Agenda item

[To receive a briefing note on Marketing]. 

[Report is marked: To Follow].

The Director of Communications and External Relations introduced a briefing note on Marketing.  The briefing note had been specifically requested by the Chair of the Panel, Cllr Jacqueline Sweetman, following the presentation on the City Brand at the previous Panel meeting.  She had asked how the work on branding had fitted into the wider plan of marketing activity and where were the areas of competitive advantage and USPs (Unique Selling Points) that the City wished to promote.  The note highlighted the fact that the work by the Council on marketing the City was a work in progress.  There were many elements to the plan and it was very much a partnership arena.  They were working closely with the West Midlands Growth Company on their regional work. 

The Director of Communications and External Relations commented that it was a key time for the City.  There was the ongoing regeneration of the City Centre and other areas.  Regional interest was developing in the area due to the Commonwealth Games in 2022.  The success of the Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club was bringing national and international profile to the City.  There was also a developing cultural offer around the British Arts Show coming to the City next year, which he felt would be a very significant event.  It was key to pull together a framework along with associated propositions.  The draft framework outlined in the briefing note was audience focused. They were looking to build some performance measures. 

The Director of Communications and External Relations remarked that they had been working with the Economic Growth Board for a number of years on developing a strong City brand that all partners used.  It was a key element of place shaping to use a standard brand.  They were trying to roll out the brand across the whole of the City.  Working with the Growth Company they were looking to invest in trying to understand perceptions around the City.  The Growth Company had undertaken some research in the last twelve months on how different areas of the country understood Wolverhampton.  It was clear there was some more work to do on improving perception levels. 

The Director of Communications and External Relations commented that the power of sport was important.  There were increasing opportunities at Aldersley Stadium and the Leisure Village, which was hosting national events such as Judo, Martial Arts and Table Tennis.  There was potential to host other sporting events such as Badminton.  Wolverhampton was fortunate to have a pedigree of former Olympic athletes who called the City their home. 

The Director of Communications and External Relations stated that they could build City Pride into some of the elements of the wider plan and at a more local level linking with some of the place-based work in Public Health.  A five years events strategy was in development.  This was a significant opportunity to develop a more vibrant and ambitious City events strategy aimed at increasing footfall across the City and economic benefit and well-being.  In the last six months, all staff working on external events had been merged into one single City Events Team.    

The Director of Communications and External Relations said the Council was pushing forward with developing the creative and cultural offer.  The City was home to the second largest collection of Pop Art in the UK.  With the investment in 5G there was potential to enhance the cultural economy.  The City also had an ambition to increase the opportunities to host conferences.  The research of the West Midlands Growth Company had highlighted a gap within the City of a family day offer.  More work was required to understand what the proposition could be and to discuss opportunities with existing operators. 

The Head of Enterprise stated that the West Midlands Growth Company had been commissioned to look at the current needs of business conferences and tourism market.  The Growth Company had very strong networks in Europe and Internationally.  Business delegates brought a spend of £1800 to £2000 spend per delegation, generating more income into the local economy.  

The Head of Enterprise commented that earlier in the month the City had hosted a visit from 8 European delegates representing a number of Conference Associations including biomedical, textiles, engineering, retail and translation medicine.  Some of the delegates had heard of Wolverhampton through the football club, but none of them had visited the City before.  They had been impressed with the transport connectivity to Birmingham, Manchester and London.  They had been complimentary about the conference venues they had visited which had included the Molineux Stadium, the Grand Station and the Mount Hotel.  The overall picture was one in which they had been impressed with the City.   Wolverhampton would be hosting the National Light Rail Conference at the Grand Station, where 200-300 delegates would visit in May 2020. The Council was taking a pro-active approach to attract business conferences, through a package of opportunity.