Ethos Public Relations Manchester

Marketing Manchester in the US of A

by Emma White, Manchester Gateway Marketing Manager, New York

Why, you might ask, am I based in New York? Firstly, let me explain how I came to be out here in the first place. I work for Visit Manchester, the tourist board for the Manchester city-region and have done now for six years! In 2009 Manchester held onto its position as the most popular destination in the UK for international visitors, just behind London and Edinburgh. North America is one of the most important markets for the city-region as it delivers a large number of these international visitors, for both business and leisure every year.

In order to really tap into this market, the decision was made to have somebody based ‘on-territory’, as we call it - and guess what – I was the lucky person. That’s right, not only do I get to promote the greatest city in Britain, but I get to live in the city that never sleeps – New York!

Now I bet you’re wondering what do I actually do out here and let me tell you, it’s a real mix of activity. My main objective is to increase the number of visitors from the US and Canada and to do this I focus on the travel trade, the media and leisure and business tourism marketing. For instance over the last year I have delivered successful consumer campaigns with Orbitz and Travelocity and have met with key decision makers at numerous travel tradeshows across the country.

Being based on-territory; I have developed great relationships with airlines, tour operators, travel agents, journalists, meeting planners and many more - no two days are ever the same! Last year saw the launch of the new American Airlines (AA) route from JFK to Manchester. To promote this new route I worked with AA on a co-op consumer marketing campaign. The campaign promoted a time-sensitive ‘bonus miles’ offer and generated over 2,350 bookings within the four-week campaign – a great success.

Time has moved quickly and I have now been out here for four years and have developed a good understanding of the American market – this does also mean that I have started using some American words such as store, bathroom and elevator! For now my time continues in New York, but I know that when I do return to the UK, I will of course choose Manchester as my base, as this is where my heart is.

Posted at 1:58pm on 18^th May 2011