Public sector case study

Elevating Ripon BID's Success with Huq Reports

Transforming Ripon into a tourist destination with 164% increase in footfall

“Now I can load insights from the Huq monthly and quarterly reports straight onto our website and monthly newsletter.”

Lilla Bathurst, as the Ripon BID Manager, oversees marketing efforts to elevate Ripon’s visibility and economic growth. Ripon BID focuses on promoting tourism, marketing local businesses, and enhancing the city’s appeal.

Ripon BID functions with a small but mighty team of two, engaging directors and collaborators to drive various projects and initiatives supporting local businesses.

The challenge

Ripon faced the challenge of positioning itself as more than just a day trip destination, striving to highlight its diverse attractions, heritage, and local businesses to attract tourists and shoppers. Lilla had no way to track or convey the lofty impact of the different efforts her team made without physical surveys.

Traditional marketing efforts were primarily online-focused, lacking comprehensive data to measure the impact of campaigns and understand visitor behaviour.

Before Huq Reports, Ripon BID relied on online analytics and post-event surveys, which had limitations in accurately capturing visitor data and behaviour.

The goals:

Increase footfall and tourist visits in Ripon.
Elevate Ripon’s reputation as a desirable tourist destination.
Support local businesses and foster a thriving local economy.

“Previously, I couldn’t share comprehensive data because I had to craft reports mostly on my own. I lack the expertise of a data analyst and simply don’t have the time or resources for it… Also, the only way of tracking where people are coming from is literally asking them.”

The solution

Huq Reports provided comprehensive insights into footfall data, visitor patterns, and hotspot locations in Ripon, enabling a deeper understanding of visitor behaviour and preferences.

Huq’s impact:

Huq Reports streamlined data collection, offering accurate, real-time insights that facilitated informed decision-making for Ripon BID’s marketing strategies and initiatives.

“Now I can load insights from the Huq monthly and quarterly reports straight onto our website and monthly newsletter.”

Benefits:

Data-Driven Marketing: Huq Reports enabled informed decisions based on accurate visitor behaviour insights, optimising marketing strategies.
Time and Resource Efficiency: The platform saved significant time (generally approx. 5 weeks in data gathering) that would otherwise be spent manually collecting and analysing data.
Enhanced Board Communication: Huq Reports empowered Ripon BID to share comprehensive reports with their board and stakeholders, fostering greater trust and understanding.

Takeaways:

Board Engagement: Lilla emphasised the importance of an engaged board, actively involved in projects, alleviating workload pressure.
Networking & Collaboration: Collaborations with other bid managers and participation in industry events fostered idea exchange and learning from diverse experiences.
Continual Improvement: Utilising data insights from Huq Reports, Ripon BID plans to further enhance safety measures, expand initiatives, and continue successful projects like the theatre festival.

Results:

Increased Footfall: Reports showed healthy footfall trends, indicating a more vibrant atmosphere and increased business activities in Ripon.
Enhanced Visitor Experience: Marketing efforts focused on heritage, outdoors, and local businesses resulted in an 87% spending rate among families attending events.
Work Validation: Lilla can now swiftly demonstrate the value of her team’s projects to her stakeholders, resulting in heightened recognition from the press.

In conclusion, Lilla Bathurst’s comprehensive overview emphasised the strategic approach, encountered challenges, implemented effective solutions, and underscored the pivotal role of Huq Reports in highlighting Ripon BID’s remarkable success story. Leveraging the insights from Huq reports, Lilla’s team is poised to vividly demonstrate how data-driven insights can continue to revolutionise Ripon’s market and visitor experiences, serving as catalysts for economic growth and significantly augmenting the city’s overall appeal.