Future Plans

NewcastleGateshead Initiative’s future work will:

• Maintain and grow NewcastleGateshead as a leisure and business destination
• Play a central role in promoting North East England as a key gateway to the region
• Harness the pride and passion of our people
• Position NewcastleGateshead as one of the UK’s best places to live, learn, work and visit   
• Help to promote everything that is world-class about NewcastleGateshead
• Celebrate and promote the success of our members’ businesses
• Make NewcastleGateshead and North East England a venue for world events
• Develop and learn from partnership with other cities nationally and internationally
• Support the broader development of tourism in Tyne and Wear and North East England

Core Areas

There are four core areas of work and a number of other roles which will inform our Corporate Plan and work programme:

Destination Marketing:

• Research into visitors
• Marketing of NewcastleGateshead nationally and internationally working with other partners
• The production of city guides for targeted audiences in English, German, Spanish, Norwegian and Dutch
• Tourism packages with hotels
• Events marketing 
• E-commence activity via our website

Convention Bureau Business:  

• Sales and development of conference business
• Competitive bidding for conferences
• Conference venue fulfilment
• Conference services including online hotel booking services via our website
• Promotion at national and international trade shows
• A conference ambassadors programme
• Advocacy and support for the development of new hotels and conference facilities in NewcastleGateshead

Cultural Events:

• The coordination and development of an annual programme of world-class events in partnership with other cultural agencies across North East England
• The direct management and production of major events and festivals
• Capacity building for event promoters
• The brokerage of sponsorship
• Evaluation of the social and economic benefits of cultural events
• The development of national and international partnerships

Press and PR:

• Daily press activity promoting positive messages
• 'Feel good’ campaigns
• National and international press visits
• Targeted media partnerships
• PR activity around conferences and events
• Thought leadership projects which support our brand values
• Press activity on cultural events

Other Roles:

• Private and public sector networking via our membership
• Information and training to staff at the airport, taxi drivers and hotels
• A role as an independent spokesperson and champion for projects
• A ‘critical friend’ role on customer service feedback to venues, hotels, transport providers and the Local Authorities
• An ambassador for the region at conferences and events nationally and internationally
• Input to various regional policy developments