Spending money on promoting Basingstoke's Top of The Town is key to its success (From Hampshire Chronicle)

Spending money on promoting Basingstoke's Top of The Town is the key to its success according to local traders and professionals

6:00am Friday 12th October 2012 in Hampshire Business By Richard Garfield

SPENDING money on promoting and marketing the Top of The Town area in Basingstoke should be key priorities, according to traders and professionals in the area.

More than 30 people attended the latest meeting which was instigated from a LinkedIn discussion on how best to spend a £100,000 Government windfall from The High Street Innovation Fund. Those who attended the meeting agreed on some priorities which included promoting and marketing the area, including signage and a map showing what is available.

Other issues discussed were making the area a better focal point, and the need for better management of Market Place as well as creating a major entrance to Top of The Town.

Digital marketing consultant Craig Killick, from Click 71, has set up a second LinkedIn forum specifically for those Top of The Town traders and professionals to share views and ideas. He is also in the process of establishing a Top of The Town website.

Pleased with the number of people who attended the meeting, Craig, who is also a director of Truly Scrumptious Beauty, in Cross Street, said: “There are a number of challenges to the regeneration of the Top of The Town area of Basingstoke.

“The high street is changing and although products can be bought online, experiences can’t. Investment in amenities and property is one thing, but it needs to combine with the offering from individual business owners and promotion so that people know that the Top of The Town is a destination in its own right.”