Birmingham Evening Mail
May 29, 2007, Tuesday
HEADLINE: All the fun of the fare;
David Bell
THE latest phase of a marketing campaign to drive up the profile of the West Midlands starts this week with a blue taxi blitz on Europe's capital cities.
Liveried taxis promoting the region will be appearing in Paris, Brussels and Gothenburg - as well as Birmingham. Fifty of the distinctive blue taxis will be ferrying business passengers to and from airports for the next 12 months.
One of the aims is to increase the number of companies investing in the region. In the three years since the launch of the campaign, more than 11,000 jobs have been safeguarded or created, a record for the region since regional development agency, Advantage West Midlands, was established in 1999.
In addition to the taxis, other activity launched at this year's property conference in Cannes included a four-and-a-half minute 'flight experience - already enjoyed by more than 700 European business contacts - a specially produced regional magazine and a range of e-publications.
The regional website -
www.thewestmidlandsregion.- co.uk - has also been updated to showcase stories of success and offer business contacts the opportunity to download regional stats and information. A team of West Midlands ambassadors includes Sir Digby Jones and broadcaster Adrian Chiles.
Carol Caveney, acting head of marketing at Advantage West Midlands, said:"The taxi campaign, in particular, we hope will really help drive the message home in Europe that the West Midlands is the best connected region in the UK and, combined with its excellence as a business location, is ideally suited for investment."
John Edwards, Advantage West Midlands chief executive, said: "Changing perceptions of our region is going to be a long-term task, but the work since the campaign launched has already paid dividends."
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