London 2012 Olympics - 1 year to go

27 July 2011 marked one year to go until the London 2012 Olympic Games and we have been busy highlighting how tourism can contribute to the economic legacy of the Games and to inspire people to visit Britain and join in the celebrations over the year ahead.

In Russia we held a large-scale event at Moscow’s largest outdoor festival Picnic Afisha, headlined by the Kaiser Chiefs in conjunction with the British Council and the British Embassy in Moscow. We ran an Olympic Britain Pavilion totally dedicated to sport, inviting visitors to participate in various sports tournaments such as ping-pong, arm-wrestling and table football. Visitors were also able to view a special Paralympic photo exhibition provided by the Russian Paralympic Association and over 300 people took part in a Paralympic quiz.

We joined forces with the United States Olympic Committee to launch ‘Team USA: Britain Bound’ at a one year to go party at the New York City’s Lincoln Center.

In India we held a joint event with the British High Commission and Briitsh Council where the Omega countdown clock was unveiled at the British High Commissioner' residence.

In the UAE we hosted a reception at the British Embassy in Dubai. The Consul General and Keith Beecham spoke and an Arabic version of our TV ad was shown.

Over in China, we helped facilitate interviews and media visits for China Central TV, the 2012 Games broadcaster, who showed a two-hour feature programme about the one year count down which was repeated 2-3 times on CCTV News Channel and CCTV-5 today.

In Canada, we hosted an event with the FCO in Toronto. Guests included the Ontario Minister of Health Promotion and Sport, CTV’s Olympic broadcast team, members of the COC, Canadian para-athletes, tour operators, trade and news media. The new Britain – You’re Invited TV ads, the Olympic images video, and b-roll were shown on large screens around the house and gardens.

Meanwhile just across the channel in France, we held an event in partnership with the French national organising committee (NOC), EventTeam – the official tour operator for the French NOC and the British Embassy. This event included a presentation which covered an introduction to the French involved in the 2012 Games, a film on French success stories in previous Games, another of French athletes inviting French people to go to London to support Team France. Other discussions included how France Television will be covering the Games, Club France Project – the French Sport Embassy in London during Games-time which will be used as a media centre for French media and where official broadcaster, France Televisions, will be based.

highlights of our 2012 Games progress

Here are some of the highlights of our 2012 Games progress so far are:

Development of the Tourism2012Games.org resource and monthly newsletter communications since May 2010 – click here to sign up.

Production of a series of rights-free 2012 Games-related imagery and b-roll footage.

Event for the official London 2012 Authorised Ticket Resellers in June 2011 to introduce them to pan-Britain product.

Development of a dedicated Britain You’re Invited module in the BritAgent e-learning programme.

Founding of a partnership with Worldwide Olympic Partner Samsung and the introduction of a “Best of Britain” app on their devices.

Establishment of the 2012 Working Group that brings key industry representatives together to discuss and resolve issues around displacement.

Roll out of a London 2012 Public Diplomacy toolkit to our overseas network.

The Global Handover Programme (from Beijing 2008 to London 2012).

The Pre-Games Training Camp information website, developed on behalf of LOCOG.

July 2011 marked one year to go until the London 2012 Olympic Games and we highlighted how tourism can contribute to the economic legacy of the Games and to inspire people to visit Britain.

We are working closely with the teams at LOCOG to identify how we can maximise the benefits of the Cultural Olympiad and the Torch Relay and leverage all media opportunities.

xford Economics to carry out in-depth research into the likely tourism

Findings from other Games

The Athens 2004 Games contributed to a 10% increase in inbound visitors in 2005

3.9 billion people watched the Athens Games on TV in 200 countries

The Sydney Games contributed to a 15% increase in inbound visitors in September 2000 versus September 1999

The State of Georgia economy increased by $5.1 billion as a result of the Atlanta 1996 Games

In the decade following the Barcelona 1992 Games, the number of international visitors doubled

In 2007, we commissioned jointly with Visit London, Oxford Economics to carry out in-depth research into the likely tourism impact of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Some of the findings are summarised below and the full report can be downloaded.

The research predicted that gross visitor spend in Britain generated by the London 2012 Games will be £2.34 billion for the ten year period 2007 to 2017, of which £1.85 billion will be spent in London (based on a central-case scenario).

In terms of relative importance, the pre-Games period is responsible for 15% of the estimated total tourism benefits for the UK as a whole; the Games themselves account for 31%, and the remaining 54% is to be generated after the Games (i.e., as a legacy effect). The corresponding shares for London are 17%, 35% and 48% respectively.

For the post-Games period (2013-17), a legacy effect worth £1.27bn is forecast for the UK and £0.88bn for London. These gains are generated largely by higher numbers of visitors from emerging markets for UK tourism (primarily from China, India and Russia), who decide to visit the country/city as a consequence of the media exposure and publicity associated with the Games.

Britain is in a decade of exceptional opportunity for tourism marketing

Britain is in a decade of exceptional opportunity for tourism marketing. This started with The Royal Wedding and will continue with the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.

The Great Britain You’re Invited marketing programme is our four year marketing programme that aims to take full advantage of this exceptional period of celebration and its targets are underpinned by our 3 key objectives for the 2012 Games.

We have a dedicated 2012 Games Unit which works with government departments and the official tourism bodies fro London, England, Scotland and Wales to add value and give support to their activities. Specifically, the team aims to:

• Identify opportunities
• Coordinate activities
• Manage relationships

Our year-by-year plan is to:
2010 - Galvanise Britain
2011 - Invite the world to Britain
2012 - Welcome the world to Britain
2013 onwards - Delivering the legacy

aim to build the aspiration to travel to Britain

Through our four-year marketing programme we aim to build the aspiration to travel to Britain, and the number of people visiting the UK - there are number of ways that you can get involved, regardless of you business size or budget.

As the national tourism agency our commitment to you is to understand your business needs and provide you with sound market advice, support and opportunities that will help your business flourish internationally and we will work with you to ensure that you maximise your international marketing budget.

We offer a virtual reach around the world as well as a programme of exhibitions and missions in key markets. Our in-market teams understand what motivates travel from each individual market and what tourism experiences and products are in demand. Take a look at our comprehensive market profiles to help you decide which markets are best for you. Equally they have an excellent understanding of the tourism industry in their countries and maintain strong links with their local travel trade and media contacts.

So whether you are looking to extend you reach through:

Digital and social media, such as on visitbritain.tv or through Twitter, our Facebook page, Love UK or Facebook Places

Press and PR by sending us your newsworthy stories or hosting our journalists and broadcast crews

Leisure, and in some markets, such as the US, the business travel trade via our programme of sales missions, workshops and exhibitions or promotion to our qualified Britagents

Print advertising in targeted media/Britain supplements

Retailing your product through the VisitBritain shop

Or as a major campaign partner

How we market Britain

Britain is always a stimulating and exciting place to be – a place where castles host music festivals, museums hold fashion shows, power stations are converted into art galleries and country houses are transformed into spa hotels. Britain is where you’ll find world-renowned historic landmarks right next to modern art galleries and restaurants. And there has never been a better time visit.

Britain is celebrating – kick-started by the Royal Wedding at Westminster Abbey and next summer London hosts the 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games. The Olympic Torch will run through the whole country and Britain will stage a major culturefest as well as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

We see these events a once in a lifetime opportunity to enhance our appeal to international visitors, to showcase all that is great about Britain. That’s why we are increasing the amount we invest directly into marketing, focusing on 21 priority markets - those which offer the best immediate return and best future prospects for Britain – working in partnership with thousands of business across Britain.

We use a range of traditional and innovative marketing approaches and see digital and social media, press and PR activity and working with travel trade intermediaries as key. Through our global network, we look after trade and press contacts, arrange and facilitate sales missions and trade events as well as work with partners on-territory.

Find out how you can get involved, read our advice section or contact our sister organisations to promote your product domestically.

British Tourism Framework Review

British Tourism Framework Review

At the request of the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, an industry-wide review was recently conducted to determine how VisitBritain should work with other agencies to deliver key outcomes for Britain’s tourism industry. VisitBritain has now developed a new, more focused strategy in line with the recommendations from the Review and to meet the challenge of attracting greater visitor numbers to the UK in the run-up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and beyond.

Essentially, we have had to ask and answer a question that every business has faced: “How do we add value?” By asking ourselves a series of tough questions and by listening to the views of a wide variety of stakeholders, we have developed a new, clearer role. With the new role defined, we believe that we are now in a better position to move forward as a business.

The Reports

Achieving the Full Potential of the Visitor Economy: Full Report
Deloitte/Oxford Economics Report: The Economic Case for the Visitor Economy

Investing in success: Heritage and the UK tourism economy

Building on work carried out for VisitBritain, the report shows that the size of the heritage-tourism sector is in excess of £12.4 billion a year and supports an estimated 195,000 full-time jobs – this makes the sector bigger than the advertising, car or film industries.

British Tourism Industry Group

We have established partnerships with a number of key commercial tourism organisations and leading industry associations, some of which are listed below.
Tourism Industry Emergency Response Group

Britain’s Tourism Industry Emergency Response Group (TIER) is a small group comprising key tourism industry organisations and government. The group develops plans for crisis scenarios as well as managing the tourism industry’s response to a specific crisis.

TIER is facilitated by VisitBritain and comprises 10+ industry representatives. Members of the group include the Association of British Travel Agents, UKinbound, British Hospitality Association, Britain’s national tourist boards, British Airways and the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions. Other groups are called on depending on the location and nature of the crisis.
Tourism Alliance

The purpose of the Tourism Alliance is to identify and develop policies and strategies that raise standards and promote quality within the industry, and to work with and lobby Government on key issues relevant to the growth and development of tourism and its contribution to the economy. It also acts as a conduit for the flow of information between Government and the Tourism Industry.
British Tourism Industry Group

The British Tourism Industry Group (BTIG) is our main stakeholder body.

Its meetings provide a vehicle for us to inform and consult with stakeholders on the development and implementation of the four-year marketing programme. It will also provide a forum to discuss Government policy in order to inform our advisory function.

By facilitating a strategic dialogue between VisitBritain and the wider tourism industry, the BTIG will also allow VisitBritain to fulfil its role as a trusted advisor to government on tourism matters.
UKinbound

UKinbound, (formerly the British Incoming Tourism Operators Association) is the official trade body representing tour operators and tourism suppliers to Britain. Members include national and regional tourist boards, tour operators, ground handlers, accommodation providers, destination management organisations, transportation, restaurants and catering companies and other tourism services - all dedicated to offering the best possible service to visitors to Britain.
British Hospitality Association

As the national trade association for hotels, restaurants and caterers, the British Hospitality Association’s primary role is to lobby government across the UK and in Europe, representing the views of all sections of the industry - not just the large organisations but also thousands of individually owned hotels. Its membership also includes restaurateurs, contract caterers, clubs, transport caterers, theatres, attraction, outside caterers, universities, suppliers to the industry and many others.
Business Visits & Events Partnerships

The mission of this partnership is to lead the way in supporting a competitive, high quality and more profitable business visits and events sector in Britain. It provides a cohesive, independent industry voice to represent Britain's business visit and events sector working in partnership with VisitBritain. Its membership is aimed at the leading trade associations and government agencies with an interest in conferences, meetings, exhibitions, trade fairs, outdoor events, incentive travel, corporate hospitality, cultural, sporting and leisure events. The Partnership is made up of members representing all areas of the events sector.

How tourism supports the British economy

The image above shows how tourism support the British economy. Tourism is Britain’s 5th largest industry, our 3rd largest export earner and worth c£115 billion a year. It employs c2.6 million people and supports over 200,000 SME’s. Overseas visitors contribute £3 billion to the Treasury every year.

Download a guide we recently produced, in partnership with the other national tourist boards for England, London, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It sets out some of the key facts and figures in terms of the size, value and importance of the tourism industry, the industry's growth potential, and potential to support more jobs, the challenges and opportunities in terms of its global competitivness, and also a brief synopsis of each of the national tourist boards and our key aims and objectives.

Introduction to Britain's Tourism

View an illustration showing how tourism supports the British economy, and use our interactive map of the structure of tourism in Britain to understand the role different organisations play.