Town of Berlin
The town of Berlin was looking to attract businesses to their community. However they needed to identify the types of businesses that they should go after, create a marketing campaign to reach those targeted companies and create materials to showcase the town's attributes, emphasizing the town's strategic, central location.
Description:
To begin, CERC's research department identified the market by defining the economy of the region with Berlin at the center, taking into account the demographic shifts of the region and the state. Next, they conducted a regional business profile to get a better understanding of the industry mix in the town, giving them a handle on Berlin's economic engine. With those steps complete, CERC created a defined, targeted industry/business list, which the town used for targeted marketing efforts.
The attention then turned to the actual marketing of the town. CERC's marketing department developed a business recruitment campaign that included materials that supplied companies with current, useful and convincing information on why they should move to or expand in Berlin.
One of the key selling points is the town's central location, so it was determined early on that CERC's GIS mapping capabilities would be highly beneficial. General location maps of Berlin and the region were created and then more in-depth maps were created to show vacant and developable land, as well as transportation infrastructure.
Issues:
The town needed to do extensive work on a limited budget with limited staff, so that was a challenge throughout the process. All of Berlin's marketing materials, right down to letterhead and envelopes, were out-of-date and they needed to build a web site that could be updated easily and often without incurring cost.
Deliverables:
CERC's research team produced a thoughtful, concise report outlining strengths, weaknesses and opportunities, as well as a targeted industry/business list. A Web site, brochure and inserts were on the marketing department's list, while the GIS department created a number of maps for the town to visually display their location and attributes.
Outcomes:
The report was completed ahead of schedule and under budget and it included endless data that were up-to-date and useful for the town's collateral pieces. The brochure was attractively designed using only two colors to save money. The brochure was sent as a direct mail piece. Using the results of the industry targeting analysis to generate business lists, CERC mailed the survey, performed follow-up phone calls and tracked leads. A cost-effective web site was developed, which included easy-to-use proprietary software in which Berlin staff was trained in using to update the content in-house. The maps that were created were also useful in the collateral materials, including the web site.
Visit the town of Berlin's economic development web site for more information.