Highclere Castle, the historic home of the Earl of Carnarvon, is making
its first significant foray into above-the-line advertising with the
appointment of the Brand Development Company.
The agency’s brief is to triple the number of visitors to the house to
more than 70,000 next year.
A prominent feature of the advertising will be the house’s renowned
collection of artefacts from the tomb of Tutankhamun, which was
discovered by the fifth earl.
The appointment, made without a pitch, adds to the Brand Development
Company’s travel and leisure portfolio, which includes the Tunisian
National Tourist Office and Harewood House.
The campaign, backed by an initial budget of pounds 100,000, is a
shift away from Highclere’s traditional reliance on PR and word of
mouth.
It coincides with an extension of the the house’s opening hours during
the coming season and greater emphasis on the promotion of its corporate
entertainment facilities.