If you’re a regular visitor, you know I tell the stories of businesses, brands, people and cities for a living. Recently, I went to Mandan, ND to meet with the city staff and leadership and to see the city firsthand so I could tell their story to the retail marketplace and help them attract new retail and restaurants. Most of the people who heard of my trip in advance, or saw a tweet the day of, responded as if I were heading to the end of the known universe. And while some things were a little different 150 miles from Canada than they are here in Oklahoma (it was May 2nd and there was snow on the ground from a weekend blizzard, for one thing), the most important things from an economic development perspective were exactly the same.

Cities who want retail have to be strategic if they wish to accomplish the goals. And, as my colleague Rickey Hayes says, they must have a firm grip on reality. I think our project in Mandan will be successful, and here’s why:

1. The city knows the truth about itself… they are grounded in a reality that includes their population, growth, proximity to other retail or cities, ability to offer incentives or enticements, and what land or environmental factors affect them. For good or ill, they are interested in the truth about what they have to offer, and who might be interested.
2. City officials and leadership are committed to smart growth and to focusing on key areas rather than a shotgun approach to development. After a years-long and largely successful downtown revitalization effort, Mandan is ready to seek retail investment from further afield. Studies and surveys have been done in the past that helped shape completed projects and brought resident’s concerns and wishes to the forefront. Leaders in the community are anxious to move forward with retail recruiting efforts, but they want to remain true to the master plan and development goals for the city.
3. Mandan is growing… our preliminary research into the demographics and drivers for the city is positive. They do have something to offer businesses who fit the opportunity gaps in their marketplace and the city wants to partner with the development community to make the process as simple and painless as possible. More importantly, they have taken steps (like contracting with me and with Retail Attractions) to prove it and share it.
4. They understand their brand. Mandan, ND is not everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s OK. They promote what they have (which was impressive to see in person), and they work to further the business community’s understanding and first impressions of Mandan.

Cities who want to grow must think of themselves as brands and businesses and market accordingly. Slick, beautiful marketing brochures (the approach many of them take) are not the answer. Thoughtful attention to streamlining the development department and a reputation of being easy to work with goes further to close a deal. A city website full of solid, up to date, third-party verifiable economic development information on the market (demographics, property, characteristics, government or regulatory issues, retail or business environment, etc.) that is regularly updated, or even contains a *gasp* blog, goes further to attract interest. It sounds basic to many entrepreneurial businesses, and perhaps it is. But too often, cities don’t approach a marketing problem, or economic development marketing, from a business perspective. And they should.

When you think about your place, business or brand… are you grounded in reality? Are you committed to smart growth and to delivering exactly what your customers need? Is it easy to do business with you… no hoops, obstacles, or processes that might make people re-think their initial interest? And is your brand authentically YOU and do you deliver on what it promises?

I kept my list short… what would you add?

Perhaps, if you’ve found my site through PR, Marketing or Social Media searches, links or posts, you found this page and wondered how it all fits together. I love marketing places… economic development marketing is a specialty of mine. Telling the story of a place, for a particular purpose, helps to achieve goals that benefit the citizens who live there, the stakeholders invested there, the businesses who choose to locate there and the regional concerns connected to the primary place. In short, it’s marketing I feel good about doing.

Through our place marketing endeavors, I’ve gotten to know quite a few city councilors, city managers, economic development professionals, developers, retail site selectors and commercial real estate brokers. One former economic development professional, Rickey Hayes, opened his own retail consulting business two years ago and has experienced phenomenal success since then. His approach benefits all the parties involved in retail recruitment and generates results. I’ve been working with him, supplying data, marketing materials and helping to tell the stories of his client cities for the past couple of years and I’m proud to be part of the Retail Attractions, LLC, team.

If you know me personally, or follow me closely on facebook or Twitter, you know I am passionate about what I do. I wanted to introduce you to someone else who is equally passionate about helping cities achieve their visions in economic development and retail recruitment. And now you know how that whole economic development thing fits

Rickey Hayes founded Retail Attractions in 2007 to provide a suite of services to the retail development world, including cities, developers, retailers, site selectors, economic development trusts and authorities. Communities and their citizens benefit when national retailers and restaurants, quality residential developments, and state of the art health care facilities choose to locate in their city. Developers and retailers benefit from choosing a location in a Retail Attractions client city because the process is smooth and efficient.

Before starting Retail Attractions,

Rickey Hayes

Rickey served as the Economic Development Director for the City of Owasso, Oklahoma for six years. During that time, the city experienced tremendous growth in both commercial and residential investment. The city’s sales tax base more than doubled. New commercial construction during his tenure totaled more than 4.2 million square feet with over a quarter of a billion dollars in total value. Since beginning Retail Attractions, LLC, our partner cities have seen another 1 million square feet of new retail development, along with the corresponding sales tax revenue that comes with new retail sales.

Rickey developed and maintains a quality network of contacts in the development, real estate, site selection, leasing and tenanting, engineering, creative financing, architecture and planning arenas. He brings this formidable contact base to bear when helping a city seeking new retail or when helping a developer source sites, tenants and financial incentives. He understands how city governments operate and the interplay of city political, financial, and regulatory environments. He also understands how development works and what site selectors, developers and retail tenants need to see, hear, and feel about a potential location in order to move forward. You can contact Rickey through his website or by e-mailing me with any questions (see the handy e-mail link at the top of the page!)