Knowledge Center

Marketing, Communications and Events

Place managers narrate and communicate the identity and outward facing mission of the place to residents, tourists, businesses, and other stakeholder groups, thereby communicating the place’s unique brand. By expressing the identity of the place, the brand should invoke a sense of place, leaving individuals with the intangible feelings that one gets when engaging with the authenticity of the place.

The brand is used to market the place to these various stakeholder groups, attracting and inviting them to live, work, play and invest in the place. A diversity of tactics are used to market a place ranging from events, messaging, online engagement, street-level activation and more.

Flatiron NoMad Rebrand & Website Initiative

September 29, 2023 Award

With the BID boundary expansion and the continued challenges presented by the pandemic, district stakeholders and audiences need the Parntership’s focus and resources more than ever. Through a clear, compelling and distinct brand positioning strategy and graphic identity, the organization is poised to tap into the expertise and energy of stakeholders.

We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!

ShopFairbankVillage2Win Contest

September 22, 2023 Best Practice

ShopFairbankVillage2Win was a sweepstake designed to influence shopping behaviour immediately and in the long term. For six weeks, the community was encouraged to shop locally and submit receipts for purchases over $20. These became entries into a weekly draw for $1000 ($500 to keep and $500 to share with the issuing business).

We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!

Advancing Places: Holiday and Winter Activations (2023)

July 14, 2023 Webinar

It’s never too early to start planning your holiday activations and lighting programs. Learn from the organizers of the a diverse collection of winter activations in Chicago, Orlando, and Portland, Maine.

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Advancing Places: Engaging the Media

May 23, 2023 Webinar

Learn from two seasoned professionals on the evolution of local media ecosystems and the power of proactive relationships with journalists. We will clarify the differences between earned, paid, and owned media, focus on earned media, on earned media and share examples of proactive and reactive/crisis communications. Join the conversation around different strategies, including having an in-house communications team versus working with an agency. 

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Advancing Places: Why Festivals and Events?

May 23, 2023 Webinar

As place management professionals, we are often charged with creating ways to bring people downtown and to our neighborhood districts.  Join this session and learn from three seasoned professionals why they produce festivals and events for their districts.  Who benefits and what does it take to produce them.  

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Using Interactive Tech for Marketing & Economic Development

April 03, 2023 Presentation

Interactive digital technologies for attraction, promotion, and engagement have become increasingly accessible for BIDs of all sizes, presenting affordable opportunities to transform existing programs or create new ones. Learn the steps from beginning to end on how these programs were developed and how their effectiveness was measured. 

We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!

Not Magic – Realistic Steps to Excellent Event Branding

September 23, 2022 Presentation

Learn a step-by-step process for event branding that you can apply to your own projects right away. Learn how to dive into design thinking from a place manager’s perspective, offering support and consideration of details like incorporating sponsors, creating cohesive looks across several events and place branding vs. event branding.  

We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!

High Performance Digital Marketing for Destination Districts

September 23, 2022 Presentation

Trends in marketing come and go, but a robust interactive website continues to act as the foundation for digital content marketing. This presentation covers the results of Geocentric’s 2022 Downtown Digital Survey, a summary look at downtown district websites and how they perform across some key measures of audience, acquisition and behavior.

We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!

Leading Recovery Through Events & Programming

September 23, 2022 Presentation

As we all continue to recover from the setbacks of the last few years, downtown economic development professionals and marketing experts have found unique ways to accelerate the recovery and shape the narrative by creating and promoting compelling new programs and events for their districts.

We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!

Become Your Own Hyperlocal Digital News Outlet

September 23, 2022 Presentation

As traditional newsrooms continue to shrink and media habits change, now is the time to fill the void and create a hyperlocal news outlet inside your organization, moving beyond press releases and conventional blog content to develop the multimedia newsgathering and storytelling operation your community needs.  

We’d love for you to see this member-only resource to help make a difference in your district. Make sure you are logged in or join IDA to learn more about how members get sh*t done!