Let's put Österlen on the map - for real!

With active marketing, June and August should attract 70% of the number of guests in July. And in May and September around 50%.

Today, we are not quite there...

Source: SCB/Tillväxtverket

We need to increase the number of guest nights in Österlen by approx. 80,000 guest nights or 30 % to reach these levels. Ystad is currently performing slightly better than Österlen, but if you include the figures for Ystad as well, we are currently just over 110,000 guest nights away from reaching these levels.

There are needs as well as buyers. They are just not queuing up ...

They expect that vi searches for the to sell. Once we have created a buyer's market ourselves, customers become expensive. And paradoxically, the longer we wait to invest, the more expensive it becomes. That's why we need to act now.

Source: SCB/Tillväxtverket

In summer 2023, restaurant turnover decreased by 25-30%.
If this type of result continues, many jobs - and businesses - in Österlen are at risk.

In 2023, the pre- and post-season for all types of overnight stays, with the exception of camping, were significantly lower.
For example, the number of guest nights in Simrishamn municipality was 8% lower in August compared to the same month in 2022. This is despite the fact that many hotels lowered prices and paid more in commission to get the rooms sold.

The season has become shorter and the development is now going in the wrong direction 🙁

The main reason is that it has not been taken into account that holiday home owners in Simrishamn municipality account for 74 % of the total number of guest nights. In other words, they are extremely important for the trade and service industry.

Source: SCB/Tillväxtverket, Lunkaberg Utveckling AB , Key figures surveys holiday homes

In 2022, trade turnover in Simrishamn was approximately SEK 1.44 billion. Of this turnover, the tourism industry accounted for more than a third, i.e. almost SEK 500 million!
The tourism industry is therefore the big cork on which the trade industry actually floats!

Source: SCB/Tillväxtverket

When we don't address our biggest market, which is also the easiest to reach, it is the market that drives us, not the other way round. And the result 'is what it is'.

Almost all events are promoted too late and 90% of all information is aimed at those already in Österlen.
Today, guests can find a lot of information about what is happening in Österlen - once they have arrived. But if we are to attract new guests, we must be much earlier in selling our events. We must give them, our target groups, "A Reason To Go"!

We must use a unified message to convey what we are and where we are. And that you find the best of Sweden in Österlen.

Everyone understands that individually we are small. But together we are big.

The wheel should not be reinvented. We have chosen to use Destination Österlen AB as a marketing tool and partner. With an extremely modest budget, österlen.se has already succeeded in making Österlen one of Sweden's most visited destinations both on instagram and on the web. In 2023, Österlen had more than xx unique visitors.

• With a real marketing budget, the marketing of Österlen will be raised to completely new levels.
• Österlen will be marketed all year round and - unlike other Swedish destinations - we will prioritise our largest market: Sweden! Mainly via digital channels but also analogue.
• The ambition is to have a marketing budget of 4.5 million - every year
• Next, Greater Copenhagen and Zealand will be a prioritised market and tool for creating new seasons in Österlen.
• österlen.se produces all image and film material for social media and the website, as well as for brochures, maps and newspaper adverts.
• At österlen.se, we have now launched an industry page for the business community where we collect information, guides and tips. You can also post activities and events there.
• österlen.se will also gather all major events under the Österlen umbrella. And make the majority of them bookable directly through the österlen.se website.

We are launching a marketing campaign already in the first months of the year. If this year's Easter is to be better than 2023, we must secure this now. An increase in Swedish traffic of 40,000 guest nights (+16%) from April to October we see as a fully realistic goal.

We will create new seasons and delve deeper into the interests and preferences of different customers. We will target people like gastronauts, flea market lovers, beach lovers, culture vultures, silence seekers and those who enjoy life.

These personas are our fictional characters that represent our target groups. They describe the needs, goals, attitudes and behavioural patterns of the target audience. This makes it easier to imagine the person who visits our websites and who can use/purchase all the services and experiences at Österlen.

Knowing the most about their expectations and needs optimises our ability to communicate with them in the most effective way possible. When we have also identified their respective customer journeys, it becomes even easier to offer the right content to the right personas in Österlen.

Within 5 years we will be the best bridge builders in Sweden. Österlen is to become the closest holiday destination to Copenhagen and Zealand. "With lots of experiences, good food and drink - and everything" as the Danes say.

We believe in a much better future for Österlen as an attractive visitor destination and region. Achieving this requires a strong and competitive visitor, trade and experience industry with profitable entrepreneurs who contribute with tax revenues and jobs. Therefore, we will work actively with marketing and sustainable place development to ensure that the Österlen brand evokes positive associations and attracts more visitors, investors and new residents.

If you have said A, you must say B ...
We have now founded an economic association to be able to gather all the good forces to create a market beacon for the business community in Österlen.

The principle is both simple and sustainable. Individually we are small, together we are big. That's why it was natural to contact some of the district's major players who share our great belief in Österlen.

With the help of the region's largest property company, together with Sparbanken Syd and Österlens Kraft, we have put in place a small start-up capital of almost SEK 1.75 million.
This will allow us to launch our first major campaign already in March.

1. In a short time - and without any real marketing budget - they have put Österlen on the map like no other in the region.
   Their efforts have not gone unnoticed. In 2022, they were named Business Ambassador of the Year in Simrishamn Municipality. Naturally, they were proud, but above all, they were even more eager to lift Österlen even further.
2. Unlike other destinations, they have focused on Sweden and not abroad.
   This has proved to be right as 85 % of all guest nights in Österlen are Swedish. österlen.se knows how to reach out to the Swedish market.
3. With a simple and good design, österlen.se has made it easy to distinguish Österlen from other destinations.
   Remember: Austrians are not chosen because we are the same, but because we are different - and better! - than everyone else. Let's create more unique stories and tales about Österlen that no one else can plagiarise.
4. Österlen.se is the best tool to tell people that Österlen is the best in sun and beach in Sweden
   That's why your business needs to be involved too. If all companies in the hospitality and experience industry are to get a bigger slice of the pie, we must first make the pie bigger. Much bigger.

• Sparbanken Syd
• Leisure Österlen AB
• HKM AB
• Salana AB
• Österlens Kraft AB

Österlens Besöks- och upplevelsenäring Ekonomisk Förening

Member organisation. The united force where all parties are represented. Led by the industry, sets short- and long-term goals and plans, applies for grants. Controls the marketing function, i.e. österlen.se. The industry is represented on the board by Pontus Hansson Cederberg from Brösarp Gästgifveri and Ola Ambuhm from Fritid Österlen/Campingnäringen. The board is completed by Morgan Ristmägi, Salana and Mr Frans Mårtensson, HKM, from the property owners/infrastructure sector,

The Chairman of the Board is Klaas van Ommeren, who has a background as CEO of a destination company, marketing director in a ferry company, several hotels and a resort company (7 (app) hotels and a ski centre). He has been a consultant in the tourism industry - in his own company and as an employed CEO (National Centre for Rural Tourism in Norway). Österlen is the sixth tourist destination he now works with. He is now co-owner of Lunkaberg Bed & Breakfast in Gislöv.

Destination Österlen AB a.k.a. österlen.se

• Established player who has built Österlen into one of the most visited online destinations in Sweden with no budget
• No start-up time, as the site already attracts 600,000 visitors/year.
• The average visitor spends 2 minutes 22 seconds on the website.
• 26,500 followers on Instagram, with a growing number of followers on other social media channels.
• Offers direct booking of accommodation/activities directly via österlen.se.
• The right skills and locally rooted.
• Christian Esbjörnsson, Kivik/Simrisham, university educated in Tourism. Several years of work experience from various international tourist villages, including 3 years as marketing manager for the Dutch Tourist Office in the Nordic region. Operates hotels and restaurants in Simrishamn since 2003.
• Mr Peter Carlsson, Simrishamn, filmmaker/photographer based in Simrishamn. The man behind almost all reports from Österlen in lifestyle magazines over the past 25 years, including Elle Decoration, Residence, Lantliv, Gods & Gårdar. Worked with Tareq Taylor, Tina Nordström, Daniel Berlin to name a few. www.peter.se
• Noak Karlsson, Simrishamnspåg, The spider in the web for österlen.se since 2017. Wide network of contacts, trained in web development.
• Lars Rabe, the nestor. From Malmö's hottest advertising city years, he headed for Österlen. Long-time resident of Borrby. Made more websites than any other in Österlen.
• One of the country's largest archive with pictures/films from Österlen.