Partner Key Insights: Government, Trade, Investment, and the GREAT Campaign

International trade and investment are important drivers of economic growth and development and are crucial for the success of individual businesses. Clipper Race Team Partner the GREAT Britain campaign showcases the very best of what the UK has to offer in order to encourage the world to visit, study, and do business in the UK.

The GREAT campaign is the UK Government’s most ambitious marketing initiative to date and is currently active in 144 countries worldwide, providing HM Government’s full international network with a high-quality and consistent communications brand.

Steve Hilton, a former special advisor at 10 Downing Street, was part of the team who launched GREAT in 2011. From his latest book, Mr Hilton has said:

“Trade is unique to us as a species and is essential for human progress.

“We’ve farmed for around ten thousand years, but we’ve traded for a hundred thousand. Trade was inextricably linked to and financed the energy and communications revolutions that were instrumental in connecting disparate cultures from across the globe. Trade isn’t just human, it gave rise to the society we know today.”

The partnership with the Clipper Race, which follows the old trading routes and embodies the adventure of business, supports the GREAT campaign’s core objective of jobs and growth for the UK.

Operating in the intensely competitive international markets of trade, investment, tourism, and education, GREAT is strategically designed to maximise immediate and long-term economic returns for the UK by building positive profile, reputation, and soft power influence across multiple marketing channels.

Importantly, the GREAT brand has an independently assessed positive purchasing uplift of +8 to +18 percentage points on the buying actions of the UK’s target customers in trade, investment, education, and tourism. Those who have come into contact with GREAT are more likely to consider holidaying in the UK, buying British goods and services, investing in the UK, or studying at UK educational institutions.

During the 2015-16 edition of the Clipper Race, the GREAT campaign made over 100 new business connections. Since its launch in 2011, the GREAT campaign has seen returns of £2.7 billion for the UK economy, with a further £2.6 billion currently being validated by the GREAT central team. The campaign has hosted over twelve influencing events led by Heads of Missions and Ambassadors from across the British diplomatic service.

Read more in depth results of the partnership between the Clipper Race and The GREAT Britain campaign here.