Welcome to the November 2015 update.
Otley Business Directory – If you are a BID levy payer, don’t miss out on advertising your business for FREE within Otley’s largest Business Directory.
We now have approximately half of the businesses listed on the directory which can be viewed on 2 websites; www.otleybid.co.uk and on the Visit Otley website www.visitotley.co.uk.
What do I need to do to create my FREE advert? If you have created your login then please remember to complete all the sections required including a summary of your services, a logo or a photo of your business and the relevant tags to ensure that people can find you easily – see example below.
If you have yet to create your own personal login then please contact peter.mudge@otleybid.co.uk
We are currently putting together a marketing strategy to promote the Business Directory both within Otley and outside the town. As part of this strategy there will be a marketing pack that will be sent out to businesses to help you promote it to your customers, suppliers, friends and family. If you have any additional ideas on how you would like to see the business directory promoted, please contact peter.mudge@otleybid.co.uk.
Otley Marketing Committee – The newly formed Otley Marketing Committee presented their aims and objectives at The Chamber of Trade meeting held on Tuesday 17th November to both businesses and annual event organisers.
The committee is made up of 4 organisations, namely Otley Town Council, Otley Town Partnership, Otley Chamber of Trade and Otley BID.
It has been agreed that Otley should have ‘one main voice’ with regard to marketing ‘what’s on’ within the town and that this would be via www.visitotley.co.uk and its associated social media platforms, ie. Facebook and a newly set up Twitter account. The overall aim is for Visit Otley to be THE place to go to for both residents and visitors to find out about events, leisure activities and the many business services we have available within the town.
By doing this it means that Visit Otley can feed regular updates through to such organisations as Welcome to Yorkshire, Visit Leeds, Leeds List, local radio stations, newspapers, thus advertising Otley to thousands more people throughout the Wharfe Valley, Aire Valley, Leeds and Bradford.
The overall aim is to increase the number of visitors to our town and ultimately increase the local spend within our businesses.
We are therefore asking organisers of events, large or small, to:
- Send details of your event (in advance) to jane@otleytownpartnership.org. Your event will be promoted on visitotley.co.uk and with their wider network, ie. Welcome to Yorkshire, Visit Leeds, etc.
- Share any early preparation information; we can help you gain momentum/attract volunteers etc.
- Upload posts to their Facebook page and they will share it with their followers.
- Link Visit Otley into your Twitter posts and they will retweet it.
- Promote your links on the Visit Otley website and your posts on the Visit Otley social media pages in your marketing to help cross promote your event.
Otley Lido For Sale – You will have seen recently that the former Otley Lido/Rainbow Leisure at Wharfemeadows Park is now up for sale with Leeds City Council.
Offers are now invited to Leeds Council by a closing date of 12 noon on Friday 11th December 2015. Offers must be submitted using the offer form available from the ‘Documents’ section on their website http://www.leeds.gov.uk/Business/Pages/Former-Otley-lido.aspx.
Anyone wishing to arrange a viewing or ask further questions should contact James Child on 0113 247 4457 or email james.child@leeds.gov.uk.
Christmas Trees – As mentioned last month, we are delighted to be funding 204 Christmas trees this year to be situated on businesses throughout the town.
This means that throughout the year we have an opportunity to utilise the tree brackets in order to make best use of these fixtures. At present they are used for holding flags to promote the Tour de Yorkshire and Yorkshire Month, but we would like to hear if anyone has any other ideas on how these brackets could be utilised. Please email peter.mudge@otleybid.co.uk with your ideas.
Shoplifting – It has been brought to our attention that there has been a spate of shoplifting within some retail businesses in the town.
To help increase security for businesses and vulnerable staff, a form of radio system between the shops has been recommended. The aim being so that shop owners/employees can alert other shops with descriptions and ask for any help if needed.
Is this kind of scheme something that businesses would be interested in participating? If so please register your interest with peter.mudge@otleybid.co.uk.