Strategic Marketing and Communication Plan

In the Strategic Marketing and Communication Plan (SMCP) 2009-2010, ATCB defines its strategy in stimulating the tourist and business visits to Amsterdam. To achieve this the following marketing activities are employed: promotion, product innovation, research and press trips.

In the extremely competitive industry of European city tourism, it is of crucial importance for Amsterdam that it stays high on the wish list of city travellers. To achieve this, Amsterdam must retain its 'top of mind' position. This specifically means that Amsterdam must maintain its position in the European city top 10.

Marketing under one roof

For the implementation of the Strategic Marketing and Communication Plan ATCB works together with Amsterdam Partners, Amsterdam Convention Board (ACB) and Amsterdam Cruise Port (ACP). ACB is part of ATCB and is focused on marketing to the business visitor, specifically the MICE-market. The implementation is done in close collaboration with NBTC,  businesses in and around Amsterdam and abroad. Amsterdam Cruise Port, in which ATCB plays a very active role in both policy making and implementation hereof, is aimed specifically at cruise ports, cruise operators and cruise ship passengers that visit Amsterdam.

Just a small portion of the product of Amsterdam is tended for by ATCB. This implies that ATCB can only indirectly design and shape the product. However, it can use its knowledge about the demands of the market, corporations, institutions and governments, to stimulate an adaptation of the product in both form and presentation to suit the desires of the current client. 

Objective

Based on preliminary analyses ATCB wishes to create a situation in which the spending of tourists and business visitors is optimized. By spreading out the increasing number of visitors over the various city districts and the region, ATCB aims at a more efficient usage of the available capacity. This contributes to the economy and employment levels of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area.

Image building

It is the task of Amsterdam Partners to position Amsterdam in a broad sense. The image of Amsterdam needs to become increasingly uniform and the strengths of Amsterdam must be better highlighted.  Amsterdam Partners has chosen to strongly employ the current image of Amsterdam. In this context, one should consider Amsterdam as a city of culture, city of canals and meetings, combined with essential values such as creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. Coincidently one should strive to add new image building elements such as business, residence and knowledge.

Simultaneous action marketing

As indicated, specific positioning and presentation of the offer, including action marketing, lies within the tasks of the various specialisms of the ATCB.

Through its thematic approach, ATCB shall colour the promotional communication of all parties involved. On top of this, there is continues attention for the needs and preferences within the market so that impulses to the number of visitors can be generated within a short time frames. ATCB organizes this in close collaboration with its rank and file (travel trade, culture, attractions) and the travel industry abroad (operators, carriers).

Crisis marketing

Due to the financial and economic situation in the World, ATCB formulated some additional campaigns in 2009 to set a limit to any possible decline in the number of visitors. The composition of this resulted from close collaboration with the involved corporate and cultural sector.