Marketing Your Community - Marlow

Following the success of our previous ‘Marketing Your Community’ workshops, I am writing to let you know that we are due to repeat the workshop in two weeks time in Marlow, on Wednesday 4th May. This full day workshop is aimed at helping small towns/villages understand how they can increase visibility and footfall (from both tourists and local residents), through improved marketing. It will help you think about ways in which you, as a community group, town council, Local Authority or other interested group can improve the profile of your town and especially important, ways you can do this at low cost! Lottery funding has enabled us to heavily subsidise this comprehensive training day, with attendance for AMT members or organisations based in Buckinghamshire costing just £25, including lunch.

The day will provide you with a practical introduction to the principles of destination marketing: of determining what your town or village has to offer both visitors and residents and how to ‘sell’ this. The seminar will introduce you to new and traditional methods of getting the word out, from old-fashioned leaflets to new-fangled Twitter. 100% of delegates attending the Marketing Your Community event we held in Kent this month, rated the event as good and excellent on their evaluation forms, stating that it was an “Excellent day – scarce time well spent!”; “incredible good value” a “thought provoking event” and that they had “thoroughly enjoyed the whole day”.

For more information about the day and to complete an online booking form please click on the following link Marketing your Community, Marlow

Please note that because of all the bank holidays we will have to close bookings next week so that we can inform the venue and catering, so I would advise booking as soon as possible if you want to secure a place. If you have any questions or need help with booking please contact me on 07540 723305 or by email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Best wishes

Debbie

Debbie McGrath
Programme Manager
Action for Market Towns
07540 723305
www.towns.org.uk

Web Wise

Welcome to this introduction to an ongoing series of articles giving members tips on how they can advance their businesses through more efficient use of the web.

I would initially like to help local businesses who don't have a website because they aren't sure that the cost would be repaid.  If you would like to obtain a website name (domain), build a website and host it totally free for 2 years, the answer is Getting British Business Online.

This 2010 initiative is aimed at getting 100,000 extra UK businesses online by the end of the year.  It is backed by Google, Enterprise UK, BIS, e-skills UK & BT details can be found at www.gbbo.org.uk.  The system has put a user friendly 'wizard' on the front end of Google's existing 'sites' system, allowing a site to be built and launched in hours and then managed/enhanced via 'sites'.  It does not at this stage include domain based email addresses but this is being considered by Google.

Living Streams is a GBBO partner and hopes to run some free events, in collaboration with Bucks New University, during late May / early June for interested local businesses.

Future articles will, where possible, be in response to queries from members these can be general or specific and be related to topics such as website design, commerce, internet advertising, high ranking (SEO), email marketing, social media (e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter etc), analytics.  N.B. Members raising queries will not be named in articles.

Best Regards

Tony

Email your web queries to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with ˜Web Wise" in the "subject".

Welcome from the President

 

Welcome to the April edition of our newsletter.

 

The April business meeting was held at Chez Gerrard – many thanks for their hospitality. The meeting attracted 29 members. Annie Mulady, Vice President, presented the winners of the ‘April Fool’ event with a prize of a large jar of sweets courtesy of Beehive Treats in Spittal Street. Emily the Manager of Chez Gerrard gave a presentation on their High Street Restaurant together with an update on offers they are currently promoting. Graham Innes from First Responders spoke about their organisation and how they support the community. Annie also advised the meeting that the virtual tour of the town had now attracted 14 businesses to be promoted on the site. If you are interested in joining the tour, contact www.estatevue.com/platform/uk/marlow/. After the formal agenda was completed, participants had an opportunity to network and enjoy the hospitality of Chez Gerrard. Full minutes of the meeting will be available on our website shortly.

 

The next business meeting will be at The Compleat Angler, Marlow at 6.00pm on Monday the 17^th May.

 

This month, our featured business is Crowne Coaching and we are launching  ‘Web Wise’, Tony Thornby will be answering your questions on how to use the web effectively to promote your business – e-mail Tony with your questions and we will publish them in future editions. See his first article below.

 

Following the success of the “Scarecrow Trail” organised by the Chamber last year, by popular request we organised a further event this time over the Easter holiday. An ‘April Fool’ trail - despite the poor weather the event attracted both local residents and visitors to the town and we received nearly 100 entries from as far as Milton Keynes for the event. The Towers-Goodman family from Maidenhead won first prize, The Kebtane family from Windsor won second prize and third prize went to Sara Helin who only moved to Marlow the weekend of the event.

 

Members may be aware that in an effort to ensure that the town looks attractive, we own the flower beds positioned across the centre of the town. We have an opportunity for businesses to promote themselves by sponsoring a flower bed, we have two beds outside Zizzi’s at £200 each plus VAT, one outside Fegos in the High Street at £390 plus VAT and one outside Dean Street car park at £460 plus VAT – if your organisation would be interested in promoting your company in this way whilst also ensuring the town looks attractive, please contact Jo Braybrooke at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

 

Last year, The Chamber re-launched our website at www.marlowchamber.com. In order for us to maintain and develop the site further, we are now offering a tendering opportunity to local businesses.

 

What the Chamber is looking for now and ongoing is:-

• Advice/Guidance on future developments
• Advice/Guidance on content
• Monthly development/additions including distribution of the Newsletter (fixed monthly fee - estimate 2/3 hours per month)
• Industry search facility for members section
• Advice/Guidance on position of Virtual Tour
• Quarterly review meetings
• Training on adding new members details & sending out mailshots to all members
• Refresh of home page
• Update images on web site

If you would be interested in proposing for this contract, or know of a local company that may be interested, please contact Jo Braybrooke on above e-mail the deadline for submissions is the 4^th May 2010.