|
BCL Home Page Subscribe to Newsletter
"Economic Development Marketing Letter"
A Blane, Canada Ltd. Publication
Nationally Recognized Experts On Economic Development Marketing and Retention
May 2001, Volume: 4, Issue: e/5
AEDC and
CUED merge... The newly formed International Economic Development Council (IEDC)
was announced last week at AEDC’s annual meeting. CUED’s final annual
meeting, to be held in Philadelphia, will be Sept. 9-12. “The American e-volution”
is the theme. The first major
meeting of the merged organization, IEDC, will be April 21-23 in St. Louis.
“Leveraging Technology as a Development Tool” is the theme. IEDG will
be headquartered in Washington, DC. Boeing... OK, OK. So much has happened since our last e-newsletter. In order to satisfy your appetites, feedback and comments on the race for the company is provided on the last couple of pages of this issue. Players’ strategies, incentive packages, competitors’ challenges are covered. Media as a Market Indicator... “‘When the media gets “it”, then it means the market trend is over because they tend to get it wrong,” says Phil Orlando, chief investment officer of Value Line’s Asset Management. “Media tends to be a lagging indicator, looking at what has happened six to nine months in the past while investors try to guess what might happen six to nine months in the future,” Orlando says. “So, if people are looking for tangible signs of key transition points, then it’s not a bad idea to use the media’s focus.” True in the majority, but select media can be a leading indicator. A recession?... Read that the worst is over? In a recent interview of a trucking company exec, she said they noticed a slow down months ago! In another interview, a real estate developer saw the log jam of concrete panels (used in industrial buildings) evaporate in November and it wasn’t because of increased production. Are you in touch with the diverse business interests in your area who can help you anticipate changes in the local economy? How can we help you... streamline your economic development marketing effort, improve effectiveness, etc. Call Eric 630-462-9222 Enhance your skills... “Powerful Principles for Presenters” is recommended reading for those who want to sharpen their deliveries. Written by Batt Johnson, who currently teaches the principles at Cornell University in New York City and is a consultant on this topic to the NBA, the book goes beyond many others. Designed for executives, the book is a blend of public speaking and media training. Actors, broadcasters, and politicians use this methodology. Available only on the internet. Go to http://www.iUniverse.com, click on Book Store, and type the book’s title (upper right). ^^^^ Layoffs... Harsh fact. But as we have interviewed numerous ED professionals this month for the existing business outcomes research, mentioned in previous newsletters, we’re hearing some clever strategies for dealing with rising unemployment. For example, HR managers within close proximity of each other share skill levels of soon-to-be unemployed to match with openings at other nearby companies. Some employees are forming their own “alumni” groups via the Internet. They provide a support system for new job opportunities, the location of the unemployment office with the shortest lines, and more. Internal promotion... Communities tend to take their assets for granted. In many communities, growth is taken for granted. It is easy when you live with the change. It becomes invisible. Two very different communities are undertaking “inside out” marketing initiatives, and their efforts are worth noting: Des Moines, IA and St. Louis, MO. Leadership in Des Moines saw the need for residents to see themselves differently. This resulted in a full blown, aggressive “Change Your View” campaign. “St. Louis, We Got It Good” Regional Commerce and Growth Association’s campaign uses TV spots of 30 seconds and radio spots of 60 seconds. It is easy to focus on the negative or see what others have as “better.” As marketers, we believe internal marketing is more important than external marketing. Before you succeed externally, you need to gain permission, resources, and support, all of which comes from within. Excuse me, did we hear you correctly??? A reader called last week asking about the impact of economic development department personel becoming union members? We’ll share if you share. ecanada@ix.netcom.com Fascinating, worth a read... We’ve always enjoyed autobiographies of successful business executives. Recently picked up Richard Branson’s book, “Losing My Virginity”. The book includes a fascinating perspective of historic events of the 60, 70, and 80’s from a businessman on another continent. It looks inside some extremely aggressive PR and some top-notch strategic marketing. The bottom line in Virgin’s success in so many different ventures was determination, persistence, hard work, and a splash of luck. “Losing My Virginity,” Richard Branson, Times Business, 1998. ^^^ E-mail addresses reflect who you are... How would you react to someone whose address includes “babyface” or a similar cutesy type of address? Lacks credibility? You bet! Or, consider the length of the address. There’s one on our database that maxed out at 44 characters!! Finally, if you depend on a general address (e.g.”econdev@” we have 32 of these listed), you risk being lost among others. Your e-mail address is an extension of your marketing identity. What seems to be emerging as the “e-mail address standard” is a combination of all or part of the individual’s name (first, last, or an initial) coupled with the org’s domain name which frequently identifies the community. The combination is a powerful marketing trigger helping your prospect remember you. California dreaming... Several months ago, the Tennessee Department of Community and Economic Development sent workers in the black-out-beleaguered Silicon Valley flashlights with the recruiting message, “The lights are always on in Tennessee.” A posse of 20 economic development officials from the Volunteer State have landed in southern California to persuade companies to move to or expand into Tennessee. Tennesseans visited 35 companies, offered all-expenses-paid trips to interested parties and hosted a swanky networking party at Spago. Tennessee isn’t the only state trying to work the California energy crisis to its own advantage. California companies have received glow-in-the-dark mouse pads from Michigan and batteries from North Carolina. We understand at least 15 ED organizations have delivered similar messages/gifts. Are the tactics working? That remains to be seen. Is California worried? Not at all. “[California’s] been through earthquakes, fires, floods, mudslides, you name it,” said one Golden State economic official. “And [we] always come back stronger.” LA Times, 4/27/01 Workforce development... partners are stepping forward and helping economic development organizations improve the quality of the business contact program by utilizing Synchronist Business Information System® software. Workforce development boards and manufacturing extension groups have helped with funding and/or staffing. 80/20 Rule... Use the 80/20 rule to analyze your marketing efforts. This rule says that 80 percent of your results will come from 20 percent of your activities. This means you don’t have to use every strategy in the book, just use the ones that work for your organization. Since each organization and community is a little bit different, what works for one might not work for you. Find the ones that work and keep on doing them. Source: “Growing Your Market: Get Real” article, Daniel Janal http://www.efuse.com/Grow/marketing-get-real.html WOW... “Many developers give suspects/prospects the information needed to say NO, not yes.” A flash of insight—A) Delivering too much info too early. B) Failing to respond directly to questions. The implication, dumping information and asking the prospect to find the “answer” provides justification for saying no. Quote: Marketing For Results! Seminar participant, PA Portfolio management... is essentially the activity that helps investors reach desired goals. It is the art of optimizing holdings and increasing the value. It takes some common sense and diligence to do it successfully. At times, it even takes a little courage. How would your business retention activities change if local companies were your personal portfolio? What is your business development strategy? Learn about the latest in business retention. Ever notice that... when investors are uncomfortable, their check-writing skills tend to decline. In your fund raising strategy make sure to articulate the opportunity, a thorough approach, the competitive environment, the consequence of failing to act, as well as benefits from their (potential donors’) perspective. Civic responsibility or goodwill is no longer sufficient to secure funding. Plummeted... Venture capital investing fell 61% during the first quarter of this year as compared with $26.1 billion one year earlier. PriceWaterhouseCoopers generates an annual survey on this. More shocking, this compares to $5.9 billion in 1999. The new business model... “is like a basketball team. Anybody can score. Get the ball to the open person. Individual skills are highly important. You can have a Michael Jordan but you still may not win without a coordinated effort. Flexibility is demanded. Mistakes are highly visible. There’s always constant change. You organize and reorganize, always looking for the opening to win...” Jim Crupi, Futurist, American Way Magazine, 8/98, interview. New source... for planning your lodging on trips. Go to http://www.1800usahotels.com. The site offers reduced rate accommodations. Select the city and dates of stay. A list of all hotels, prices for each category, and a map with directions are generated. By the way... thinking about using cheap on-line airline tickets from an internet site for that next business trip? Consider the implications. While the practices are not overt, airlines can make it difficult for those traveling on the cheap. For example, overbooked? Weather delays? Mechanical problems? Don’t expect much sympathy or help from the gate agent if you are using www.cheapskate. They will take care of their “preferred” customers first and ticket codes make it obvious where your loyalties are. Hotel staffers probably do the same. What do you want?... We plan newsletters many months out and would like your feedback. What issues do you want covered? E-mail us and we’ll follow up. Or, send us your comments, insights, ideas for publishing. nancy@ix.netcom.com ”I enjoy and learn much from your newsletter! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!” Sam Power, VP, Industrial Marketing, representing 23 counties of western North Carolina. On
Boeing... The outcome of the competition for the corporate headquarters is that
Chicago won (with incentives near $60 million) over Denver and Dallas. However,
local headlines now focus on the sparring among Illinois legislators vying for
payback in exchange for supporting the incentive package. The following were
submitted by readers commenting on this quest.
If the ideas appear wild-eyed, we take no responsibility.
Team
work?... From Pat Kelley in Ohio we hear that Sports Illustrated (interesting
source) notes that Alex Rodriguez, once with the Seattle Mariners and now with
the Texas Rangers in a suburb of Dallas, wrote a letter to Boeing executives
extolling the benefits of the Dallas-Ft. Worth area. Pat goes on to say he hopes
Rodriguez included strategic requirements in his letter. Being the recipient of
a $245 million contract, it is suggested that Alex is skillful in negotiating
incentives since he knows the wine, dine and pocket book incentives approach.
Editor’s note: John Elway, retiree of the Denver Broncos, was part of the
welcoming team in Denver. Found
in the Chicago Tribune... The chairman of the newspaper was a speaker at a
dinner to court Boeing executives. In comparing Chicago to its competitors,
Dallas and Denver, he acknowledged that each city had a superb orchestra.
Responding to an expressed concern for the quality of life factors important to
the executives and their families, the speaker noted the only difference: in
Chicago the string instrument is called the violin; in the other two cities, the
same instrument is called a fiddle. Subtle positioning! Bill
Aubrey in Texas states that the Dallas ED team’s response was solely focused
on strategic competitive advantages. In part, this is supported by their term
Central North Texas.
As
we were trying... to reach Tom Clark in the metro Denver area (May 1) for
comment, he said he couldn’t take our call because the announcement for Boeing
was to take place momentarily (Ha, Ha).
:)
Listen
to the customer... and respond accordingly, says Bill Sproull, Greater Dallas
Chamber. As an engineering-based,
data-driven company (Boeing), would appreciate a thoughtful, detailed, precise
and direct response to their strategic direction, decision process and
inquiries. Strategic alignment
between community attributes and company vision is important. The key for the community is to make sure you can prove that
your attributes align with their vision, and no amount of incentives, art and
meals can overcome a misalignment, particularly for a company whose annual
profits are in excess of most state budgets.
John
Cody in Longmont, Colorado shared the positive experiences from participating as
a regional team. As Professionals Chair for the Metro Denver Network (MDN), he
offered a list of ED priorities. This process involved a partnership between the
Governor’s Office, the Denver Mayor’s Office and the Metro Denver Network, a
partnership of 48 economic development and chamber agencies located in metro
Denver. The model of collaboration on which the MDN operates substitutes
coordinated competition for destructive in-fighting. They compete as a metro area first, realizing that prospects
usually choose a region and then a community. As with many ED organizations, if
they cannot land the deal as communities, then their next preference is to
locate it somewhere in the region or state.
First,
all those involved made it clear from the outset that no special incentives
would be offered to Boeing to come to Denver, although the “usual”
incentives would be. Second, the proposal focused on strategic requirements,
both current and future. This is
epitomized in the Boeing case by communities who knew they were not in the
running within the region but donated both in-kind and cash to this project.
John concluded that the MDN is a unique organization nationally. Its philosophy isn’t always easy, especially as competitive tendencies come into play. But they have a code of ethics to address these issues, and they are taken seriously by MDN members.
Blane, Canada Ltd.
|