The country of Anguilla in the Caribbean positions itself on four brand values of beaches, romance, food and people. However, there is a lack of experiences supporting the people dimension. The Ministry of Tourism in the country of Anguilla (Caribbean) asked us to assist develop and market five Heritage centres covering: Archaeology, Maritime, Plantations, Salt and Craft. The Project was funded by the Commonwealth Secretariat. We worked closely with Indigenous Anguillans to determine the key stories and interactives for each Centre, as well as a guided tour product. We then determined development costs, operating forecasts and feasibility.
After the Business Case was approved, before we could develop a marketing plan, we had to go backwards and redefine the destination brand to accommodate cultural heritage. We conducted research and consultation with the Anguillan tourism, heritage and community leaders. We subsequently split the brand value of People into historic and contemporary. We analysed the historic stories and found links in historic character leading to contemporary character. Then we redesigned the concepts for the attractions to help them fit the brand and be positioned with clear competitive advantages.
After developing the brand, we developed the marketing plan, conducted a photo and video shoot of the experiences, a Passport-based ticketing system, a website that included ticket purchasing and guidelines to operate, brochures and sign plan.
We have not seen destination management concurrently integrate re-branding and product refinement before.
