8. EDSR 01-14-2013 REQUEST FOR ACTION
River
TO ITEM NUMBER
Economic Development Authority 8.
AGENDA SECTION MEETING DATE PREPARED BY
January 14,2013 Clay Wilfahrt,Assistant Director of
Economic Development
ITEM DESCRIPTION REVIEWED By
Update of Branding Projects Annie Deckert,Director of Economic
Development
REVIEWED BY
Cal Portner, City Administrator
ACTION REQUESTED
None
DISCUSSION
City and EDA Website—The city is in the final stages of completing a new website which was a major
goal of the brand plan. The structure of information was redesigned to be more active,engaging, and
intuitive. A specific section"For Businesses"will house information on business incentives,property
listings, and other EDA related subjects. The website will launch in February of 2013.
Constant Contact Contest—In December,a Constant Contact contest was sent out to over 3,400
individuals on the city's e-mailing list. The contest was a celebration of the 500th "like" of the Economic
Development Facebook page. The contest required that contestants like and comment on the Elk River
Economic Development Facebook page to be entered into a drawing for a Powered by Nature
sweatshirt. All participants also received a Powered by Nature microbuff.
During the week the contest was running,40 new people liked the page, 30 people commented on the
page, and 951 people were reached. The email itself was opened by 1,105 people, shared on Facebook 13
times, once on Twitter, and once on Google+. The Facebook page was visited by 51 people,and 10
people visited the blog after receiving the email.
Blog and Stats—The Powered by Nature blog continues to receive a steady amount of traffic. In
December, 66 unique visitors viewed the site 108 times and stayed for an average of one minute. Visits
were up from an average of 35 unique visitors and 55 visits per month over the previous three months.
Other city social media outlets referred traffic to the blog. Twitter referred 17 visitors, Facebook referred
13, and Constant Contact referred 12. Staff plans to continue to aggressively utilize other social media to
boost the visits to the blog.
The Brand Champions—The group is planning a meeting for mid-to-late January. At this meeting they
will discuss maintenance of www.poweredbynature.com,potential future projects, and community
outreach. With the resignation of Nick Zerwas, the EDA does not currently have a representative on the
Brand Champions, and a new appointment may be necessary in February.
P f I E R E D 8 1
NATURE
Downtown Brochures— One of the major focuses of the Brand Plan is downtown and how the city can
continue to promote it as the heart of the community. To continue work towards this goal,in
partnership with the Downtown River's Edge Business Association,Economic Development staff put
together a brochure for downtown Elk River. The brochure highlights events and attractions to
downtown, such as the concert series, farmers market, and businesses. The brochure also has a map of
all downtown businesses.
The brochure will be distributed at local businesses,the YMCA,Activity Center, downtown kiosks,
Chamber of Commerce,City Hall, the Great River Regional Library,Lions Park,and local hotels.
ERX Ad—Economic Development advertised in the most recent ERX program. The ad focused on Elk
River as a place for outdoorsy types,which presumably makes up a large portion of those attending
snocross races. The ad also directed people to the blog. A copy of the ad is attached.
Social Media Committee—The brand placed emphasis on reaching out to residents via social media, and
internal communication among staff to strengthen social media presences. In December,representatives
from six departments met to discuss social media. They discussed advertising on Facebook,potential
new and popular social media sites,how to manage time effectively while maintaining updated content,
and the most engaging types of content. The group plans to meet regularly to continue the discussion.
Realtors Day_A goal of the brand plan is to bring realtors from Elk River and the metro area to learn
about the city,its plans, and the benefits of living or running a business in the community. On August 8,
2012,20 realtors came to the first ever Elk River Realtors Forum. Attendees learned about the
Comprehensive Plan, the 171'Area FAST study,Mississippi Connections Redevelopment Framework
plan, zoning,economic development,branding,parks and recreation,rental licensing,building permitting,
and Energy City. Response to the event was very positive, and another Realtors Forum is scheduled for
August 2013.
Monument Signs—Per a recommendation in the brand plan,monument signs with the Powered by
Nature logo were placed at the entrance of City Hall in November.
ATTACHMENTS
• ERX Ad
• Constant Contact E-mail
Action Motion by Second by Vote
Follow Up
EXPEP ENCE THE NATURE OF ELK RIVER
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Sweatshirt Giveaway to Celebrate our 500th Like! Page 1 of 2
The content in this preview is based on the last saved version of your email -any changes made to your email
that have not been saved will not be shown in this preview.
Help us Celebrate our 500th Like on Facebook!
9
We made it to 500 likes on Facebook, and we want to give back to all of you who helped make
that happen!
Visit our Facebook page, "like" us, and write something on our wall, or comment on a post, and
we will enter you in for a chance to win this sweatshirt! You can tell us what you like about
Elk River, what your favorite business is, how Elk River is Powered by Nature, or anything else
you choose! We will draw a winner on Wednesday, December 19th, so enter soon!
Be sure to forward this along to friends and family so they can have the opportunity to win as
well!
By following our Facebook page, you will get useful updates on business events,
achievements,new businesses, community events, construction projects, housing programs, and
more! Also, don't forget to check out our blog at www.poweredbynature.blog.com to find out
more about the community!
Just for commenting on our Facebook page or writing on our wall, we will send you a Powered by
Nature MicroBuff to clean off your smart phone or tablet screen!
http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=tscgx8iab&v=001 F WOIEyOKRSLokZ1... 1/9/2013
Sweatshirt Giveaway to Celebrate our 500th Like! Page 2 of 2
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Thank You!
City of Elk River Economic Development
763.635.1040
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