Dorset Moon – Award winning campaign

Brief

Project: Dorset Moon (Commissioned by Arts Development Company, b-side, Arts by the Sea Bournemouth, and Activate)
Project Duration: 2019
Project Scope: Website Development, Branding, Social Media, Marketing, and PR Strategy

Overview: In 2019, we led the marketing strategy for Dorset Moon, featuring Luke Jerram’s stunning Museum of the Moon installation. The event, spanning three iconic Dorset locations – Bournemouth, Weymouth, and Sherborne – aimed to bring together communities in an awe-inspiring celebration of art and culture. Our role involved delivering a robust marketing campaign with a strong focus on digital outputs, ensuring high levels of engagement across all platforms.

Key Objectives

Develop a comprehensive marketing strategy to increase awareness and attendance.
Drive traffic to the Dorset Moon website, engaging visitors and capturing interest across three event locations.
Achieve a target attendance of 12,000 across all installations and events.
Strengthen local business engagement and secure press coverage on national, regional, and international levels.

Dorset Moon Project Highlights

Testimonial

“Støriie created the marketing strategy and implementation for one of Dorset’s major cultural festivals project – Dorset Moon. The event and brand was successfully promoted locally, nationally and across the world (including the USA and China!) The reach of the promotion was extraordinary and far exceeded expectations. We had complete confidence in Storiie’s marketing knowledge and creative expertise.”

Jacky Thorne, Programme Manager , The Arts Development Company

Dorset Moon Results

Strategic Approaches:

Website & Content Development: Created the Dorset Moon website, resulting in over 27,000 unique users from February to August 2019. I ensured consistent, engaging content across the website and supporting digital channels, including SEO-optimized pages, partner social media, and email newsletters.
Social Media Strategy: A dynamic social media campaign was rolled out using the #DorsetMoon hashtag, achieving a combined reach of over 378,000 on Facebook, 227,000 on Twitter, and 28,000 on Instagram. The promotional film garnered 2,440 views, significantly boosting engagement.
Press & Media Coverage: Dorset Moon received extensive coverage, with features in national outlets like The Daily Telegraph and The Observer, as well as regional press such as BBC South Today and Dorset Echo. Internationally, the campaign achieved global recognition, with coverage on major platforms such as CNN News (USA), Die Welt (Germany), and People’s Daily (China), extending the festival’s reach beyond the UK.
Business Engagement: Engaged 45 local businesses, with 17 competitions and associated events created to boost community involvement. Window displays and Mailchimp newsletters supported the campaign’s success, achieving a 33% open rate and a 4.9% click rate, well above industry averages.

Gold Award Winner for Destination Awards
Visitor Numbers: Over 50,000 people attended across the three sites, far exceeding the original target of 12,000, demonstrating the event’s resounding success in attracting and engaging visitors.
Website Success: Achieved 27,000 total unique users and over 87,000 page views, with the average session lasting 1 minute 34 seconds. Key pages, such as the event’s full programme and individual location pages, saw high levels of traffic.
Digital Campaign Reach: #DorsetMoon gained 1,499 Instagram uploads and 421 tweets, while our promotional film was viewed 2,440 times. The campaign was amplified by the combined social media reach of all four partners, resulting in high engagement across multiple platforms.
Print & Advertising: Managed a comprehensive advertising campaign, including print runs, paid advertising, and distribution across Dorset, enhancing the event’s visibility in both digital and physical spaces.

Impact: The Dorset Moon marketing campaign not only exceeded visitor expectations with over 50,000 attendees but also achieved a significant global reach, elevating Dorset’s cultural landscape on an international scale.