We applied tactics to reach and convert audiences from constituencies that have historically been harder to reach, with equal success.
UK Parliament
“Order, order!”, for UK Parliament’s digital offering
51°30′29″N, 000°07′41″W
Key takeaways
The Challenge
Arguably some of the most iconic individual buildings that represent Britain globally. But, only a few people know you can visit as an attraction and take tours. We had to show people this place means everyone in the UK and is a great experience.
The Work
Showcasing and creatively expanding their visitor marketing comms, we carried out a marketing transformation towards digital to reach a less engaged audience.
The Results
We reached millions of people with the campaigns, with substantial growth numbers for year-on-year and proved engagement with audiences never before connected within hard-to-reach areas.
A new digital direction for a world famous landmark
The public engagement arm of UK Parliament has two clear objectives that we were brought on to meet: to attract a wide range of visitors from the UK and overseas and, to promote education of, and engagement with,
the workings of Parliament and the democratic process. Navigate worked with the marketing team at UK Parliament to take their digital approach to the next level through rigorous strategy and highly targeted execution.
Our three objectives
Putting politics aside
Working with UK Parliament’s Participation Team, we developed a comprehensive digital marketing strategy. One built on key events in the Parliamentary calendar: summer and Christmas recesses, UK Parliament Week, and the general election. Our strategy also made the most of gifting opportunities through the online shop.
Flexibility was key. Audiences ranged from UK and international tourists, to youth groups and community organisations and charities, to people from traditionally disengaged or disaffected groups. And, of course, online shoppers. Each audience had very different needs and expectations of their in-person or online UK Parliament experience.
A three-part(y) policy
For each key calendar events and activity, we developed a baseline campaign made up of three parts: pay-per-click (PPC), display advertising, and retargeting (where visitors to a site are retargeted elsewhere online). We then used specific tactics for each activity to make sure we hit the right audience at the right time and in the right way.
For example, in the build up to the General Election, when ‘visiting days’ rose from one to six a week, we targeted UK and overseas tourists coming London to encourage them to join tours, with some slots free to UK citizens, and others available for paid-for tours. In particular, we targeted 16 to 24 year olds, who were able to take any of our paid-for tours for free during this period.
A cross-party approach
Combining PPC and display, we targeted people with an interest in key attractions and politics. We then applied this data to general tourists, history buffs and families, but tailored the messaging to maximise its relevance for each audience.
Most websites only convert 2% of web traffic on the first visit. So we used retargeting across all the campaigns to follow-up people who’d visited the relevant pages on the UK Parliament website or bought an item through the online gift shop.
Education and constituency engagement
For our education audience (including teachers and other decision-makers), we implemented a paid search and display campaign, promoting free education resources to teachers. Strong CTAs and simple messaging highlighted the curriculum-relevant resources available. We applied these tactics to reach and convert our audiences from constituencies that have historically been harder to
reach, with equal success. During December, we focused on the UK Parliament’s online retail offer, focusing on gift items for Christmas. Again, the campaign we created combined paid search, display, and retargeting and was aimed at a UK-wide audience, as well as those who’d shown an interest in UK Parliament.
96%
Increase in conversions for tours
400%
Increase in downloads of education materials in 4 weeks
71%
YoY increase in retail for the Christmas period
11.6m
Users reached
Ongoing strategic advice
To maintain the momentum for UK Parliament, we provide regular strategic support. These quarterly sessions with the Participation team aim to:
- Provide guidance on industry trends and insights that come from our vast experience in the sector
- Highlight future opportunities for digital within the team’s wider activities
- Identify ways of enhancing their current activities to increase their ROI.
All the work we’ve done has maintained UK Parliament’s very strict brand integrity. What’s more, being a publicly funded institution open to close financial scrutiny, we’ve had to make the most of a fair, but tight, budget to achieve the impact the brief required. It was a big ask, but we believe we’ve answered loudly and clearly.
“When we appointed Navigate in 2019, we were looking for an agency who could not only manage paid advertising but who could be a partner; who would think innovatively about our audiences and help to promote our wider offer around education, outreach, visitor and retail services. The team at Navigate have been a huge support in reaching and delivering on campaign objectives during the past year.”
Emma Terry // Head of Marketing, UK Parliament