MEMBERS BULLETIN No. 4; St David's Day 2005
In this month's Bulletin we provide an important update on 2005 Membership, details of a new Search by Category that has implications for Associate Members and Full Members alike, and news of a Regional Search that heralds the introduction before Easter of StayingInNorthWales.com, StayingInMidWales.com and StayingInSouth Wales.com (not altogether unconnected with the Merger Consultations that are currently taking place).
1. Who was St David?
St David was a Celtic monk, abbot and bishop who lived in the sixth century. As Archbishop of Wales he helped spread Christianity among the pagan Celtic tribes of western Briton. He is the Patron Saint of Wales and is buried in the grounds of his monastery where the Cathedral of St David's in Pembrokeshire now stands.
2. Staying in Wales 2005 Membership; Update
Some of our Full Members that joined later on last year were a little upset when they received an invoice for their 2005 Full Membership. Even when we explained that Full Membership is always for a calendar year (1st January-31st December) there were still a few malcontents. So being the exceptionally nice people that we are, we're offering a sort of amnesty to help keep the peace. Anyone that joined after 1st August last year will only pay £25 +VAT for 2005 Full Membership. Any of these that have already paid their £45 +VAT renewal rate will be reimbursed £20 +VAT and we can't be fairer than that can we.
Please go to www.StayingInWales.com/partners/Myaccount for more information or call the Helpline team on 01766 543011. Calls are no more expensive than 0870 calls and less when callers are within a 35-mile radius of the Centre in Porthmadog. All members of the Team are fluent in English and Welsh.
3. Pet-Friendly Accommodation
 Yes, it's live! Full Members that welcome pets are now flagged in the Search Listings with our new red doggie logo, even if it's a blue budgerigar that visitors want to bring (don't laugh, it's happened!). Further details are then provided in Full Members' Microsites. As we said in last month's Bulletin this is a high-level requirement that will also get picked up through Keyphrase searches.
4. Search Listings Order
A number of you have asked what's the logic of our Search Listings order now when once it was fairly random? All properties are now listed according to their Star Grading in descending order, irregardless of their 'select' membership of organisations like Great Little Places or Welsh Rarebits. These will continue to be defined by their logos wherever they are placed in the listings. This gives everyone a fair chance, on top of which we have introduced the 'Featured Accommodation Slots', which gives everyone an opportunity to be at 'top of the list' from time to time (see below).
5. Featured Accommodation Slots
This is now rotating on a weekly basis with clickthroughs direct to the Microsites of properties featured in all searches. An advanced version of this feature is under development and we shall report on this next month.
6. Broadband Queries
Our little piece on Broadband in last month's Bulletin caused quite a stir as the implications hit home. Broadband is at least ten times faster than dial-up services for using the Internet and, for tourism businesses in Wales, can act as a powerful double-edged sword for marketing. It is set to revolutionise the way we approach markets and deal with markets when they are here. Staying in Wales will ensure that its Members are in the vanguard of these new developments and we expect to have further news in time for the next Bulletin.
7. Unlimited Descriptive Text
Working with the Visit Wales Team has been and continues to be a pleasure; they are all extremely dedicated. But we can't deny that working with the system itself still gives us some headaches and that sometimes they're of our own making. For example, to keep Microsites tidy with everything in sight we have kept the initial description of the property to 300 characters, whilst allowing 1,000 for 'About Our Location' at the bottom under the map.
All owners are rightly proud of their properties, however, and could describe them in purple prose until the early hours of the morning. The unlimited number of characters at Visit Wales allows this to be done but it isn't quite what visitors want. So how do we reconcile the two different approaches?
Well, we've cracked it. We now use the General Information text at VisitWales with anything over 300 characters spilling into a pop-up window when the user clicks 'Read On...'. Clever, huh! But seriously, people's eyes start glazing over after reading 250 characters on screen so a concise description is all that's needed at first to draw them further in.
Included now in the 'Microsite stats' section of Full Members' MyAccount pages is a new report on clickthoughs to Full Members own websites. To increase the rate, a second website link has been provided underneath the Booking Enquiry Form in each Microsite, in addition to the one at the bottom. There is also a date search so that Microsite performance can be reported for any period selected.
9. New Search by Region
A new search by Region will be launched before Easter and will herald the introduction of:
10. New Search by Category
To be worthwhile, searches by category should allow users to drill down to fine detail by entering different search criteria without fear of getting a Listing screen that mockingly says 'There are no items in that fit these criteria. Please try another search' or words to that effect. Very unrewarding.
Staying in Wales has found a way round this. Top level searches from the Staying in Wales Accommodation Search Page are reserved for Full Members, who are listed in the search results with their Microsite links. This will remain the same. The new 'Search by Category', which is to be a subsidiary search from a secondary screen, will also include Associate Member listings but these will be after Full Members listings and will have no active links. This will fulfil a need without conferring any special advantage on the Associate Members concerned. Any views on this would be welcome. The new search is expected to go live in time to cover the Easter holidays.
11. Visitor Newsletter
As this Bulletin is being written, the St David's Day emailing to over 15,000 potential Spring visitors is being prepared for overnight sending on Monday 28th February. Associate Members who have yet to take the Full Membership plunge are urged to do so at what amounts to less that £1 a week (£1 a week if you include VAT). Assistance with this is available at help@stayingginwales.com or from the Helpline Team on 01766 543011.
12. Dine Out in Wales Spring Promotion
Many of our Accommodation Full Members have fine restaurants open to non-residents and in our Restaurants section there are many award-winning places to eat that all form part of the total visit experience. With this in mind we shall be launching an exclusive 'Dine Out' promotion for Wales featuring 100 of the best places to dine across all three regions (North, Mid and South). Participating restaurants only need provide a little something extra to diners responding to the promotion. We shall leave that to the imagination of the restaurants themselves who may also wish to specify certain times of the day when their offers apply.
For all those interested in taking part, please email info@stayinginwales.com with Restaurants Offer in the subject window and details of special offers in the body of the mail.
13. Towns and Villages Promotion
Staying in Wales has identified 6,059 towns, villages and hamlets in Wales, all of which can gain from increased spending by visitors to their areas. Each represents a micro-destination in its own right - a concept covered at length in Members Bulletin No.2 - and the first promotion of its kind will occur this Spring. It is important for all Full Members to be aware of others in their area so that each has an idea of the strength of their cluster. We shall make this information available shortly to all Members but in the meantime our Helpline Team can provide advice on 01766 543011.
14. Special Offers
Special Offers from Full Members will be publicised in the next Visitor Newsletter with links direct to the Microsites of Full Members making the offers. We are also working on a live ticker-tape strip to convey these Special Offers in the Search Listing pages.
15. Merger Consultations
The main merger consultation concerning the Welsh Assembly Government and the Wales Tourist Board has sparked of other merger talks between organisations that can offer their Members so much more if only the right kind of deal can be thrashed out. The demise of Tourism South and West Wales a few years back stalled plans for a pan-Wales marketing alliance that would by now have been paying large dividends, particularly in the rapidly-growing field of new media marketing and communications. Such an organisation would be entirely market-facing on behalf of its Members, leaving the many sectoral groups and the Wales Tourism Alliance to look after Members' interests on the supply side. It makes huge sense and if ever there was a right time for actions it is now. As the world grows smaller and increasingly competitive there's no time for foot-dragging; the devil always takes the hindmost as they say. Watch this space.
16. The Staying in Wales/Aros yng Nghymru Team
The Staying in Wales/Aros yng Nghymru Team is totally dedicated to the interests of Wales' visitors and the consequent advancement of Members' businesses. The team works year round with Members to provide fast, accurate information to visitors, drawing on expertise second to none in the UK:
Sion Thomas, Helpline Manager
Llinos Griffin, Helpline Assistant
Elena Roberts, Helpline Assistant
Dorothy Williams, Helpline Assistant
Terry Jackson, Project Co-ordinator
Arvind Nehru, Network Manager
Roger Thomas, Content Manager
William Worship, Image Management
Alison Davies, Mapping
Tony Davies, Mapping
John Harrington, Mapping
Harish Nehru, Software
Aamer Sardar, Software
Richard Edwards, Software Design Consultant
Tom Pollock, Graphic Design Consultant
Phil Evans, Interactive Digital Television Consultant
With special thanks to Kim Colebrook, Head of Information and New Media at VisitWales and Stephen Potter, Marketing Director at LondonTown.com Llundain.
17. Helpline Opening Hours
NB A Welsh and English language voicemail service operates outside all opening times shown below. Simply leave your name and telephone number and your call will be returned without fail.
Staying in Wales 01766 543011*
Open Weekdays: 9am-8pm
Closed Weekends
*Local call rates: 4.2p/min 8am-6pm; 4p all other times. (35 miles.)
*National call rates: 6.7p/min 8am-6pm; 4p all other times. (35 miles+.)
Visit Wales 08708 300 301**
Open Weekdays: 9am-8pm
Open Weekends: 9am-6pm
**National call rates: 6.7p/min at all times.
18. Archive
Please click here for archive copies of previous Members Bulletins and Market Research information.
19. Next Bulletin
- Update on Merger Proposals.
- Broadband News.
- Traveline Cymru News.
Click here to unsubscribe
Staying in Wales-Aros yng Nghymru
Unit 4, Penamser Business Park, Porthmadog LL49 9GB Wales UK
|
|
|
