When people in your community take a look at the place branding that has been developed for their downtown or mainstreet – often under the umbrella of economic development marketing – what they see mostly are “things”:  logos, banners, flowers, events – all sorts of “things”.  But what should really matter to the economic development officer are not so much the “things” but, instead, the processes and the people. Let’s take a closer look at this.

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An economic development organization that sets out to develop a place branding strategy for its downtown or mainstreet has a unique challenge on its hands. It’s a high-wire balancing act with numerous weights dangling from each end of the beam.

At one end, you have all the downtown stakeholders whose input is essential to a successful place branding program. The economic development organization leading the revitalizing project must understand the perceptions, attitudes and beliefs of the merchants, homeowners and many other downtown inhabitants and visitors to determine the brand strategy and design a representative logo and identity package.

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Nothing reveals a community’s determination to be economically competitive more than a thriving Main Street. Achieving success downtown is a strong signal that the entire region has found its economic direction. People are working together. That’s one of the core requirements for a successful downtown marketing strategy.

A healthy downtown is a symbol of community pride. Research shows that a vibrant Main Street boosts economic health and quality of life for miles around. If the Main Street environment attracts people, this feeds retail businesses which in turn attract more people, creating a positive spiral of growth and economic sustainability.

Moreover, Main Street renewal can be viewed as a signpost to the future, especially in the creative economy. Downtown is important to young people as a gathering place. A recent study by the Brookings Institution found that young people in their 20s and 30s are tending to move to metropolitan areas that they regard as “cool” and where they can feel connected. This puts a premium on marketing the attractiveness of your community’s economic core. Read the rest of this entry »

Here’s a question you might like to toss around the table the next time your economic development department is planning a creative economy marketing program or event: What makes creative people in your community happy?

It’s a simple question but the answers can be quite complex and far-reaching. Economists have begun to use research into happiness to explore questions in economics, policy and management.

The Martin Prosperity Institute, in a research paper published in March 2010 written by Richard Florida, Charlotta Mellander and Kevin Stolarik, found that satisfaction with individuals’ current location has a big impact on the decision to stay or move.

“Our findings indicate that place-based factors, in particular the beauty and physical appeal of the current location and the ability to meet people and make friends, explain more of the desire to stay than do community economic conditions or individual demographic characteristics,” the authors reported in the study, called The Effects of Community Satisfaction on the Decision to Stay or Move. Read the rest of this entry »

Young people who leave town for college or university don’t come back more often than they do. The loss of educated graduates has become almost an accepted fact of life in small and rural communities and is most definitely a drain on a community’s ability to develop its creative economy.

Social media, however, offers your community a powerful means of finding and reconnecting with your town’s expats, and the opportunity to provide them with reasons to come back.

Former student high school alumni groups are some of the most popular and abundant groups on Facebook. For every high school of any size there will be at least one, and often several, Facebook groups for former students to join. These are hubs for people who share common experiences to reconnect with old friends, and share memories and photos of the glory days. You’re likely a member of one or more of these groups yourself. Read the rest of this entry »