Birmingham ad campaign to target London
Sep 23 2008 By Gary Marks
A MAJOR city council advertising campaign promoting Birmingham as a great place to do business is to be launched in London.
Posters portraying positive messages and images will soon be seen by a million people a week at selected Tube stations and will be accompanied by advertisements in broadsheet national newspapers and The Economist magazine.
The month-long “Birmingham built for business” campaign next month, which will cost £403,000, is aimed at attracting new companies and investors to the city and is the forerunner to a more aggressive long-term approach to selling Birmingham.
Part of a deliberate strategy to boost promotional activity during the economic downturn, it has been devised by Marketing Birmingham and was backed by the council cabinet yesterday.
The adverts contain short and sharp messages promoting regeneration projects including New Street Station, the QE super-hospital and the new Library of Birmingham.
The cabinet also approved plans to spend a record £565,000 on a stand and entertainment to promote Birmingham at next year’s MIPIM property fair at Cannes, France. More than half of the cost is expected to be raised from private sector subscriptions.
Council leader Mike Whitby reacted strongly to concerns by opposition Labour councillors who questioned the value of MIPIM.
Coun Whitby (Con Harborne) said public and private sector investment in the city had risen from £8 billion in 2004/05 to £17 billion today, largely as a result of more effective promotion and marketing.
It was “vitally important during a time of economic difficulties” to do more rather than less to present Birmingham as a city of business excellence, he added.
“MIPIM doesn’t just position us in a European framework, it positions us an international framework. There is no doubt we have to be there,” he said.
Almost 30,000 people visit MIPIM each year and the council is now responding to 25 “high level” inquiries from prospective investors about Birmingham from last year’s event.
Major coups for Birmingham, both arising from drinks parties on yachts at Cannes, according to Coun Whitby, included a £150 million investment in Birmingham office development by the Carlyle Group and Deutsche Bank’s move to Brindleyplace.
He expects Deutsche Bank to make a major announcement about expanding.
Clive Dutton, strategic director of regeneration, said it would be a “fatal mistake” to reduce promotions.
