This year, Small Business Saturday has more than 2,400,000 Facebook supporters and American Express has co-ordinated free Facebook ads for participants, DIY promotional collateral, and e-marketing materials to help small business.

In our work with small precincts the question of how to encourage people to ‘shop local’ almost always raises it head, and then slams into the wall of how to fund a marketing campaign that is creative and motivational.
What would it take to encourage American Express (or one of its competitors?) to try the same thing down under?

Three new BIA’s funded by special rate levies will act as service providers to Council, charged with delivering against Business Plans targeting four key strategic areas.

Capacity building, business planning and development, marketing and infrastructure development and reinvigoration are set to be the new watchwords for BIA’s in Wallsend, Mayfield & Hamilton. We worked with the Mayfield Mainstreet Committee several years ago and recall a passionate group of business people keen to see the commercial centre succeed.  The BIA model, which grants greater flexibility and control than the mainstreet model while still retaining appropriate accountability, should suit each of the Newcastle commercial centres.

Council is currently seeking individuals or organisations with ‘dynamic business and marketing expertise that can optimise the distinctiveness and competitive advantage of these commercial centres’.  Initial enquiries Courtney Koning ckoning@ncc.nsw.gov.au. Applications close 2pm Friday 26 August.

In 2010, the USDA National Farmers Market Directory counted over 6,200 operational farmers markets in the USA. That’s more than a 16 percent growth in farmers markets from 2009.

The first farmers’ market in the UK opened just 10 years ago – there are now 550 farmers’ markets across the UK.

Ten years ago there were no farmers’ markets in Victoria; today they number over 60 across the State and over 150 in Australia.

We applaud the Victorian Government’s recent announcement of an allocation of $2 million over four years to support the sustainable continued growth of farmers’ markets.

And the push to ‘PORT’ (promote our regional towns) encouraging regional towns to apply for Federal grants of up to $1Million on the strength of the evocity campaign is fantastic.

But we just can’t help wondering if the name ‘evocity’ is a bit contrived…………even though the 7 evocities are centres of ‘Energy, Vision and Opportunity’ – does the name ring true? does it resonate with target markets? are city dwellers beginning to think ‘I must move to an evocity?’

The question has relevance to those regional towns who want to take advantage of the PORT funding – what will a collaborative campaign by the smaller councils of Parkes, Lithgow, Cowra, Young, and the Mid-Western Region be branded: ‘portowns’? ‘evotowns’? ‘etrrtowns’ (Escape the Rat Race towns)?

We’d love to hear what others think….especially anyone already touched by the evocity work.  This little video on the evocity website says it all…….

Instead, some Councillors and supportive stakeholders are left wondering who will now champion the CBD.  Council’s news release about the decision to reject the new funding round points to concerns by a ‘large number of city centre businesses’.

Although based on the galvanising idea behind US Business Improvement Districts, there are some key differences that make Australian BIDs vulnerable: one of these is that there is no consistent, pre-determined method of obtaining and demonstrating continuing support.

The United Kingdom recognised this potential vulnerability when it formally enabled BIDS through legislation.  The Business Improvement Districts (England) Regulations 2004 describe in detail how a BID should be established, managed (particularly financially), reviewed, renewed and terminated.

We can’t help but think Australia too, needs some national legislation to encourage and support these business driven self-improvement schemes.

http://callanparkyourplan.com.au/index.php even those who had been heavily http://callanparkyourplan.com.au/index.php in the past felt that the tours gave them a much better appreciation of the way the draft Master Plan responds to community input, balances competing community interests, and fits within the framework of the legislation that governs development at Callan Park.

For future projects of this size, it could be fruitful to include bus or walking tours earlier in the consultation process.  For Callan Park, the most frequent question we heard today was ‘who’s going to pay for it?’ A good question on two fronts: it means that despite any lingering individual doubts about certain aspects of the draft Master Plan the overwhelming community sentiment is support for its intent; and it points to the Federal, State and Local funding partnerships that will be necessary to save Callan Park from the neglect it suffers today.

Canberra CBD Limited is funded by a 5 year grant from the ACT Government – the grant itself is funded by a compulsory levy on CBD property owners.  In 2006 and 2007, City Marketing assisted the ACT Government, the ACT Division of the Property Council of Australia, and the Canberra City Heart Business Association establish the framework for the levy and its future operations.

For the last 4 years, Linda has been delivering against a 5 year strategy City Marketing wrote for Canberra CBD Ltd as part of its funding bid.  She’s done a wonderful job and left the organisation and the place it manages in great shape for the new CEO.