Marketing Places, Spaces, People & Ideas
Archive for the ‘Economic Development’ Category
Cautious Optimism Reigns at RECon
This year, the mood, pace and tone of RECon (the International Council of Shopping Centers annual Retail Convention in Las Vegas) is palpably different. Whatever the economists say, the winds have shifted in the development and tenanting side of retail. A few observations from days 1 and 2 of the show: People are dressed for [...]
Heading to Vegas, Leaving the High Heels at Home
Some of you know that about half of my consulting-side work is in economic development for cities and site owners. Mostly retail, but we also help cities attract new residential and industrial/office development as well. It’s work I love because if I do my job well, a corner of the world is a better place [...]
Recovery… How’s That Working For You?
Examine your business: How much of your previous customer base is still with you? At what level? What are they buying now and why? Do they have new needs/desires? Where is your profit? Where do you excel? Where can you grow? What challenges are you facing from a staffing, resource and marketing perspective?
Is it still all about Location, Location, Location?
The mantra in real estate has always been, “Location, Location, Location!” Over the past year, since the advent of location-based apps such as Foursquare and Gowalla, it’s seemed the plugged-in community has adopted the location motto as its own. Predictions were made, and disputed, about how important these apps could be. I resisted the allure [...]
They Buy Because We Use These > Brand Audit, Pt 2
By now, you’ve completed all the steps in part 1 (previous post) and have a mountain of data…. random bits of impersonal knowledge. Next, we need to add some human insight to the data, season with some business sense and a dash of intuition and we’ll develop actionable information. Talk to your customers. Especially your [...]
Pause For Station Break…
I was getting ready to write the second post in the DIY Brand Audit for Businesses post when I wondered… since the first one didn’t exactly generate conversations, comments, crazy sharing… maybe I’d better evaluate. I’m just wondering what you would like to see/hear/explore in this space. The blog is going to evolve in the [...]
Branding Places
What you say about your place is marketing. What people think about your place is branding. When I see a city manager’s business card produced in house and printed on donated paper at the least expensive price point possible, with a “logo” that consists of a divided shape of some sort with each quadrant filled by some hallmark of place history, I shudder. Again. What is the promise?
Does Place Still Matter?
I’ve been thinking… perhaps Florida’s definition of “place” is too narrow, though, to apply to today’s socially-connected world. Perhaps the new organizing unit is knowledge…. where it lives, how its found and accessed, and then how it can be acted upon. Maybe now it’s all about what you can do in a SPACE rather than in a PLACE. Today’s spaces are not defined so much by walls or physical boundaries as they are self-sorted, self-elected affinities. I am part of several “spaces” online and also offline, nearly all of which I’ve chosen belonging
A Primer for Cities on Retail Development
Co-authored by Rickey Hayes and Mandy Vavrinak More and more cities and communities are realizing that growing their retail base wisely is an integral part of any balanced and long-term economic development strategy. Not every city can support extensive retail; overbuilding in some categories and areas has contributed to today’s economic woes in the retail [...]
About Mandy Vavrinak
- I thrive on learning all there is to know about new places, fields and businesses, an essential step in successfully marketing a place, product or service. We are dedicated to helping you grow your business or grow your city.
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Blogroll
- A n n a r c h y
- Advertising Age – Top Work
- Altitude Branding
- Brains On Fire Blog
- Brandhabits
- Copyblogger
- davefleet.com
- Development Blog
- Documentation
- eGrace Creative
- Full Tilt Blogging.com
- instantShift
- Lead Change Group
- Media Relations Blog – TopRank Online Marketing
- Personal Branding Blog – Dan Schawbel
- Retail Traffic
- Seth’s Blog
- Small Business Marketing Blog from Duct Tape Marketing
- Suggest Ideas
- Support Forum
- TechCrunch
- The Bad Pitch Blog
- The Viral Garden
- Web design that excites people: S.Joy Studios
- Wired PR Works