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Business Plan 2016/17
‘TSE is in a unique position
to support the visitor
economy not only in the
South East but also across
the nation…..’
Revised October 2016
TOURISM SOUTH EAST BUSINESS PLAN 2016/17
INTRODUCTION
At national level the tourism structure saw significant
changes in 2015/16. The new Government announced a 5
Point Plan for Tourism, millions of pounds were made
available for the North and the South West for overseas
marketing and a new Challenge Fund was launched
nationally. In November, VisitEngland and VisitBritain were
merged and a new £40 million Discover England Fund was
revealed for a 3 year period starting April 2016. As a result
VisitEngland’s role in a number of areas was either
depleted or withdrawn. TSE, however, strengthened its
position launching new training schemes, developing a
new relationship with London & Partners and exploiting
new opportunities in international marketing and group
travel promotions. Other core services such as research
and visitor information also over performed .Hence, for
2016/17, TSE is in a unique position to support the visitor
economy not only in the South East but also across the
nation.
Our General Approach
We will remain a not-for-profit membership
organisation reinvesting any surplus for the benefit of
the tourism industry.
We are owned by our commercial members and
destination partners and our activities will focus on
their needs.
Although our foundations are in the South and South
East, we will look beyond to develop partnerships
and deliver services and programmes.
We will seek to partner with organisations in a way
that avoids duplication and pools limited
resources.
We know that further change in the operating
environment is inevitable. Flexibility, responsiveness
and a customer focus will remain our guiding
principles.
OUR MISSION
To provide services
and specialist
expertise that support
the performance and
growth of tourism
businesses and
partner destinations.
OUR KEY PRIORITIES FOR 2016/17
We will be working hard throughout 2016/17 and beyond to help members and partners to fulfil their
potential and continue to spearhead economic growth.
We will be offering a wide range of support services and programmes. These will include:-
Working with partners and members to maximise the potential to secure external funding
opportunities
Providing a range of consumer and travel trade, domestic and international marketing
campaigns.
Implementing a PR programme to generate local, regional, national and international media
coverage for our destination partners.
Delivering the nationally renowned Welcome to Excellence training programme and other
courses in response to industry needs.
Collating and disseminating market intelligence derived from national and local tourism
surveys and the application of our specialist research expertise to contracts of all kinds.
Supporting and providing visitor information services to improve the quality of experience of
visitors to key destinations.
Staging events for members and partners to share learning and showcase excellence.
Being an advocate on behalf of our destination partners and member businesses to lobby for
the due recognition of the tourism industry at national, regional and local level .
“You all do such a great job in supporting & promoting everyone.
We would like to say "Thank You" to all the team for all your
kind & continued support & assistance over this year.
You’re all Stars.”
Two Hoots, Hampshire
OUR PROGRAMMES AND SERVICES FOR 2016/17 WORKING HARD FOR OUR COMMERCIAL MEMBERS
We support over 800 commercial members. The majority are attractions and accommodation providers ranging from well known chains and world class attractions to national institutions and micro businesses. With our destination partners they provide us with our mandate. Strengthening the membership base by continuing to add to the benefits package and offering services that appeal to all sizes and types of business will continue to be a priority. In 2016/17 we will:- Improve the package of benefits for our commercial
members to help them grow and extend our services to a larger number of businesses.
Organise an Annual Tourism Conference with support from a new sponsor for members and destination partners.
Deliver a series of local events and workshops to engage
and inform members and encourage networking.
Ensure our membership team remain closely in touch with member’s changing needs.
Build and improve the content on the B2B website with
exclusive access for members. Work with other agencies such as the Tourism Alliance
and British Hospitality Association to lobby against unnecessary red-tape and disseminate related information/guidance.
“As a small hospitality business, I chose to become
a Tourism South East member for a number of
reasons. High up on the list however, is the favorable
rates afforded to TSE members by Barclaycard.”
Swan House, Hastings
Commercial Membership
Contact:
Georgina Coleman
SUPPORTING OUR DESTINATION PARTNERS
Destination partners, including local authorities and destination management and marketing organisations, are principal players in the landscape of tourism support. They are also important partners and customers for TSE’s programmes of support and services - from collaborative marketing campaigns and PR opportunities to networking events and specialist expertise/support for visitor information services. Increasingly, as partner budgets come under pressure, we recognise the importance of tailoring our support packages to address their particular needs and priorities. In 2016/17 we will:-
Offer tailored packages of support based on the particular priorities and buy-in levels of our destination partners.
Deliver a programme of PR support for Destination
Partners (see PR section).
Provide a range of exclusive and heavily discounted
participation opportunities in other PR, marketing and website activities and access to specialist digital expertise/support.
Develop and maintain content on the destination
partner area and ‘Local to You’ sections of the B2B website.
Ensure regular contact and dissemination of
information that might support destination partners in their roles including updates on national affairs, funding opportunities and other matters of interest.
Organise a Destination Managers Forum, Business
Tourism Forum and offer the opportunity to attend various other events such as the Annual Tourism Conference and occasional topical workshops.
Work exclusively with destination partners when any
new opportunity or funding source arises.
Destination Partner Contact:
Elaine Colley
GROWING OVERSEAS MARKETS
In 2016/17, we will be working with our members and partners to
reach the European, North American and selected Asia Pacific
markets. Campaigns targeting trade and consumers will be
delivered in association with London & Partners and VisitBritain.
The staging of Explore GB in Brighton in 2017 will present
particular opportunities.
We will look to build on the success of previous campaigns and
continue to provide a lead where we have specialist expertise
and contacts. The further development of our relationship with
London and Partners will be a prioirity. In addition, we will seek
to build collaboration through new kinds of partnerships that will
provide the basis for bids to the new Discover England Fund.
In 2016/17 we will:-
Work with London and Partners, VisitBritain and others, to
encourage London visitors to explore the South East and
where practical, extend their stays.
Work with businesses, destinations and transport
operators to stimulate international media coverage.
Organise a strong SE presence at overseas
trade/consumer exhibitions and sales missions including
Vakantiebeurs, Meet the Media events and Explore GB.
Produce compelling collateral, newsletters and website
content in support of international campaigns.
Build our campaign activities targeting the Nr Europe,
Scandanavian and North American markets.
Build on the momentum of the China campaign with
VisitBritain and our partners and agent, China Holidays.
Consult with destination partners and members to
identify new overseas marketing activity.
‘We’ve been participating in TSE’s overseas marketing activity for many years
and find it an invaluable service. By joining forces with TSE and sharing the
cost with other partners we’ve been able to take advantage of highly
targeted travel trade and press activity in our core markets in Nr Europe and
China.’ Julia White – Royal Borough of Windsor.
International Marketing
Contact:
Zeenat Turner
VisitBritain’s GREAT China
Welcome Chartermark
REACHING MARKETS ON-LINE AND OTHER NEW MEDIA We will exploit the opportunities presented by rapidly developing digital technologies and the social web to showcase the South East. We will also provide digital services tailored to the needs of our partners and members, in communicating with their existing and potential customers. These will build on the strengths of our consumer website, visitsoutheastengland.com and extend to social media services, workshops and advice. We will also use our collective marketing role to develop new campaigns and initiatives with partners including for business tourism. In 2016/17 we will:- Inspire travelers to visit and explore the South East
through digital means
Support our commercial members and destination partners though advice and formal training to maximize their online presence, traffic and bookings.
Build TSE’s consumer and trade databases and offer access to these to members and partners via enewsletters and social media.
Take steps to further build traffic to the website, visitsoutheastengland.com by focusing on social media, video, partner links and regularly refreshed content with a target of over 1.5m visits in 2016/17.
Encourage use of the booking functionality though
‘polling’ as a means of adding value to accommodation members featured on our consumer website.
Deliver specific data steward and digital support for
destination partners on a paid-for basis.
Digital Marketing Contact:
Jon Sharkey
MAKING THE MOST OF PR OPPORTUNITIES
Generating media coverage is one of the most productive
and cost effective ways TSE can showcase the South East
to potential visitor markets.
In 2015/16 there was significant coverage achieved in
both traditional and online media for our destination
partners and members. This included both domestic and
overseas coverage. We worked closely with Southampton
Airport and VisitBritain in bringing in overseas media.
The Annual Media Party in London was one of the best ever
attended and we extended our PR activity into group
trade and business tourism markets.
In 2016/17 we will:-
Identify with our destination partners compelling
themes on which to focus proactive PR activities,
working with partner PR agencies where relevant.
Look for opportunities to engage with both domestic and international media and collaborate to stimulate press trips and coverage specifically for partner destinations.
Organise the annual Media Party in London in
February 2017and offer partner destinations opportunities to contribute to the success of the event.
Work closely with Visit England’s and VisitBritain’s PR Teams, attending various Meet the Media events
armed with compelling stories, themes and information.
Organise press trips with destination partners and
members wherever possible
Continue to subscribe to TravMedia as a source of leads and intelligence.
“Thanks again for organising a fantastic event – we
have lots of excellent journalists to follow up with.”
Jo Dyson, National Trust.
Destination PR Contact:
Karen Roebuck
TARGETTING THE GROUP TRAVEL TRADE
TSE has over two decades of experience of working with the Group Travel market and has an impressive reputation in this field. Our dedicated team offers destination partners and members a range of opportunities targeting group travel organisers across the UK. These include trade exhibitions, an annual group travel guide, a strong presence on visitsoutheastengland.com, direct mail campaigns and various forms of e-marketing. In 2016/17 we will:- Inspire the travel trade to include venues and
accommodation from the South East in their day, trip, short break and holiday itineraries.
Continue to build on the scale of Excursions™ as the UKs premier one day Group Travel Show.
Organise a South East presence with partners and members at relevant shows such as Great for Groups, Group Leisure and BTTS.
Continue to expand our travel trade contact database
and increase opportunities for a programme of themed travel trade e-newsletters.
Refresh the travel trade section on the consumer
website. Develop new relationships with trade media, tour
operators and key coach operators to extend the scope and influence of the campaign and open up new opportunities especially for fam trips and networking events in partner destinations.
Produce an annual South East group travel guide for
dissemination to coach and tour group operators in the UK and Near Europe.
“Excursions is a must for all group travel organisers
- in just a few hours all the inspiration you need for
future visits is there for the asking” Peggy Maloney -
Chadwell Heath Historical Society
Travel Trade Contact:
Anna Wilson-Barnes
A FOCUS ON BUSINESS TOURISM
Prompted by growing interest by destination partners and members TSE undertook a number of initiatives to promote destinations and members to conference, meetings, incentive , conference and events (MICE) buyers under a MeetBeyond London umbrella concept. These included exhibitions, PR and database mailings. A small group of partners are actively engaged in a Business Tourism Forum in advising TSE on how best to approach the market. Some LEPs in the region also see business tourism as a priority for investment. In 2016/17 we will:-
Arrange a Business Tourism Forum to establish commitment to a programme of activity targeting the domestic and international business tourism market.
Invest in database building and offer marketing
opportunities to key destinations, conference bureaux and businesses. This includes both digital and postal communications.
Explore opportunities for a co-ordinated
MeetBeyond London presence at key exhibitions .
To generate PR activity in the meetings industry trade press and in liaison with VisitEngland/ViistBritain
To build relationships with relevant agencies to secure funds to develop this area.
Business Tourism Contact:
Elaine Colley
TOURISM EXPERTISE FOR MEMBERS AND PARTNERS
Our expertise and ability to create economies of scale is available to help partners and members achieve their own programmes on a paid-for basis. This can be a highly cost effective way of securing marketing, administration and other specialist expertise without the obligations associated with employing and managing staff – a potentially attractive option when faced with increasingly limited resources. Funding applications particularly for small businesses can sometimes seem overly complex and time consuming – TSE has a wealth of experience in such areas and can provide advice and support. Planning applications for new developments can on occasion benefit from an expert view or within a wider context. This can be both from the planning authority point of view or the applicant. This area of activity is very much in line with TSE’s role as a provider of bespoke tourism services. In 2016/17 we will:- Provide an efficient support service to partner
destinations, members and others that wish to outsource marketing and coordination work.
Provide administrative support to partner and joint membership schemes.
Offer new areas of expertise on a contract basis
including travel trade and web support within the South East and beyond.
Offer advice and perspectives on planning and
development proposals
Contracts Contact:
Zeenat Turner
VISITOR INFORMATION SERVICES SUPPORT
TSE is a recognised expert in the visitor information field and has provided support for the South East network of VICs/TICs for over 20 years. We operate four VICs/TICs on behalf of destinations and in some cases, as part of a broader visitor information service. We recognise that budget cuts are forcing local authorities to scrutinise VIC/TIC operations and we will help find solutions and offer options. We also run a discount purchasing service to keep the costs of wholesale merchandise to a minimum for our partners and other customers. In 2016/17 we will:-
Operate VICs/TICs on behalf of destination partners and look to maximise efficiencies, income streams and economies of scale that keep costs down and improve overall viability.
Provide all destination partners with TICs/VICs who need support with the benefit of our expertise, networking and training support.
Make time and resource available on a paid-for
basis to those who need more intensive support.
Look for specific contract opportunities such as mystery shopping of TICs/ VICs where we can use our expertise to the benefit of partners and generate income from information providers further afield.
Seek to spread the benefits of the discount
purchasing service by securing new discounts on publications and new customers.
“Councillors also wished to pass on their thanks to the staff who put in so
much effort to ensure visitors to the town receive the welcome they deserve
and go home with great memories of the town and surrounding area.”
Christopher Wayman MILCM Town Clerk Buckingham Town Council
Visitor Information Services
Contact:
Teresa O’Kelly
DEVELOPING THE SKILLS OF BUSINESSES
We have a national reputation for delivering effective, tailored and cost effective training courses including the Welcome to Excellence programme. In 2015/16, TSE launched two new courses with VisitEngland - Exceeding Visitor Expectations(EVE) for tourist attractions and Welcome Afloat for the leisure marine industry. The need for high quality, nationally accredited customer service training for businesses is greater than ever and applies across all sectors. We will build on the foundations of our existing suite of training products and look to develop and tailor them to meet demand. In 2016/17 we will:- Maintain and strengthen the Welcome to Excellence
suite of customer care courses and in particular EVE and Welcome Afloat.
Support our franchise partners in delivering these courses across the country.
Make a real difference to customer care standards in
the South East by expanding our customer base, tailoring provision and working with our partner destinations and others to drive up participation.
Work with City and Guilds/ILM on mapping relevant
courses to suitable qualifications with the aim of raising skill levels in the service sector throughout the South East.
Explore, develop and promote new markets and new
types of provision including on-line customer service courses
Be ready to respond to any opportunities that arise
from funding programmes.
"We set out to train staff right across the board, everyone from car park
attendants to company directors. I was amazed and thrilled by the scale of
the impact. The staff showed a huge improvement in motivation and our sales
increased by up to 20% in the six months following the training. Welcome Host
was definitely the biggest single factor in this achievement."
Oswaldtwistle Mills Shopping Village
Training Services Contact:
Sue Gill
DELIVERING SPECIALIST RESEARCH SERVICES
Specialist research services are particularly valued and used by our destination partners and members. We are keen to develop new research capabilities and expertise that are of interest to and provide benefits for, members and other commercial clients across the UK. There is also scope to extend our capabilities by partnering with other consultants and associates, research agencies and local universities. We will also continue to be a source of market intelligence that can inform the growth plans of our member businesses and partner destinations. This will continue to rely heavily on our access to national data from VisitEngland, VisitBritain and the ONS. TSE’s research services are audited and accredited by the Market Research Society and our fieldwork is Interviewer Quality Control Scheme (IQCS) assessed. In 2016/17 we will:-
Look for ways to continually improve our competencies and the quality of the research services we provide.
Explore commercial opportunities around our
specialist knowledge of impact models.
Continue to invest in new technology to improve survey efficiency and deliver quicker results.
Explore new products which will appeal to
businesses such as on-line methodologies and customer feedback services.
Maintain market intelligence on the B2B website
and within the e-newsletter and regularly disseminate updates on the national surveys.
“I find the service exemplary and the communication between our
organisation and yours particularly has always been excellent”
Winchester City Council
Research Services Contact:
Paul Jackson
BUILDING THE SUCCESS OF ’GREAT COUNTRY PUBS’
The success of the Great Country Pubs project is based on its focus on high quality rural pubs. Food, drink, ambience, location, accommodation – all GCPs have to pass a strict assessment process in order to take part. The Great Country Pubs website has gone from strength to strength with hits rising to over 46,000 in some months but shared between 100 participating pubs. The unique relationship with TSE has also meant that GCPs gets coverage in many of its PR and overseas marketing activities. GCPs also became the sponsor of the Best Pub Award category of the Beautiful South Awards in 2015. It is still concentrated in the East and South East regions but the long term ambition remains to roll out the campaign nationwide. In 2016/17 we will:- Continue to build the GCP brand and campaign
domestically and internationally through sponsorship, features in overseas guides and leaflets, and PR including press visits, representation at meet the media events and regular features on website.
To continue to build the number of pubs with accommodation on the website
Ensure that the website content is optimized to increase the traffic at all times of the year.
Make more of the links already established with
VisitBritain’s ‘Pubs are Great Campaign’.
Explore funding opportunities to expand the scope and
effectiveness of the initiative
“Belonging to Great Country Pubs and working with Jackie has been very
useful for a single site pub, set in the middle of the countryside. We recently
appeared in The Times, top 25 country pubs. Invaluable for the time of year.”
The Cat Inn, West Sussex
Great Country Pubs
Contact:
Jackie Staddon
CELEBRATING AND SHOWCASING EXCELLENCE The Beautiful South Awards recognise and celebrate the very best tourism businesses and experiences in the South East. They stimulate higher standards and related media coverage helping to project a positive impression of the South East as a place to visit and valuable PR for participating businesses. Our destination partners play an important role in encouraging local businesses to enter. Award finalists have the opportunity to go on to the national Visit England Awards for Excellence. In 2016 there were a record number of Awards issued to South East businesses at the national event. In 2016/17 we will:-
Work in partnership with the agency engaged to organise the Awards to attract sponsorship and encourage participation.
Encourage our destination partners to promote
participation and consider related local events to celebrate finalists and winners.
Provide information to local media to celebrate
participant’s success in their areas.
Generate a minimum of 120 entries across the award categories.
Deliver a spectacular Awards celebration event in
November 2016.
Provide support and encouragement to the winners to enter the national VE Awards.
More South East businesses than ever made the finals of the VisitEngland
Awards for Excellence this year, and we hope that our continued support for
the Beautiful South Awards in 2016 will see that trend continue.”
Jonathan Neame CEO, Shepherd Neame
Beautiful South Awards
Contact:
Peter Colling
THE TSE TEAM
Nigel Smith, Chief Executive – [email protected] Peter Colling, Tourism Services Director – [email protected]
TRAINING AND SKILLS Sue Gill, Training and Skills Director – [email protected] Chris Murphy – Training Projects Manager Jane Curtis – Training Executive Abigail Herzberg – Training Executive
RESEARCH SERVICES Paul Jackson, Research Director – [email protected] Kerry Rayment – Research Manager
VISITOR SERVICES Teresa O’Kelly, Head of Visitor Services – [email protected] Graham Haynes – Visitor Services Assistant
COMMERCIAL MEMBERSHIP Georgina Coleman – Membership Manager - [email protected] Holly Austen – Membership Sales and Support Executive – Hampshire, IoW, Sussex, Surrey and Kent Jeanette Howse – Business Development Executive – Berks, Bucks and Oxon Julie Lewis – Membership Co-ordinator
DIGITAL SERVICES Jon Sharkey – Digital Marketing Manager - [email protected] Kieran James - Digital Assistant
DESTINATION PARTNERSHIPS Elaine Colley - Destination Partnerships Manager [email protected] Karen Roebuck – Destination PR [email protected]
INTERNATIONAL MARKETING AND CONTRACTS Zeenat Turner – International Marketing Manager – [email protected] TBC – Marketing Executive
TRAVEL TRADE Anna Wilson-Barnes – Marketing Manager - Travel Trade [email protected] Emma Holloway –Marketing Executive - Travel Trade
CORPORATE SERVICES Paul Oliver – Company Secretary [email protected] Lyn Lancefield – Finance Manager Matthew Feldwick – Finance Officer
GREAT COUNTRY PUBS
Jackie Staddon – [email protected]
THE TSE BOARD
Ken Robinson CBE – Chairman
David Philip
Vice-Chairman and Chairman of the TSE Audit Panel.
Nigel Smith, TSE Chief Executive
Alan Mellins (Sterling Travel)
Tourism Council Vice Chair
Kim Hallett (Waddesdon Manor)
Tourism Council Representative
Wendy Van Halderen- Moss (Aspinall Foundation)
Tourism Council Representative
Cllr Dan Humphries (Worthing Borough Council)
Tourism Council Representative
Sandra Barnes-Keywood
Stephen Munn (Commercial Director, National Motor Museum, Beaulieu)
Mark Smith (Director of Tourism, Bournemouth Borough Council)
Andrew Bateman (Tourism Manager, Hampshire County Council)
Louise Stewart (CEO Alexandra Palace)
Cllr Howard Doe (Medway Borough Council) Tourism South East, 40 Chamberlayne Road, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO50 5JH
Telephone: 023 8062 5400
www.tourismsoutheast.com
www.visitsoutheastengland.com
REVISED October 2016
