Attracting high school alumni back to the community will be part of the town’s business retention and expansion strategy, town council has agreed.
Business and Economic Manager Belinda Wick-Graham told council the local economic development committee (EDC) was recommending a three-pronged approach to utilizing $25,000 in funds available form Wellington County for localized business retention and expansion projects.
In addition to just under $10,000 to pitch a return home to former area residents, the committee is recommending spending about $15,000 on a LaunchIt creative industry business incubator project, which the town operates in conjunction with the Minto Chamber of Commerce.
Wick-Graham said the alumni campaign results from studies indicating employers aren’t finding everything they are looking for in the local workforce.
“We need to attract more residents to live in Minto for the workforce issue,” she explained.
“The committee decided that we would like to put our money toward creating a marketing plan to attract people back to the community – so focusing on high school alumni, not just Norwell graduates, but surrounding communities … invite them to come back and see all the great things we do here and hopefully start a businesses here, or move one here, or work for our employers.”
At its July 22 meeting, council approved the EDC report, including a recommendation to apply to the county’s business retention and expansion implementation fund for $24,807 to complete the high school alumni attraction campaign, a Launchlt promotion video and operating funds for Launchlt Minto.
The campaign will involve working with YFactor, a Toronto-based consulting firm, to develop a marketing campaign aimed at high school alumni in Minto and surrounding communities.
The focus of the campaign will be to market Minto as a destination for them to move to by showcasing a range of living and business advantages.
Development of the campaign will include strategic planning sessions with Minto stakeholders and background research to identify alumni groups.
The campaign will also involve creating promotional material, including interviews with alumni who have moved back to the area, postcards and up to 10 pages of content to be used online and on marketing material.
The economic development committee is also considering hosting a reunion/homecoming or open house event to tie in with the promotion.
Just under $5,000 of the The LaunchIt component of the county funding will be used to create a two-minute video promoting the incubator, while the rest will be used to assist with operating costs such as staffing, programing and advertising.
