Agenda item

[To receive report from Ian Fegan, Head of Communications]

Ian Fegan, Head of Corporate Communications, outlined the background to the corporate communication strategy document 2015-17. The Head of Corporate Communications explained that the council had previously not had a corporate communication strategy. The aim of the strategy was to introduce industry standard practices that would support the council’s corporate strategy and deliver more cost effective and successful campaigns in the future.

The strategy provided an opportunity to evaluate what is currently done and use this evidence to deliver more effective and targeted campaigns. The Head of Corporate Communications explained ’digital by design’ was important and that residents will be encouraged to sign up to receive information they want, but not spam email. The ambition is reach a target of 20,000 subscribers to the council email information alerts by the end of 2016. The information would use real time data collected from the CRM system discussed earlier in the meeting to deliver a more cost effective and responsive service.

The Head of Corporate Communications compared the major cost differences to using digital compared to traditional communications methods such as printed information. Six key corporate campaigns are planned for the year.

The panel commented on the research findings which reported that 27% of residents felt able to influence decisions made by the Council and that 25% of residents felt the Council provides value for money. A comment was made about the need to improve the quality of services provided. Head of Corporate Communications accepted the point and that it provided an important factor in improving perception, trust and confidence. Head of Corporate Communications responded that the results were based on findings from 2013 and the focus of the strategy was getting more accurate and updated customer feedback that can be used to improve services.

The panel commented on the survey findings which reported that overall 44 per cent of residents were satisfied with Wolverhampton as a place to live and the importance of recognising the scale of the challenge to improving the situation. The panel commented that the survey findings provide a benchmark to measure future progress.

The panel commented on the reference to businesses in the document and queried if the focus of the strategy was on existing or new potential businesses and also the target area. For example, are the target businesses in the Black Country or nationally as part of a strategy to raise the profile of Wolverhampton.

The Head of Corporate Communications responded that work has been done with Business Champions to develop an annual plan of activity. The plan is to build up an accurate customer database and improve the quality of the intelligence.  Head of Corporate Communications commented on evidence from large organisations nationally of the benefits of having a strong focus on customer satisfaction and collecting feedback.

The panel requested a briefing paper outlining the range of work being done as part of the wider efforts to market the City and encourage more businesses to move to Wolverhampton.

Resolved:

The panel requested that a briefing paper be sent outlining the work being done to improve city marketing and engage with the business and retail community.