SWITCH On To Swindon has smashed its progress target, signing up 400 businesses and organisations in its first six months.

The business-led marketing initiative launched in January is aimed at promoting Swindon as a fantastic place to live, work, visit and do business.

The team has been recruiting ambassadors to share their stories. The goal was to sign up 200 by now but already 400 are on board.

“SOTS has galvanised a good number of businesses in Swindon which was the aim to start with,” said Gavin Calthrop, head of place marketing at Swindon Borough Council.

“Now we need to start thinking about how we build on that and properly target our external promotion and marketing.

“We’re looking at targeting some of the bigger trade shows over the next six months for example, the project is very much on track.”

It is often difficult to forecast how campaigns of this type will be received. But among the business community there is now a gathering momentum around the importance of promoting Swindon outside the confines of the town.

“It’s been really heartening,” said Gavin. “I thought I might be spending the first few months trying to jam my foot in the door of offices and persuade people to get on board but actually it’s been anything but that.

“There is a sense that there were a lot of businesses and influencers in Swindon just waiting for an opportunity to put their head above the parapet and talk it up. They thought they were lone voices but what SOTS has done is to provide a banner that everyone can get behind.

“There’s a lot of momentum – everyone is very enthusiastic about promoting Swindon and getting involved.”

The next phase is perhaps the most challenging as the SOTS team work to harness the positive experiences and testimonies of its ambassadors into a package that can be taken out around the country to spread the Swindon story.

They are planning a targeted, focussed approach aimed at particular sectors where the potential for growth and expansion in Swindon has been identified as a goal.

“We need to look at where we can add to what we’ve got in Swindon or look for opportunities where existing businesses can grow and how we can then attract the right businesses to come and base themselves here.

“When I started I thought we would be looking for those big relocations but actually, talking to businesses here, we’ve found that there is huge potential for growth in our existing business base.

“Some of the things holding them back are perceptions about Swindon and doing business here, being able to attract the right people to move here which is a big problem. We’ll be looking to put things in place to help towards that.”

The next amabassador event will be held at the Dick Lovett showroom on July 19 at 6pm.

Free tickets from https://sotssummerevent.eventbrite.co.uk