2. Who Are You?
&
What Makes You Think
You‟re So Special?
Questions you must answer
before you create your brand
or launch your marketing efforts.
3. BIG Step 1:
Perform A SWOT Analysis
What is a SWOT Analysis?
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
4. Recruit A SWOT Team
Who could be on your SWOT team?
Longtime residents
Newcomers
Merchants
Frequent Visitors
Organization Staff/Volunteers
The Doers
The Burnouts
5. The Arrow Rock SWOT
Strengths
National Historic Landmark
(Santa Fe Trail and George Caleb
Bingham)
State Historic Site
Architectural integrity throughout
village
The Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre
The J. Huston Tavern
Talented volunteers
6. The Arrow Rock SWOT
Weaknesses
Isolated location
Population 79 (half are part-
time residents)
Merchants
Too many organizations
Inaccessible historic buildings
Lack of cell phone service
7. The Arrow Rock SWOT
Opportunities
Partnerships with new regional
tourism programs (Scenic Byways,
Regional Cuisine, etc.)
New and inexpensive communications
technology
Civil War Sesquicentennial
Bingham Bicentennial
8. The Arrow Rock SWOT
Threats
Lack of regional zoning
Competition from high-energy
attractions
Downtime January-April
Cuts in state funding for historic site
Lack of a common vision among
residents and organizations
“But we’ve always done it this way!”
10. BIG Step 2:
Develop A Strategic Marketing Plan
Consider bringing in an outside facilitator to keep the
process on track.
Create a marketing mission statement.
Prioritize your objectives.
Set achievable goals.
11. BIG Step #3
Establish Your Brand
“Define your brand identity—your
product's „personality‟—before you spend
a dime on advertising or marketing.”
-- Bloomberg Businessweek
What Is Branding?
It’s your personality.
It’s what you stand for.
It’s the story you want to tell about yourself.
12. Recruit Your Marketing Team
Event Planners Salespeople
Journalists/Writers Web Developers
Graphic Designers Town Historians
Photographers Artists
Fundraisers Realists
Bookkeepers Dreamers
13. Find Your Look
Logo Development
What images represent your community?
Consider hiring a professional designer to create your
logo. An amateurish logo creates a bad first
impression.
Fonts
Don’t sacrifice readability for historical accuracy. Use
old-timey fonts sparingly. With fonts, more is not
better.
Color schemes
Be intentional with color choices.
Be consistent with color palette.
15. Develop Your Voice
Share The Burden:
Use your best writers for: Use your best techies for:
Press releases Website
E-newsletters Podcasts
Brochures Videos
Use your best marketers
for:
Advertisements
Facebook & Twitter
Blogs
16. Keep On Talking!
Don’t start an e-newsletter until you have a volunteer
who is fully committed to producing it every month.
Keep your website current.
Post to Facebook at least a couple times a week. More is
better. Add photos and video.
Develop relationships with the media. Consider inviting
editors and travel writers for a tour of local attractions.
Provide media passes to your events. INSIDER TIP:
Journalists will go almost anywhere for free
food and a T-shirt.
17. Arrow Rock Examples
Website (ArrowRock.org)
Hint: Find inexpensive website templates at ThemeForest.com
18. Arrow Rock Examples
E-Newsletter: This Month In Arrow Rock
Hint: Our service provider is iContact.com. Prices start at $9.95
for up to 250 subscribers.
19. Arrow Rock Examples
Facebook: The Village Of Arrow Rock
Hint: Limit your administrators to one or two people so your posts
have a consistent tone.
20. Create A Signature Event
What makes your town unique?
What goals do you want to meet?
What gets your volunteers engaged?
What can your facilities handle?
What’s the timeline?
21. Capitalize On Your Uniqueness
The Slater Example
5th Annual Steve
McQueen Day
scheduled for
April 2011.
22. Capitalize On Your Uniqueness
The Arrow Rock Example
3rd Annual Spirits, Shadows & Secrets
event scheduled for Oct. 30, 2010.
23. Identify Your Goals
To raise money?
How much?
For what purpose?
To raise awareness?
For what?
What’s the message?
Who’s in charge of conveying the message?
How will the message be delivered?
24. Engage Your Volunteers
Invite everyone to participate in the event
planning.
Divide and conquer.
Assign people to jobs they’ll like.
Have a potluck dinner/work night.
Say thanks, and if possible, say it in print.
Invite all volunteers to a post-event
evaluation meeting.
25. Assess Your Facilities
Where will the event be held?
How many can the space accommodate?
Should you rent portable toilets?
Are there any safety hazards that should
be addressed prior to the event?
If it’s an outdoor event, what’s the rain
plan?
Who’s going to clean up afterward?
26. Develop A Timeline
How much time do you need for
planning?
Allow ample time in this phase.
Think through the “what ifs.”
How much time do you need for
promotion?
Will you have printed materials?
Website or e-mail promotions?
Newspaper, radio, TV and magazines?
27. Develop A Timeline
How much time is needed for the event
itself?
Setting up before the event
Occupying the early birds
Finding the sweet spot between too short
and too long (consider volunteer fatigue,
facility wear and tear, etc.)
Post-event clean-up plan
28. Evaluate Your Event
If you intend to hold your event annually,
have a post-event evaluation meeting
within two weeks.
Listen with an open mind to all the
critiques.
Take notes.
29. Add And Subtract
Beware of stagnant events.
Offer your visitors something new every
year.
Don’t be afraid to eliminate the things that
aren’t working.
Move things around and mix things up so
visitors have a familiar, yet brand new
experience every year.
