IEDC Marketing & Attraction

IEDC Marketing & Attraction Economic development marketing and attraction characterizes the process of: - 1- Inventorying the community and (2)- tailoring a plan from the findings (3)- to attract companies that will diversify and build the local/regional economy. What is Marketing? - Marketing is positioning a product or service. In Economic Development, marketing can be used to help attract, retain and expand businesses,attract and retain a competitive labor force, improve a community's image both inside and outside the community and promote policies and programs. Marketing is a: - Tool to help economic development practitioners reach their short and long term economic goals. What does marketing entail? - 1) Identifying and meeting a customer's needs 2) Developing a message to communicate a community's attributes 3) Persuading potential investors to "buy" the product Marketing is essential because of the competitive nature of communities. - Communities continually compete for the attention of potential businesses locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. The difference between the terms "attraction" and "marketing". - The process by which companies are attracted to a community is through marketing and marketing can be accomplished through advertising (a marketing tool). Here are a few short definitions that will clarify each term: - 1) Attraction is a programmatic goal of economic development. To increase jobs and the tax base in a community, companies can be attracted. Other examples of programmatic goals of economic development are entrepreneurial and small business development and business retention and expansion. 2) Marketing is the selling of a service or product through pricing, distribution, and promotion. The concept of marketing can be applied to any business sector and is not specific to economic development. 3 ) Advertising (e.g., print brochures, online advertising) is the placement and presentation of paid information that describes a product in order to attract attention that leads to a sale. Advertising is just one component, or subset, of marketing. Public relations, media planning, product pricing and distribution, sales strategy, customer support, market research and community involvement are all parts of comprehensive marketing efforts. OVERVIEW OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MARKETING AND ATTRACTION: - • Marketing can be used to help attract, retain and expand businesses, improve a community's image both inside and outside the community and promote policies and programs. Communities have also started to use marketing strategies to attract and retain a competitive labor force. • Business attraction in economic development involves using various marketing techniques to encourage businesses located in one area to relocate or expand to another area. • Business attraction is a means of contributing to the economic vitality of the community to enhance and diversify the local tax base, to increase the number of jobs available to residents of the community, and to improve the local quality of life. For communities to maintain and boost their economic vitality, they must persuade businesses or investors to locate, expand or remain in the area rather than in a competing location. • Economic development marketing and attraction is not just selling business sites, or attracting businesses, it is a means of promoting the community as a viable location for economic activity. OVERVIEW OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MARKETING AND ATTRACTION: (Continue) - Targets of marketing and attraction efforts will include businesses that vary in size and that are different in a number of ways. They will differ in the number of new jobs they will bring to a community, in the size of the land or facility that they require, as well as the private dollars that they will invest to establish themselves in a new community. Businesses that are considered targets for business attraction programs may include the following: - 1- Businesses that may be facing issues locally that do not make it conducive to stay in that community, whether it is due to workforce challenges, rising costs, infrastructure needs, or even quality of life issues. These companies will leave their former location to find a new location that provides benefits that the old location may no longer have. These businesses may be downsizing, staying the same size, or expanding. 2- Businesses that are located in another area, but are looking to expand a portion of their operations to an alternate location. These businesses will keep some of their operations in the old location, but will be looking for a new location, or locations, which better suit their expansion needs. Positive outcomes from new business as a result of an effective Marketing and Attraction: - • In terms of increasing the tax base, when a new business is established, the tax burden is eased on the residential community. The influx of new businesses means more entities can contribute to the funds which support ever-increasing local service costs. • The addition of new jobs means either