Development Counsellors InternationalJulie Curtin, Partner & Jessica Tuquero, Account SupervisorThursday, January 22, 2009

Be A Talent Magnet

How to Market Your Community to Today’s Workforce

OUR AGENDA

I. An Overview of DCI

II. An Early Look at DCI’s “Talent Attraction Survey”

III. Three Relevant Case Studies

IV. Top 10 Takeaways

V. Q&A

ABOUT DCI

• Since 1960, DCI has worked with 350+ cities, regions, states and countries in economic development marketing and travel marketing

• With 35 full-time staff, DCI is the largest assembly of “place marketing” professionals in the world

• Author of “Winning Strategies in Economic Development Marketing:” Continuing survey of 250+ corporate executives with site selection responsibilities

• Working with a growing number of communities to develop “Talent Attraction” marketing campaigns.

CREATE JOBS…GET LABORERS…CREATE JOBS

•Economic development organizations are not just trying to create jobs; the major focus is shifting from Company Attraction, to now also include Workforce Attraction.

•A place’s labor pool is one of the main factors in the decision for companies to do business in the area.

NO LABORERS = NO BUSINESS INVESTMENT

SO WHAT ATTRACTS TODAY’S WORKFORCE?

We were curious about what attracts people to a community.

So, we are conducting a survey to find out…

DCI “TALENT ATTRACTION” SURVEY

• How individuals make decisions about where they live.

• Using Facebook to gather responses.

• Today’s findings are based on 191 respondents.

Q: On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is "not likely" and 5 is "very likely," what is the likelihood you will move to another city in the next two years?

12%

15% 28%

23% 23%

1, Not likely

2

3

4

5, Very Likely

Q: On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 means “Not Important” and 5 means “Highly Desirable,” please rate how important the following attributes are in a community, according to your personal needs.

Top 6 responses, by mean score

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

Available jobopportunities

Safety/LowCrime

Attractivehousingoptions

Greatrestaurants

Proximity tofamily and

friends

Arts andculture

Q: On a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 means “Not Important” and 5 means “Highly Desirable,” please rate how important the following attributes are in a community, according to your personal needs.

Bottom 7 responses, by mean score

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

Outdoorrecreational

activities

Accessiblepublic transit

Greatshopping

Nightlife Ethnic/culturaldiversity

Greatschools, K-12

Familyentertainment

Does age matter? Differences in what matters to 22 to 35 year olds vs. 36 to 50 year olds

Top 5 Community Attributes for 22 to 35 year olds

• Available job opportunities

• Safety/Low Crime

• Attractive housing options

• Great restaurants

• Proximity to family and friends

Top 5 Community Attributes for 36 to 50 year olds

• Safety/Low Crime

• Available job opportunities

• Attractive housing options

• Great restaurants

• Great schools, K-12

Q: Please rate the sources of information that may influence your perceptions of a community. A score of 1 means "Not at all" while 5 means "Very much."

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

A B C D E F G H I J

KEY TO THE CATEGORIES

A Previous travel to locationB Word of mouth C Internet searches for housing/

jobsD Online news sites E Newspaper/magazine articlesF Popular culture references G City/community websites H Social Networking Sites I TV or print advertisementsJ Blogs

Q: Does age matter? Differences in information sources for 22 to 35 year olds vs. 36 to 50 year olds

Top 5 Information Sources for 22 to 35 year olds

• Previous travel experience to the region

• Word of mouth commentary from family and friends

• Internet searches for housing or jobs

• Online news sites (e.g. cnn.com, msnbc.com, etc.)

• Articles in newspapers and magazines

Top 5 Information Sources for 36 to 50 year olds

• Word of mouth commentary from family and friends

• Previous travel experience to the region

• Articles in newspapers and magazines

• Internet searches for housing or jobs

• Online news sites (e.g. cnn.com, msnbc.com, etc.)

THREE CASE STUDIES

1. Reno-Tahoe

2. Vermont

3.Wyoming

CASE STUDY #1: Reno-Tahoe’s Takes San Francisco

•Known for casinos/divorce capital; not high tech jobs and outdoor lifestyle

•Local companies have difficulty recruiting talent to the region

THE STRATEGY

•Implement a talent-attraction event in San Francisco •Drum up local company support

•Use social media to promote the “hybrid life” in Reno-Tahoe

THE EXECUTION

•Designed and distributed e-invite

•Created a landing page: MYNVDreamJob.com

•YouTube contest: Reno YPN posted videos on “How they Live the Hybrid Life”

•Placed clickable “buttons” on participating companies HR sites that drove traffic to the RSVP page on the website

THE EXECUTION

Street Team Stunt

• Reno-Tahoe representatives dressed in “hybrid” attire –outside the venue two days prior to the event

• Passed out Flyers to passersby

THE RESULTS

• Attracted 110 Bay Area professionals (Goal was 60)

•16 regional Reno-Tahoe companies attended

• 76 official guest RSVPs via the website

• 60 people filled out profiles on MyNVDreamJob.com for future recruiting purposes by all participating companies

• MyNVDreamJob.com landing page received 1,935 visitors during the promotion with 6,000+ page views; over half of the unique visitors were driven through social marketing sites such as Facebook and YouTube

CASE STUDY #2: PursueVt

Vermont has an aging workforce and needs to recruit IT and engineering professionals to the state.

Initiative begins with networking event in Boston with hiring firms and recruits

Attendance one week before the event: 21 firms on board, and only 4 candidates RSVP’d!

THE STRATEGY

1. Utilize the popularity and mass appeal of social media networks to market the networking event

2. Infiltrate Boston media to spread the word that Vermont is “playing in its backyard”

3. Capture contact information from laborers interested in opportunities in Vermont.

THE TARGET

• 21-35 year old professionals in IT and engineering Sectors

• Living in the Boston Area

• Preferably Vermont alumni

THE EXECUTION

• Used Facebook and ASmallWorld to promote the Boston Event

•State representatives and hiring companies spoke with local Boston media prior and after the event

•Created a domain to provide and collect information from workers interested in relocating to Vermont: www.pursuevt.org

FACEBOOK: THE YOUNG PROFESSIONALS’ SPACE

ASMALLWORLD.NET

•Exclusive networking site

•200,000 members to date

•Members more likely to answer posting

SPREADING THE WORD THROUGH EARNED MEDIA

THE RESULTS

•RSVP’s increased dramatically: 75-80 candidates attended

•Attendees were well prepared (suits, resumes)

•Job interviews already arranged

•Made way for a follow-up event in Boston, which proved to be just as successful

CASE STUDY #3: WYOMING

• With a boom in the state’s energy industry, the need for skilled workers (welders, mechanics, electricians) was enormous

• Identify and attract blue collar workers to fill open positions

THE STRATEGY

• Head East to Michigan: Target out-of-work automobile workers

• Aggressively promote job opportunities in Wyoming via a combination of paid and earned media

• Bring prospective workers and employers together at a series of job fairs in Lansing, Flint and Grand Rapids

• Build website with specific job opportunities

AN AGGRESSIVE PAID MEDIA PROGRAM

ZEROING IN ON THE LOCAL DETROIT PRESS

…AS WELL AS NATIONAL MEDIA ATTENTION

THE RESULTS

•Three Michigan missions/ job fairs have been extremely productive

•Over 8,000 resumes posted on www.jobswyoming.net

•Able to track 305 Michigan residents that have relocated to Wyoming

TOP 10 TAKEAWAYS

1. Rally your local businesses.

2. Consider an Ambassador Program.

3. Do your research and know your target.

4. Use the power of earned media.

5. Create a domain and make it as interactive as possible.

TOP 10 TAKEAWAYS

6. Use social media…

7. …Then keep the conversations going!

8. This is a personal decision as much as a business decision.

9. Once they come, see that they stay.

10. Remember: The workforce is mobile.

Q & A

THANK YOU!

To receive an electronic version of the “Be A Talent Magnet” presentation OR for a copy of the Workforce Attraction Survey:

– Share a copy of your business card with “Presentation” or “Survey” on it

– Email us at julie.curtin@dc-intl.com.