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A plan for marketing Minnesota is the only component of the plan for Grow Minnesota! yet to be implemented. In 2009-2010, we plan to develop a marketing plan aimed at 1) attracting to Minnesota facilities of established businesses with no current presence in our state and 2) increasing the geographic range of customers for current Minnesota businesses of all types.
Minnesota has never had a consistent, long-term, national and/or global marketing effort. Appropriations to the state's economic development agency have run "hot" and mostly "cold." At present, the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has established a presence at a very limited set of specific events outside of the state. The work is done under auspices of "Positively Minnesota," a marketing partnership of DEED and several local economic development agencies and utilities. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, there was a relatively short-lived private-sector effort, Advantage Minnesota. It proved expensive and ineffective.
There is more reason now, than ever, to market Minnesota. Thanks to advanced technology and a world economy, it is more possible and likelier than ever that established businesses could put facilities in Minnesota. For the same reasons, it's more feasible than ever for Minnesota businesses to supply distant customers. But we need a strategy that's more proactive and sustained. We believe a private-sector program can do both. The result will be a marketing effort that is better matched to current opportunities and is more effective than ever.
The state's current approach relies on national meetings and trade shows to produce leads. It focuses heavily on site-selection consultants and real-estate managers of larger corporations (i.e. show attendees); and does not have sufficient resources to follow up on real opportunities. The Minnesota Trade Office helps Minnesota businesses reach new customers around the world, but there's no effort to help them expand their customer base within the United States. Grow Minnesota! plans to test a different and complementary approach. We will focus on the senior management and directors of a select group of high-growth small and midsized businesses. Our goal will be to build relationships with these individuals and their companies so they will make Minnesota part of their expansion plans.
In Grow Minnesota!'s 2009-2010 year, we plan to produce a specific plan and begin testing it. The plan will include means to track its immediate and long-term effectiveness. We also will determine the cost of full-scale implementation of the plan and whether the budget can be financed.