September 2004, Volume: 7, Issue: e/9, ISBN 1527-5175

~~~''You can't grow long-term if you can't eat short-term_ Anybody can manage short. Anybody can manage long. Balancing those two things is what management is.'' Source: Jack Welch

~~~October will be busy... We are offering two programs this month. October 4-5 will be the fifth annual Synchronist Users' Forum. We're expecting users from across North America to attend. Then, Oct. 18-19 will be our highly popular (and stimulating) "Advanced Business Retention: Beyond the Basics". Only a few seats are left. At both we will be presenting the results of our recently completed National Data Study which has established norms for community economic analysis. Call Andrew if you want to reserve your seat at either one: 630-462-9222.

~~~Differentiate yourself... When you are selling your community, concentrate on questions. No, not the questions the prospect is asking. Concentrate on the questions you need to ask to understand the company's strategic objectives. Most economic development professionals concentrate on operational questions, i.e. how many employees do you need and what skills. Selling is first about understanding the strategic implications behind the decision. There is a huge strategic difference between the company looking for a facility to meet customer demand and the company that is about to enter a new market place. How you position your community and your workforce will change if you recognize the difference. Knowing the difference will give you a competitive advantage. Source: Complex Selling in Economic Development, part of the Blane, Canada Ltd.'s "Physics of Marketing" course.

~~~"I'm glad I connected with you people (on buying Synchronist)... We're experiencing dialog we've never had before on retention calls. The Synchronist survey stimulates a different dialog. There's more value added output." Source: Synchronist user for 2 years

~~~Random goals... without a resource allocation do not equal a marketing plan.

~~~Asked last month... what do you do to ground yourself in the midst of the daily crush of agendas? John Longoria (TX) states he works from home one or two days a month. Daily calls and interruptions are removed. "New ideas appear where there were none before." Sue Walker (TX) shares that being a reader acts as a "mental floss". "Understanding different industry sectors is like learning a new language and it takes practice." She subscribes to a variety of online newsletters and auto updates from a variety of national and regional publications which highlight innovation, new ideas, leading edge companies, industry sectors and products, business trends, anything and everything to keep the new ideas coming.

~~~The mission statement... for the Broward Alliance in Fort Lauderdale is printed on the back of each staff member's business cards. "...to lead in building a stronger and more diversified economy by: promoting increased public/private sector collaboration, delivering business development initiatives focused on new investment and job growth, enhancing the competitiveness of Broward (County's) business climate, and driving regional initiatives."

~~~A successful marketing campaign... harnesses the enthusiasm of the partners and directs their energy. Source: "Marketing for Results!" 

~~~Ever wonder... what this company, Blane, Canada Ltd., is that sends out the monthly e-newsletter? We've been in business since 1983, have been offering this free newsletter since the early '90s, and strive to challenge the economic development profession to new and better heights. Although our consultancy in marketing and existing business led us to create the Synchronist software which we regularly mention in this newsletter, our experience and expertise keep us (and you) at the forefront of economic development. Look up more information at: http://www.blanecanada.com

~~~IQPC... is the International Quality and Productivity Center. The mission statement is to: "...deliver leading edge, educational conferences through extensive "best practices" research, consistent relationship management with industry leaders and experts, strategic content development in our respective fields and professional, on-site management at our high-level events." Their programs might be most relevant to large EDC's which have industry specialists. http://www.IQPC.com

~~~The Indy Partnership... of Indianapolis noted in its recent quarterly report that attending a warehousing and logistics trade show "was a great resource for industry information". It's not necessary to erect a trade show booth in order to reap rewards.

~~~Fond du Lac County (WI) EDC... in each monthly newsletter states they provide "services in and to 33 cities, townships and villages in the county." Subtle consistent message.

~~~Position the PowerPoint screen... to the side of center so it doesn't demand all of the audience's attention.

~~~Ronne's Rules... for economic development (and life). Robin Ronne, with the Greater Tampa Chamber's Committee of 1000, offers the following list of nine simple but fundamental operating principles passed down from his mentors over the past 28 years. They are simple and brief, but timeless in their application.

1) Never forget who the client is “they’re the reason we’re in business” make it a point to know everything you can about their industry. Maintain and enhance your personal contacts within their corporate structure. Be supremely client-driven in responding to any request they make of you. If they’re happy, you’re happy, and vice versa.

2) Always strive to establish long-term relationships, not short-term transactions. Yes, relationships require care and nurturing, but provide far greater rewards than just one-time transactions.

3) Concentrate on “managing the gap” between expectations and deliverables, not only with your clients, but your investors, your employees, your family. Unmet and undeliverable expectations produce disappointment and none of us like to be disappointed.

4) Always believe that YOU can truly make a difference.  If you do, you will, if you don’t, you won’t.

5) Surround yourself with high productivity, low maintenance “over-achievers” that you can trust. Remember the old saying “it’s not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog”.  Well, let me tell you that I’ve been privileged to have the support of some incredible overachievers (I really think they may well have some pit bull in their bloodlines) who frankly don’t know the meaning of the words “quit” or “lose”. They don’t worry about what the competition is doing. They simply hunker down and will a project to a successful conclusion for the benefit of our community and its citizens. Nothing is held back or “left on the field”.

6) You can’t “go it alone”. It’s the individual that wins games, but teams that win championships.

7) Always treat people with dignity and respect, no matter what their respective station in life.

8) There are two types of people in the world, those who take credit, and those who actually do the work. Try to be in the second group where there’s not such a crowd and far less competition.

9) When you go into conflict, arm yourself with the courage of your own convictions, and two great allies: Truth and Fact. You will seldom, if ever, be defeated.

~~~NC's J-DIG... Understand? North Carolina offers the Job Development Investment Grant Program (J-DIG). Companies attracted to the state receive cash incentives in the form of rebates on state personal income taxes paid by workers in the new jobs.

~~~"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands, but in seeing with new eyes." Marcel Proust

~~~Numerous conferences... are available to economic developers. We attempt to maintain a good cross section at our web site for your convenience: http://www.blanecanada.com/Newsletters/Events/NL_Events.html

~~~Found on Oklahoma Economic Development Council's web site... "Economic development is everybody's business." How true!

~~~"Don't you get tired of making these presentations?"... a pro asked Eric after a recent training session. Eric's answer, "No. Think about it from the participant's point of view. It might be totally new. It might be a dramatically different perspective. It might spark new ideas. It might be their third time with me in a session when all of a sudden a concept falls into place. When you are standing where I stand, there is no greater feeling than watching the light bulb go on for someone. That is so cool!"

~~~Will that prospect you are courting'... add to your community's economic portfolio, or just look good in the newspaper? Three factors will determine your community's long-term success. 1) A solid knowledge of the economic drivers in your community. 2) A conscious effort to direct resources toward these economic drivers. 3) Evaluating every prospect on their ability to compliment the base, not fill space and generate a headline. Think long-term, not short-term.

~~~Tech scout wanted... Blane, Canada Ltd. is looking for someone (perhaps more than one person) to search out and test technology resources and tools for our use and that of our clients. If you like to download shareware programs just to see what they will do, you might be our person. If you like to roam the web looking for cool software tools, you might be our person. Some research will be related to a theme, e.g. on-line collaboration. Other assignments might be function related, i.e. is there any inexpensive software out there we could use to add advanced searching features inside a web site. Work from anywhere. This is NOT a full time position. If you have an interest, send Eric info on your software testing and research capabilities. ecanada@blanecanada.com

~~~Got a tech tip... or a favorite shareware program you use for economic development purpose? Let us know and we will share. info@blanecanada.com

Blane, Canada Ltd.
1506 Cadet, Suite 100
Wheaton, IL 60187-7380
ph 630.462.9222
fax 630.462.9210

info@blanecanada.com