Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/338735
m i d -y e a r r e p o r t 2 014 5 putting it all out there New North renews external marketing push B y S e a n P. J o h n s o n 14 Mid-Year W hen it comes to raising the profile of the New North, it's all about attracting the right people. To that end, New North has been pressing rubber to road, crisscrossing the country to ensure key decision makers are aware of the virtues of doing business in the region. From conferences to trade shows to networking events, if there is an opportunity to register the region on the radar screen of a company considering real estate or facilities for a move or expansion, New North wants to be there. e right folks have taken notice. "ey are building relationships with the people who do the deals," says John Wichman, director of business development for DTZ, a global property services and real estate firm based in Chicago. Wichman is also a leader in CoreNet Global, Chicago, a corporate real estate networking group, and one of the principal organizers of the Great Lakes Regional Symposium, which hosts a monthly meeting bringing economic development officials, corporate leaders, real estate developers, property managers and site selectors together. "It's all about getting to know people and building those external marketing standing relationships," Wichman says. "Company business plans are always changing." To build relationships that could take advantage of those changing plans, New North leadership has: Attended 13 external conferences, trade shows and networking events focused on site selection and marketing attraction to the New North region. Collaborated with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation and three other Wisconsin regional economic development organizations to sponsor a reception of real estate executives and site selectors for the Great Lakes Regional Symposium, held May 12-13 in Chicago. (Other participants were Centergy in central Wisconsin, the Madison Region Economic Partnership and Grow North in northern Wisconsin.) Connected with more than 20 new site selector contacts throughout the Midwest and nationwide. Continuing plans also include attendance at 14 additional conferences, trade shows and networking events before the end of the year. e goal is doubling the region's contact with site selectors. New North is also actively working with the state's Regional Leadership Council (a collaboration of the state's eight regional organizations, chaired by New North Executive Director Jerry Murphy) on familiarization tours and hosting events statewide to encourage the sharing of external marketing resources. e same work is being done on local levels to optimize marketing initiatives. While efforts to market the region are nothing new, a general, external approach has not been an area of emphasis in recent years as New North has focused on specific industries and opportunities, Murphy says. "Take Wind Works, for example, which was all about doing business here because we have these specific capabilities," Murphy says. "It was very targeted marketing. Now we want to really broaden that. We want to market the region regardless of a particular market." More than a New North initiative, the latest external marketing focus can, and should, involve everyone. John Casper, for one, likes the "fam tour" (familiarization) as a way to physically show decision makers the value of choosing the New North. He's confident they will like what they see and experience. "From Oshkosh to Green Bay, you can get just about anywhere