Some of their trade secrets
- Motivated, enthusiastic staff who truly love welcoming visitors
- Using PR effectively to raise the profile of the Castle and events
- Working with other local attractions to make marketing budgets go further
- Finding ways to offer ‘something different’
- Encouraging visitors to get more involved e.g. by handling items in the Castle
- Using VAQAS to gain an objective, external review
What did you do before Rockingham?
Well, there’s a story! I started my career as a Jackaroo – a junior cowboy in Australia. Following that I came back to London as a painter and decorator, followed by an estate agent. After a stint in the army I then ran an estate in Devon, followed by my first visitor attraction in Ashcombe, Devon. From here spent six years at nearby Belvoir Castle, which was an amazing experience.
Why did you move to Rockingham?
I saw a greater challenge. Visitor figures had dropped dramatically in recent years and the events had stopped. It was a challenge and I love challenges. The Castle had a wonderful position and a great team.
What has changed over recent years?
In the last six years we’ve increased the business by 100%. We are open 50 days a year and have 70 days for group bookings. Last year the Castle attracted 26,000 visitors as well as an additional 15,000 visitors to events and 2,500 for private hire such as weddings.
Part of the success has come through marketing and PR. I told people that we were here and began talking to local press and tourism organisations.
The culture of how we look after visitors has also changed dramatically. At that time the common culture in historic houses was that staff are guardians and there to prevent everything being stolen! It wasn’t that extreme here. But there was an element of thinking that visitors were lucky to be allowed in and that they should feel deferential to the surroundings.
The line I took was to treat visitors how you would like to be treated yourself. It’s so simple, yet so fundamental. The idea that we should be more welcoming to visitors was extremely well received. It changed the way visitors experienced the Castle almost overnight. Visitors enjoyed being here and they felt valued.
What did you change about the visitor experience?
I encouraged guides to talk more to visitors and become guardians of visitors rather than simply guardians of the Castle. It was an easy transformation to make. I simply made the suggestion to the guides and they welcomed the idea. We also started to encourage visitors to get involved in the Castle environment. For instance we have a collection of helmets and a pair of gauntlets in The Great Hall that visitors can try on.
It’s very easy in a place like this to get bogged down in the surroundings and be overly precious. This is a living home and always has been. It makes visitors feel welcome if they can handle some of the items and it can be great fun dressing up!
How do you use PR?
Ruthlessly! I’m a prolific writer of press releases. I’ll write a press release about a press release if I think there is a chance of a newspaper or radio station featuring the Castle. I send out about 30 press releases a year about events, new developments and newsworthy stories. Local media coverage helps sell the castle and at no cost to us, other than my time.
About five years ago I sent a press release to the Telegraph and they used it! Two years ago the Saturday Telegraph featured a huge picture of the Castle on its front cover. It was completely random, but a great opportunity.
I’ve built up a strong relationship with the local press. I know a number of journalists very well and take them out to lunch from time to time. I’ve put myself about – in the nicest sense! And now I find that media approach me to be involved in radio debates and interviews. I’m very easy on radio. I’ve got answers and, most of all, I’ve made myself available.
What makes Rockingham successful?
It’s the people. They are enthusiastic about Rockingham and about welcoming visitors. The level of welcome is exceptional. I go out and about to other attractions and it makes me realise how good the welcome is here. I maintain that the most important person in our organisation is the person manning the ticket office. They are the first person that visitors see. How they look after a visitor in those first few minutes can make or break their visit. Make someone feel welcome when they arrive and then everything else will follow and the visit will be a success.
Also we give staff time to stop and chat with visitors. In a busy world where everything goes at a thousand miles an hour, it is precious for visitors to step into a world where time doesn’t matter.
We also go the extra mile by offering something that visitors don’t always expect. On open days we have a musician who plays the piano in the long gallery. We also do free outside tours. For families including the growing market of grandparents visiting with
grandchildren we have developed the ‘Wentworth’s Gold’ trail of gold coins around the estate and i-spy game inside the Castle.
It’s also about making it fun. Many families have a conscript that has been dragged along and would rather be doing something else. It’s great if we can convert them. It doesn’t always mean that we have to encourage them to appreciate art or furniture. They might just have a blast playing the i-spy or trying on a helmet.
How do you motivate staff?
I lead by example. But our staff have it in their nature to be positive and enthusiastic. They have a passion for Rockingham. They all work incredibly hard, but they remain enthusiastic and enjoy being here.
We also take staff outside of the Castle environment and have a regular estate day out. We visit similar attractions such as Woburn Abbey, Chatsworth and teams have the opportunity to meet up with their opposite numbers at the host attraction. It’s a hugely beneficial exercise – staff see the good and the bad and it allows us to benchmark ourselves and pick up good ideas.
What is the most important skill you need as Operations Manager?
An ability to sell. It’s also the ability to see the positive in everything you do. My glass is half full rather than half empty. If you have this attitude then this sort of job can come incredibly easily. I love what I do and I think most of the team would say the same. They go the extra mile without any complaint at all. They just get on and do it.
What is the benefit of having a VAQAS assessment?
VAQAS gives us an objective, external view of what we’re doing and how well we’re doing it. It helps us maintain standards and identifies areas for improvement. The feedback we receive is generally outstanding and we always share the report with the team.
What has been your proudest moment?
Winning the Silver award at the National Enjoy England for Excellence Awards in April. I was bitterly disappointed we didn’t get gold! But winning Silver was just wonderful, not only for me, but for the team. It’s all very well me telling staff what a great job they’re doing. But this means so much more. It’s knowing that a mystery shopper has visited the Castle and that we’ve stood up to scrutiny.
How did you celebrate?
We have lots of parties. Each time we’ve won an award we’ve had a drinks party or a summer party for everyone on the estate, not just the house staff. Everyone is involved.
Do you work with other local attractions?
Yes, we’ve been part of ‘Hidden England’ for seven years. It’s essentially a marketing partnership. All the principle partners which include Rockingham Castle, Belton House, Burghley and Belvoir Castle invest funds into a central marketing pot. Other partners which include hotels and other attractions support the activity. We have a website, leaflet as well as the support of marketing and PR managers.
What is the benefit of working with other attractions?
Mutual support is better than all of us trying to compete against each other. We’re stronger together and our marketing budget goes much further. We’ve taken a stand at the Excursions group travel fair at Alexandra Palace. We couldn’t do this on our own. And it’s also about promoting and raising the profile of the region as well as promoting ourselves.
What are your plans for the future?
Maintain the quality of our visitor experience and hold visitor numbers at around the 28,000 level. We would like to grow our special interest events e.g. family concerts, club events such as Rolls Royce who are already signed up to visit in a couple of years. These specialist events tend do their own marketing which takes the pressure off the team here. More importantly, they bring in new audiences to the Castle and the area as a whole. We want visitors to come, enjoy and leave having exceeding their expectations.
What are your top tips?
- Smile
- Be enthusiastic
- Take pride in what you’re offering
