10 years of Hampshire’s Top Attractions!

Visitor attractions in Hampshire have celebrated 10 years of successful marketing collaboration known as Hampshire Top Attractions, along with their mascot Harry Hampshire.Hampshire’s Top Attractions (HTA) was established as a proactive marketing consortium composed of the county’s leading visitor attractions that work together to raise the profile of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight as a family destination. The brand was established in 2007 by The Marketing Collective – marketing company based in Eastleigh, Hampshire which focuses in establishing and nurturing collaboration within the tourism and culture industries.Jo Andrews, MD at The Marketing Collective said “The Hampshire’s Top Attractions brand really benefits from working as a strong group. The consortium regularly receives extra branding, marketing and promotional opportunities at no extra cost to our members. The brand is a successful example of how working collaboratively can increase visitor numbers. Members benefit from economies of scale and achieve significantly more coverage over and above what attraction’s individual campaigns allow. We have grown the brand from just 9 members to 60 – generating a significant marketing budget.”The Marketing Collective promote HTA through a myriad of channels aimed at day and staying visitors living in surrounding counties and beyond. There is a dedicated website www.hampshireattractions.co.uk where visitors can read about each of the attractions and download vouchers and offers – some of which are exclusive. From 1st Jan to 1st Sept 2017 a total of 28,913 vouchers were downloaded.The website also acts as a single portal for Hampshire and Isle of Wight visitor information, events, itineraries, news, travel and accommodation. Website traffic has steadily grown from an initial 3000 visits per month to an average 30,000 per month. In addition, over 3.5 million leaflets have been printed over the 10 years, and distributed across the southern counties. Newsletters have been another leading platform for the group with a growing database of 40,500 subscribers achieving an above average open and click through rate.Hampshire Top Attractions members say:Paul Simmons, Head of Communications, Marwell Zoo says “As well as the tangible benefits of being part of this group, including; voucher redemptions (consistently our top external redemption mechanic), driving awareness outside our usual catchment area and web referrals, the Hampshire Top Attractions website has been featured in our top 10 referring sites for the past 10 years. Our time spent co-operating with our neighbouring attractions allows transparency and honesty across the members and adds up to the successful promotion of a varied and high-quality county bursting with great family days out.”“Osborne values being part of the Hampshire Top Attraction group – as a leading English Heritage attraction on the Isle of Wight, having the extra support and promotional opportunities that the group’s activities brings has been of real benefit in raising awareness on the mainland.” Bryn Jones, Marketing Manager Isle of Wight, English Heritage.Mark Anderson, General Park Manager at Birdworld, commented: “Here at Birdworld, we’re delighted. As a Hampshire attraction, we have seen a great benefit in being members of such a supportive and informative group.”“One of the best aspects of being a member of HTA is the network of likeminded people working across Hampshire. Sharing ideas and learnings, and embarking on joint promotions with other Hampshire attractions is invaluable. The custom we receive across SeaCity and Tudor House & Garden from HTA vouchers increases year on year as we are able to tap into new audiences with a wider reach. HTA provide a high level of support and continued opportunities, HTA really are a valued part of our marketing strategy”. Steve Newell, Visitor Services Manager, Southampton City Council“It’s great to be part of a large like-minded team of attractions, we have achieved some great marketing ideas that benefit us all. The additional marketing and media coverage has definitely helped increase the awareness of Milestones Living History Museum and Basing House.” Louise Mackay – Commercial Activities Manager – Milestones Living History Museum and Basing House (Hampshire Cultural Trust)