In the middle of a summer filled with world class events, VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, has launched a new strategy to help British destinations capture the attention of the world’s event organisers.

It will help bring hundreds more major business, cultural and sporting events – worth up to £1 billion – to Britain.

A new unit, eventBritain, will provide a comprehensive support service for any British city, region or nation aiming to win new events for Britain complementing the excellent work being done by, for example, UK Sport, UKTI, EventScotland and the local, regional and national events organisations.

Winning the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games has put Britain firmly on the agenda of major corporations and international associations, as well as the organisers of sporting, cultural and business events, looking to place their meetings.

Tom Wright, VisitBritain’s chief executive, says: “Events bring enormous economic benefits to tourism as delegates can spend around £160 per day, over double what leisure visitors spend (c. £70). London’s reputation as a business and financial centre will help us spread these events throughout the country and help us bring even more delegates here on business.

“Working with our partners, eventBritain will add value along all stages of the bid process to ensure higher conversion levels for our partners in a hugely competitive market. We believe our greatest opportunity is international association business where Britain is already moving up the world rankings and is now third to the US and Germany, contributing £666 million to the economy.”

Supporting bids for cultural events, such as European Capital of Culture, is also a key element, as are trade shows and exhibitions. The unit will help destinations bid for the maximum number of Olympic Games training camps.

The new strategy aims to unite the industry in:

·         developing perceptions of Britain’s brand worldwide to engage with and motivate organisations and individuals in the events sector

·         adding value to British bids, when required, by leveraging VisitBritain’s presence across 36 countries to provide personal contacts with organisations based overseas

·         marketing events using its experience in PR, web marketing and CRM through its network of 36 overseas offices to international visitors to help ensure high delegate and/or spectator attendance

·         creating a definitive approach to analysing the benefits of hosting events across the sector

·         delivering global best practice throughout the UK industry

·         raising awareness of the value of the sector with Government

As well as commercial and public-sector support, the strategy has been applauded by the Events Industry Alliance, which exists to place live events at the heart of modern marketing and grow the market for them. Trevor Foley, group chief executive, says: “eventBritain is clearly set to help the event industry to develop and grow on several levels. It will help potential hosts access support for bids and in marketing events, relevant research and ministerial support.”

Britain’s achievements in hosting the Commonwealth Games and winning the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games has increased interest from organisations around the world in hosting their events here. £21.6 billion is already generated by conferences, exhibitions and trade fairs, corporate events and hospitality, and outdoor events in this country.

VisitBritain has already supported the England and Wales Cricket Board in their bid for the 2009 Twenty20 World Championships and 2019 Cricket World Cup by providing detailed information on quality-assessed accommodation close to English cricket grounds.

A joint bid with England’s North Country, will see 515 delegates from the Society of American Travel Writers spend 15 days in Britain at an annual convention and enjoying trips around the country. The event will have a dual purpose as many of those attending will return to write articles about Britain for travel pages in newspapers and magazines throughout the USA – Britain’s most valuable visitor market.

London will also host 1,000 delegates at the International Association for Homes and Services for the Aged in 2009. VisitBritain’s support in preparing bid documents, soliciting royal and ministerial support and securing airline and travel partners helped win the bid for London and could result in the annual conference generating £365,000 every day that it is in the capital.