Will London Survive the Coronavirus?

Yes! In fact London will thrive post-pandemic, here's why...

 The last year has been challenging for many people all over the world. Keeping our businesses afloat, seeing friends and family suffering, or not seeing them at all, struggling with home schooling and our mental health. Many are adapting and coping, but also desperate for the light at the end of the tunnel.

 There is a lot of discussion about whether a global metropolis like London can survive. What if we all stay away, working remotely? Would we lose our connection with the culture, creativity, buzz and success that is amplified in a great city such as London?  

Can we be confident in London’s future? I believe we can - by looking at its past, and at what makes it special.

 London’s strong roots

In an early mention of London, from the year AD 60, the Roman historian Tacitus wrote of a celebrated centre of commerce filled with merchants. By the 6th century it consisted of not one but two cities (London and Westminster) leading in finance and politics. Since then it has grown into the metropolis of today, with its spacious parks, sports facilities, palaces and world leading education, cultural and shopping districts. What characterises London is its people – the spirit of innovation, creativity, diversity, its adaptability – exactly what a post-pandemic landscape requires.

 Diverse and Resilient

When considering our strategy in 2017, we were faced with a challenging external environment. London had suffered from terror attacks and the result of the EU referendum was expected to knock international sentiment. How could we inspire people to continue to visit, to expand their businesses, to study in London, when they may not feel safe or welcome? We wondered if it was possible to identify the essence of what makes London special; a search for an insight that what would transcend short term issues.

 We opened the conversation with our audiences. What we found was that people felt strongly London would endure because of the values that Londoners have ‘baked in’ to the DNA of the city over many centuries.

 To them, London stood out as a highly energised city of opportunity that has continuously reinvented itself, underpinned by a diverse range of cultures, a blending of old and new in business, arts and leisure.  It is resilient, having survived plagues, fires and more recently, terror attacks and negative sentiment following the EU referendum.

 Creative, Adaptable and Open

To succeed (any) city needs to have a certain set of hygiene factors; to be seen as safe, welcoming and attractive. But to go the extra mile and create a wow factor, a city needs to have a great cultural scene, compelling history or be modern and dynamic.  

We found that the people we spoke to were confident in London’s future because it blends all of these factors. A strong heritage, credentials as a centre for creativity and free thinking, from Shakespeare to the birth of punk to the catwalks of today. This energy and cultural vibrancy can be felt in every aspect of London life: food, fashion, arts, exhibitions, recreation, shops, night life as well as in its pioneering universities, its leadership in science, sports excellence and open business climate. They called this ‘Creative Energy’, the soul of the city (see Allen Simpson’s article in City AM this week).

 So yes, I am confident in London’s future. It has creativity, passion and culture at its heart, remains open, welcoming to all. It will recover quickly and continue to thrive. As the city opens back up, there has never been a more important time to get out there, explore safely, celebrate our culture and love our capital as the rest of the world does: the greatest, most inspiring city of all. 

 Using insights to direct the recovery

London & Partners has always worked collaboratively, sharing data and insights, working in partnership across the London eco-system. We’ve conducted a several studies to understand our audiences, the impact of the coronavirus and how to help the city survive and recover. We know which sectors are thriving, how Londoners have been feeling and many of the challenges and positive stories that have emerged. I’ll share some of these insights as part of this series.

 About the Research (the geeky bit)

The study that inspired our Creative Energy proposition came from extensive research across 5 countries (UK, US, China, India and France). We undertook a research programme that consisted of stakeholder workshops, qualitative groups, online communities and quantitative testing. Starting with 45 different messages & 39 values, we reduced these down to a set of 12 territories before eventually homing in on 8 for the final validation phase.

Which resonated with you?

Each was tested across three factors: Love (emotional salience and connection), Uniqueness (differentiation against other global cities) and Impact (does it actually inspire a positive decision).

The matrix below shows how different audiences reacted to the concepts.

While some differences existed, Creative Energy resonated across all markets and audiences, so we could confidently use this as the common thread across our messaging. It since been adopted across many campaigns and amplified by London’s businesses with pride. Other insights we stumbled across that are relevant to today include a strong ‘show, don’t tell’ guidance on areas like Safety and Diversity. Pictures of positive experiences, happy people over guns, cordons and empty statements.

 This project was a real pleasure to work on and an excellent example of working in collaboration with partners, searching for answers that resonate with different audiences and uncovering insights that stand the test of time. My thanks to the sponsors and colleagues on the study: @Chris Gottlieb, @Laura Citron, @Leah Krietzman, @Christine Wingfield @Nick Bodger, @Gail Steeden and her team at @Humankind Research and @Claire Jones.

#mrx #marketresearch #insighttoimpact #londonisopen