Are you Ready?North East Texas Economic Developers Roundtable

May 16, 2012Presented by: Allison Larsen

At 50,000 feet, most cities

look roughly the same.

SELECT ONE

How does your city stand out?

Site Selectors and Economic Development Professionals share a common goal…

To be associated with good communities• Economically sustainable• Create wealth• Good quality of life

Our Common Goal

CompetitiveReady combines the expertise of four firms – each an industry leader – to address the full spectrum of what it means to be CompetitiveReady:

• AUSTIN CONSULTING - corporate location strategy and site selection experts

• CHABIN CONCEPTS – ED strategies, targeting, development of business case, marketing strategy

• APPLIED ECONOMICS – research, modeling, economic impact

• ED SUITE - web development, social media, web tools, branding, custom software development

Asset ScorecardAssessing 10 Categories, 175+ Factors

• Asset Scorecard: Comprehensive asset inventory and rigorous assessment with corresponding recommendations

• Industry Scorecard: Assessment on industry priority location factors that prove a compelling business case

• Comparative Scorecard: Intelligence on how model & competitor communities position for targets and benchmarking on economic indicators

CompetitiveReady Program Offerings

Where to Look for ED Benchmarks

Nu

mb

er

of

Co

mm

uni

ties

Few

Many

Degree of Community Success

WildlySuccessful

WildlyUnsuccessful

Level of ED Effort

Benchmark TheseOrganizations

3. Deliver on Your Promises – Close

the Deal

1. Get on theRadar Screen

with Your Brand

GOAL: Avoid Giving Potential Investor a Reason to Walk Away from Your Community

2. DemonstrateYou are the Right Place

Evaluate Strategic Alternatives

Screen & Evaluate Communities/Sites

Negotiate Incentives

Conduct Due Diligence

StrategyDevelopment

LocationInvestigation

DueDiligence

ImplementProject

Where Economic Development fits into The Location Selection Process

1. Take care of existing employers (BRE)2. Know who “fits” in your community (Targeting)3. Ready buildings & sites4. Customer-focused permitting process5. Team alignment

Must Have Fundamentals

Why Important?• Avoid “holes in the bucket” • Your employers could be

another community’s recruitment targets

• Most effective sales people Do you know what they will say about community/you when you are not in the room?

• Grow industry cluster – suppliers & vendors

Essentials• Outreach is more than

surveys – be proactive, add value

• Understand their business & industry

• Case studies – more than a testimonial

• Honor / recognition program

#1 Take Care of Existing Employers

• Vote by Text• Vote one time

Time to Get Involved

How To Vote via Texting

1. Standard texting rates only (worst case US $0.20)2. We have no access to your phone number3. Capitalization doesn’t matter, but spaces and spelling do

TIPS

EXAMPLE

http://www.polleverywhere.com/multiple_choice_polls/LTIxMTM1ODA0Mjg

Why Important?• Effective use of resources • Be “known for”• Know what you need to

be ready– sites/buildings– Infrastructure– labor

Essentials• Target industries selected

based on methodology• Industry trends & issues -

understand their needs• Business case – position

your advantages relative to their priorities

#2 Targeting

Effective Marketing to Target Industries

Why Important?• >50% of all projects

start with a search for an existing building

• Third-party certified site– speeds process with

ready information– reduces uncertainty

Essentials• Property has list price

or its not really on the market

• Correct zoning• Complete data

#3 Ready Buildings & Sites

Mix of settings 1 to 100 acres sites 2,000 to 50,000 sq. ft. Utility served Transportation access

- road and rail Suitable soils,

drainage Proper zoning Free of contamination WILLING SELLERS

Inventory of Sites and Buildings

Due Diligence Certified Site

North Carolina’s “duediligence” oriented certification program

Available site CAD file facilitated client’s site analysis

Community responded immediately to info requests

Comprehensive Data Earned This Community a Spot on the Shortlist

Tipton, IA: Population 3,200

Third-PartyCertified Site

Why Important?• Handshake not good

enough• Time is money• Uncertainty pushes

prospect away

Essentials• Understand customer

needs• Present clear process

– What info needed– Timeline

• Pre-development meeting• Prove capabilities with

Case studies

#4 Customer-focused Permitting Process

Why Important?• Reflective of business

climate• Too many variables &

too much work to “go it alone”

Essentials• Confidentiality Policy• Key messages• Prove how your team

accomplishes things together - examples

#5 Team Alignment

1. Take care of existing employers (BRE)2. Know who “fits” in your community (Targeting)3. Ready buildings & sites4. Customer-focused permitting process5. Team alignment

Summary of Fundamentals

What are you going to do now to be more Competitive & Ready?

Allison Larsen, Chabin & CompetitiveReadyToll-free (855) 888-2010allison@CompetitiveReady.comTwitter @ReadytoCompete

www.CompetitiveReady.com

Thank You