Economic Development Marketing & Attraction

Date: March 12-13, 2015
Location: Denver, CO

This course is held in partnership with Economic Development Council of Colorado (EDCC).

This hands-on course will review the fundamentals of developing and implementing a high-impact marketing and attraction plan. Businesses looking to locate or expand need accurate, up-to-date, and credible information and communities need rock-solid marketing techniques to reach the needs of the business community. Course participants will be able to learn how to craft their community's message by learning about online marketing fundamentals, GIS technologies, website design, and current trends in site selection. Participants will also explore various mediums of communication, including how to best utilize social media and Web 2.0 technologies as an economic development marketing tool. Case studies and sample plans will highlight the dos and don'ts of economic development marketing and attraction.

Course Highlights:

• Site selection fundamentals including corporate strategies 
• Identifying target audiences using data-driven techniques 
• Developing a community marketing plan and brand 
• Garnering internal and external support for the marketing campaign 
• Engaging social media and website design to target new markets 
• Utilizing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to serve clients 
• Benchmarking, evaluating, and monitoring the marketing plan

Instructors
Julie Curtin 
Executive Vice President & Partner 
Development Counsellors International (DCI)

Julie is an Executive Vice President and Partner at Development Counsellors International (DCI), an economic development marketing firm based in New York City. Since joining DCI in 1994, Julie has worked with dozens of economic development organizations around the globe to help them position their communities for investment through integrated and creative marketing programs. With clients ranging from Dothan, Alabama to San Diego, California and everywhere in between, Julie's passion for "place" has resulted in award-winning campaigns. Articles about her client communities have appeared in media such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Newsweek and CNN. Julie has designed social media campaigns for communities around the country that have maximized the changing world of traditional media, and leveraged the power of digital and online influencers.

Anatalio Ubalde, MCP FM 
Chief Executive Officer 
GIS Planning & SizeUp

Anatalio Ubalde is Co-founder and CEO of GIS Planning Inc., an economic development internet service company and ZoomProspector.com, an online site selection and business intelligence service. Mr. Ubalde works with organizations throughout the nation to foster enhanced economic development strategies using Internet technology. His company's strategies are implemented in 42 states and serve the majority of the 100 largest cities in the United States as well as numerous states and small communities. GIS Planning's ZoomProspector Enterprise web-based GIS product is the industry standard for site selection websites in economic development.

Ben Wright 
CEO 
Atlas Advertising

As CEO of Atlas Advertising and Community Systems, Ben Wright is obsessed with helping economic developers grow the vitality in their communities. In the twelve years since he started his Denver, Colorado based company, the company has grown to serve over 120 different economic development clients, in 43+ states and 6 countries, including the Greater Rhode Island Economic Development Partnership, Charleston County Economic Development, Tennessee Valley Authority, Jobs Ohio, Alabama Power, and dozens more. Ben started his career in economic development as the Chief Economist for the Metro Denver EDC, in Colorado in the early 1990s.

Accommodations/Training Location
Spring Hill Suites Denver Downtown at Metro State 
1190 Auraria Parkway 
Denver, CO 80204 
Phone: (303) 705-7300

IEDC Room Rate: $156 single/double 
Cut-off Date: February 26, 2015