Foster unveils 2010 tourism marketing plans

Tourism Minister Arlene Foster has unveiled plans to increase the number of overseas holidaymakers to Northern Ireland in 2010 by 10%.

The Tourism Ireland Marketing Plans were revealed today at the recently refurbished Ulster Museum, Belfast.

The ambition is to increase holiday visitors to the country by 10% in 2010, which is part of a strategy to increase the number of overseas holidaymakers to two million over the next five years. The marketing strategy is designed to boost visitor numbers to Northern Ireland from overseas, with particular focus on Britain, Germany and the USA.

The Minister said: “Tourism is an industry that has the potential to positively impact every local community in Northern Ireland. We can all see the benefits of a successful tourism product in terms of the jobs it creates and the revenue that it can generate for the local economy.

"It is an extremely competitive industry and it is encouraging to see the ambitious targets that Tourism Ireland has set for the year ahead. As the economic challenges continue in 2010, we must work with our industry partners to take advantage of opportunities that already exist and seek to enhance our competitiveness as a visitor destination.”

In order to meet this target, over the next 12 months, Tourism Ireland will be promoting Northern Ireland through its global destination campaigns and through stand-alone Northern Ireland marketing activity. Focusing on the signature projects, Belfast as the ‘City of Music’ and ‘Titanic, 100 Years On’, Tourism Ireland will work to differentiate Northern Ireland from other holiday destinations and to promote its uniqueness.

Arlene Foster continued: "Northern Ireland is unique. The challenge for us is to make others aware of what we have to offer. We have the ability to accommodate every visitor's requirement as our tourism product is extremely diverse, boasting stunning scenery, a vibrant culture, wide range of festivals and local food on offer, along with the genuine warmth and welcome of the people here. If we utilise what we have available, package, promote and deliver this to best effect, we will be able to boost the already significant economic benefits that tourism brings to the area.”

With Great Britain being the largest single market for tourism to Northern Ireland, the Minister outlined Tourism Ireland’s blueprint for the future to restore growth from closer to home audiences. She said: “In Great Britain, marketing campaigns will emphasise the good value that Northern Ireland offers. Overall, a minimum of £11.3million will be invested in marketing, which translates into almost £1million spend each month.”

Tourism Ireland will also promote Northern Ireland through television, radio, promotional literature and online marketing to international audiences across Europe, the US and new and developing markets including Asia.

Speaking at the launch, Niall Gibbons, Tourism Ireland’s Chief Executive, said: “2010 is about action to stem the decline and begin the return to growth for tourism from overseas. Tourism Ireland, in partnership with the tourism industry, will focus on getting short-terms wins. Value will be a key message for the hugely competitive markets in which we operate and we will emphasise the good value that Northern Ireland offers as a sterling economy. We’ll be highlighting the uniqueness of a holiday in Northern Ireland – the diversity of our culture and heritage and the friendliness of our people – to secure ‘stand out’ and differentiate ourselves in a very crowded marketplace.”

Niall Gibbons continued: “2010 will be all about ‘closing the sale’. We’ll be making it easier for the Northern Ireland tourism industry to join us in promoting overseas. And we’ll be bringing more industry partners to the markets, to help us create an ongoing ‘buzz’ about Northern Ireland. Our global website www.discoverireland.com received a record 10.9million visits in the first 10 months of this year, which is most encouraging and illustrates a continued strong interest in Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland despite the challenging environment. We must convert that interest into sales in 2010.”

Notes to editors:

1. 2009 has proved to be one of the toughest years for tourism worldwide. One of the key factors affecting Northern Ireland’s performance has been the dominance of Britain and North America, two markets which have suffered disproportionately from the economic downturn. In addition, air access worldwide declined significantly during 2009.
2. By year end Tourism Ireland anticipates close to 1.53 million people will have visited Northern Ireland from overseas; and there is some evidence that consumer confidence is beginning to improve, albeit slowly, providing a positive signal for 2010.
3. In 2010, marketing investment will focus on generating immediate returns for the tourism industry in Northern Ireland. Investment will be concentrated in Britain, Germany and the USA, based on Tourism Ireland’s research which identifies these markets as Northern Ireland’s best prospects.
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