A Saffron Walden marketing company has launched a new Twitter hashtag aimed at building business relationships and attracting more visitors to the town.

Saffron Walden Reporter: Leonardo Wood, centre, with Judith Thompson and Mark Starte from the Tourist Information CentreLeonardo Wood, centre, with Judith Thompson and Mark Starte from the Tourist Information Centre (Image: Archant)

#SaffronHour began last Tuesday (September 15) between 4-5pm, and the idea is the brainchild of Leonardo Wood, 43, who moved his LGX Marketing business to Shire Hill three weeks ago.

This week #SaffronHour achieved 3.3 million page impressions in nearly 1,000 tweets within the hour, an increase of 2m impressions across the social media network from last week’s launch.

With people being able to search hashtags on Twitter directly, it can help businesses to be found by their target audience, and Leonardo found success with a similar hashtag in his previous residence of Tendring.

#Tendringhour still runs today, two years since its inception, and Leonardo is hopeful that the people of Saffron Walden will strive to get involved to raise awareness of the town among potential visitors.

He said: “We want to make it easier for local businesses to come together.

“It’s about building relationships in the local business community, but also we want to get as many people as we can talking about Saffron Walden online.

“In this week’s #SaffronHour, more than 155,000 tweets or retweets reached other people’s timelines, and that’s up from 100,000 last week so already we’re seeing positive results. It’s very exciting for everyone in the community.”

With the support of Uttlesford District Council, Leonardo is also planning to run some free intenet marketing workshops in Saffron Walden as he recognises that the Twittersphere can baffle business owners.

Leonardo said: “It’s very easy for businesses to get lost on social media. The main problem I find with small businesses is that they try to sell online straight away without having a long-term strategy.

“Advertisements are everywhere now, all over the internet on websites and apps, and people are overloaded, they don’t see them. It’s more about raising awareness, and being in the right place when their customers need them.”

Leonardo is working closely with the Saffron Walden Town Team and the Tourist Information Centre to help find ways to boost tourism, and next Tuesday (September 29) will be hosting a free SaffronHour “Meet and Tweet” at the Railway Pub in Station Road from 4-6pm.

For more information on #SaffronHour, workshops or training courses, visit www.lgxmarketing.com.