|
BCL Home Page Subscribe to Newsletter
"Economic Development Marketing Letter"
A Blane, Canada Ltd. Publication
Nationally Recognized Experts On Economic Development Marketing and Retention
March 2000, Volume: 3, Issue: e/3
~~~We’re
moving! ... As of March 15th our new address will be: Blane, Canada Ltd. 1506 Cadet, Suite 100 Wheaton, IL 60187-7380 Phone: 630.462.9222 Fax:
630.462.9210 e-mail: ecanada@ix.netcom.com, nblane@ix.netcom.com
* Please note this change in your records What do the best have in common? ... an ability to distill thoughts, ideas, and content into a crisp presentation. Get better with every presentation. Our post presentation analysis: 1) Was I able to connect with audience members? 2) Were graphics easy to understand? 3) How well did I tell my story? Fast
Action Award ... goes to Wake County ED, Raleigh, NC. Their postcard
mailer is an excellent example of opportunity marketing. On February 7th,
the Wall Street Journal carried an article on unemployment that lauded the
region for their workforce. Wake County produced a postcard quoting the
WSJ—post marked 2/10/00! That’s powerful turn around. The WSJ quote provided
the opportunity. Wake County’s database provided the labels essential to
leveraging the opportunity. Finally, the Web site provided readers details. In
short, if you want to move people to the virtual world, move your message to the
physical world. Well done Ken
Atkins! Speaking of differentiation ... We’ve been inundated with postcards from EDC’s and site selectors advertising communities. Common slants include quality of life, labor pool, etc ... With so many cards presenting a similar angle, how will the recipient remember your community and distinguish it from the others? Business
Retention Training... Eric Canada has created a new course ACT!
Users ... On December 31st, ACT! contact manager software was Cutting through ... all the bits and bytes of data that flow to Rishad Tobaccowala, an account exec with Chicago’s mammoth Leo Burnett ad agency, means to screen information quickly, compare it against a few select yardsticks he has devised, and watch for contradictions. This often reveals the few vital insights that really matter. Try it, it works. Source: Fast Company, August 1997. http://www.fastcompany.com Principle
of “Homeostasis” ... It is natural for people to resist a ”The
Web ... is like a library with all the books on the floor.” Notoriously simplistic, ... two-dimensional views of a multi-dimensional environment - Web site map. On the Web, two-dimensional thinking is dangerous. It leads to a table of contents structure for the site. While designers refer to the “table of contents” or hyperlinks as a site index, it is not. It represents only categories. People do not visit a Web site looking for categories. They visit a site looking for information. Visitors think in terms of “key words.” If their “key word” is not among those listed, they begin guessing where to look. Frustration sets in quickly. During a search, a Web site is more like a reference book than a text book. It will be read using key words found in the index, not the table of contents. An index transforms a book from a two-dimensional object into a multi-dimensional tool. Web sites are designed around a two-dimensional table of contents mind set. To deal with this, we are finding more Web sites with a search feature. If properly designed, this is part of the solution. If it only lists pages with the key word, it might be part of the problem. Break the two-dimensional design barrier by creating a powerful search feature. Source: Blane, Canada Ltd.’s “Advance Marketing and Complex Sales” Course. Validation
... You have read in past issues our cautions about over We’ve
mentioned it ... so what is it? Synchronist Business ”Everyone thinks ... they have a great business retention process - until they see what we can do with Synchronist System (software developed by Blane, Canada Ltd.)” Deb Calvert, MidAmerican Energy, IA Introducing
... Regarding your paragraph on introductions (February Marketing
Letter), I have recently begun asking speakers to prepare their own
introductions and bring them for my use. In doing so, important biographical
credentials are discovered and appropriately emphasized, AND the major topic is
described in a more seamless, transitional way—it almost becomes part of the
presentation itself. Voice
mail ... When our phone lines were cut by a zealous contractor early
in January, we were delighted to have voice mail backup. Sadly, we were shocked
that 3 callers or 33% of those who left phone messages and numbers for us could
not be easily understood. Lesson: slow down and be heard. After saying the area
code, take a breath. Then slowly give your phone number. Some people won’t
take the time to listen twice. When you lose ... out on an important project, view your competition, the winner, as a teacher you can learn from. In the “After Action” review, go beyond contacting the prospective client who got away. Contact the key individual(s) in the organization who won the project. Compliment their success and ask for their help. You may be surprised what you can learn. The Economic Development.Network (Dot Network) ... is a non-profit Internet operation that functions to support the business expansion, location and start-up processes, i.e., the aspect of economic development that directly relates to the creation of jobs and uplifting of local economies. Any not-for-profit organization, anywhere in the world, that similarly functions to bring about economic development, can register at this search engine Web site and obtain a listing under the Area Development Section http://www.EconomicDevelopment.net ... for free! Source: Bob Glover If ... the debate is about proximity to market, for the vast majority of companies producing components for other companies, the correct measure for economic development organizations is gross domestic product production, not population. Source: Blane, Canada Ltd. ”What we need ... around here are leaders who will drive change. The idea of ‘driving change’ reflects the machine metaphor. Machines only change when somebody from the outside causes them to change—they cannot change themselves. Most of our efforts to bring about change in organizations come from the outside—new organizational structures, new designs, new bosses, new initiatives. We rearrange, we reorganize, we merge, we acquire. All of these strategies for change are based in the premise that, if we arrange things differently, then things will get better. But how do things grow in nature—do we drive them to grow? Do we say ‘You must grow five inches a quarter or you’re out of here!’ No, gardeners succeed by attending to the host of conditions that could prevent growth from occurring.” Quote: SYSTEM THINKER, November 1998, (781.398.9700), Source: Chris Gibbons, Littleton, CO Listening
up ... What the prospect tells you about themselves is If
... you have benefited by your free subscription to Economic Development
Marketing Letter, pass it along to five friends and suggest they subscribe. We
depend on your referrals to identify interested readers. Thanks. The Editors.
Blane, Canada Ltd.
|