It is a very exciting time here in Newport, writes Hussain Bayoomi, managing director for Newsquest Wales, Hereford and Somerset, with the new ICC Wales opening later this year and the prospect of thousands of visitors coming to our city.

Newport needs to step up to the plate and show the world what it can do.

So with all this in mind we, along with our sister title the South Wales Argus, are launching the City of Service campaign

The campaign will be focusing on educating and informing local businesses on the best practice required to deliver a great customer experience.

With the prospect of attracting more people into the area through tourism, leisure and entertainment, it is important to put some focus on the user experience.

So, what does great look like?

By joining forces with key strategic partners our aim is to take a deep dive into topics such as branding, customer service, digital marketing and retail.

We will be opening the discussion, so that we can talk honestly about the challenges and opportunities available to SMEs throughout the city.

The key to the success of the campaign is to constantly improve business performance and in so doing making Newport the most welcoming city in Wales, delivering the very best in service, and celebrating and communicating that success.

We want to create a WOW factor, making residents and visitors proud of where we are and what we do.

We want to showcase all the incredible businesses in the city and around Gwent.

It’s down to us to shout about what we are good at and the incredible people and services on offer.

We will be speaking to all sorts of business people and experts and using our popular South Wales Argus platform to share their stories and advice – be it via video on our website or in stories and features in the paper and this magazine.

The Newport City of Service will offer a range of opportunities:

• Skills development

• E-learning

• Discussion groups

• Business briefings

• Round table discussions

• Seminars

We will be inviting businesses to learn how to deliver the WOW factor using our platforms and relationships to deliver support, advice and information on:

• Skills growth

• Recruitment

• Digital marking

• Insight and intelligence

We plan to create an events calendar which pulls together a schedule of key events throughout Wales but showcases those in Gwent.

And we want you to be part of the campaign and help Newport and the surrounding area shout that it is a City of Service and that it is proud to be one.