The five-year-old
Nicollet East Harriet Business Association is always looking for creative ways to connect the business nodes in Southwest Minneapolis.
Under the umbrella of
Experience Southwest, this holiday season it’s embarking on an early phase of a $40,000 place-making endeavor, with a marketing campaign that steers people to neighborhood shops, according to Matt Perry, who leads the business association.
“I don’t think we have to encourage people to shop local; I think they already want to do that," he says. "People just need the tools to shop local and raise awareness about the business and services and products.”
Based on marketing research that the business association undertook, “We have a broad marketing plan to do a destination identity for the area that gives a name to a place.”
For starters, the group has put together a holiday campaign kit that includes related brochures and a map of the 400 storefronts in the neighborhood.
The materials also have QR codes that people can scan with their smartphones; they land at the project's website, which has information about store sales, special events, deals, and more.
The branding components, unified with a logo “give a sense of place from the perspective of shopping,” Perry says.
He adds that the promotion speaks to the fact that in Southwest Minneapolis, “The shopping experience is a special one because service is exceptional. You have a personal relationship with the owner of a business.”
It’s also a resource for business owners who “want to feel a sense of camaraderie and a sense of being part of something bigger.”
Further down the line, the campaign will help sustain businesses during a couple of upcoming construction projects that will detour traffic.
The business nodes are an important part of the fabric of the area, Perry says. “[They make] it unique and a great place to live."
Source: Matt Perry, Nicollet East Harriet Business Association
Writer: Anna Pratt