For anyone in or interested in the tourism industry to explore issues associated with branding a country, region, destination, attraction, hotel, tour etc
A look at the top international hotel brands of 2026
It will come as no surprise to anyone thatin the world of hospitality, chain dominate as they have done for quite some time. And here I take a look at the world´s top brands and sub-brands, ranked in order of size and influence - and while most are familiar, there are a couple which might not be (thanks, China!). read post
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We do still have some good innovation, but I think current innovation, except in a few areas, is hardly reason in itself to make people want to visit the UK. And, if they do, this tends to be very focused e.g. London Fashion Week and London Design Week. I can't imagine too many people seeing the UK as a destination because of the technology clusters like Cambridge Science Park, unless for business purposes.
I think campaigns need to connect the past, present and future. They perhaps also need to address some issues head on. For example the UK still has a bad image for food, a reputation it did deserve, But these days the quality of British food is very good and often exceptionally good.
Oh one last thing: I think a lot of current innovative British musicians might not be amused that the soundtrack of this video is by a foreigner... Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, which is both not innovative and not British.
1. I guess you'll never be a 'core' target market for Shakespeare Country. Fringe? Perhaps.
2. Cork: They've obviously done an amazing marketing job on you. But there are hundreds of places around the world that have fantastic coastlines & scenery, authentic food & hospitality & cozy guesthouses. There's something else - perhaps buried deep within your sub-conscious - that attracts you to Cork - something very unique about the Brand Ireland in general and Cork in particular? Maybe it's The Craic (and I'm not talking about the white stuff).
3. The Target is NOT the Market
- Long answer: Coming soon...
- Short answer: Think Wimbledon targetted at tennis fans but also full of visitors who have never touched a tennis racket in their lives. And Glastonbury targetted at the youth market but chocka with 50+ hippies re-living their second youth - but this time round with fatter wallets and waistlines to match in their posh marquees complete with chef at £6K per weekend. Rock-on Man!
The Target is NOT the Market
Does a single, narrowly-focused target such as ShakespeareWallah's (A BritRaj term for people who 'love' all things Shakespearean) attract a wider audience ie. beyond its narrow scope?
Meanwhile, here's how 'Shakespeare Country' uses its
Sub-Brands to attract different market segments:
- Rugby: Home of the Sport of Rugby
- Royal Leamington Spa: A Royal Town Twin (Twinned with Royal Tunbridge Wells in the county of Kent: The Garden of England)
- Nuneaton: Home to the Warks Carnival (Warks is shorthand for Warwickshire)
- Warwick Castle: England's Most Haunted (Featuring the Ghost Tower)
- Warwick University: Leaders in Industry Innovation
To develop Jose's point about 'Shakespeare Country', here's how a single-minded big brand idea transfoms itself into a powerful future-focused story-telling extravaganza on multiple-media channels - from offline to online to mobile (cellphone).
Let's say Jose, your earliest knowledge of 'England' generally and 'Shakespeare' specifically was during your most impressionable years - 7/8 years of age. In other words, 'Shakespeare' is currently residing deep within your sub-conscious - the part of your brain which actually influences your decision-making - but you are not conscious of that on a day-to-day basis. So any focus group that you participate in would not be able to 'extract' that bit of insight from you. Only a 'regression' into your early childhood would be able to do that. And let's say that one of your major roles in life is as a 'Business Person'.
So here are some ways that 'Shakespeare Country' influences the 'business' target market - of which you are a part of - by re-telling Shakespeare's plays and sonnets but within a contemporary business context: Power, Strategy, Identity, Persuasion, Mergers & Acquisitions, Presentation, Creative Partnerships and so on.
Here are some examples:
1. Richard III: The Art of Persuasion
2. Antony & Cleopatra: A Presentation Masterclass
3. The Merchant of Venice: Mass Storytelling & the Power of Advertising
One thing is a slogan or tagline for a destination. Another is your online and offline marketing campaign to raise awareness and drive sales. You have one slogan, of course, and multiple approaches depending on whom you're marketing to.
I would say that a focused tagline, especially for a smaller place like Warwickshire, works for me. It's an anchor in my overstretched mind. Now I know Warwickshire exists. Then, an effective campaign on different sites, coupled with offline ad & editorial, can expand on the message of that tagline to introduce me to other aspects of Warwickshire.
Make sense?
And, is the objective just to make you remember the place, or to give you enough reasons to want to visit? I would argue that if your interest in Shakespeare was reason enough to visit you would probably already know that Warwickshire is Shakespeare Country? Personally I rarely find one reason compelling enough to visit a place, do you?
The other point to make is that the more stories a place has to offer as content on the destination website, the more it's likely to attract online searchers. I don't think it is about overloading people with campaign messages. These days, people are active researchers looking for information, inspiration etc.
The Recife guide I first created as a blog was meant to be a hobby. I never marketed it in any way. The content alone started to generate requests for more information, for tours etc. As a result my audience was self-selecting. Had I identified market segments, bought relevant keywords and done some PR work, this story telling approach would have been even more effective. I am now back in the UK and not actively developing Recife Guide at the moment, still the content is bringing in a consistently level of traffic, which is increasing slowly. I also still get enquiries. This would not happen if I was telling only one story, of that I am certain.
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