ROCKFORD, IL — The Rockford Area Economic Development Council’s Leadership Council met April 29 to appropriate its 2016 Emerging Opportunities Fund to managing the region’s reputation online.
2016 EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES FUND INVESTMENT
John Groh, President and CEO of the Rockford Area Convention & Visitor Bureau (RACVB) submitted a project, which requested $75,000 to manage the Rockford Region’s Reputation & Recruitment: via online and external media & influencers .
“RACVB is grateful to the Leadership Council for the opportunity to work alongside our colleagues at RAEDC and others in the community to enhance our region’s reputation – internally and externally. Our region is experiencing an exciting time of progress, growth and transformation and we look forward to implementing new ways of telling this story locally and beyond,” said John Groh, President/CEO of the Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau.
The RACVB will utilize the funds for reputation and recruitment efforts online for the Rockford Region. Efforts will focus on how to get the good news and information about our region to rise to the top – online, in external media outlets, and with key influencers. Efforts will be deployed to ensure that positive and balanced information is available in order highlight the progress and momentum the region is experiencing. Managing the regional reputation online will also help local companies secure talented employees who in turn will help grow local businesses and advance our economy.
“Each year for the past eight years, the Leadership Council of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council has funded projects which support the region’s capacity to grow. $1.2 MM has been invested in a variety of projects focusing on education, renewable energy and marketing the area,” states Mike Nicholas, President of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council. “Through these investments, the Leadership Council has had a profound impact on the region’s destiny.”
The outlined areas for online reputation management and recruitment include:
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – Drive online traffic to regional civic sector websites through the use of key words most often used when searching “Rockford.” Key words include combinations such as Rockford + Real Estate, Housing, Schools, Household Income, Crime, etc.
- Paid Search/Search Engine Marketing (SEM) – Drive online traffic to civic sector websites but with the added boost of advertising behind key search terms.
- Online Retargeting – Allow Rockford to stay “top of mind”. These efforts target consumers that show interest in Rockford. Online display advertising will be “retargeted” to display on websites visited by individuals who have visited partner websites.
- Social Media Marketing – Social networks (e.g, Facebook and Instagram) provide a powerful platform to target unique market segments, age-ranges, interests, hobbies, and direct zip codes allowing positive information to spread quickly and strategically.
- Media Outreach/Focused PR – Good information can rise to the top in the media, but often needs a boost – especially when you are not top of mind, as is the case with the Rockford Region in external media markets.
- Influencer Education/Awareness – Quarterly education/outreach with local Realtors® and HR professionals will include the development and delivery of materials (print/electronic/video) that tell the region’s improving story and can be passed along to the consumer (homebuyers, relocating employees, etc.).
The expected returns on investment include:
- Short-term:
- Earned media and the incremental increase in perception of the region
- Increase support from regional associations and organizations
- Increase opportunities to raise money to ensure long-term initiative sustainability
- Long-term:
- Rockford Region will become a winning team which translates to people who want to live, work, play and invest on our team.
ABOUT THE ROCKFORWARD! LEADERSHIP COUNCIL & EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES FUND
The goals of Rockforward20/20 are 10,500 new and retained jobs, 8 million square feet of new or renovated space, and $925 million in capital investments for the Rockford Region by 2020. These will be accomplished by focusing on five primary initiatives: Trailblaze, Inspire Action, Align, Seed, Serve, and investment of the Emerging Opportunities Fund. The RAEDC Board of Directors oversees the strategies, and the Leadership Council manages the Emerging Opportunities Fund.
The Emerging Opportunities Fund is designed for discretionary investment in mutually agreed-upon, forward-thinking initiatives that will leverage positive change for economic development of the Rockford Region.
2008 – 2015 INVESTMENTS
| 2008 | $50,000 | Rockford Charter School Initiative |
| 2008 | $75,000 | Rockford Area Career Clearinghouse |
| 2008 | $50,000 | Freedom Field – Solar Thermal Heating and Thermal Heating and Cooling |
| 2009 | $75,000 | Rock River Development Partnership |
| 2009 | $90,400 | Freedom Field – Solar Thermal Heating Thermal Heating and Cooling |
| 2010 | $60,000 | Alignment Rockford |
| 2010 | $115,000 | Federal Government Affairs Advocate |
| 2011 | $175,000 | Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Attraction |
| 2012 | $175,000 | Alignment Rockford: High School Redesign |
| 2013 | $175,000 | Alignment Rockford: Advancing Teaching & Learning -Building Business Partnerships |
| 2014 | $75,000 | Design & Production Makerspace Lab & Partner Network |
| 2015 | $125,000 | Business Attraction Marketing |
| TOTAL | $1,240,400 | EOF Invested in the Rockford Region |
INVESTORSThe following RAEDC Rockforward20/20 investors currently serve on the Leadership Council:
| Accuride Wheel End Solutions | Edward Bledsoe |
| Alpine Bank | Bill Roop |
| BMO Harris Bank N.A. | Michele Petrie |
| City of Loves Park | Mayor Darryl F. Lindberg or Daniel G. Jacobson |
| City of Rockford | Mayor Lawrence J. Morrissey or James R. Ryan |
| ComEd | George Gaulrapp |
| Fehr Graham | Mick Gronewold or Joel Zirkle |
| First Northern Credit Union | Edward C. Berg or John Pick |
| GE Aviation | Khoi Vu or Susan Downs |
| Greater Rockford Airport Authority | Jeff Polsean |
| Illinois Bank & Trust | Jeffrey Hultman |
| JP Morgan Chase | Jeff Layng |
| Larson & Darby Group | John Saunders |
| MercyRockford Health System | Dan Parod or Doug Brooks |
| Northern Illinois Building Contractors Assoc. | David Anspaugh |
| Northwestern Illinois Contractors Assoc. | Glen Turpoff or Nate Howard |
| OrthoIllinois | Don Schreiner or Lynn Pratt |
| OSF HealthCare | David Schertz |
| PCI Pharma Services | Medrick Rainbow or Justin Schroeder |
| Ringland -Johnson, Inc. | Brent Johnson |
| Rock River Water Reclamation District | Tim Hanson |
| Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau | John Groh |
| Rockford Area REALTORS | Steve Bois |
| Rockford Bank & Trust | Jim Hansberry or Thomas Budd |
| Rockford Chamber of Commerce | Einar Forsman |
| Rockford Park District | Tim Dimke |
| Rockford Public Schools | Ehren Jarrett |
| Rockford Register Star | Paul Gaier |
| RSM US LLP | Denise Sasse |
| Sjostrom & Sons, Inc. | Joel Sjostrom |
| SPX Hydraulic Technologies | Tim Schramm |
| SwedishAmerican Health System | Dr. Bill Gorski |
| UTC Aerospace Systems | Stan Kottke or Bob Guirl |
| Village of Machesney Park | Mayor Jerry Bolin, Tim Savage or James Richter II |
| Williams-Manny, Inc. | Dan Ross |
| Winnebago County | Chairman Scott H. Christiansen |
| Woodward, Inc. | Sagar Patel |
| WREX-TV | John Chadwick |
ABOUT THE RAEDC
The role of the Rockford Area Economic Development Council (RAEDC) is to collaborate with regional stakeholders to cultivate opportunities for primary job growth that increase the economic well-being of our region. The RAEDC markets the region to attract new capital investment, while assisting existing business with resources for sustainable growth. The RAEDC works closely with many partners to improve the competitiveness of the region by taking what it learns from the region’s employers and engaging the community in the daily work of economic development. As the economic development organization for the region, the RAEDC also serves as the area’s data collection agency on all new capital investment, retained and created quality jobs, and renovated commercial/industrial space.
LEADERSHIP COUNCIL STAFF LIAISON
Jimsi Kuborn, VP of Investor Relations
815.969.4259
JKuborn@RockfordIL.com
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Erin Marshall, Communications & Marketing Coordinator
815.969.4267
EMarshall@RockfordIL.com
