VisitBritain launches new marketing effort in GCC to increase bookings to the UK

Riyadh – Asdaf News:

The national tourism agency, VisitBritain, is launching a new marketing initiative this week with the intention of luring tourists from the GCC to the United Kingdom. A warm British welcome is at the core of the global GREAT Britain marketing effort, which encourages tourists to “See Things Differently” by promoting Britain as a welcoming, vibrant, interesting, and inclusive place.

Using destination photos and short films, the multi-media advertising campaign, “Spilling the Tea on Great Britain,” plays off of Britain’s affinity for tea to convey a novel and captivating tale about the experiences on offer, demonstrating to tourists that “whatever your cup of tea, we’ve got it.”

From a “Festival” themed tea that celebrates the live music scene in Britain to a “Graffi-tea” that honors its dynamic cities and cultural landmarks. The “Surf” theme highlights Britain’s coastal adventures, “nofilter” highlights the country’s unspoiled beauty, and the “Monster Hunting” tea is inspired by the country’s historical discoveries and fabled myths, including the famed Loch Ness Monster.

Tregothnan, a British tea manufacturer, will blend a limited quantity of the themed teas, which will be offered for tasting at VisitBritain promotional and trade events.

VisitBritain’s Interim Deputy Director Carol Maddison said: “The GCC is an important tourism market for Britain and we aredelighted to be running this dedicated campaign, tapping intomotivations for travel this year, to build on the strong recovery we have seen.”

“Britain is packed full of new and invigorating experiences for visitors to come and enjoy, from adrenaline filled coastal and countryside adventures to iconic summer festivals, from street food tours to street art tours to afternoon teas with a magical twist. By showing our warm British welcome and telling the story of our vibrant and varied destinations we want to inspire visitors from the GCC to discover more, stay longer and to explore year-round.”

Discovering new and unexpected experiences is at the top of its target audiences’ wish lists, according to the campaign’s creative content, which was created based on VisitBritain’s most recent research into the reasons people go to Britain today. The “Spilling the Tea” campaign will feature a separate English and Arabic website that will provide users with inspiration through ideas and activities based around the campaign.

With a budget in the GCC of about SAR5,200,000, the “Spill the Tea” campaign is utilising a variety of media. Short movies, branded content on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, digital display advertising, digital out-of-home along Riyadh Boulevard, radio, and print media are just a few examples.

To extend the campaign’s reach in the GCC and encourage bookings before spring and summer vacation, VisitBritain is also collaborating with prestigious trade partners like WeGo and content producers Matador.

This first phase of the campaign is set to run until spring with new content launching throughout the coming months to also capture Britain’s major events in 2023 from the Coronation of King Charles III in May to Liverpool hosting the Eurovision Song Contest, on behalf of Ukraine, also in May.

Saudi Arabia ranks as the 13th most lucrative market for visitor expenditure and the 34th largest market for inbound tourists visiting the UK. Saudi Arabia sent 221,000 visitors to the UK in 2019, and they spent £627 million on their travels.

Saudi Arabian tourists’ spending in the UK is anticipated to approach 2019 levels by 2022, and their number of visits is anticipated to surpass pre-COVID levels by 2025.

The GREAT campaign of the UK government includes VisitBritain’s “See Things Differently” campaign.