Update from Sally Everton - Director

2nd March 2021

Visit Devon’s Director Sally Everton has been busy continuing to drive promotion of Devon as a county and keeping tourism industry up to date with everything that is happening nationally.

In February, Sally has been working on the following:

- Guest on Radio Devon afternoon chat show - re summer bookings and consumer reticent and Visit Devon

- HEROG meeting - on behalf of Devon & the GSW Tourism Group (LEP led) (fortnightly)

- SWTA meetings with regional DMOS/DCMS and continued work on the GSW Recovery plan (fortnightly)

- HotSWLEP working group meetings (fortnightly)

- Exeter Visitor Recovery Group meetings (fortnightly)

- APPG - tourism paper presentation by the GSW Tourims group

- Meet (virtual) with LoganAir marketing team wanting to work with us (with Exeter Airport)

- Connections project - ongoing activity and meetings

- Images and content to Nora Wallaya for her second piece in National Geographic on North Devon (Braunton Burrows and Croyde)

- Content and images to Suzy Bennet - Daily Telegraph re accommodation still available for summer months in Devon

- Various meetings with partnership potentials with Visit Devon. SixT; LoganAir;

- Submit Explore GB Content for Devon in readiness to choose appointments (1-5 March 2021)

- Content for LoganAIr - film footage and Visit Devon images to promote the county to Scotland and Northern England plus source accomm prize for Heart FM Competition

- Liason with Dr Louise MacCallister - DCC and Devon Communities re the Listenind Ear project for Devon tourism businesses. Gather partners to put webinar together

- Co-odrinate with LoganAir competition for holiday to Devon working with HeartFM (north) and Hampton by Hilton Torquay

- Begin the process for EXPLORE GB (5 day virtual event 1-5 March 2021) appointment selection with buyers/tour operators/travel agents/wholesalers. 56 appointments to date and diary closes 24th Feb

- Attend Meet GB (Meet England 2 day Virtual event - as Meet Devon) 20 appointments from meeting planners from associations, incentive houses and corporate with potential business for the country. 3 live enquiries ongoing

- Follow up on 20 contacts from MeetGB meetings + additional ones who came into our chat room

- Radio Devon and Spotlight - interviews throughout the month on the many challenges facing us as an industry with continued lockdown and when the sector will open

- Deborah Shelley - National Rail Great Days Out Guides…free listing aimed at leisure train travellers.

- Media requests fromWMN/Express & Echo and other media titles - editorial on where we see summer staycations to Devon

- Ongoing activity with Connections project - content and video working with Alex Graeme UDT

- Zoom calls - assisting 3 students with their dissertations, topics covering sustainable, accessibility and also Covid impact on tourism in Devon (students from Plymouth, Newcastle and Bristol Universities)

- Daily media requests for images, content, Daily Telegraph (Glamping) Guardian, Conde Naste, Talking Tourism, Food & Travel Magazine

- Working with DCC, Devon Communities and the Listening Ear -B2B webinar arranged for March with 3 Devon businesses

- KIT with DATA (Anne Blackham) and looking ahead for 2021/2022 and collaborative working

- Circulate via our various channels the FINAL report on the Covid-19 Business Impact Survey

- One to one discussion and our input with NCTA for the Great South West Recovery Plan strategy

- MIA - Destination Summit (Virtual attendance)

- Devon Tourism Awards - Meet the Finalists (Virtual meeting)

- Visit England / Visit England Webinars and industry updates x 2

- Visit Devon board meeting

Up and coming events for March

- ExploreGB - 1st - 5th March, incoporating VIBE (58 one to one appointments to date)

- Connections Board Meeting - 8th March