Addressing Swindon’s

image

Jane Stewart – The Brunel

Julia Falcon – Forward Swindon

- Industrial town

- Continues to enjoy strong growth

- One of the most affluent areas in UK

- Perceptions of Swindon are poor

- Town’s image has significant impact on all business

sectors: property, recruitment, retail, tourism

Swindon Background

- Easy rail and road links across to London and South West

- Diverse, healthy economy & plenty of employment

- One of the 10 fastest growing towns in the UK

- Surrounded by The Cotswolds, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire

- Good mix of housing & choice of environments

- Strong retail mix

Strengths

- No “standout” attributes/ USP

- Lack of “ownership” by local community

- “Satellite” town layout

- No obvious “heart of town”, decaying car parks, unpleasant

pedestrian access routes

- Lack of leisure attractions, cultural offering & amenities

- Gateway driving routes are unattractive with bad signage

Weaknesses

- Investment in retail and leisure mix

- 16% of the residents are new to Swindon = a fresh audience

- Positive lifestyle proposition

- Rebrand the town as a dominant regional destination

- Utilise the “growth” aspects to Swindon in affirmative marketing

- High speed rail link

Opportunities

Current (confusing) situation

…..plus all the individual businesses, shopping centres, hotels, attractions

Multiple contact points & marketing sources..

Place Marketing

This is not about a new logo

This is not about a TV campaign or a new advert

Or a photo-shoot, or media stunt

This is about fundamentally changing how people feel about, see,

perceive, talk about Swindon

What do we actually

mean

by place marketing?

Joined up campaigning for

Swindon

Each activity connects Swindon

people & companies with our

targets

So what happens

next?

Any questions?