Homecoming Scotland 2009 - The Story

Transcription

HOMECOMING SCOTLAND 2009 - THE STORY
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND 2009
THE STORY
KEY MARKETING FACTS
25m visits to dedicated Homecoming websites and VisitScotland‟s websites featuring
Homecoming
An overall £2m marketing investment in international markets, including £325,000 from
carrier and travel trade partners
We secured 30 travel trade partnerships within VisitScotland‟s Homecoming campaigns
We created the most extensive database of Diaspora and Scots affinity organisations
across the world, communicating with more than 2400 „gatekeepers‟ on a monthly basis
766,000 international potential visitors received VisitScotland‟s Homecoming-themed
monthly e-newsletters across the period May 2008 - September 2009
141,000 new international visitor prospects joined VisitScotland‟s loyalty programme
Homecoming messages were communicated at 85 international events
The international sweepstake to win a Homecoming expedition to Scotland was our most
successful to date, attracting 130,000 entries with 52,000 opt-ins
Our „I am a Scot‟ campaign reached 95m potential visitors across Australia, Canada,
New Zealand and the US
By July 2009, we had generated more than £40m of PR coverage across the globe
We hosted more than 400 press trips and held more than 60 press events and stunts
We secured more than 4000 pieces of coverage worldwide, with an audience reach of
1.1 billion
We communicated with more than 14,000 international trade contacts on a monthly basis
We attended more than 50 events, exhibitions, seminars and sales missions where
Homecoming messages were communicated
More than 50 international operators and carriers carried out Homecoming themed
promotions
Almost 90 international travel companies developed 137 Homecoming themed products
for sale
12m people saw the Caledonia advert across the UK, with 10s of millions seeing it on TV
across the US and many more seeing it on websites across the world
1.9 million consumers saw Homecoming adverts in key magazines in Autumn 2008,
including Coast Magazine, Good Housekeeping and Guardian Weekend.
THE ROAD TO HOMECOMING - THE MARKETING STORY
For the Marketing and PR teams of VisitScotland the long road to Homecoming began early.
The sheer size and spread of the Scottish Diaspora, and, equally importantly for Homecoming,
the powerful attraction that Scotland and all things Scottish hold for the many more millions of
“affinity Scots” indicated enormous potential. But with the target so vast and so widely
dispersed, it was clear that a long lead approach was required, and the engagement of an army
of ambassadors would be critical if the Homecoming message was to reach out across the
globe.
Previous visitors both UK and international would certainly deliver strong word of mouth for
Scotland. Furthermore it would be critical that we engage the help of the ancestral Scots. But
how to tap into their networks? Through 2007 VisitScotland worked with the International Burns
Federation, Global Friends of Scotland and Global Scots and developed the most
comprehensive database in existence of Diaspora and Scots affinity organisations. In January
2008 an ongoing communication programme commenced with a letter from the First Minister,
inviting the “gatekeepers” of some 2,400+ Diaspora organisations to extend our Homecoming
invitation onward to their hundreds of thousands of members across the globe.
The media at home and abroad would be ambassadors too, and the VisitScotland PR teams
were aware of the need to be quick off the mark to engage. The North American PR team began
during Tartan Week 2007 in New York and Toronto to court the long-lead media who, if we could
plug into their editorial calendars, would deliver the feature articles to pre-sell the themes of
Homecoming: Burns, Whisky, Golf, Great Minds and Innovations and Scottish Clans and
ancestry. Through „07 and ‟08, programmes of PR events and familiarisation visits for UK and
international press ensured that the feature titles had all the material they needed to write up the
forthcoming programme and build interest among their readerships.
Later, the focus would turn to targeting those shorter-lead media with a more specific event
focus, who could deliver a series of articles as each highlight event was launched. These same
titles would carry tactical Homecoming travel deals and packages as they too were launched.
Tour operators and wholesalers may take two years to develop and programme new travel
products, so in the international markets VisitScotland began in 2007 to build interest among the
trade for Homecoming and its constituent themes. Via a monthly programme of e-updates to
trade at home and abroad, of presentations, meetings and events, including workshops at
VisitScotland EXPO „08 and again in „09, we worked first to encourage the development of
Homecoming themed packages and promotions, then from the launch of the official event
programme onwards, the inclusion in these of specific Homecoming events. An online
“Homecoming Toolkit” providing imagery and logos, editorial content and downloadable events
listings was developed for use by all tourism businesses.
Carriers too were a key focus of discussions. VisitScotland‟s Homecoming advertising
campaigns have been significantly extended by the investment of numerous ferry and airline
partners, both domestic and international. In the early stages of these campaigns carriers
worked with us to further raise awareness of the Homecoming year direct to those prospective
travellers in the early holiday planning phase, and as the months have passed, have also
undertaken tactical promotions around those events in the shoulder season periods when an
extra boost to passenger numbers was welcome.
The pages which follow showcase some of the marketing highlights resulting from
VisitScotland‟s long-lead PR and travel trade marketing programme, as well as detailing the
consumer marketing campaigns which launched from autumn 2008 and ran
throughout the Homecoming year.
UK & IRELAND MARKETING ACTIVITY
TV and Cinema
CALEDONIA ADVERT
New advert specifically made for Homecoming Scotland 2009, featuring well known celebrities
singing „Caledonia‟ in front of iconic Scottish landmarks.
LAUNCH OF TV AD - NOVEMBER 2008
Combination of 60 sec and 40 sec adverts around St Andrews Day. Total campaign delivery:
60.3% of all Scottish adults saw the advert on average 4.2 times
2,580,890 Scots saw it at least once; 1,446,570 saw it at least 3 times
CINEMA ACTIVITY - DECEMBER 2008
In 39 screens in central and northern Scotland for 4 weeks from 12 December 2008, showing
before films such as Quantum of Solace, Madagascar, Australia, etc
CINEMA ACTIVITY -JANUARY 2009
On cinema screens in Scotland, North England and Republic of Ireland from 23 - 30 January
and 6 - 13 February, showing before films such as Slumdog Millionaire, Frost Nixon, The
Wrestler, etc.
1,944,765 cinema admissions
BURNS WEEKEND - JANUARY 2009
Caledonia TV advert aired in Scotland and Northern Ireland over Burns weekend for 1 week
from 19 January:
Seen at least once by 1,926,045 adults in Scotland
Seen at least once by 478,906 adults in Northern Ireland
MARCH 2009
Caledonia advert aired on ITV in London, North England, Scotland and Northern Ireland from 23
- 30 March 2009.
Seen at least once by 2.4m adults in London
3.47 m in North England
619k in Scotland + 388k in Northern Ireland
RESULTS
The TV advertising has contributed significantly to high levels of Homecoming awareness
(85% across Scotland and 22% across whole of UK).
In Scotland, 80% of respondents recognised the ad and 87% said the ad made them feel
more positive about Scotland
57% of UK respondents who saw the ad claimed to visit the
Homecoming website for more information with 50% claiming to tell friends and family
about Scotland‟s year of celebrations
HOMECOMING BRANDING ON OTHER VISITSCOTLAND TV ADVERTS
Events and Festivals Advert
On TV from 2 February - 1 March 2009. Homecoming branding included in end frame of Events
and Festivals advert shown throughout UK and Ireland.
Seen at least once by 36,173,417 adults (17,778,570 ABC1s)
Seen an average of 3.3 times by 20,615,476 adults (8,876,990 ABC1s)
Perfect Days Advert
On TV from 20 April - 17 May 2009. Homecoming branding included on end frame of Perfect
Day advert shown throughout UK and Ireland.
Seen at least once by 36,558,753 adults (18,073,650 ABC1s)
Seen an average of 3.3 times by 20,759,977 adults (9,098,300 ABC1s)
Capture and Autumn Moment Advert
On TV in September (dates to be finalised) as part of our wider Autumn campaign, Capture and
Autumn Moment. Homecoming branding included on end frame of the Autumn senses advert
shown throughout UK and Ireland.
DIRECT MARKETING ACTIVITY
VisitScotland sends regular mailings to its warm database of contacts - offline mailings are sent
3x per year and monthly enewsletters are dispatched to circa 250k email contacts each month.
Homecoming events always feature in the communications, different events being selected to
appeal to the different segments.
Offline examples
June 2008
August 2008
Dispatched to 260k individuals
Further information included for 205k
individuals
November 2008
February 2009
May 2009
Mailer sent to approximately 180k contacts with the Perfect Day
messaging and Homecoming logo. (target for this mailer:
individuals on the VisitScotland database who are at the initial
stages of being contacted to establish their interests in Scotland)
Capture an Autumn Moment mailer
Sent to approximately 145k contacts in early
September
Winter White Mailer
Winter White Invite to visit Scotland sent to over 222k
contacts in November with Homecoming Finale
Celebrations featured
ONLINE ACTIVITY
Over the 8-month period October08 (when the Homecoming campaign started to gain
momentum) - May09, the „core Homecoming websites‟ (incorporating not only
homecomingscotland2009.com but also cometoscotland.com, cometoscotland.ca,
cometoscotland.com/au and promotional micro-sites such burnssupper2009.com,
driveithome2009.com and expeditionscotland.com) have broken the 1 million barrier, attracting a
total of 1,134,670 user sessions.
Homecoming is also promoted extensively through partner and supporter websites with over
1,400 individual sites linking through to the Homecoming website.
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND WEBSITE
563,825 user sessions, Oct08-May09
Average of 70,500 user sessions per month
Tens of thousands of inbound links from over 1,400 different websites
Average of 4.4 page views per visit
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND E-NEWSLETTER
Mailed out monthly to Homecoming Scotland database
Approx 18,000 consumers, 3,500 gatekeepers, 2,000 other stakeholders.
Average of +40% open rate
WORLD FAMOUS BURNS SUPPER WEBSITE
40,000 website user sessions
3,628 Burns Suppers registered online
80 countries participating worldwide
Supplementary information was provided to support the Burns
Supper activity. Provided supplementary information and also
drove traffic to the www.burnssupper2009.com website via
EatScotland.com and the creation of a new section on the
EatScotland.com site, providing information on EatScotland
Burns Suppers, how to host a Burns Supper, suggested
contemporary Burns recipes and information on producers so
visitors could buy Scottish produce from afar for their Burns
Supper. Supported this activity through January with Main home
page feature which is viewed by over 25K in January.
WINTER WHITE WEBSITE
Homecoming logo included on all pages of
Winter White 2008-9 website which
received over 175k visits.
PERFECT DAY WEBSITE
Homecoming button featured on homepage of
Perfect Day 2009 website linking to Homecoming
Scotland page containing events information to be
updated by Homecoming team on an ongoing
basis.
Logo also included on all pages of the site.
Website received 175k visits between April and
August 2009.
CAPTURE AN AUTUMN MOMENT
Homecoming events section on Capture an Autumn
Moment website. Site has received 124k visitors since
September 2009.
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND WEBSITE FINALE CELEBRATIONS
Dedicated Finale section:
www.homecomingscotland2009.com/finale
Website background image changed to reflect
Finale Celebrations campaign
SOCIAL NETWORK SITES
Presence on various including Twitter, Linked In, Facebook and
YouTube
Homecoming Scotland YouTube Channel established
16 official clips uploaded to date
Over 200,000 Caledonia ad views on this and other YouTube
channels
VISITSCOTLAND MONTHLY E-ZINES
HS09 messaging included in VisitScotland monthly e-zines
going to min 250k warm UK & Ireland prospects each
month:
OUTDOOR ACTIVITY
DIGITAL 48 SHEETS AROUND LONDON
15 key sites around London – 2 weeks in September
PRESS ACTIVITY
NEWSPAPER AND MAGAZINE ADVERTISING - SEPTEMBER 2008
Full page advert in Coast magazine (on sale, Sep) – circ 36,855
Full page advert in Good Housekeeping (on sale, Sep) – 464k
Full page advert in Guardian Weekend, Observer Sport magazine, Saturday Telegraph and
Irish press (Saturday Independent, Irish Times and Irish Independent) – combined
circulation: 1.9m per insertion (2 insertions in each title)
SCOTSMAN ADVERTS : 50K CIRCULATION
NOVEMBER 2008
Launch of new TV advert trailed in Scotsman on 27 and 28 November
WHITE INVITE INSERTS - NOVEMBER 2008
Homecoming logo featured on 1.38m White
Invites as part of Winter White campaign,
distributed as press inserts in key titles in
November including Mail on Sunday, The
Times and the Daily Express.
SNOWDROP FESTIVAL - JANUARY 2009
Homecoming branding also featured on 500k Snowdrop Invites to promote Snowdrop Festival in
Feb/Mar 2009, distributed as press insert in Sunday Post‟s Post Plus Magazine at end of
January.
MAGAZINE INSERTS - JANUARY 2009
4-page bound in inserts featuring in Good Housekeeping, Observer Food Monthly, Observer
Music Monthly, Sainsburys Magazine and Saturday Telegraph Travel special – total circulation:
1.596m
Real Scotland / October 2008
Real Scotland – The Locals‟ Guide targeted our W1 Affluent Southern Explorers
market through Conde Nast Traveller Magazine. We aimed to persuade the W1s to
come to Scotland more often by offering more authentic, off the tourist trail
experiences. An events section spotlights Homecoming 2009 and the events in the
calendar that are more niche and off the
beaten track.
PRESS AND JOURNAL HOMECOMING 4
PAGE SUPPLEMENT
19th January 2009
Partner publication with: Aberdeen City and
Shire, Moray, Highlands and Perth & Kinross
councils
Daily circulation 80k
Daily readership: 154k
PRESS ACTIVITY 25x4 ADVERTS TO SUPPORT TV AD ACTIVITY
27th March and 28th March 2009
Friday editions
Metro London 25x4 col circulation 732,994
Evening Standard 25x4 col circulation 294,480
The Times (London & South East) 22x4 col circulation 390k
Daily Mail - North (Ex Scotland) 25x4 col circulation 968,000
Saturday editions
The Times (London & South East) 22x4 col circulation 390k
The Guardian (London only) 22x5 col circulation 228k
Cover & Frequency
All Adults in Greater London
Reach: 2,107,000
% Reach: 33.72%
Impacts: 2,507,000
Opportunities to See: 1.19
TACTICAL ADVERTISING
BROONS BURNS SUPPER BACK PAGE AD
20,000 copies sold through major book retailers
EVENT ADVERTISING
AUTUMN RUGBY INTERNATIONALS: Scotland v All Blacks (November 2008)
HS09 animation on LED Screens at Murrayfield stadium, Edinburgh (67k spectators)
10x 30 second slots split over 1st half and 2nd half 86m screen
Live BBC TV coverage. Audience figures: 3.4 million viewers
AUTUMN RUGBY INTERNATIONALS: Scotland v South Africa (November 2008)
November 2008
10x 30 second slots split over 1st half and 2nd half 86m screen
Live BBC TV coverage. Audience figures: 3.1 million viewers
RBS SIX NATIONS: Scotland v Ireland (March 2009) Sold out game
10x 30 second slots in 1st half and 2nd half 100m screen
Live BBC TV coverage: 5 million viewers
Estimated media value: £1 per 1000, 0.1 of a TV impact
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND LAUNCH WEEKEND ACTIVITY
SCOTSMAN & SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY ADVERTISING
Activity included 5x6 Banner adverts in the Scotsman
Saturday Magazine on 17th & 24th January (50k
circulation); full page ad in Scotland on Sunday Spectrum
Magazine on 25th January (62k circulation); Editorial in
Recommends Wed 14th and 21st Jan; Prominent HS09
branding on 30” TV Ad promoting Scotsman and Scotland
on Sunday Burns free cd and poster 5 spots on STV Thu
22nd Jan, 8 spots on STV Fri 23rd Jan; HS09 branding on
CD and CD cover. Supported by editorial: Vote for your
Favourite Burns song. Promoted through TV advertising
and colour bills outside 2k newsagents nationwide; HS09
logo on Burns poster supplied with Scotland on Sunday.
HS09 messaging included in an e-blast to all Scotsman and Scotland on Sunday subscribers on
22 Jan (approx 42k prospects; HS09 logo included in all promotional ads for Scotsman Burns
activity over the launch weekend; an online button promoted the Burns Supper; and an online
vote for your favourite song by the Bard in return for a free CD
LAUNCH OF WHISKY MONTH ACTIVITY
Homecoming event Whisky Month takes place
throughout May. Two key events in Whisky Month
are Spirit of Speyside and Spirit of the West
Festivals, both of which supported the launch of
Whisky Month by taking a stand at the Borough
Market in London on 12-14 Feb. The launch was
mainly a media affair with a PR launch at Roast
Restaurant above the Borough Market, with the 2
key events promoting themselves within the
market itself. As part of the launch a competition
ran to provide datacapture and VisitScotland
undertook the production of this leaflet. An
estimated 23,000 visitors attended the market. Spirit of Speyside and Spirit of the West provided
the prizes. Whisky Month also supported through lead page articles on EatScotland.com April/
May. This website received over 20K visitors a month.
RADIO ADVERTISING
6 weekly 30 second spots between April and September (3 daily spots Monday to Friday, 2 daily
spots Saturday and Sunday) across Bauer Radio stations across Scotland (Forth 1/Forth 2/
Clyde 1/ Clyde 2/ Radio Borders/ West Sound/North Sound).
Reach: 2,124,170
Impacts: 19,250,646
Opportunities to hear: 9.1
Example Script
27th April - 3rd May
Homecoming Scotland 2009. We‟re celebrating with more than 300 exciting events. May
highlights include Scotland‟s first ever Whisky Month – showcasing our 5 stunning Whisky
Regions with an unmissable programme celebrating our Whisky, food, music and culture.
Explore the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, discover Spirit of the West, Inveraray Castle
‟s new 2 day festival, enjoy Whisky Galore – a musical!, Take part in special tours and
tastings. To find out more and book your trip visit homecomingscotland2009.com The whole
world‟s invited, and so are YOU
Perfect Day Radio Advertising
As part of the VisitScotland Perfect Day campaign, radio
adverts rand on Bauer stations (Key 103, Metro, Radio City,
Northsound, Forth FM and Clyde FM) and co-promotion on
Clyde 1 and ForthOne. Homecoming branding featured on the
radio microsite where all traffic from co-promotion was driven.
HOMECOMING AUTUMN ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN: AUG - OCT 2009
Radio activity in North of England including Classic FM (North), Real North East, Real North
West, Raido Aire Viking FM, CFM radio and TFM radio. Areas covered include Newcastle,
Sunderland, Middlesborough, Manchester, Liverpool, Midlands, Leeds, Bradford, Blackpool,
Carlisle and Kingston upon Hull.
Coverage and Frequency:
Total spots: 1268
Classic FM - 16,088,000 impacts
All adults 1,822,00
Real NE/NW - 12,567,000 impacts
All adults 1,356,000
Aire/Viking/CFM/TFM - 8,197,000 impacts
All adults: 893,000
Opportunities to hear: 9
Example Scripts
Classic FM (20th Aug - 2nd Sept) All other stations (19th Aug - 1st Sept)
Homecoming Scotland 2009: we‟re celebrating with more than 300 exciting events across
Scotland throughout the year. Coming up in September; explore fascinating castles and historic
houses at Doors Open Days. Savour generous island hospitality at the Isle of Barra Whisky
Galore Festival. Celebrate literature at The Stenaline Wigtown Book Festival. To find out
more and to book your trip, visit homecomingscotland2009.com. The whole world‟s invited, and
so are YOU
Online support activity
Solus emails - September
The Sun (North of England): 203,737 consumers
Teletext: 75,000 consumers
The Guardian: 50,000 consumers
The Times: 132,832 consumers
MPU
Manchester Evening News: 350k estimated impressions
The Telegraph (North of England only): 250k estimated impressions
Express (North of England only): 800k estimated impressions
Leaderboard
Trip Advisor: 200k estimated impressions
Google Pay Per Click advertising
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND 2009 FINALE CELEBRATIONS CAMPAIGN 22nd OCT > 26th
NOV
20x3 press adverts in:
Daily Record Scotland
Daily Express (North & Scotland)
The Guardian (North & Scotland)
The Independent (North & Scotland)
The Times (North & Scotland)
Metro Scotland
Metro Newcastle
Evening Standard
Advert in programme of RACMSA Rally of Scotland, the final leg of the
Intercontinental Rally Challenge
2 weeks radio activity in North England (City, Key 103 and Metro) and
London (Magic FM).
3 weeks radio activity in Scotland on Bauer radio stations
Outdoor advertising starting 2nd Nov:
80 bus T sides in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Stirling and
Dundee
3x 48 sheet billboards in Glasgow, Dundee and
Stirling train stations
121 stair panels in Haymarket station
FREE ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES
FULL AND DOUBLE PAGE ADVERTS APRIL 2008 TO APRIL 2009
Open Championship Magazine UK wide distribution
Open Championship Magazine US distribution
Open Championship Programme July 2007 distribution at Birkdale, Lancs
European Challenge Tour Media Guide Europe wide distribution
European Tour Yearbook
Dubai Desert Classic Programme (distribution January 2009, Dubai)
FULL PAGE ADVERT MAY 2008
Burns Humanitarian Award Programme
120 attendees
FULL PAGE ADVERTS: JUNE > NOV 2008
Northlink: across all ferry terminals and vessels
CalMac: across all ferry terminals and vessels
Beach Celtic Festival
Scotland on Sunday (Thistle Awards Supplement: Oct 2008)
Edinburgh Winter Festivals
Scottish Banner
FULL PAGE ADVERTS: DEC 2008> PRESENT
For insertion in partner publications, eg.
Lloyds TSB Burns Supper Programme
Melrose 7s programme
Mauchline Ploughing Match programme
What‟s on Guide - Spring/ Summer edition
Burns and a‟ that programme
FULL PAGE ADVERT: MARCH 2009 - MARCH 2010
European Challenge Tour Media Guide Europe
GOLF PUBLICATIONS
IRISH OPEN PROGRAMME
MAY 2009
THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP MAGAZINE 2009 - UK EDITION
JULY 2009
THE 138TH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP PROGRAMME
JULY 2009
EIFF PROGRAMME
JUNE 09
EIFF CATALOGUE
JUNE 09
DOUBLE PAGE AD IN DUTY FREE MAGAZINE
May 09
20k distribution
TATTOO MAGAZINE
JUNE 09 > NOV 09
PRINT RUN 2K
Distributed to Friends of the Tattoo‟, sponsors, supporters and
corporate guests.
wide distribution
FASHION AWARDS PROGRAMME
JUNE 09
Full page advert
Attended by 250 people.
RUGBY ADVERTS:
HEINEKEN CUP
IRB SEVENS
MAY 09
Approximately 15,000 people attended the IRB Sevens alone, while the
Heineken Cup was a sell-out, providing an OTS of 67,500.
FORBES ADVERT
JUNE 09
The event had around 200 delegates and speakers present over the two
days of the conference. An advert appeared in the Forbes CEO Forum
Programme Book.
Holyrood Magazine
JUNE 09
10k distribution
THE LIST MAGAZINE ADVERTISING
Free opportunity following partnership in production of HS09 Summer events guide.
Full page ads in The List (18k circulation)
24th June
1st July
5th Aug
12th Aug
7th Oct
21st Oct
18th Nov
Half page ads in The List
22nd July
19th Aug
9th September
23rd Sept
4th Nov
18th Nov
Highland Homecoming programme ad
Royal National Mod ad
OCTOBER 09
IRC Rally programme ad
NOVEMBER 09
2009 - VISITSCOTLAND YEAR ROUND PUBLICATIONS:
Where to Stay saleable guides
Feature in Where to Stay guides (in bookstores from December 2008)
Bed and Breakfasts:
Hotels and Guest Houses:
Self catering, caravan and camping:
13,000 copies
11,000 copies
10,500 copies
Adverts in local area accommodation and visitor guides:
Freedom of the Highlands Accommodation Guide
Argyll, the Isles, Loch Lomond, Stirling & the Trossachs Accommodation Guide
Perthshire/Angus & Dundee Accommodation Guide
Edinburgh & Lothians Accommodation Guide
Kingdom of Fife Holiday Guide
Ayrshire & Arran Holiday Guide
Aberdeen Holiday Guide & Leisure Breaks (Accom)
Dumfries & Galloway Where to Stay
Outer Hebrides
Scottish Borders Where to Stay
Shetland Accommodation and Visitor Guide
Orkney Guide
Greater Glasgow & Clyde Valley Where to Stay
200,000
200,000
100,000
100,000
80,000
80,000
100,000
90,000
80,000
80,000
60,000
90,000
100,000
Perth, Angus & Dundee Visitor Guide
Aberdeen Essential Guide
Dumfries & Galloway See & Do
Scottish Borders Essential Guide
100,000
40,000
110,000
105,000
Greater Glasgow & Clyde Valley Essential Guide
Kingdom of Fife Essential Guide
Edinburgh & Lothians Essential Guide
200,000
60,000
100,000
Loch Lomond & The Trossachs Visitor Guide
Oban, Lorn & Mull Visitor Guide
City of Stirling Visitor Guide
Mid Argyll, Kintyre & Islay Visitor Guide
Ayrshire Visitor Guide
Isle of Arran Visitor Guide
Northern Highland Visitor Guide
Isle of Skye & Lochlash Visitor Guide
Fort William & Lochaber Visitor Guide
Inverness, Loch Ness and Nairn Visitor Guide
60,000
50,000
40,000
30,000
35,000
40,000
100,000
100,000
120,000
120,000
Cairngorms National Park Visitor Guide
Moray Visitor Guide
150,000
60,000
Dumfries & Galloway Golf Guide
20,000
Scottish Borders Golf Guide
Perthshire Golf
Fife Golf Guide
30,000
40,000
40,000
Outer Hebrides Eating Out Guide
2,500
PRINT COLLATERAL
Homecoming Scotland Marketing collateral produced in the form of flyers, event programmes,
posters for distribution across the UK through distribution companies EAE and Direct
Distribution; stakeholders such as Scottish Government, Local Authorities, Event organisers,
MSPs, VisitBritain offices in London and abroad; key events such as Scotland Week Toronto
and Scotland Week New York; Consumer Shows across the UK including Who do you think you
are: London, Whisky Live, London; Trade Shows throughout the UK and Europe including
EIBTM 08 in Barcelona; World Travel Market, London (Nov 08), Scotland in London (Dec 08),
Scotland in Dublin (Jan 09), Scotland In Manchester (Jan 09), International Confex, London (Feb
09), Scotland on Tour, London ( Mar 09)
4 PAGE DL FLYER: March - May 2008
Print run: 3,000
A5 36 PAGE LAUNCH PROGRAMME: June 2008
Print run: 72,000 Also available to download online
A5 DOUBLE SIDED FLYER
Print run: 35,000
Distribution: Scotsman 80% overseas (diaspora focus)
+ 20% UK
1/3 A4 FLYER August - Nov 2009
Print run: 63,100
A4 48 PAGE HS09 EVENTS GUIDE & A5 8 PAGE HS09 MINI GUIDE Dec 08
Print run: 400,000 (A4): 250,000 (A5)
Available to download online
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND CERTIFICATE & FOLDERS
Free mementos for Homecoming Visitors
Data capture postcards produced and strutcards for display in 106 VICs
across Scotland
Distributed through VIC Network and Outreach
WHISKY MONTH 26 PAGE PRINTED GUIDE AND 2 SIDED LEAFLET
Print run: 140,000 (26 page); 80,000 (2 sided)
Whisky Month launched at Borough Market, London
Distributed through EAE, Direct Distribution,
At participating events, in bars, exhibitions, VICs,
Whisky Associations throughout the UK
Consumer shows including Whisky Live: London & Tokyo
WHISKY MONTH PROMOTION WITH THE INDEPENDENT
5 page print guide included as insert in The Independent
Competition on The Independent‟s website
Approx 5,000 opt-in email contacts
SPORTING FLYER
Print run: 10k
Distributed at consumer events such as Heineken Cup, IRB7s
HOMECOMING AT THE OPEN FLYER
Print run: 75k
4 page A5 flyer
Distributed through EAE, Direct Distribution,
At consumer events such as Mountain Bike World Cup
Distributed through VICS and golf clubs
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND 2009 EVENTS GUIDE
Print run: 400k (A4 40 page events guide) distributed across UK;
250k (A5 mini 8 page mini events guide)
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND 2009 FINALE
CELEBRATIONS EVENTS GUIDE
16 page A5
Print run: 200k (A5) distributed across UK
BRANDING
Homecoming branded materials distributed across 106 VisitScotland Information centres
throughout Scotland including:
Pop ups
Roll out banners
Flags
Bunting
Posters
Point of sale merchandise
Guide distribution
Window vinyls
Retail point of sale packs (including empty belly posters, strutcards, shelf liners,
wobblers, bunting)
Event branding supplied for event organisers, local authorities across Scotland and other
stakeholders throughout the UK
Posters
Rollout outdoor branding
Popups
FINALE CELEBRATIONS BRANDING
A4 & A3 posters
A4 & A3 empty belly posters for events to insert their own event details
Rollout branding for outdoor events
Flags
Bunting
Popups
Gobos
PARTNER ACTIVITY
Homecoming Scottish Cup
Perimeter advertising at all games
Ribbons on Cup
Print advertising in match-day programmes
Reaching out to a total TV audience of 4 million
RYANAIR
Included on solus email to Ryanair‟s database on 26 February 2009 - 255,762k subscribers in
the UK and 66,443 in Ireland. Press inserts running in local press from 16 March - 10 April,
combined circulation of all titles is 4.2m, with at least 3 insertions in each title.
May Festival of Rugby Month / Edinburgh / 2009
www.visitscotland.com/rugby
23 targeted UK + Ireland radio and press titles promoted „win
a trip to Edinburgh‟ prizes in support of the Homecoming
Rugby League, Heineken Cup and Rugby 7s events in May
2009.
A welcome voucher booklet (print run 150,000), complete with
Homecoming full page advert, was distributed pre and on arrival to the
rugby fans arriving in Edinburgh over the month.
Collaborating with the Local Marketing team, VIC dressing and a „Club
Bus‟ formed part of the promotion, with the bus attending various semifinal union and league matches over March and April. The bus also
attended a London Scottish event surrounding the Calcutta Cup on 21
March 2009.
ARRAN AROMATICS
In-store activity as part of Winter White campaign promoting win
message through competition flyers and in-store point of sale
featuring Homecoming branding.
STOATS
Joint activity as part of Winter White campaign at key promotional events, including Taste of
Christmas and BBC Good Food Show, as well as Edinburgh Farmers Markets. Leaflet
distribution and point of sale banners promoting win message and featuring Homecoming
branding.
MACKIE’S ICE CREAM
On-pack promotional panel on 300,000 tubs of Mackie‟s
traditional luxury dairy ice-cream.
IN KIND SUPPORT MARKETING ACTIVITY
LOTHIAN BUS TICKETS
January - 28 February 2009
Awareness raising opportunity
FIRST BUS
3 Homecoming branded double decker buses:
Edinburgh, Aberdeen & Glasgow
Run on key routes throughout each city during 2009 for
„on street‟ awareness
Promotion of campaign online to 100,000 employees in
North America through First‟s North American
companies‟ websites.
Promotion of the campaign through First‟s Scottish
companies‟ websites including First ScotRail‟s site.
Launched February 2009
Commercial value: over £70k
ROBERT WISEMAN ONPACK PROMOTION
Milk on-pack promotion Scotland wide distribution
WALKERS ONPACK PROMOTION
Cello packs for distribution across the UK (airlines, hotels,
restaurants etc)
Shortbread tins across the UK (airports)
HILTON HOTELS
Promotion to Hilton Honours and Leisure customers
200k flyers to be distributed across 76 Hilton UK hotels,
France, Holland, Belgium and some German hotels
(between 10 and 20 key European cities)
HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS AIRPORT
6x3 metre poster
Across main Check-in desk at the main terminal in
Inverness airport
MILK DEVELOPMENT MARKETING GROUP
Full page ads across a range of Launch weekend press carrying
Homecoming Scotland logo
FIRST SCOTRAIL FIRST INSIGHT
80,000 copies distributed online each month
1 page of Homecoming content each month from Oct
2 pages + front cover, January 2009
CO-OPERATIVE INSURANCE (CIS) / IDEAL HOMES EXHIBITION
Competition with CIS at Ideal Homes Exhibition, Earls Court, London
20 March - 13 April 2009
+ 250,000 attendees
Also promoted online on Ideal Homes + CIS websites & e-newsletters
COCA COLA
Limited edition bottle featuring Burns
+1 million bottles produced & distributed across UK
Homecoming also promoted to Coke‟s 70K Global workforce
GORDON & MCPHAIL WHISKY
On-pack (back label) on Glen Elgin & Tomatin brands
HIGHLANDS & ISLANDS AIRPORT
Advertising at airport
Large panel above Check-In and banner ad on website
INVERALMOND BREWERY
Launch of new 4.2%ABV Homecoming-branded Cask Ale
Branded pump clips on beer founts
NORFOLKLINE
Homecoming branding carried on outdoor and TV ads
to re-launch the Rosyth - Zeebrugge route
TUNNOCKS
Caramel Wafer and Tea Cake on pack branding
For all UK & Ireland 6pack Teacakes and 4&8 pack wafers.
TESCO
Homecoming branded presence at Tesco‟s
Taste of Scotland event, George Square, Glasgow, May 2009
+20,000 people in attendance. This in addition to Homecoming themed Burns
Night promotion in stores in Jan.
AG BARR
On 13th September on Glasgow Green - Irn Bru held the first Can Clan
gathering with the aim of breaking the world record for the number of
people doing the Can-Can. The event was also a celebration of music
with The Zutons playing for the crowd. The event, one of the highlights
of Homecoming, was a great success with the Guinness World Record
Association sending adjudicators to validate the attempt for the record
books. The record was broken and the Irn Bru Can Clan now hold the
world record. AG BARR have also created a special edition can to mark the year of
Homecoming this celebrates the iconic logo for Irn Bru which was first introduced in 1947, Five
million of the special limited release cans have been created.
INTERNATIONAL MARKETING LONG HAUL (US, CA, AUS & NZ)
INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITY - LONG HAUL
LONG-HAUL WEBSITE
From Oct 08 through Oct 09, Homecoming Scotland dominated VisitScotland‟s International
long-haul market gateway websites in the US, Canada and Australasia. All told, these sites
attracted 601,000 user sessions from potential visitors over the course of VisitScotland‟s
Homecoming campaign. The website url‟s and screen grabs showing the „Homecoming‟
homepage skin follow:
www.cometoscotland.com (USA)
www.cometoscotland.ca (CA)
www.cometoscotland.com.au (AUS & NZ)
‘I am a Scot’ consumer testimonials
Users of the Long-Haul gateway websites (cometoscotland) were asked to provide testimonial
saying why they were a Scot in the style of our „I‟m A Scot‟ ad campaign. Over 3,000 website
users responded with poignant testimonial and stories. This rich catalogue of advocacy will now
be used to enrich our future marketing efforts
ANCESTRAL TOURISM WEBSITE
VisitScotland‟s dedicated ancestral tourism website, www.ancestralscotland.com, which is
promoted mainly in the long-haul markets, maintained a strong presence for Homecoming
Scotland as far out at April 2007 and right through till Nov 09. This site attracted approx. 240,000
user session between August 08 - Oct 09.
MONTHLY E-NEWSLETTERS
Inclusion of Homecoming message in monthly e-newsletters sent to VisitScotland‟s International
database of prospects.
USA - 147,000 prospects
CA - 24,000 prospects
AUS & NZ - 10,000 prospects
Ancestral - 35,000 prospects
EXAMPLES OF E-NEWSLETTERS SENT OUT EACH MONTH
PRINT ADVERTISING - ‘I am a Scot’ creative
„I Am A Scot‟ was VisitScotland‟s lead campaign creative for Homecoming Scotland in the longhaul markets. The creative was designed to engage two core visitor segments; those with Scots
Ancestry and those with a broad affinity for Scotland‟s places, people and traditions.
Two creative treatments featured Asian-American and African-American characters who
proclaimed themselves „A Scot‟ through their affinity with Scottish values and a love of Scotland.
This creative targeted the broader scope of „heart‟ Scots. A further treatment featured a typical
„boomer‟ who was „A Scot‟ through ancestral ties with Scotland.
The „I am a Scot‟ sentiment was a powerful emotive hook for both ancestral and „heart‟ Scots.
The unconventional creative direction, which superimposed characters against a Scotland
backdrop such as the tattoo or the Sound of Sleat, was designed to grab attention and show the
characters imagining themselves „going home‟ in 2009. The ads, whether print or online, also
featured a strong rational call to action in the form of extensive events listings and travel trade
product.
2-page print ads placed in „Scots interest‟ magazines and newspapers across the USA, CA,
AUS & NZ.
October 2008 & February 2009 – Scottish Banner (circ 100,000)
October 2008 & February 2009 – Scots Heritage (circ 52,000)
October 2008 & February 2009 - SCOTS Magazine (circ 65,958)
Winter 2008/9 – Scottish Life (circ 38,000)
October 2008 & February 2009 – Scotland Magazine (circ 74,000)
November 2008 & February 2009 – The Highlander (circ 60,000)
October 2008 & February 2009 – Celtic Life (circ 2,800)
PRINT ADVERTISING - ‘I am a Scot’ creative
4-page print ads placed in National Geographic titles across the US, CA, AUS & NZ using „I am
a Scot‟ creative, with events listings and travel trade product.
October 2008 – National Geographic Traveller (circ 581,000)
February 2009 – National Geographic Magazine (circ 1,675,000)
March 2009 – National Geographic Adventure (circ 440,000)
PRINT COLLATERAL - US/CA/AUS/NZ
Official Long-Haul Homecoming 40-page events guide (220,000
produced)
Distributed via:
Australia/New Zealand Highland Games (Winter 08)
Scots Agents (specialist Scots Travel agents Summer/Autumn 08)
VisitScotland „brochure-requesters‟ via website
Insert in Whisky magazine and Scotland magazine (Oct
08)
At Whisky Live! Events – Paris, Barcelona, Toronto, Cape Town, Tokyo (throughout
2008)
Direct mail to 130K North American households
Tactical „Diaspora‟ and partner events (i.e. St Andrews Day Ball in NY, Burns Suppers in
NY and Toronto)
Scotland the Brave Show (April 2009, NY & Toronto)
PRINT COLLATERAL
Official Long-Haul Homecoming events flyer (55,000 produced)
Distributed via:
Australia/New Zealand & US Highland Games (Summer, Autumn & Winter 2008)
Scots Agents, specialist Scots Travel agents in US (Autumn/Winter 2008)
Ad-hoc enquiries from Diaspora organisations
DIRECT MAIL - North America
Direct Mail targeting 130K high-income North American households with Scots ancestry. Sent
just prior to Thanksgiving (Nov 25th 2008), the DM piece consisted of a letter from a Clan Chief
inviting the recipient to come home for 2009 and the 40-page Homecoming events guide ,
Reached 86,000 US & 26,000 CA households
4 different versions, geo-targeted to specific target markets, featuring the following partners:
Version 1: US Airways & Glasgow City Marketing (sent to $25k, targeted to PA State)
Version 2: Continental Airlines & CIE Tours (sent to $60k, targeted to NY, IL, TX, PA,
MA, DC, FL, CA states)
Version 3: Canadian Affair (sent to 26k, targeted to Toronto/Calgary/Vancouver areas)
Version 4: Globespan (sent to 10k, targeted to Hamilton/Vancouver/Calgary/Halifax
areas)
ONLINE ADVERTISING - US/CA/AUS/NZ
Online Media Buy – Online was the dominant channel for VisitScotland‟s Long-Haul
Homecoming campaign, offering the strongest marketing ROI and precision-targeting of our best
visitor prospects across two continents. The online ads were a mix of expandable banner ad
units, some of which had video clips embedded. The online ads were geo and behaviourally
targeted. The online campaign included access to large subscriber and travel-focused e-comms
programmes such as New York Times‟ „Great Getaways‟, All told, the Long Haul online
campaign delivered 85M impressions.
Media Buy:
Nationalgeographic.com, AOL.com, nytimes.com, latimes.com, boston.com, sfgate.com,
the star.com, theglobeandmail.com, canadawest.com, theaustralian.com, news.com.au,
perthnow.com etc
TV ADVERTISING - US
VisitScotland planned a tactical burst of TV in the
US to coincide with the Burns anniversary
weekend. Using the innovative airtime bidding
model on Google TV, we secured great value for
money with a highly targeted TV buy which aired
the 60-second Caledonia TV Ad (January 21st to
31st 2009)
227 spots
6,731,067 impressions (households)
aired on channels such as Discovery, BBC America, A & E, CNBC, Fine Living, Food
Network, Hallmark Channel, The History Channel, Home & Garden Television, Lifetime,
MSNBC and The Travel Channel
HIGHLAND HEARTBEAT PROMOTION
Working in partnership with the Scottish Government to sponsor Highland Heartbeat, a Scottish
song and dance showcase, VisitScotland was able to secure placement of a 15 sec edit of the
Caledonia TV ad in the PBS channel broadcast of the show. Between January and November
2009, Highland Heartbeat - with the Caledonia ad embedded - was broadcast across 95 of the
300 US PBS channels and reached tens of millions of US households.
SPECIAL PROMOTION - National Geographic
Working closely with National Geographic, acclaimed Nat Geo photographer Jim Richardson
came to Scotland at the end of January and captured Homecoming Scotland in images. A
splash site was created to showcase Jim‟s images on nationalgeographic.com and was live for
7 weeks from mid-March 08 to the end of April 2009. Jim Richardson‟s stunning Homecoming
images and diary was visited by 75,000 Nat geo users across the world. VisitScotland also
secured rights to use the Jim Richardson images in future marketing activity.
www.nationalgeographic.com/homecomingscotland
Promoting Homecoming Scotland, showcasing Jim‟s images and the Expedition Scotland
sweepstakes
TACTICAL PROMOTION - Highland Homecoming
VisitScotand developed an international campaign to support Highland Homecoming which
highlighted the seasonal proposition of a trip to the Highlands and showcased the lively cultural
events visitors can enjoy there. Targeting North American travellers, a dedicated online
advertising campaign ran 7-15 September on nytimes.com delivering 5 million impressions and
a print campaign ran in the Toronto Star Travel supplement (500K readership) on 12, 19 and 26
Sept. The online campaign responded to a dedicated Highland Homecoming landing page on
cometoscotland .com.
Working with US and Canadian operators such as Lynott Tours and Royal Scottish Tours,
VisitScotland ensured great value Highland Homecoming packages from as little as $988 were
in the marketplace and visible within our tactical campaign. Coinciding with the advertising
campaign was a tactical burst of PR activity by VisitScotland‟s PR team which messaged
Highland Homecoming and the value for money products in the marketplace - this secured
coverage in mass media such as The Washington Post and AM New York.
VisitScotland‟s North American database of circa 200K visitor prospects were emailed a feature
on Highland Homecoming, as was VisitScotland‟s Ancestral database of circa 35K prospects.
VisitScotland also secured prominence for Highland Homecoming within VisitBritain‟s North
American e-newsletter for September, which reached 700K prospects, in addition to a feature on
the homepage of VisitBritain‟s US and Canadian gateway websites. Examples follow:
Online campaign - nytimes.com
Toronto Star campaign
Canadian gateway website - cometoscotland.ca
CONSUMER MARKETING RESULTS
The long haul Homecoming campaign has been the most successful campaign run by
VisitScotland in these markets in recent years in terms of web visits and partner referrals. The
combined suite of long haul websites promoting Homecoming received 1M user sessions
between Oct 08 and Aug 09. What‟s more, qualified lead referrals to travel trade partners from
these websites was greatly increased relative to previous years; approx. 35k+ leads were
generated in the year to Aug 09. The campaign sweepstakes - ExpeditionScotland: The
Homecoming - was our most successful to date with a total 105,000 entrants across all markets
of whom nearly 40% opted-in to receive ongoing information from VisitScotland.
PARTNERSHIP MARKETING
VisitScotland‟s Long-Haul trade marketing programme began as far out as April 2007 with
briefings to international travel trade and carriers to encourage them to capitalise on the
Homecoming opportunity and create Homecoming themed product. The scope of trade
marketing activity included partnered advertising with outbound operators and assisting
outbound agents to develop imaginative Homecoming packages and travel deals which included
elements of the Homecoming events programme. Thus:
TRADE PARTNERSHIPS - ADVERTISING
The following tour operator adverts for their Homecoming product were supported by
VisitScotland. The ad from the Globespan in-flight magazine was part of wider partnership
programme between the airline and VisitScotland.
Globespan in-flight global magazine, full-page ad (December 08)
New York Times , CIE Tours ,¼ page ad (February 09)
Baxter‟s Britain, 2 page insert (February 09)
Travel Weekly, 44-page insert dedicated to Britain, with 18-page Scotland feature (April
09, circ 166,000)
Toronto Star, 4 x ¼ page ads , with Royal Scottish Tours (March & April 09, circ 436,694)
NEW YORK TIMES
CIE PRINT AD
TORONTO STAR
¼ PAGE AD
TRAVEL WEEKLY INSERT CREATIVE
GLOBESPAN IN-FLIGHT
FULL-PAGE AD
TRADE ACTIVITY - ONLINE
Dedicated splash page on Canadian
Affair website, plus 4 insertions in
their monthly e-newsletters
(February, March, April and May
- sent to 65,000 Canadian
2009
prospects)
CANADIAN AFFAIR SPLASHPAGE
& ECOMMS
The long haul marketing campaign for Homecoming Scotland generated a record level of
partnerships and investment. All told 12 partners invested in the main consumer advertising
campaign; 4 airlines (Continental, US Airways, Globespan and Canadian Affair) and 8 outbound
travel operators. Their investment not only ensured substantially wider reach and impact for the
Homecoming campaign, but it also saw Homecoming promotional themes, and importantly,
product integrated within the partners respective marketing programmes.
EXAMPLES OFHOMECOMING SCOTLAND PRODUCT IN LONG-HAUL MARKETS
EXAMPLES OF TRAVEL TRADE HOMECOMING SCOTLAND PROMOTION IN
LONG-HAUL MARKETS
EVENT MARKETING
Promotion of Homecoming at various Highland Games in the US, CA, AUS & NZ via brochure
distribution, banners display stands and attendance by Scots Agents.
US
Celtic Classic Highland Games and Festival - Bethlehem, PA
Celtic Fest Chicago, OL
Green Lane Park Scottish Irish Festival & Highland Games, PA
New Hampshire Highland Games, NH
Scottish Highland Gathering & Games , Pleasanton, CA
Stone Mountain Highland Games & Scottish Festival, GA
Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, NC
Seaside Highland Games, CA
Ligonier Highland Games
Glasgow Lands Scottish Festival
Grapevine
Central Florida Highland Games, FL
Niagara Celtic Festival, NY
Foothills Highland Games, NC
17th Annual Greater Philadelphia
Mid-Winter Scottish and Irish Music Festival and Fair, PA
Canada
Fergus Highland Games & Scottish Festival
Halifax Highland Games
Calgary Highland Games
Alberta Highland Games
New Zealand
Auckland Highland Games
Waipu Highland Games
Turakina Highland Games
Australia
Aberdeen Games
Geelong Highland Gathering
32nd Annual Bundanoon is Brigadoon Highland Gathering
EXAMPLES OF HIGHLAND GAMES BANNER & SINGAGE
CONSUMER PR (North America & Australasia)
Top line statistics:
More than 135 press visits to Scotland, focusing on Homecoming themes, have been
facilitated for journalists from North America and Australasia since April 2008.
Over 410 pieces of Homecoming-related coverage have been received to date, with more to
follow. This coverage has reached an audience in excess of 291,592,366 and generated an
amazing £14,402,684+ of PR value.
29 Homecoming press events and stunts have taken place across the US, Canada, Australia
and New Zealand.
Ongoing PR activity has included features, press releases, newsletters and pitching to
broadcast, print and online media.
Big hits:
A fuller round-up of all PR outputs is contained in a separate document. There follows a
sample of highlights from the Long Haul PR programme for Homecoming Scotland.
USA
Examiner.com
A-list writer John Blanchette visited Scotland in May 09 as part of a
group press visit from the US, focusing on whisky. His feature, entitled
„Hopscotching Around Scotland‟ was published in The Examiner, which
reaches more than 500,000 readers. John detailed Edinburgh and
Glasgow, as well as the history of whisky, how to taste it and the Spirit
of the West Festival that he attended.
Points North, GA
Points North is a high-end glossy magazine, which has become a „must-read‟ publication among
the affluent communities of Atlanta. Journalist Lissa Poirot visited Scotland to experience the full
range of Homecoming Festivals on offer and share her festival buzz with approximately 83,000
readers, generating a PR value of $52,875 USD.
Boston Globe
Peter Mandel was really keen to research his Scottish roots and share the results, to encourage
and inspire his readers to do the same during the year of Homecoming 2009. In November
2008, he explored his heritage in Aberdeenshire, checked out the castle trail, sported a kilt and
made great use of the records and services at Scotland‟s People Centre. The Boston Globe has
a circulation of 512,000 and Peter‟s feature was worth $242,055USD of PR value.
Chicago Sun Times
Frank Main focused on whisky and textiles during his March 09 visit to Scotland and had a
proper taste of Scottish hospitality. His whisky feature was published in US daily, the Chicago
Sun Times, with an impressive circulation of 939,528 and almosy $60,000USD worth of PR
value.
National Geographic Adventure
Scotland was featured in an eight-page story entitled “Will Paddle for
Whisky.” While this story doesn‟t tackle Homecoming specifically, it
certainly supports the whisky pillar in a credible, beautifully written editorial
piece perfect for the magazine‟s readers, while also showcasing Scotland‟s
scenic beauty and touring opportunities. The story is also noted on the
cover and appears in the same issue as the Homecoming Scotland 2009
ad buy, achieving a great way to layer VisitScotland‟s message! The story
also appears on the magazine‟s blog: http://ngadventure.typepad.com/blog,
achieving high-quality, targeted coverage across several channels. The
circulation for this piece was 595,617 in print and 10,553,336 per month on
the website, plus a PR value of $1,855,560USD.
Canada
Alison Appelbe - Ancestors Magazine, Montreal Gazette, Ottawa
Citizen, Edmonton Journal and Windsor Star
In March 2009, Canadian freelancer Alison Appelbe arrived in
Scotland to trace her Scottish heritage. She did so with gusto,
following the MacNab ancestral trail west to Killin. Alison pitched her
feature to a number of Canadian dailies and magazine and achieved
successful pickup across a number of titles, achieving a combined
circulation in excess of 2,409,000.
Toronto Sun
Culture, ancestry and castles were the focus of Ian Robertson‟s Homecoming article, published
in July 2009 in the Toronto Sun. Reaching more than 1,207,000 readers daily, this newspaper is
circulated in the Greater Toronto area, a prime geographical target for Scotland promotion.
Toronto Star
Robert Burns was the inspiration behind Homecoming Scotland 2009 and Kenneth Kidd‟s
extensive feature in the Toronto Star, published 11 January 2009. He explores Burn‟s
contribution to an 18th century Scotland that was considered the intellectual capital of Europe
and the legacy of his literature today. The Toronto Star has a circulation of 400,000 and the PR
value was more than $20,000 CAD.
Halifax Chronicle Herald
During January 2009, Peter Lederer, Chairman of VisitScotland, undertook a number of media
appointments during a visit to Canada, including one with the Halifax Chronicle Herald. This
daily newspaper promoted The Gathering as a must-visit event during the year of Homecoming
Scotland 2009 to approximately 732,541 readers in Nova Scotia, many with Scottish
connections and „warm‟ to the prospect of travel.
Australia
Sun Herald Sydney
Nearly half a million Australians read the Sun Herald in Sydney and are likely
to have read Howie Nicholsby‟s guide to 24 hours in Scotland‟s capital city
during the year of Homecoming. Covering everything from history, shopping
and culture, to eating, drinking and dancing, writer Kristie Kellahan worked
directly with VisitScotland‟s PR team to make sure all bases were covered in
this inspiring, on-message piece.
Herald Sun
James Campbell visited Scotland in November 2008, with an interest in his Scottish forebears.
He covered a lot of ground during his trip, taking in Fife, Perthshire and Argyll and reported on
the launch of Homecoming Scotland, as well as Scotland‟s culture, history and architecture.
James also started teeing up visitors to take part in Scotland‟s biggest ever gathering of the
clans, with a mention for The Gathering too. He followed up with a full page feature on another
Homecoming theme: whisky. Total circulation 957,680.
Vacations Magazine
Drive it Home gets a great plug in this glossy travel magazine, along with the major golf events
and exhibitions taking place during the year of Homecoming, including „A Whole In One‟
exhibitions in Ayr and the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.
Circulation 40,000.
New Zealand
New Zealand Herald
Peter Calder‟s Homecoming feature published on 1 September 2009, following his visit in April
of the same year. His Scotland coverage took up front cover, plus 2 main pages, detailing his
search for his family roots and his links to the Cawdors. Circulation 181,000.
The Listener
Graham Reid always wondered where his unusual middle name - the subject of much childhood
teasing - had come from and he returned to Scotland in 2009 to find out. The Listener Magazine
dedicated a whole issue to an ancestral theme, based on Graham‟s article, reaching an
audience estimated at 67,000.
Most recently: from July through September 2009
Highland Homecoming - 19-31 October from Skye to Helmsdale
VisitScotand‟s carefully crafted campaign has been rolled out in recent months across
international markets to highlight the seasonal proposition of a trip to the Highlands and
showcase the lively cultural events visitors can enjoy there.
International markets have seen coverage in media, online, print and PR from banner ads to
events listings.Working with US and Canadian operators such as Lynott Tours, VisitScotland has
ensured great value Highland Homecoming packages from as little as $988 are in the
marketplace. On the back of this concerted effort, editorial interest has been picked up in The
Washington Post, “What’s the deal around the world”, listing Highland Homecoming as a top
travel deal this Autumn. This coverage alone reached over 868,000 readers and 10.4 million hits
per month.
Other immediate pick -up included AM New York “A Scotland Homecoming” reaching around
300,000 readers.
Broadcast Crews continue to visit throughout the year
Building on the success of more than 10 international broadcast crews who landed in Scotland
to cover The Gathering, Edinburgh Festivals, the British Open and The Cowal Highland Games
this summer - Voice of America; Travelscope PBS, Central China TV; Sama Dubai TV; ABC
Sports; Culinary Food Network (as a result of Scotland Week); Travel Channel and Radio
Curious - numerous others have followed in the months since.
Big wins include:
Good Morning America filming in the North East of Scotland and reaching more than 4
million viewers on primetime US morning TV
MTV Canada covering Glasgow‟s music scene and showcasing Celtic Connections,
Scotland‟s biggest traditional music festival, contrasted with up-and-coming rock and pop
acts.
Johnny Reid, star of Country Music TV, spent a week revisiting his birthplace in North
Lanarkshire, exploring his family roots and discovering how the country has changed since
he left for Canada.
Press trips
Equally, international press have continued to visit using the Homecoming themes as hooks and
taking in some great events along the way. Fodors Guide (US), Pacific Northwest Golfer (US),
Gatehouse Media (US), Zink (US), Modern Bride (US), Passport (US), Upscale (US), D
Magazine (US), Toronto Globe & Mail (CA), Outtraveler.com (CA), Australian Associated Press
(AUS), Cybergolf.com (US) to name a few.
Finishing up the year
International PR will round off a year of Homecoming celebrations with a number of activities,
including:
Attendance at VEMEX Meet the Media events in the US and Canada, giving Homecoming
Finale Weekend one last push and ensuring that legacy themes remain front of mind for
journalists in 2010.
A pan-market viral competition - St Andrew is the Patron Saint of Scotland, and to help
celebrate this national day on 30 November, VisitScotland, the national tourist organization,
is calling all people with the equivalent name of Andrew to get in touch and have the chance
to win a trip to Scotland.
HOMECOMING SCOTLAND 2009 - THE MARKETING STORY
INTERNATIONAL- EMERGING MARKETS
EMERGING MARKETS
CONSUMER MARKETING
Irn Bru consumer campaign in Russia:
VisitScotland partnered with Irn Bru in a
Homecoming campaign, the during Aug 09
and Sept 09.
2 million bottles were branded Homecoming
and distributed throughout Russia, with over
35K point of sales displaying merchandising.
Homecoming TV advert: Featuring the voice of Sean Connery and Chinese sub titles, the Home
of Golf DVD was aired on CCTV across China to an audience of 350million.
PRINT COLLATERAL
VisitScotland overseas awareness guides distributed in 2008 and 2009 featured Homecoming,
20K were distributed in Russia, China and Japan.
Russian Consumer brochure has been branded with Homecoming messages.
All Emerging market e-brochures
Chinese
Japanese
Indian
Russian
Polish
Czech
EVENT MARKETING
VisitScotland supported event organisers across the globe, key trade and media attended
various Homecoming themed events.
Shanghai Film festival, Mar 09,
Whisky Live. New Delhi Jan ‟09, Tokyo Feb ‟09 and
Shanghai May ‟09.
Scotland Festival in Nagoya
Burns night celebrations were also supported with
Homecoming Collateral, with 20K event guides distributed
to
St Andrew's Society Moscow
St Andrews Society Kiev
Caledonian Society Hong Kong
Caledonian Society Dubai
Caledonian Society Mumbai
Caledonian Society Bangalore,
St Andrews Society New Delhi,
British Council Mumbai, Kolkata,Hyderabad,
Bangalore, Chandigarh, Delhi, Chennai
PARTNERSHIP MARKETING
Scottish Prestige Golf Club
VisitScotland launched the Scottish Prestige Golf Club in China,
inviting Chinese golfers to become members of Scottish Golf Clubs
during the Year of Homecoming and beyond.
TRAVEL TRADE - MARKETING
Publications
Travel Trade Gazette, Russia featured Homecoming pass and the
Gathering and Whisky Month, circulation 12,000 copies of the
November 08 issue about Homecoming.
4 page supplement to MITT, Mar 09
Tourbusiness Magazine 24 page special edition in
9000 copies on Scotland in March 09 featuring Homecoming
Homecoming feature in CBBC publication, distributed
to 25K Chinese business people in the UK and China.
Travel trade newsletters distributed to 5K Asian trade contacts during 2008
TRAVEL TRADE- PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
Throughout 2008 and 2009 Homecoming was promoted to operators and agents across all key
emerging markets via an extensive programme of trade events, workshops and sales missions
including:
VisitScotland EXPO 2008 and 2009 welcomed buyers from India, China, Japan and
Russia
Destination Britain workshops 2008 and 2009; over 100 appointments with buyers from
14 countries across Asia Pacific, the Middle East and South Africa. Sponsorship of
the 2009 event saw the Caledonia tv ad and various Homecoming messages broadcast
daily in delegates‟ rooms.
China International Travel Mart, Shanghai 2008.
International Travel Expo, Hong Kong 2008.
50 Indian members of TAAI visited Scotland and participated in a workshop with
Scottish tourism businesses.
VisitScotland China Trade Missions, 2008 and 2009 targeted agents and operators in
Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, with Homecoming dinners for trade and press.
In 2009 Homecoming receptions were held in Hong Kong, Shanghai & Beijing with up
to 300 press, trade and key business contacts in attendance at each.
Japanese Trade Missons in 2008 and 2009 in Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka.
MITT, Moscow 2009.
TRAVEL TRADE- PRODUCT PROMOTION
VisitScotland assisted the development of Homecoming product by operators across the
emerging markets and encouraged and supported operators in taking these to market. The
following are examples of promotional activity undertaken by operators on territory:
China Holidays actively promoted the theme of
Homecoming, the events programme and
Homecoming travel product ideas to their consumer database of 150K Jan 09
Wangping Travel, Shanghai & Beijing, launched Homecoming
themed tours during their product launch around the
Chinese New Year celebrations.
Jingjiang Tours, Shanghai secured a Homecoming theme at the
Home of Great Minds and Innovation Conference to be
held on 20 November 2009 in Shanghai, jointly organised
by Jinjiang Tours and the Translator Association of China,
Hankyu Express, Japan 2009 FIT brochure to secure
the Homecoming logo and message from Scotland.
Club Tourism, Japan to ensure that the group tour
brochure featured a welcome message from VisitScotland
and mentioning of Homecoming.
JTB Look, Tokyo developed a series of new
self drive car tours around Homecoming Themes.
Meridian Express, Moscow, dedicated their
main Scotland programme "Discovery Scotland"
to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Burns
and also secured Homecoming branding on
the website.
Other Russian operators who developed Homecoming
products include, Holiday M, Piccadilly Travel, AS SAS Luxury Services,
the PAC Group, All European Travel, and Travel
CONSUMER PR
Over 50 press visits to Scotland focusing on Homecoming 2009 have been facilitated for
journalists from the emerging markets since April 08
Over 170 pieces of Homecoming related coverage have been received to date, with
more to follow. This coverage has reached an audience in excess of 732,229,083 and
generated in excess of £3,262,929 in PR value.
Ongoing PR activity has included features, press releases and newsletters to broadcast,
print and online media.
PR HIGHLIGHTS:
A fuller round-up of all PR outputs is contained in a separate document. There follows a
sample of highlights from the Long Haul PR programme for Homecoming Scotland.
CCTV - China
The Gathering 2009 was the focus for the visit of Central China Television to Scotland.
CCTV regularly broadcasts to over 100 million people on a daily basis on over 19 channels.
Interviews for the CCTV crew at the Gathering were arranged with, among others, Lord Jamie
Sempil, Gathering organiser; Denise Hill, VisitScotland Head of International Marketing; and
First Minister, Alex Salmond. Coverage for the event and for Homecoming was immediate, with
footage broadcast on 25 July and a further 5 broadcasts the following week, with an audience
reach of over 100 million for each broadcast.
Visa Magazine - Japan
Japan‟s Visa Magazine visited Scotland earlier in March 2009. The group
stayed in the Aberdeenshire area, with Homecoming the focus of their visit.
Japan is the seventh largest market for Scottish manufactured exports, with
whisky high on this list, therefore the group visited several whisky distilleries
in the area. Home of Whisky messaging was consequently very prominent in
the coverage as a result, with the coverage being circulated to over 1 million
Japanese Visa card holders.
China Print Media Group
A China Print Media Group comprising of 6 journalists from some of
China‟s top travel and lifestyle publications visited Scotland during
August 09. The focus for the visit was based around the Edinburgh
Festivals, while the group also travelled to Perthshire and took time
to visit Edinburgh itself. In a busy schedule, the group attended
events in the programmes of the Fringe, Book, International
Festivals, and Tattoo, while also attending a specially arranged
Q&A with VisitScotland Chief Executive, Philip Riddle. The final coverage resultant from the
media visit will hit a circulation of over 5 Million in China.
Xinhua Press Agency - China
April saw China‟s Xinhua Press Agency visit Scotland in conjunction with Expo 2009. The
Xinhua journalist attended the Expo event in Glasgow along with visiting the city itself and
spending time in St Andrews: the Home of Golf. As a result 63 pieces of coverage were
produced which mentioned Homecoming Scotland, including strong Whisky Month messaging.
By Market:
China
National Geographic China visited Scotland in May 2009. Their focus was on the Homecoming
theme of Great Minds and Innovation and took them to Glasgow, Edinburgh, Fife and St
Andrews. The journalists met representatives from Glasgow and Edinburgh Universities, looking
at great minds such as Adam Smith and David Hume, and visited the St Andrews: the Home of
Golf and Burns home of Ayrshire. China‟s National Geographic is a highly respected publication
with a circulation of over 200,000. Coverage expected November 2009.
Hong Kong
Glasgow and Edinburgh were the focus of the Hong Kong
Metro‟s press visit to Scotland in Homecoming year. The
visit produced coverage for both cities along with Fife and
messaging for Homecoming and the 5 themes.
The Hong Kong Metro and associated AM370 publication
are free papers distributed throughout Hong Kong, with a
circulation of approximately 340,000.
Japan
October saw a Japanese Print Media group arrive in Scotland to focus upon the themes of
whisky and built heritage, along with lifestyle aspects of Edinburgh. These four high-end lifestyle
and travel magazines, with a combined circulation of 500,000 visited Scotland from 3-8 October,
with coverage expected in the coming months.
Singapore
The Straits Times is Singapore‟s biggest selling newspaper, with a circulation of 388,000.
Edinburgh was the focus of the papers visit to Scotland in July. The media visit looked at the
focus of Edinburgh as a must visit destination, the Edinburgh festivals and the history of
Scotland and Robert Burns.
India
The Homecoming theme of ancestry and Edinburgh was the focus for the visit of India‟s most
popular newspaper, The Times of India, in June 2009.
Scotland boasts many links with India, from Scots involvement in the East India Trading
Company to the production of tea by Scots in India itself. Scotland has long had a great and
successful relationship with India. Therefore the Times of India visited General Register House
in Edinburgh to investigate these links. The subsequent coverage reached over 1.2 million
people in India.
UAE
Dubai Eye Radio visited Edinburgh in August 2009, focusing on Homecoming Scotland and the
Edinburgh Festivals. Journalist and presenter Suzanne Radford interviewed many of the
organisers of the festivals in order to gain an insight into the festivals and the Homecoming
Scotland celebrations. Dubai Eye UAE's premier talk radio station, broadcasts 24 hours a day in
8 languages and boasts the only dedicated travel radio programme in the Middle East. They
have a listenership of 91,000.
Latin America
March 2009 saw a print group of three Brazilian titles visit
Scotland, taking in Edinburgh and Perthshire. The group were
some of the first media to visit the new Scotch Whisky
Experienece in Edinburgh and see the new Claive Vidiz Whisky
Collection in person, the collection having been collated by
Claive, himself from Brazil. The group included the O Globo and
Folha de Sao Paulo titles, with respective circulations of 300,000
and 370,000.
Russia
Elle
Resulting from a press trip in 2008 this glossy lifestyle magazine – with a circulation of 270k –
produced a five page article on Scotland. It included several paragraphs on Homecoming
themes including Whisky and Golf. But also the luxury element was highly emphasised including
Castles and heritage themes. This article is visually captivating with its impressive scenic
photographs.
Seasons
This glossy lifestyle magazine with a circulation of 150k released a visually stunning seven page
article on Scotland. It covers Homecoming themes covering the areas of Dumfries and Galloway
and Glasgow and Ayrshire. The main topics of the article are Robert Burns, Castles, heritage
and Charles Rennie Mackintosh mentioning the Glasgow School of Art.
INTERNATIONAL MARKETING- EUROPE
INTERNATIONAL MARKETING - EUROPE
WEBSITE CREATIVE - EUROPE
From July 2008 onwards, Homecoming was highly visible across all of VisitScotland‟s 13
European web sites. A Homecoming panel on the home page of every site leads the consumer
through to extensive information in the respective language. The panel is present on every
single page of the sites. The content tells consumers what Homecoming is about, describes the
highlights and then links off to the main Homecoming website for further detail. The European
sites have received 2.1 million visits in the period from January to October 2009.
www.visitscotland.com/fr
www.visitscotland.com/se
www.visitscotland.com/es
www.visitscotland.com/de
www.visitscotland.com/it
www.visitscotland.com/nl
www.visitscotland.com/be
MONTHLY E-NEWSLETTERS - EUROPE
VisitScotland Programme
Homecoming was the lead story in every VisitScotland consumer e-newsletter from September
08 to November 09 (16 issues). The newsletters are dispatched on a monthly basis to a
European database of 500,000 hot prospects. All of them are interested in Scotland and have
asked to be included on our database.
EXAMPLES OF E-NEWSLETTERS
A VisitScotland trade e-news dedicated to Homecoming was sent out in April 2009 promoting
the Gathering, Whisky May and Traditional Music sessions.
VisitBritain
Homecoming messages are featured across the 40
VisitBritain international websites.
Additionally, VisitBritain has sent Homecoming dedicated enewsletters to it consumer databases.
VisitBritain also sent Homecoming dedicated trade e-newsletters in
Portugal, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Germany and the
Netherlands.
ONLINE ADVERTISING - EUROPE
Touring
An online media advertising campaign ran across all main European markets (est. 190,000
impressions).
Example web sites targeted include:
Directinet, L‟Internate, Liberation, MacrcelGreen, Yahoo, Prosieben.de, Abendblatt.de,
MSN.de, La Vanguardia, 20Minutos, gmx.de and web.de.
PRINT ADVERTISING - EUROPE
As part of the Touring campaign throughout spring 2009, advertorials messaging Homecoming
events, notably Whisky May and The Gathering, ran in conjunction with travel partners including
Jet2.com. French titles included National Geographic, Le Nouvel Observateur, Geo and
L‟Express. (total circulation 1,400,000), German titles included Focus, Stern, Prinz, readers
digest, Reisefieber, abenteuer reisen, National Geographic, Coolibri, biograph, Rheinische
Zeitung and Westdeutsche Zeitung (total circulation 1,900,000).
EXAMPLE OF FRENCH ADVERTORIAL
EXAMPLE OF GERMAN ADVERTORIAL
RADIO ADVERTISING - EUROPE
Radio competitions were run in Spain, France and Germany in early April 2009 to support
Whisky Month (May). The prize was a trip to the Spirit of the West whisky festival. The
competition ran for a full week on Kiss FM in Spain (280k listeners in the Madrid area), on Radio
Classique in France (upmarket listenership in Ile de France region around Paris) and on Radio
Leverkusen in Germany (important catchment area of Nordrhein Westfalia). Competition entry
was on either the radio station‟s or our own web site. Radio promotions directed consumers
onward to VisitScotland‟s websites. Examples below:
PARTNERSHIP MARKETING - EUROPE
RYANAIR
VisitScotland‟s substantial joint campaigns with Ryanair in spring and autumn 2009 featured
Homecoming as the lead message in both e-communications and press advertising. The ecommunications reached 111,000 consumers in France, 52,000 in Spain, 284,000 in Italy,
82,000 in the Nordics, 118,000 in Germany and 91,000 in the Netherlands. Press advertising
was targeted in France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden.
Additionally, two Ryanair planes featured Homecoming overhead cabin branding for a period of
six months:
NORFOLKLINE
VisitScotland and Norfolkline ran a joint online
touring campaign to promote the Zeebrugge to
Rosyth ferry route incorporating Homecoming
messages including the „Caledonia‟ advert, Whisky May and The Gathering. 2,900 database
contacts were generated for both Norfolkline and VisitScotland.
Homecoming featured prominently at the Norfolkline route launches in Rosyth and Zeebrugge in
April.
Jet2.com
A Homecoming presentation was delivered in October 2008 and Homecoming information was
placed on the airline‟s web site and in its consumer e-newsletter in March 2009 to 15,000
consumers. A joint offline touring campaign (advertorials) in French national and regional press
featured Homecoming events to a total circulation 4.7 million.
Jet 2.com‟s September e-newsletter to its database of 35,000 Italians promoted the
Homecoming Finale Weekend.
easyJet
easyJet France promoted Homecoming in its March and October e-newsletter to 290,000
consumers. In Germany a Christmas special e-newsletter promoted Homecoming, featuring
Piping Live! and The Gathering to 617,000 consumers.
Germany Cities Campaign (with easyJet)
VisitScotland‟s joint campaign with easyJet launched
in October 2009 promoting Glasgow and Edinburgh
and leading consumers to information on the
Homecoming Finale celebrations. The campaign
focused on the key urban hub areas of Berlin and
Munich and comprised advertorials in key
publications such as Kulturnews Berlin and Prinz
Muenchen and online advertising in Google and on
German portals such as Marco Polo, a travel
website. The campaign reached around 81.2 million
people and consumers were led to a campaign
micro-site where events were the key focus.
The Homecoming Finale celebrations featured within
the campaign micro-site as well as on the
VisitScotland German Cities website.
DIRECT MAIL - EUROPE
Lufthansa - Duesseldorf to Inverness route
A direct mail piece with Lufthansa was sent to 56,000 German
consumers in the Duesseldorf area at the end of May to
promote the new weekly Duesseldorf to Inverness route. The
DM was created in the form of a newspaper and Homecoming
featured prominently on the front page.
The lead article noted Homecoming events in the Highlands,
with several additional mentions throughout for the
Homecoming Pass and other Homecoming events. A special
Highlands Information Pack request web page was set up for
consumers and those packs included the Homecoming events
guide and Homecoming itineraries.
Fife Direct Mail
A direct mail campaign showcasing Fife and detailing the
Homecoming Finale celebrations across the Kingdom of Fife
was sent to 16,000 Belgians in October, to encourage them to
consider autumn breaks in Fife.
Partners included Fife Council, Norfolkline, House of Britain (a
Dutch operator expanding into Belgium) and St Andrews Hotel
and Guesthouses Association. In support of the direct mail
piece, an e-newsletter was sent to VisitScotland‟s Belgian
database of 18,000 and VisitBritain‟s database of 46,000.
Consumers were encouraged to enter a competition on the
Belgian Touring website which was supported by Norfolkline
and House of Britain.
TACTICAL PROMOTIONS - FINALE WEEKEND
Database activities
The Homecoming Finale events were promoted in September to 447,000 people in Germany,
France and Spain through consumer e-direct mails. For this targeted activity third party
databases were utilised, ensuring the greatest possible reach. Spanish example:
In addition, a competition centred on the Homecoming Finale weekend was promoted to
VisitScotland‟s databases of 520,000 hot prospects and the VisitBritain databases of 609,000
potential visitors in the key European markets (Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden,
Netherlands and Belgium). Consumers could win a trip to Edinburgh or Glasgow for the
Homecoming Finale. Competition partners included 21st Century Kilts, the Piping Centre,
Oloroso and Hotel du Vin.
Co-operative activity with Ryanair promoted the Homecoming Finale weekend. E-newsletters
went out to Ryanair databases in October (82, 0000 people in the Nordic, 111,000 in France,
118,000 in Germany, 284,000 in Italy and 52,000 in Spain).
Tiscover e-marketing
Tiscover featured the Homecoming Finale in its e-newsletter to 180,000 consumers in
September.
TOUR OPERATOR PRODUCT PROMOTIONS
VisitScotland has worked closely with the travel trade to promote Homecoming Scotland 2009.
Expo 2008 and Expo 2009 were ideal opportunities for its promotion with workshops being held
to convey key messages and focus on the Homecoming calendar of activity. A series of mailers
has been sent to tour operators across France, Italy, Portugal, Greece and Spain, explaining
how Homecoming could be incorporated into Scottish programmes. This activity was
supplemented by sales presentations in Paris, Madrid and Barcelona. In addition, individual
sales calls have taken place across all main markets. As a result of this activity, a number of tour
operators have introduced new Homecoming products. Key examples are as follows:
Southern Europe
FRANCE:
Terres de Charme - Homecoming branded
whisky tour introduced and a presentation on
Homecoming to their sales force.
Gaeland - Brochure inserts promoting
Homecoming and a newsletter sent to 5,000
travel agents.
Comptoir des Pays Celtes - Homecoming content featured on their web site, plus coverage in its
e-newsletters, press coverage and Homecoming product developed.
SPAIN:
Touristforum - Homecoming logo featured on all Scottish product in the brochure. Themed tours
including “Clans and Highlands” created and “Taste of the Tattoo” product developed as well as
an mail promotion to 11,000 consumers in May, using the “Taste of the Tattoo” tickets as a
booking incentive.
Travelplan - Homecoming featured in their brochure plus presence on its travel agency web site
for two months.
Clicktravel - Featured Homecoming events for its tours, including the Hebridean Celtic Festival.
Catai - A Homecoming advert featured in their brochure and Whisky route created for 2009
programme.
Politours - Homecoming featured in their brochure and Edinburgh Tattoo programmed for 2009.
ITALY:
Cocktail - Three dedicated Homecoming pages
in brochure and on web site.
Turisanda - 2 dedicated Homecoming pages in brochure and
on site.
Adeltour - has developed Homecoming branded tours for Whisky and Rob Roy, plus a mail out
to its travel agent network outlining Homecoming.
Touring Club Italiano - 5 pages in their brochure were devoted to a specially developed
Homecoming package.
Tonello Viaggi - their Scotland tour featured Homecoming branding.
Northern Europe:
House of Britain - created three separate Homecoming products in cooperation with JAC travel
for both The Netherlands and Germany:
GB Gateways - designed a special 10-day Homecoming tour package for Germany:
TRADE E-COMMUNICATIONS
Bookingscotland monthly newsletter
Monthly Homecoming themed newsletter reinforcing activities, themes and events since Sept 08
reaching 14K travel trade contacts worldwide.
Scotland Trade Update: this travel trade publication has featured a Homecoming story on the
front page since Issue 1 was published in 2007.
EUROPEAN PR ACTIVITY
More than 200 European journalists have attended press trips to Scotland with a
Homecoming focus since April 2008.
Over 300 pieces of Homecoming related coverage have been received to date with more
to follow. This coverage has reached an audience in excess of 32m and has generated
a PR value of over £5.3m.
18 Homecoming press events have taken place across 8 major European markets
attracting over 350 guests.
Ongoing PR activity has included features, press releases, newsletters for broadcast,
print and online media.
Big hits:
A fuller round-up of all PR outputs is contained in a separate document. Below are sample
highlights from the Europe PR programme for Homecoming Scotland 2009.
Le Journal du Dimanche
A group press trip was held to explore Loch Lomond and The Trossachs which inspired French
author Gilles Legardinier to write his thriller novel „L‟Exil des Anges‟. VisitScotland was involved
in a joint promotion of the book with the French publishers and the press trip supported this
activity. Le Journal du Dimanche, a leading weekend newspaper with a circulation of 266,000
attended and was briefed about Homecoming particularly the Great Minds and Innovation
connection and how Scotland inspires creativity. Homecoming is mentioned in the article which
was published in January 2009.
Télématin, France 2
A six minute TV report about Homecoming Burns Weekend launch including The Big Burns
Supper in Glasgow and Burns Light in Dumfries. Télématin is a daily magazine programme
similar to BBC Breakfast on national French TV station France 2. The programme aired on 29th
January and had a PR value of €144,900. Further information was also included on the
Télématin website including links to the Homecoming website.
France 2
In July 2009 France 2 attended The Gathering. France 2‟s news report included footage of the
World Championship Highland Games, Prince Charles‟s visit and the clan parade as well as an
interview with a clan chief. VisitScotland also introduced France 2 to a French family who have
made Scotland their home and who were spending the weekend at The Gathering. The detailed
report comprehensively covered The Gathering, its events and the key themes of Homecoming.
The report, lasting 5.5 minutes, was filmed on the Saturday of The Gathering and broadcast to
an audience of 6 million the following day, while The Gathering was still taking place, ensuring
immediacy in the reporting.
ITALY
Golf e Turismo
This glossy golf travel magazine with a circulation of 20,000 dedicated its special issue to
Scotland in honour of the year of Homecoming, including details of key regions for golf and
details of how to incorporate wider tourism in Scotland into a golf trip as well as mentioning the
Drive it Home promotion (see below in Pan Market section). The article appeared in the March
issue.
Turismo Culturale
This cultural travel magazine with a circulation of 40,000 covers all things Homecoming including
Celtic Connections and the themes of Burns, Great Minds and Innovations, Heritage, Golf and
Whisky. This piece of coverage was generated purely through a press release and not a press
visit.
Vanity Fair
This prestigious glossy weekly magazine, with a circulation of 270,000, visited Edinburgh in July
2009 to attend The Gathering 2009. A beautiful photo reportage accompanies this five page
article which focuses on how Scotland‟s pride in Homecoming is reflected in the impressive
Gathering event. This article also serves to attract readers to Scotland in the future by including
places to visit and where to stay in both the Scottish Borders and Edinburgh.
SPAIN
‘A vivir’ Radio Programme on Cadena Ser
A 15 minute programme dedicated to Edinburgh, Whisky Month and Homecoming on Spain‟s
leading radio station with a total of 1,871,000 listeners.
Paraísos, El Mundo
A group press trip for 7 leading Spanish print media was held in June 2009 to explore Edinburgh
and Ayrshire. This varied itinerary allowed the Homecoming themes of golf, Robert Burns,
whisky, ancestry, culture and heritage to be enjoyed as visits to Troon‟s golf courses, the Burns
Heritage Park and Stirling Castle were arranged alongside an exciting programme of visits in
Edinburgh. Paraísos, a supplement to the leading Spanish daily newspaper El Mundo, with a
circulation of 274,000, published a detailed twelve page article on the trip. Beautiful and emotive
photography throughout increases the impact of this article.
Condé Nast Traveler
This high-end luxury monthly travel magazine, with a circulation of 120,000 visited Edinburgh to
explore the city‟s rich cultural attractions. Hooking into the theme of great minds and innovations,
Condé Nast Traveler has interviewed Edinburgh‟s leading chefs, designers and artists as part of
their article, showcasing the wealth of talent that exists in Edinburgh and confirming its
reputation as one of the most exciting cities to visit.
GERMANY
Die Welt
As one of the most widely read national German newspapers Die Welt - with a 280,000
circulation - released a one page article on all things Scottish. In their article they included
several of the Homecoming themes with a key focus on The Gathering.
Essen & Trinken
Renate Frank, a journalist for this glossy food magazine came on a press trip to Speyside in
April 209 and produced a five page article. This was embellished by stories and beautiful
pictures including the Spirit of Speyside festival and Whisky Month. The magazine has a 47,000
circulation.
Tagesspiegel
The regional Berlin daily national newspaper Tagesspiegel picked up on the Highland Games
and published a one page article covering different Homecoming themes. It has a circulation of
100,000.
SWEDEN
Homecoming Reception in Oslo to promote launch of Loganair flight
This event held at the British Ambassador‟s Residence on 17th March attracted 50 key tour
operators, media and PR contacts (e.g. Caledonian Norwegian Society). Jointly organised by
VisitScotland and VisitBritain, the Norwegian showcase highlighted Aberdeen, Orkney and
Shetland, as a result of new and up and coming direct air links from the regions to Oslo and
Bergen, alongside key Homecoming themes. Media coverage included Scottish Television
(North), Shetland Times, Orcadian Radio and the Press and Journal. 3 or 4 key Norwegian
media contacts were interested in follow up press trips to Scotland during summer 2009.
Whisky May
A Whisky May news release was sent out to key media across Sweden with pick up in quality
media including Allt Om Resor, Gods Och Gardar and Ljuva Livet. The combined circulation is
81,000 with PR value of £16,000.
Goteborgs Posten
Journalist Kirsten Sundmark toured Scotland in search of Scotland‟s finest food and drink,
searching out regional specialities whilst highlighting must-see visitor attractions en route.
Kirsten specifically included Homecoming Scotland 2009 in her factbox, which included the
Homecoming Scotland website url. The article appeared in Goteborgs Posten with a circulation
of 243,000 and a PR value £115,000.
BELGIUM AND NETHERLANDS
Het Parool - Homecoming Scotland 2009
Writer Renate Van Der Bas was interested in visiting Scotland to sample castle accommodation
but also wanted to highlight what her readers could expect during a visit in 2009. Renate
covered castle accommodation throughout the whole of Scotland and dedicated almost half a
page to Homecoming Scotland 2009, focussing on key events, a screen shot of the advert and
background information on the creation of the year of homecoming. This was a double hit as it
appeared in the Dutch and Belgian version of this leading daily newspaper with a combined
circulation of 174,000 and a combined PR value of £69,400.
De Telegraaf - Whisky Coast
Journalist Frank Van Vliet regularly features Scotland for his travel column in one of the leading
Dutch newspapers, De Telegraaf and was intrigued by the fusion of his favourite drink with a
part of Scotland he was yet to discover in the newly created Whisky Coast trail. Frank sampled
whisky from many of the Whisky Coast distilleries touring from Islay to Oban. Frank also
highlighted the Speyside Whisky Trail in his article and included the full list of Whisky Coast
member distilleries in his factbox, also noting the background to the creation of Homecoming
Scotland 2009 and a mention of the Spirit of the West Festival, with relevant website urls.
Frank‟s article appeared in De Telegraaf newspaper with a circulation of 616,000 and a PR
value of £19,800, the article also appeared in the newspaper‟s online edition.
INTERNATIONAL- PAN MARKET
INTERNATIONAL - PAN MARKET
COMPETITION/SWEEPSTAKES - PAN MARKET
„Expedition Scotland - The Homecoming‟ , official sweepstakes/competition for Homecoming
developed in conjunction with National Geographic and running in US, Canada, Australia, New
Zealand and European markets. The sweepstakes were promoted via online advertising,
(banners), via „I am a Scot‟ print advertising in long haul markets, and also via integrated PR
activities
www.expeditionscotland.com (US, CA, AUS & NZ site)
WEBSITE AND BANNERS (US, CA, AUS & NZ creative)
Adapted version of the website is promoted across
Europe as part of the Touring campaign, running in
Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway,
Spain, Sweden, Switzerland via www.visitscotland.com/
European portals
EUROPEAN WEBSITE CREATIVE
GOLF PROMOTION - PAN MARKET
„Drive It Home‟ - „Scotland‟s biggest ever golf giveaway‟, ran in US, Canada, Sweden & Rest of
World between February 09 - June 09 and saw thousands of free four-balls in Scotland (across
100 courses) offered up as an enticement to engage international golfers and start them thinking
about planning a trip to the Home of Golf in 2009. Drive It Home was promoted in North America
and Sweden via online banner advertising, radio promotions, print ads - and in the Rest of the
World via PR and VisitScotland and VisitBritain‟s e-comms programmes.
In addition to the 95 courses participating, some 32 travel trade partners signed-up for Drive It
Home and their product was highly visible within the promotion. All told, 25,000 golfers
registered for the promotion of whom an impressive 6,000 clicked through to travel trade partner
websites to enquire about golf deals and packages. The economic impact of Drive It Home has
been estimated at £2M, which represents a 15:1 ROI.
Online media buy in US (82M impressions)
Online media buy in Sweden (29M impressions)
www.driveithome2009.com (US site)
www.driveithome2009.se (Swedish site)
www.driveithomescotland.com (Rest of World)
WEBSITE CREATIVE
ONLINE CREATIVE
PRINT CREATIVE
ST ANDREWS COMPETITION - PAN MARKET
An International St Andrews Day
competition was launched on 22 October
2009 inviting Andrews from all over the
world to answer a simple question for the
chance to win a January 2010 five night
break to Scotland. Press releases have
been issued in over 14 countries, from the
US and Canada to France and Spain and
to Australia. Top coverage have already
been picked up in Canada‟s Edmonton
Journal (Circ 895,461), US site Newsday
(Circ 481,816), Australia site
ETravelBlackboard (Circ 210,000) and
New Zealand‟s Scoop (Circ 450,000).
www.homecomingscotland2009.com/andrew
THE EVENTS PROGRAMME
This document provides an overview featuring just some of the highlights from the Homecoming
Scotland programme of more than 400 events taking place between January and October 2009.
All events directly funded by Homecoming Scotland were either existing events that added brand
new Homecoming elements to enhance and/or extend their event or were brand new events
created especially for the Homecoming celebrations. It‟s been a spectacular year - many thanks
to the many hundreds of individuals and organisations that have worked so hard to deliver an
outstanding programme of events.
POSITIVE INDICATORS: Events Programme
A selection of top line results from just some of the events funded by Homecoming
Scotland. All funded events are either new or have introduced new Homecoming
programme for 2009.
Iconic Burns, Alloway, 24th Jan. There was high demand for the 1,200 tickets available by
public ballot for this opening weekend outdoor event. 3,130 ticket requests were received
with applications from throughout Scotland, the rest of the UK and internationally.
Burns Light, Dumfries, 25th Jan. More than 17,500 people participated in this outdoor
spectacle. The entire region was mobilised in support of this event with 92 community groups
taking part.
The World Famous Burns Supper Campaign had more than 3,600 Burns Suppers from a
total of 80 countries joining the Homecoming Celebrations by registering their suppers and,
in doing so, setting what is believed to be a new world record.
StAnza International Poetry Festival took place in March and reported an extremely
successful year with a 15% increase in tickets sales and significantly increased media
coverage.
Edinburgh International Science Festival took place in early April and reported the event
being the most successful in its 21 year history.
Whisky Month took place throughout May with a programme of over 400 events . Festivals
recorded increased numbers of overseas visitors with the largest numbers coming from
Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and the US. Highlights included the
extended Sprit of Speyside Whisky Festival. Tthe festival increased its attendance to more
than 24,000 (up c.8,000) and 46% of visitors were from overseas (up 6% on the previous
year).
Mauchline Holy Fair took place in May and exceeded all previous attendance by attracting
more than 15,000 visitors to the town for a unique community celebration highlighting Burns‟
links to the area.
At Linlithgow Palace, visitor numbers increased by 24 per cent across April and May, to
14,768, helped by the Homecoming Scotland Party at the Palace event.
Return to the Ridings. With a total attendance of c.73,000, events across 11 Border towns
are estimated to have attracted around 7,000 additional visitors in this year of Homecoming.
The Royal Highland Show broke all previous attendance records, achieving 176,522
visitors over the four day period (previous record 163,000), up 15,496 on the similar figure for
2008. This included doubling the number of international visitors (3000 attendees from 29
countries).
Homecoming Day at The Open - golf fans celebrated the return of The Open
Championship to the 'Home of Golf' when the event took place on the spectacular Ailsa
Course, Turnberry, Ayrshire from 16 - 19 July 2009 after an absence of 15 years. The
Ayrshire course in Scotland traditionally attracts fewer fans than other Open venues, but the
123,000 figure for the week was still 8,500 more than its last staging of the event in 1994
and was significantly above the 115,000 target.
In celebration of Homecoming,
EventScotland worked in partnership with the R&A to create a range of additional activities
for visitors attending on the final practice day - Homecoming Day.
The Gathering 2009 - a unique weekend of celebration uniting more than 47,000 Scots,
those with Scottish ancestry and those with a love of Scotland. An independent
economic impact study was undertaken that estimated the event delivered an economic
impact of £8.8 million for Edinburgh and a total of £10.4 million for Scotland.
Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival - Belladrum also delivered a „Box Office Best‟ in 2009,
selling out for the first time ever in its six year history (12,000 capacity).
Blas Festival - The Festival reported its best ever attendance with a 25% increase in ticket
sales and record attendance by visitors from outwith Scotland.
Baxters Loch Ness Marathon - 2009 was the best year yet with Marathon entries up by
over 50% and overall Festival entries up by more than 25%, including record number of
entries from outwith Scotland.
Creative Burns & Ayrshire Innovators - created by East Ayrshire Council especially for the
Homecoming Scotland 2009 celebrations at The Dick Institiute in Kilmarnock saw a 40%
increase in visitors from outwith Ayrshire and a 6% increase in visitor spend against 2008
figures.
Perthshire Amber - Dougie MacLean‟s 10-day Festival is reporting its best ever attendance
figures with ticket sales reaching the 6000 mark - up from 4500 in 2008 and visitors travelling
from more than 17 countries. The closing night Caledonia Concert was also the biggest
concert in the Festival‟s five year history.
The Famous Scots exhibition opened at Scotland‟ s People Centre on 26 January 09 with
Billy Connelly as the first of 6 subjects. Other subjects were Shirley Manson, Brian Cox,
Tilda Swinton and Sir Jackie Stewart. By 6th November over 11,600 visitors had visited the
exhibition, +25% on target.
Due to the success of „As Others See Us’, the exhibition run was extended. Showing at the
National Gallery of Scotland during the Edinburgh Festivals until 8 November, it can now
been viewed at Kilmarnock‟s Dick Institute until 12 Dec and will also travel to Scotland House
in Brussels following the end of the year of Homecoming.
Events Programme Overview
LAUNCH WEEKEND
In the first minutes of 2009, one hundred thousand revellers from around the world joined
together at Edinburgh’s Hogmanay Street Party and heralded the Homecoming celebrations
with a record breaking rendition of Auld Lang Syne. As we sped towards Burns Night and the
official launch weekend, support and good wishes from far and wide flooded in and thousands of
Burns Supper organisers in more than 80 countries prepared to join the Homecoming festivities,
link up online and create the biggest ever global Burns Supper celebration.
The centre piece to the World Famous Burns Supper Celebration was the Homecoming Burns
Supper in Alloway, the birthplace of Burns. This unique event featured some of Scotland's finest
talent and paid tribute to the many individuals that keep Burns‟ legacy alive today. That night,
Alloway also played host to Iconic Burns, a spectacular outdoor event. Village locations,
including Burns‟ birthplace cottage and the Brig O‟ Doon, were brought to life by some of the
UK‟s top lighting specialists and fire sculptors. A capacity crowd of 1,200 from across the UK
and the world secured tickets from the free ballot, meanwhile an extended programme of
entertainment took place across South Ayrshire with Burns Wha Hae.
Glasgow‟s Celtic Connections festival presented an extended sell out Homecoming
programme. Shows included the Jamaican Burns Night; the Homecoming Scotland All-Star
Ceilidh; Auld Lang Syne, featuring the cream of Scottish folk music; the 12 Hour Burns Concert
and the Homecoming Suite, a specially commissioned work performed by the Royal Scottish
National Orchestra. The finale was Transatlantic Sessions – Bringing it All Back Home, a
wonderful show highlighting the music and songs of Scotland that travelled with Scots
emigrants. Elsewhere in Glasgow, Burns Illuminated, the Bard‟s story told in sound and light
was projected onto Glasgow City Chambers, and thousands attended a free musical celebration
featuring the Red Hot Chilli Pipers.
In Edinburgh a record 14,499 visitors took the opportunity to see Zig Zag: The Paths of Robert
Burns exhibition at the National Library of Scotland ahead of its Scotland-wide tour. The
National Museums of Scotland marked the start of their programme of Homecoming events with
an exciting line up of poetry, performers, art and music, the Scottish Storytelling Centre
presented a sell out Burns themed programme, whilst The Scottish Parliament hosted „as
others see us’– a photographic exhibition showcasing portraits of twenty of Scotland's bestknown figures inspired by Burns.
The grand finale to the launch weekend‟s celebrations was in Dumfries on Jan 25 where more
than 17,500 people took part in Burns Light - 3000 Burns inspired lanterns were carried in four
processions winding through the historic heart of Dumfries. The event culminated at the River
Nith with live music, entertainment and a spectacular fire show.
The success of the launch weekend provided a fantastic platform for the year and the
momentum has continued to build with hundreds more events across the country taking forward
the Homecoming message.
SPRING
In early spring Horsecross achieved success with the ambitious Scottish Tides - Polish Spring
programme of events and activity in Perth, celebrating the contemporary and historic links
between Scotland and Poland. This was followed by record breaking attendance figures at the
Aye Write! book festival and Magners International Comedy Festival in Glasgow, similarly for
the St Anza International Poetry Festival in St Andrews - all of which carried the Homecoming
theme in their promotion and programming. In April the Edinburgh International Science
Festival reported one of its most successful years ever. Linking with the Homecoming theme of
Great Minds & Innovation, the Festival celebrated Scotland as a „hotbed of genius‟.
May was Whisky Month and included a fantastic programme of events and activity in distilleries
and venues across the country in celebration of Scotland‟s iconic drink. This included and
extended and enhanced Sprit of Speyside Festival, the newly created Spirit of the West
Festival and Feis Ile - Islay‟s Malt & Music Festival, plus a new musical production of Crompton
Mackenzie‟s famous story; Whisky Galore! - a Musical which became the most successful
production in Pitlochry Festival Theatre‟s 58 year history playing to sell out audiences from May
onwards. Also on in May were Homecoming events at the Culloden battlefield and the National
Mining Museum, Aberdeen‟s Word Festival carried the Homecoming theme and Dumfries
celebrated is place in history as the home of the bicycle with the newly created Original Bicycle
Festival. The Mauchline Burns Club welcomed in more than 10,000 visitors to the Mauchline
Holy Fair and set a new world record for the largest ever haggis! In Linlithgow more than 5000
people turned out to enjoy the vibrant history of the Stewart Royal Court with a unique Party at
the Palace set in 1503.
SUMMER
The summer saw the peak of Homecoming activity across Scotland. Throughout the period
historic Border Common Ridings & Festivals came together for the first time to invite friends and
family to Return to the Ridings. In mid-June Gleneagles Hotel hosted the prestigious Forbes
CEO Conference, welcoming top business people from around the world. British Waterways
created The Crossing, a five day celebration of the Caledonian Canal including a colourful
flotilla of contemporary and historic boats traversing the length of the Canal with stops along for
the way for shore-side activities and events. The Edinburgh International Film Festival gave
a red carpet welcome to many returning Scottish stars and showcased the influence of Scottish
film making around the world. At the same time the Royal Highland Show achieved its best
attendance figure ever, welcoming 176,000 visitors over the four days and doubling its
international visitor attendance.
2009 also proved a record breaking year for the Scottish Traditional Boat Festival in July, with
more than 20,000 visitors attending over the four day period. Turnberry played host to The
Open Championship, with more than 14,000 visitors attending the specially created
Homecoming Day at The Open on the final practice day prior to the championship starting. In
the Western Isles the popular Heb Celt Festival welcomed back islanders from around the
world whilst Art on the Map provided a unique opportunity for visitors to explore the Uists and
meet many of the resident artists in this stunning yet remote location. Aberdeen City and Shire
came together to produce the North East Clan Fortnight, a two week programme of events
and activity across the regions, including the Aberdeen‟s Tartan Day, Aboyne Highland Games
and Turriff Show. All of which created special Homecoming activity and reported a significant
upturn in attendance from previous years.
At the end of July Edinburgh hosted The Gathering, the largest gathering of the Scottish clans
in over 200 years. The event was held in the stunning surrounds of Holyrood Park and attracted
an audience in excess of 45,000. People travelled from all over the world to enjoy the weekend
of activity, including world class Highland Games, live music a showcase of Scottish produce,
plus participate in the symbolic Clan Parade up the Royal Mile to Edinburgh Castle esplanade.
August proved to be another extremely busy month. The world famous Edinburgh Festivals,
including Tattoo, International, Book, Fringe, Mela and Art, all extended a Homecoming welcome
with a wide range of specially created productions and performances. In Glasgow, Piping Live!
and the World Pipe Band Championships both used Homecoming as platform to enhance and
extend their promotion and in Stornoway the local Amenity Trust created the celebratory Tattoo
Hebrides and welcomed the 78th Fraser Highlanders from Ontario, Canada as VIP guests. In the
Highlands the award winning Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival reached its 12,000 capacity for
the first time ever. The family-friendly Festival provided the focus for a reunion of the
contemporary Highland diaspora and included a quirky celebration of the work of Robert Burns.
Runrig, Scotland‟s premier Celtic rock band, mobilised their international fan base to come to
Scotland for a spectacular Homecoming concert in the stunning surrounds of Scone Palace,
attracting an audience of 15,000, including 3000 from outwith Scotland. On the 29th August
Scotland celebrated St Kilda Day, the day the last remaining residents were evacuated from the
iconic Scottish island. A unique programme of events and activity at venues across the country
told the story of the island and its people in a special celebration for the Homecoming year.
AUTUMN
The Homecoming events programme continued at full pace through September. Doors Open
Days provided more than 200,000 visitors with unique access to more than 900 building across
all 32 of Scotland‟s local authority areas throughout the month. The Blas Festival in the
Highlands achieved a record attendance with a 25% increase in ticket sales and more visitors
than ever before from outwith Scotland. The Clan Scott Gathering in the Scottish Borders
proved a huge success and attracted people from across the world home to Bowhill. The Isle of
Barra Whisky Galore Festival was specially created for Homecoming and celebrated the
island‟s link with the Compton Mackenzie‟s book and the popular film. The Stena Line Wigtown
Book Festival developed the theme of whisky and literature and the Angus & Dundee Roots
Festival offered visitors a unique programme of ancestral trails, music and literature.
In October much of the focus fell upon the Highlands. The Baxters Loch Ness Marathon &
Festival of Running attracted record entries and included a special Homecoming Clan
Challenge, with the Clan MacDonald running out as overall winners. This was followed by the
two-week Highland Homecoming programme taking place across the Highland region. This
included the three-day Scotland’s Global Impact conference at Eden Court, Inverness, the
Shinty v Hurling International and around 100 community events and exhibitions. Elsewhere,
The Royal National Mod, Scotland‟s premier showcase of Gaelic language and culture,
returned home to its birthplace of Oban and enjoyed an extremely successful year with nearly
2000 children participating. The end of October saw the start of Dougie Maclean‟s 10 day
Perthshire Amber Festival. Advance sales had increased significantly with a number of events
sold out before the Festival had even started. 2009 saw a record attendance at Perthshire
Amber and the closing night Caledonia Concert, created specially for Homecoming, was the
biggest in the Festival‟s five year history
Throughout 2009 a programme of new exhibitions, created especially for the year of
Homecoming, are taking place across the country. Zig Zag: The Paths of Robert Burns
brings together some of the 36,000 iconic treasures from Scotland‟s National Burns Collection in
a major new touring exhibition and has attracted record breaking audiences. The influence of
Burns in the 21st century has also been celebrated in Inspired, a new exhibition of contemporary
visual art with works by internationally renowned artists such Tracey Emin, Peter Howson and
the Chapman Brothers. Exhibitions have also explored the theme of Diaspora and the cultural
connections between Canada and Scotland are showcased in This Is Who We Are, a
photographic exhibition which seeks to strengthen the links between Scotland and some of the
1000 towns and cities in Canada that derive their names from Scottish origins. As the year of
Homecoming approaches its Finale, exhibitions, trails and music sessions continue to celebrate
Scotland‟s rich culture and heritage.
FINALE
Now into November, the focus is clearly on ensuring we finish the year in style with a fantastic
programme of Homecoming Finale Celebrations and Scotland’s biggest ever St Andrew’s
Do. From the 26th to 30th November (St Andrew‟s Day) more than 40 events will take place
across the country and provide the backdrop to mark the Finale of Homecoming Scotland 2009
and celebrate St Andrew‟s Day (Scotland‟s national day). Scottish music will provide the
soundtrack to broad range of events, including a fantastic Traditional Music programme in
Dumfries featuring Scots Trad Music Awards, Hall of Fame Legends Concert and Dumfries
Fling - The Reel Thing; Homecoming Live and Shindig in Glasgow; the St Andrew’s Do and
Homecoming Art Car Parade in Edinburgh, Ceòl Nam Fèis in Inverness; Winter Light Night
in Dundee and a stunning Torchlight Procession & Son et Lumiere in St Andrew‟s itself. For
full listings and all the most up to date details visit: www.homecomingscotland2009.com/finale
PARTNERSHIP
Private sector support for Homecoming Scotland has continued to grow throughout the year with
new partners coming on board all the time.
Some of the country‟s most iconic brands and organisations have got behind the Homecoming
campaign with the offers of additional in-kind promotional support and direct cash investment.
Examples include Walkers Shortbread, Tunnocks and Edradour Distillery, all of whom
carried the Homecoming brand on their products. A G Barr produced a special edition Irn Bru
heritage can and associated promotional campaign and, for the first time in its history, CocaCola created a special edition bottle that carried the image of individual‟s face - Robert Burns.
First Group wrapped three double-decker busses in Homecoming advertising and ran them on
key routes through Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Glasgow throughout the year. Edrington Group’s
„Famous Grouse‟ whisky brand provided cash and promotional support for the World Famous
Burns Supper celebrations as part of the launch weekend. City Holdings provided £50K cash
support of the Inspired exhibition in Glasgow and provided further support when they waved their
naming rights to the Scottish Cup allowing it to be named the Homecoming Scotland Cup. This
brought with it the promotion of Homecoming to huge global audience delivering a total TV
audience for dedicated programming of more than 12.5 million with 8.4 million of those viewers
residing outside Scotland.

Homecoming Scotland 2009 - The Story

Transcription

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