This week Crewe Town Council received a progress report on the study they have commissioned into how Crewe can increase its business visitor numbers. The study is being conducted by Marketing Cheshire and the South Cheshire Chamber of Commerce. It has just concluded an initial consultation with local hoteliers, venue owners and businesses.
The Town Council believes that by bringing together local hotels and meeting venues into a "Destination Crewe” partnership to market the facilities in Crewe, more organisers of business meetings and conferences will be persuaded to choose Crewe. This in turn should create more local jobs, and boost the image of the town.
One clear message emerging from the surveys is that despite offering unparalleled accessibility, fast connectivity and excellent value for money, outside Crewe there is a lack of awareness of what the town has to offer.
The Destination Crewe study has identified some positive indicators:
- The day conference provision in Crewe is already strong with 80% of venues able to accommodate 100+ delegates at rates slightly lower that the market average.
- The majority of businesses said that where possible they tried to support the economy by organising meetings and overnight stays locally
- A 2 hour travel time appears to be acceptable putting the London market within reach
- For Crewe’s hotels and businesses the key requirements from this initiative are: more marketing of the destination, better targeting of corporate travel agents and strong partnerships with key players such as the train companies, MMU in Crewe, the Lyceum and Crewe Alexandra.
These findings will be used to develop a marketing strategy. As well as an overarching call to action, a number of clear supporting messages will be developed around:
- Location – where Crewe is, travel times from key cities and what is nearby
- Value for money - especially compared to other city centre locations
- Quality – Crewe has excellent hotels and venues in all price bands
- Experience – what makes Crewe a great choice for business meetings
Councillor Kevin Hickson, Chair of the Town Council’s Economic Development Committee said:
"What this study shows is that Crewe is one of those places that meeting organisers from elsewhere know of, but don’t know much about. It is important that we target all key audiences from personal assistants to large travel companies with clear and relevant messages about the benefits of Crewe”
Marketing Cheshire CEO Katrina Michel said:
"Crewe clearly has great potential to develop itself as a destination for business meetings. We will now be bringing these finding together into a marketing strategy which we will be testing with key audiences and also engaging with local businesses to secure their help in making it a success.”
For further information contact:
Rob Mackenzie, Deputy Town Clerk/Economic Development Officer