Gleneagles Hotel has joined forces with the official promotions agency for Edinburgh to cash in on the capital’s burgeoning leisure and business tourism market.
Kinross House Estate has also signed up with Marketing Edinburgh in the strategy in reach new audiences.
The five star hotel near Auchterarder is the first member to join up with the capital’s promotions agency from outside the Edinburgh and Lothians region, bringing the total number of affiliated businesses to more than 220.
The move reflects the growing diversity in the organisation’s membership, which offers access to new audiences through Marketing Edinburgh’s leisure and business tourism contacts and digital channels.
Hillary Bett, Marketing Edinburgh’s head of membership services, said: “We are thrilled to have Gleneagles join us as our first official Perthshire member.
“While our Edinburgh-based membership is obviously hugely important, as the gateway to Scotland, venues outside the city are beginning to realise that they too can benefit from a closer working relationship with Marketing Edinburgh.
“Both Marketing Edinburgh’s consumer facing This is Edinburgh website and social channels, which has a reach of over 410,000 unique users, and Convention Edinburgh’s business tourism network allows its members to raise awareness and promote their venues to new, relevant audiences that they would not necessarily be able to reach.”
The Edinburgh Rewards programme of exclusive offers in bars and restaurants available to delegates was a further attraction, she added, in encouraging conference delegates to explore Edinburgh’s offering to visitors.
Val Eglinton, director of sales at Gleneagles Hotel, said: “Gleneagles is thrilled to join Marketing Edinburgh as its first partner from out with the Edinburgh and Lothians region.
“Only one hour’s drive from Scotland’s beautiful capital, we offer an unrivalled array of country pursuits, perfect for team-building and incentives. We are ideally placed to host pre and post events and individual extensions.
“Our ongoing refurbishment programme is creating vibrant and dynamic meeting areas, making now the perfect time for Gleneagles to partner with Marketing Edinburgh.”
Convention Edinburgh’s most successful year on record was 2014-15, with 206 events confirmed to be attended by over 74,000 delegates and generating £94.3 million for the local economy.
