Foreign media wowed by Brum
BIRMINGHAM’S marketing agency has claimed success in helping to sell the city to the rest of the world. Marketing Birmingham has hosted a number of media visits to the city, helping to generate valuable exposure for the area.
More than 250 such visits have been organised so far this year by the agency’s PR team, helping to generate around £3.5m in media coverage.
Recent visits have included a group of five journalists from Ireland, one of the key countries identified for the Visit Birmingham campaign. Northern Ireland’s Escape Magazine was particularly enthusiastic about the city’s shopping and dining out offerings.
An opposite extreme to this came with a visit by American journalist Betsa Marsh who wanted to visit the city’s old back-to-back housing and be transported back to the 19th century.
A national TV channel from New Zealand travelled to Birmingham to film a live outside broadcast for its breakfast show, while national radio station Talksport broadcast its award winning breakfast show live from the city with four hours of Birmingham-themed events and interviews, the broadcast going out to 1.8m people.
“Marketing Birmingham continues to successfully leverage its leisure and business campaigns by planning and managing media visits,” said the agency.
The visits are integral to the agency’s leisure and business campaigns and each one is carefully targeted to encourage key journalists to make the trip.
A tailored itinerary is set up for each journalist so they achieve the most from their visit. This includes meeting a wide range of city champions, visits to key venues and attractions and interviews with key stakeholders.
The agency said it was delighted with the response it had received, particularly the encouraging feedback from visitors.
Examples include:
“Many thanks for all you did to make my stay in Birmingham so good. Everything was great and I got a lot more insight into the city. I only wish the book was bigger!”
Kate Hughes, Fodor Travel Guide
“Once again, thank you for being a great host, and for organising such a fantastic itinerary. We’ll definitely be back in Birmingham for a short break soon!”
Andrea McVeigh, Escape Magazine
