monterey bay economic partnership regional website launch

Website Launch Presentation

Monterey bay Economic Partnership

About AtlasAtlas Advertising helps economic developers reach national and international prospect and site selection audiences. We deliver branding, website development, GIS mapping, research, social media, and creative services professionally and with a staff experienced in economic development. Unlike firms with little or no economic development experience, Atlas Advertising uses a proven mix of economic development marketing tactics that generate interest from site selection audiences. Our approach and experience means that our campaigns generate an average of three to ten times the response of other campaigns. Atlas client reach:

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Outline• What context are we working in?

• 5 Things that Top Regions Are Doing to Succeed

• What are we here to accomplish?

• What the new website will allow us to accomplish

• Next Steps

• Q&A

Context we are working in

• Create greater alignment among the activities of business, government, education, media, health, and foundation / community based efforts

• Build coalitions around key community issues• Develop strategies that support the development of jobs

& business opportunities• Work to improve the business climate to retain and

expand existing businesses and the recruitment of new businesses

• Work to integrate and showcase workforce services with business needs

5 Things That Top Regions are Doing to SucceedPresented by

1. Top Regions see themselves as a product

1. They understand what regionalism actually means

2. They understand that they need to treat their region as a diverse portfolio

3. The understand that they need differentiate themselves from other regions

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2. Top Regions create alignment by having a strategy1. They have created and

documented a plan that includes:

a. Measurable goalsb. Tactics to get therec. Accountability if they

succeed or fail

2. They have involved local partners and business leaders in the process

3. Top Regions invest in local relationships with business and government 1. They have regular meetings

with economic development leaders

2. They have regular meetings with private sector leaders

3. They are the conveners on issues of regional significance

a. Marketingb. Workforcec. Transportation / Infrastructured. Policy

4. Top Regions build relationships and results

1. Member organizations operate under a Code of Ethics and serve as account representatives for the entire region. They tell clients and companies the benefits of the region first, and individual communities second.

2. They course correct if goals are not met

3. They are transparent with leads, prospects, and outcomes

5. Top Regions have the most robust economic development website 1. They realize that the

region gets 10X the online activity of the largest city or county

2. They invest in the most robust storehouse of regional data

3. They tell the story of the regional portfolio

4. They drive leads to their business development staff

Context we are working in

Strengths

• Access to decision makers• “Get it done” mentality• Adaptability to the issues of the day• Strong senior leadership including new CEO• Good events and news content

Weaknesses

• Breadth of focus • Diversity of brands hard to understand• Lack of dedicated funding • Part time or junior staff• “County” in the name limits regional

impression

Opportunities

• Clarify: Change the name to be regional• Focus: Draw a clear line in the sand about

what will be accomplished in certain time• Be strategic: Position new leadership

along side plan of action – convene the parties in support

Threats

• Lack of regional consensus: Diversity of viewpoints can derail clarity

• California: The state that Monterey is in can make it unpredictable for business to do business.

We Needed a Technology Platform to Work Harder for

the Region

What is the organization hereto accomplish?

Economic Development Organizational Objectives

What is the organization hereto accomplish with its

new economic development website?

Approach for MBEP• Discovery Sessions

– Setting Goals to Measure ROI

– Architecture development

– Getting partners involved

• Design Process– Ensure design is aligned with

Regional goals

• Regional brand

• Strategic recommendations

– Website design

• Converting casual website visits into inquiry

• Technical Development – Website development; Technology

tools for site selectors, companies, regional partners and key stakeholders

Approach (2)

• Content Development– Content writing– Content upload

• Launch– Analytics monitoring

• Maintenance, Hosting and Software– Content Management, GIS &

Prospect Management Systems

• Marketing– Search engine marketing– Email marketing– Direct campaigns– Event marketing

What the new website will allowus to accomplish?

Today’s Digital Communications for Economic Development

Screenshot to show how MBEP systems work together with other marketing platforms to provide better outcomes.

ProspectResponseSystem

Your GISSystem

Successful Outcomes

• Speed to partners and prospects

• Efficiency

• Transparency

• Organization

Marketing Activities

Key Features of Atlas Website Offering1. World Class Content

Management• Workflow• Single Session Sign-on (Integration)• Multi-Lingual Support• Custom Tables• Unlimited forms

2. GIS System• Demographic Drive time and Data Reports• Integration with Regional GIS efforts

3. Prospect Management• Online Prospect Response System• Regional Partner Collaboration Tools

4. Responsive Design• Unique User Experience for Mobile Devices

5. Local Versions of GIS for Partners

On average, 20% of Economic Website visits come from mobile devices.

More than just aRegional Economic Development

Website

Checklist for MBEP website redesign

1. Benchmarked current metrics2. Determined regional goals3. Inventoried current assets4. Analyzed the competition

5. Identified “Unique Value Propositions”6. Designed website around personas7. Optimized the website for search

8. Identified calls to action9. Developed Targeted Content

10.Integrated industry specific tools

How Site Selectors Use Your Website

What We Need• Contact information• Incentive programs• Tax rates• Recent announcements• Industry-targeted info• Maps of your territory• Largest employers• Area colleges and universities Based in Chicago, ILFormer economic developer

Specializes

in…renewable

energy and

data centers

Criteria Atlas uses to reviewour own digital creative

1. How well does the design drive conversion to conversations?  How does it do it specifically?  (30%) 

2. How well does the design correspond do responsive (IPhone) sizes? (30%) 

3. How much is the website on brand?  Does it connect in the right way to the existing branding or marketing campaigns? (20%) 

4. What are the new custom features that are present in this design, and how well are they executed? (10%) 

5. Are all of the features and navigation elements required in the scope present in the design?  (10%)

Test driving your newRegional Economic Development

Website

What’s next for the MBEP’s newEconomic Development Website

What is Good on an Economic Development Website?

Understand How Users:

Interact With The Website

Aim for Specific Goals

2014: Results taken from 2 million Atlas Customer User Sessions

Questions?

Thank you!

Contact information:

1128 Grant StDenver, CO 80203Contact: Guillermo Maziert: 303.292.3300 x 232

Guillermom@Atlas-Advertising.comwww.Atlas-Advertising.comLinkedIn Profile | LinkedIn Group | Twitter | Blog | Slideshare