Christmas in Chichester

Client: Chichester BID
Partners: Chichester District Council, Chichester City Council
Timescale: July – December 2024

Brief

To deliver a city-wide festive campaign that would drive footfall, support local businesses, and cement Chichester’s reputation as a vibrant destination during the Christmas period.

Our Role

As Chichester BID’s retained PR and Marketing agency, BrightWord oversees the strategic planning, creative direction, and full marketing delivery of the Christmas in Chichester campaign. From conceptualising the key themes and developing the campaigns to creating the Christmas collateral, securing the celebrity judge for the much loved Christmas Window Competition and coordinating the partner activities, starting in July – we absorb ourselves in Christmas in Chichester.

Project Management & Delivery

We manage the campaign end-to-end – from content creation and event coordination to press, social media, and stakeholder engagement. Working closely with the BID team, we:

  • Developed and produced the Christmas in Chichester brochure, overseeing all content, design and distribution to over 17,000 local households.
  • Coordinated and scheduled the city’s key events, ensuring alignment with partners and timely delivery of promotional materials.
  • Managed sponsorship relations, devising the sponsorship proposals, benefit packages and securing high-value partnerships and advertising revenue.
  • Delivered full PR and media relations, including long and short lead features, event listings, broadcast interviews and regional news coverage.
  • Oversaw influencer marketing, social media strategy and content creation across all platforms.
  • Managed website content, launching and curating the Christmas in Chichester landing page – now consistently among the site’s most-visited pages each year.
  • Devised and supported interactive trail, working with multiple partners and local artists to create a Christmas Tree Stroll around the city featuring seven commissioned sculptures.

Influencer & Digital Success

To extend the campaign’s reach, we collaborated with lifestyle influencer @KatieKirkLoves (22.7k followers) to showcase independent Christmas shopping, dining experiences and the Chichester Gift Card. Her collaborative reel and carousel achieved excellent engagement, driving new followers to the @thisischichester page and increasing click-throughs to the campaign website.

Digital Performance

  • Christmas in Chichester pages dominated the site’s top ten most-visited pages.
  • The main landing page achieved nearly 10,000 views, with Google search visits increasing by 50% year-on-year thanks to enhanced SEO.
  • Direct traffic and referral visits rose significantly, reflecting the campaign’s effective cross-channel calls to action.
  • Key stats included 279k profile visits, a reach of over 32.6k and an 115% increase in interactions on Instagram over Q4

Press & Media

We drafted and distributed press releases for every major event, securing interviews with local and regional broadcasters. A new contact was also established with BBC Five Live’s Business Reporter & Presenter, expanding future media opportunities.

The Result

A cohesive, multi-channel campaign that elevated Chichester’s festive offer, strengthened community partnerships, and delivered measurable growth in online engagement and visitor footfall – while ensuring a strong and sustainable brand identity for years to come.