Invitation to tender
We are inviting tenders from organisations or individuals who can fulfil the brief below. Please apply in writing to info@watlingtonba.com.
BACKGROUND
The executive committee of WBA want to promote Watlington as a fantastic place to work, live and visit.
Watlington is a small town which sits at the foot of the Chilterns below the white mark carved out over 250 years ago. At the centre is the Town Hall built in 1664 and the town boasts a strong link to history, a front line in the English Civil War and the earlier battle between the Vikings and the Saxons (as shown in the recently discovered Watlington Hoard)
Watlington has a busy thriving high street and also hosts many small businesses. It has a strong community with a nursery, a primary and secondary school and three churches. There is a thriving art scene including the annual art week and a whole host of societies like the WI, U3A and Environmental and Climate Action Groups. There are also many sports clubs in Watlington including squash, tennis, bowls, football and cricket. Because of its location in the Chilterns many cyclists and walkers come to the town.
But...it is easy to drive through Watlington and not recognise its’ many strengths and when visitors do stop, they are surprised by how much it has to offer. It has friendly, owner run independent shops on the High Street where you can get almost anything you need from bread to bicycle repair, lighting to lamb chops. In summer the swifts flit across from rooftops stretching back to Tudor times. All year-round red kites circle the town (they were reintroduced to England just a few miles away). There are three pubs and two restaurants serving Indian, Thai, Pizzas and English Pub Grub and a cafe. You can also drop into the thriving library, fill up at So Sustainable, take the children to the large recreational area or the little paddock, fantasy-buy houses at the two estate agents or get the freshest vegetables in the town Hall.
PURPOSE
To highlight what a fantastic place Watlington is to visit, work and live: friendly, welcoming and full of possibility. There are 2 key objectives
OBJECTIVE 1
TARGET AUDIENCE
APPROACH
ONGOING SUPPORT
OBJECTIVE 2
TARGET AUDIENCE
APPROACH
ONGOING SUPPORT
BACKGROUND
The executive committee of WBA want to promote Watlington as a fantastic place to work, live and visit.
Watlington is a small town which sits at the foot of the Chilterns below the white mark carved out over 250 years ago. At the centre is the Town Hall built in 1664 and the town boasts a strong link to history, a front line in the English Civil War and the earlier battle between the Vikings and the Saxons (as shown in the recently discovered Watlington Hoard)
Watlington has a busy thriving high street and also hosts many small businesses. It has a strong community with a nursery, a primary and secondary school and three churches. There is a thriving art scene including the annual art week and a whole host of societies like the WI, U3A and Environmental and Climate Action Groups. There are also many sports clubs in Watlington including squash, tennis, bowls, football and cricket. Because of its location in the Chilterns many cyclists and walkers come to the town.
But...it is easy to drive through Watlington and not recognise its’ many strengths and when visitors do stop, they are surprised by how much it has to offer. It has friendly, owner run independent shops on the High Street where you can get almost anything you need from bread to bicycle repair, lighting to lamb chops. In summer the swifts flit across from rooftops stretching back to Tudor times. All year-round red kites circle the town (they were reintroduced to England just a few miles away). There are three pubs and two restaurants serving Indian, Thai, Pizzas and English Pub Grub and a cafe. You can also drop into the thriving library, fill up at So Sustainable, take the children to the large recreational area or the little paddock, fantasy-buy houses at the two estate agents or get the freshest vegetables in the town Hall.
PURPOSE
To highlight what a fantastic place Watlington is to visit, work and live: friendly, welcoming and full of possibility. There are 2 key objectives
- To bring more visitors to the shops
- To make locals feel proud and committed to their community and link up businesses based in the town. We want to link all the different elements under one banner.
OBJECTIVE 1
- To increase the footfall in Watlington to increase turnover of the existing businesses
TARGET AUDIENCE
- It will be important to decide which types of visitors/residents we would like to attract (demographics) – define precisely who are trying to talk to
- Also define which parts of the country we would like to target – local and/or further a field
APPROACH
- Based on the objective and target audience we expect the agency to decide what is the most appropriate approach for the out-reach programme
- We should set a budget and look initially for some low-cost options e.g.
- Each business could email existing customer base sending details of all of the Watlington businesses (it is unlikely that customer lists can be shared with GDPR in place)
- PDF existing Watlington booklet and again email to key groups
- Ask a few trusted customers to distribute a few fliers in their local area
- Think about approaching businesses that have the biggest customer lists e.g., estate agents
- The agency should also work with the team regarding any new content that will be used
ONGOING SUPPORT
- Once the initial targeting is complete could the agency define what ongoing support is required to support the businesses in Watlington
- Think about using platforms like Trip-Advisor, MuddyStilettos, Southeast England Tourist Website, The Ramblers, Cycling Club Websites, Oxfordshire Villages Website etc. – All have information about Watlington where we could influence the content
OBJECTIVE 2
- To link all the different elements of Watlington under one banner. – a strong coherent visual identity ideally with a sense of humour
TARGET AUDIENCE
- Initially the audience should the residents of Watlington to drive a growing sense of pride, belonging and identity
- At a later stage the audience can be further afield – Objective 1 should run in parallel to get a “low cost/ low burden” sense of how successful an out-reach plan could be
APPROACH
- Upgrade of the Website and a simple social media campaign – probably Instagram – the look and feel of both should be consistent
- The website should paint a clear picture of each shop/business with opening times etc.
- The agency should meet with the businesses, sports facilities and societies to help shine a light on a living/breathing town
- Content is always an issue when building a website and social media platform, so it is suggested that any business, sport or society has the opportunity to write content twice a year – highlighting one or two things that they are really proud of in the town
- The content should be carefully curated and not flooded with too much imagery
- The initial approach is not to be driven by metrics such as a need for daily content nor traffic on either the website or Instagram – these can be built up at a later date
- Again, we should set a budget in advance
ONGOING SUPPORT
- The agency should also think about some simple words or phrases that best captures the essence of Watlington – such as “surprisingly nice town”
- The expectation that once the website and Instagram is set up that the agency will only devote 2-3 hours a week for upgrades and content