An independent survey was carried out in early-2017, which asked town centre businesses about creating a BID in central Shirley. Responses were received from over 100 businesses, almost 70% of which supported a project of this type being taken forward.
The survey responses suggested a series of improvements for Shirley, all of which would be in addition to any existing activities. These suggestions included
Profile & Promotion:
- Create high-quality town centre branding and imagery to support a series of year-round promotions targeted at key audiences and catchments
- Carry out market research to identify how local people and visitors think the town could be improved and to identify potential new visitor sources
- Develop marketing campaigns to highlight the strengths of Shirley, to include promoting events, food & drink venues, the retail offer, independent businesses and key trading periods
- Create targeted promotions to increase footfall during currently quieter trading periods
- Oversee targeted Social Media campaigns to draw significantly more people into the town centre
- Establish links with partner organisations to develop collaborative and coordinated projects which better promote Shirley’s image, both locally and regionally
Events & Vibrancy
- Develop at least two major new town centre events, with business suggestions being sought on the themes for these
- Develop a comprehensive programme of new street entertainment to cover different areas of the Stratford Road corridor at different trading periods
- Introduce an annual calendar of street markets
- Make ongoing investments to improve the Christmas light displays