How can your business capitalise on the 2012 Games?

The 2012 Games will place the UK firmly on the world stage and offer a once in a lifetime chance for businesses across the South West to capitalise on the opportunities the Games will bring.

Worldwide media coverage of the UK, both before and during the Games, will be vast and stretching way beyond the core sporting activities, into all aspects of our culture and history. The more readily available we make information for the press, the more coverage as a region, destination and as businesses we can gain. The Games offer us a springboard (excuse the pun!) to project the image of our region, at relatively low cost, into the homes and minds of many millions of overseas potential visitors. Potential visitors who will be inspired and hopefully come and see us in the years to follow.

We're also likely, as a region, to see more visits from Londoners in 2012 - those eager to decamp and escape the bustle of the Games and to head out to somewhere less hectic. The South West is in a superb position to cater for these people, allowing them to avoid the busy airports associated with overseas travel and offering a great visitor experience. These people are key to us all as if we impress them in 2012, we may change their usual travel plans and keep them as long term loyal visitors to the region.

The third key potential new audience comprises those competing in the Games and their supporters. We'll be working with VisitEngland and VisitBritain to encourage the sportsmen and their friends and families, to extend their stay in the UK and head further afield.

Aside from attracting new visitors, there are also likely to be changes in our traditional visitor patterns; those who live in the region, but usually take holidays abroad may prefer to stay at home in this special year. Equally, those loyal visitors who head to the region year-in-year-out, may prefer to stay at home themselves, or may head overseas to escape the Games.

And of course as a region we're hosting the Olympic sailing events at Weymouth and Portland. Later this week we'll be taking key people from VisitBritain and VisitEngland around Dorset and showing them the sites and venues associated with the Games, to make sure that South West gets at least our share of the coverage from the outset.

No doubt 2012 will be an interesting year for the industry in the South West and it's a year when it pays to think ahead. There will be huge opportunities and potential risks. Advanced planning and investment is the key to success. In order to help with this, South West Tourism have been working with partners to develop an ‘London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Tourism Business Toolkit' which is designed to help businesses gear up for 2012 and to put you in the best position to gain long term benefit. Over the coming months we'll be sending you excerpts from the Tool Kit to help you start to prepare.

With just over 1,000 days to go before the event starts... it's time to start planning!

If you have already started to think about the Games and the opportunities/risks that this brings to your business or destination and how you intend to address these or if you would like to discuss ideas with other businesses, please leave your comments below and don't forget to vote in our online poll to the right of this page.

Date added: Wednesday 14th October 2009
Latest updated: Thursday 8th March 2012