
Sleepeezee:Everything's easy when you Sleepeezee.
North East England Chamber of CommerceGiving businesses their say in skills provision.
Ercol:A moment of pride in ercol’s history.
Newcastle Helix:Our City’s Drive Towards Net Zero.
Story Homes:A new chapter for this thriving residential developer.
Stephenson WorksA welcoming and generous spirit.
NewcastleGateshead Quays:A quay moment for NewcastleGateshead.
TeesAMP:Making it in Middlesbrough.
NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau:Tyne to get back to business.
Tees Valley Combined Authority:Encouraging staycations in Tees Valley.
Siglion:Bringing some vitamin sea to Seaburn.
North East Ambulance Service:A global pandemic.
Thirteen Homes:How do you want to live?
herdysleep:A first of its kind for the bed-in-a-box market.
Libra Interiors:Connecting consumers in a new way.
Tees Valley Combined Authority:Tees Valley Mayoral Election Campaign.
Animex:A virtual event bringing the brightest of minds together.
Imagine. Create. EGGER:Launch of a new product range for this global manufacturer
Finchale Group:A dynamic rebrand for the leading employment charity.
Duresta:A brave and bohemian collaboration.
South Tyneside Council:Recognising local community heroes.
Fusion:Healthy in the Heart of the City.
UK Land EstatesBuildings for Business.
Merit HoldingsA world leading engineering company.
Harrogate Spring Water:Continuing to make a difference.
Barker and Stonehouse:Say hello to Mr Clarke.
