charles county ed marketing strategy and plan

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Charles County ED Marketing Strategy and Plan May 20, 2014 Presenters Kwasi Holman, Director Debra Jones, Business Development Manager for Attraction and Recruitment

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Charles County ED

Marketing Strategy and

Plan

May 20, 2014

Presenters

Kwasi Holman, Director

Debra Jones, Business Development

Manager for Attraction and Recruitment

Project Goal

Develop a marketing plan to effectively market

Charles County as an ideal place for business

location or relocation.

Overall objectives:

• Increase number of high-paying jobs

• Attract commercial investment (tax base)

Discovery

Media & Rankings Audit

• No coverage of Charles County in past year

• Several national rankings in recent years favorably mentioned the County

National Media

• Most coverage related to local announcements

• Largely neutral or positive in tone

Regional Media

• More than half of stories had a negative tone

• Several articles focused on in-County conflicts among different interest groups

Local Media

Site Selectors’ Perceptions

47% of corporate executives anticipate

outsourcing site selection

responsibilities in their next

search

Key Objective:

Raising Charles County’s profile

among site selection

consultants community

Limited knowledge of

Charles County affords a “blank

canvas” to shape perceptions

Website Review

A location’s website is the

2nd most important

marketing tool that

business decision

markers use.

47% of site selection

consultants indicated they

will likely visit an ED

organization’s website.

Recommendations

Charles County Today

• Attractive place for talented professionals to live

• One of the fastest growing counties in Maryland

• Waldorf ranked #20 on CNN Money’s 2012“Best

Places to Live”

• More than 60% working residents commute to work

• General lack of awareness among corporate

executives and site selectors

Key Messages/Core Competitive

Promise

Strategic location is an asset: Given Charles County’s proximity to Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, and its strong position in the Southern Maryland region, the County offers numerous advantages for businesses and talent.

Well positioned for investment, growth and development:Charles County offers numerous flexible commercial options for companies and businesses that are ready to make a move, including hundreds of acres of shovel-ready and built-to-suite sites, high-visibility retail space, and acreage in several employment and business center parks.

More than just a great place to live: The reasons why people have been moving to Charles County- lower cost of living, high quality of life (outdoor activities such as Indian Head Trail, beautiful scenery, waterfront)- are the same reasons why companies should invest in the County as these factors help attract a strong talent pool.

Recommended Approach

Charles County Economic Development Marketing Plan:

WebsitePublic

Relations

Site Selectors Outreach

Reaching the Local Audience

Leveraging Trade

Shows

Lead Generation

Website

• In Progress

• Standalone ED website

• Target site selectors

• Critical information within few clicks

• More maps

• SEO

• Staff to edit and maintain fresh content

• Launch initiative

Social Media

76% of site selectors use LinkedIn for business purposes

EDD on right track with LinkedIn company page

Post updates 1-2 times/week

Join ED-related LinkedIn groups and engage

Each EDD staff member maintain personal LinkedIn page, update, and engage regularly

Short term: Provide relevant content for existing County Twitter and Facebook pages (average 1-2 times/week)

Long term: Establish separate EDD Twitter and Facebook pages. In the meantime, “claim” potential handles (i.e. MeetCharlesCounty, InvestCharlesCounty) for future use

Public Relations

Potential Story Ideas:

• “Businesses Finding DC’s Best Kept Secret:

Charles County”

• “Women Entrepreneurs Find Success in Charles

County”

• “Charles County is Move-in Ready; Numerous

Commercial Sites Immediately Available”

• Leveraging Business Location Announcements

and Expansions

PR: Exceptional Media Coverage

Tactics

• Develop more in-depth storylines and regularly communicate them to specific reporters

• Leverage national and regional coverage as positive fodder for local stories

Proactive Pitching

• No substitute for journalists seeing Charles County firsthand

• Great way to garner first-rate publicity and foster long term “media friends”

Press Trips

• Take Charles County story on the road visiting major media markets and arranging for one-on-one meetings with reporters

• Attended by Charles County representative plus 1-2 spokespeople

Media Tours

• Key marketing partners, Key decision makers, Business community leaders, Target corporate executives, Site selectors, Citizens and residents, Local media

Playback of Results

Site Selectors Outreach

• Direct outreach approach; build long-term relationships with site selectors

• Visits to markets that have high concentrations of site selection consultants such as New York, New Jersey, and Atlanta

• Arrange meetings with a broad range of site selection consultants, real estate brokers, and other influencers

• Raise Charles County’s profile and establish the EDD as a resource for site selection projects

In-market Missions

• Develop a series of short news items with relevant updates to be sent to a database of site selection consultants

• Email sent only when there is real news to tell

This Just In: E-News

• Familiarization tour of Charles County for 5-7 site selectors

• 1-2 day itinerary that showcases Charles County offerings from a site selection standpoint and highlights that the County is very much open for business

• Employ this tactic after a series of in-market missions and one-on-one meetings

• Consider holding end-of-tour luncheon panel for the participants to provide direct feedback

Site Selection FAM Tour

Reaching the Local Audience

Tactics to Continue:

• Update “Charles County Economic Development

News” E-Newsletter design

• Annual State of the Economy Summit

Other Tactics to Consider:

• Infographics

• “Meet Charles County: Latest Economic

Development” Blog

• Quarterly Breakfast Roundtable

Leveraging Industry Trade Shows

EDD currently member of key economic development organizations; should explore shows or events for a more narrowly defined audience

Optimize travel budget by selecting trade shows in markets that also have strong site selectors’ presence and potential business prospects, as well as media presence

Lead Generation: Direct Business

Outreach

Research

Identifying Qualified Prospects

Vetting Leads

Intelligent Persistence

Removing Obstacles

Skilled Selling

Project

Announcements

Metrics: Measuring Results

• # of 1-on-1 media interviews

• # of site selection consultant meetings

• # of qualified leads; # of meetings and projects secured

• # of web traffic for new EDD website

Perceptions of Charles County’s Business

Climate

Measure perceptions of U.S. executives with site

selection responsibilities/key influencers at program

start. Follow-up survey at the two-year mark to see if

perceptions have changed.

Moving the Media Needle

Advertising Value Equivalency / Total

Impressions

/ Number of Articles Generated

Economic development organizations frequently use

advertising equivalency as a straightforward measure,

coupled with total media impressions and number of

articles secured in a select timeframe.

Specific Marketing Activity Targets Prior to launch of the Economic Development Marketing

Plan, set specific targets such as:

Public Relations

• # of press releases or pitches to media

Site Selection

• # of project leads to Charles County

Lead Generation

Other

DescriptionRecommended Metric

Implementation

Year 1: Months 1-6Marketing Tools • Create key messages that can be used throughout

all marketing collateral pieces

• Begin updates on existing Charles County

marketing collateral

• Begin development of additional collateral pieces

for target industries

• Begin development of content for new

MeetCharlesCounty.com website

Site Selection

Consultants

Relationships

• Develop targeted list of site selection consultants

• Begin outreach to New York/New Jersey site

selectors

• Begin development of branding and design of

Charles County’s “This Just In” E-News

Media Relations • Finalize “Most Wanted” media target list (top-tier,

regional, and trade)

• Develop a couple of story pitches for proactive

media efforts

• Begin and continue proactive pitching to target

media

*Timeline is ideal and may be extended.

Year 1: Months 7-12

Marketing Tools • Launch new MeetCharlesCounty.com website

Site Selection

Consultants

Relationships

• Continue sending relevant content to Charles

County’s “This Just In” E-News

• Begin planning to host 1st inbound site selection

consultants FAM tour to Charles County for 2015

Media Relations • Ongoing proactive pitching for Charles County’s

storylines

• Begin planning for 1st inbound group press trip,

slated for 2015

*Timeline is ideal and may be extended.

Year 2Site Selection

Consultants

Relationships

• Continue sending relevant content to Charles

County’s “This Just In” E-News

• Begin planning for, and attend, 2nd in-market

mission slated for 2015

Media Relations • Continue proactive pitching of Charles County

storylines

• Begin planning for New York Media Tour, slated

for 2015

• In conjunction with media tour, plan for site

selection consultant luncheon

Lead Generation • Through a lead generation program, build a list

of prospective companies for the Charles County

EDD to pursue and qualify

*Timeline is ideal and may be extended.

One-Line

Summary/Elevator Speech

One-line summary

“Charles County is a dynamic region in the Washington, D.C. Metro

Area that offers businesses and investors a strategic location, a

talented workforce, and high value for costs.”

Elevator Speech

“Charles County is a growing business hub that is well positioned for

investment, growth, and development. Strategically located in the

Washington, D.C. Metro Area, the County is a prime location for

businesses that are looking to locate or relocate, offering companies

access to a large pool of talented workforce; affordable, flexible, and

attractive real estate options; strategic access via a multi-modal

transportation network; and excellent education options.”

Presented by:

Charles County Government

Economic DevelopmentKwasi Holman, Director

10665 Stanhaven Place, Suite 206

White Plains, MD 20695

301-885-1340

[email protected]

www.MeetCharlesCounty.com

Mission Statement

The mission of Charles County Government is to

provide our citizens the highest quality service

possible in a timely, efficient, and courteous

manner. To achieve this goal, our government must

be operated in an open and accessible atmosphere,

be based on comprehensive long- and short-term

planning, and have an appropriate managerial

organization tempered by fiscal responsibility.

We support and encourage efforts to grow a

diverse workplace.

Vision Statement

Charles County is a place where all people thrive

and businesses grow and prosper; where the

preservation of our heritage and environment is

paramount, where government services to its

citizens are provided at the highest level of

excellence; and where the quality of life is

the best in the nation.