Understanding the opportunities to attract potential and lapsed visitors to a National Trust Estate
Ickworth Estate is a National Trust property located in Suffolk. It is an iconic Italianate palace, set within 725 hectares of parkland and formal gardens. Visitor numbers were strong and increasing year on year, but there is a belief that the property has even greater potential to attract different groups of visitors given its cycle and walking paths, parkland, formal gardens, café and of course, the art, architecture and history in the house itself.
Approach
The National Trust already had a good understanding of existing visitors but wanted to learn more about non-visitors and lapsed visitors (living within a 60 minute drive time of the Estate). Research comprised online surveys, with quotas set on different demographics, to capture their awareness, perceptions, what aspects are important when visiting heritage attractions, reasons for not having visited Ickworth recently or at all, appeal of the offer once know about it and likelihood to visit.
Outcomes
This potential visitor insight, when coupled with existing visitor data has helped identify key target audiences, what appeals to them and how to attract them without alienating existing and especially regular visitors. The research is currently being used to help inform the Experience Design plans to grow visitor numbers to the Estate over the next 10 years.
For more information please contact:
Nick How Research Director
nick.how@qaresearch.co.uk
01904 632039
