City of McAllenIntegrated Marketing Plan

Chelse Benham

Amparo Moran

Market Summary

• Market: past, present, & futureThere has been a long-term decline trend in the McAllen Economic Index signaling the ongoing contraction in the McAllen metro area general economy as defined by a sustained decline in overall economic activity. That decline began some 18 months ago, and over that period of time, the McAllen Economic Index has fallen by 10.6%, and has declined for 17 of those 18 months. - McAllen Economic Chamber Profile, 2008

Product Definition

• City of McAllen is currently undergoing a branding campaign– To create a place where people will want

to live, shop, and do business

Product DefinitionIf a city is to be considered a brand, it must start with a brand’s most

important characteristics; its fundamental properties. This means that a

good city must have the following:

• Offer attractive employment.

• Not be unduly expensive in relation to wages.

• Provide good and affordable housing.

• Have reasonable public transportation.

• Have good schools and recreational/cultural attractions.

• Have a reasonable climate.– “The Branding of Cities” by Julia Pfefferkorn, Syracuse University

Competition

SWOT Analysis• Strengths

– Low cost of living– Entrepreneurial Opportunity– Quality Schools– Superior Retail Performances– Strong Real Estate Market– Young workforce

CompetitionSWOT Analysis• Weaknesses

– Transportation Infrastructure lacking

– Area is remote and cut off from larger cities

– Not enough cultural attractions enticing outside businesses to relocate

– Educational attainment and average income level low of the residents

CompetitionSWOT Analysis• Opportunities

– Young entrepreneurial population highly motivated to stay in the area

– Regional growth strong - McAllen is a trendsetter

– I-69/1TC Infrastructure Texas Corridor road & rail development project will help the movement of people and goods, and the relocation efforts

CompetitionSWOT Analysis• Threats

– Anti-border economy sentiment and legislation -recent trend of border security, immigration reform, reports of drug related violence and a lack of understanding of the region by elected officials

– Delays in Transportation Infrastructure Development

– Brain Drain - limited influx of higher paying jobs for educated workers and the lack of satisfying employment will mean more of the educated youth will move away

Positioning• Positioning of the City of McAllen

– It is an undisputed fact that McAllen is the retail center of South Texas and Northern Mexico, drawing from a consumer base of over 10 million people within a 200-mile radius. In the bi-national metropolitan area, McAllen retailers serve an immediate market population of 1.8 million. - McAllen Chamber Economic Profile, 2008

– McAllen has MORE retail stores, national chain restaurants, city festivals and activities, cultural arts, professional sports teams, and live music venues than any other city in the Valley.

– McAllen has affordable cost of living and mild weather.

– McAllen is near the Mexico border where medical services and less expensive pharmaceutical prescription medications are available.

Communication Strategies

Target demographics for McAllen Branding Strategy are:Foreign Nationals - shoppers and businesses

Corporations who need large employee base with medium to low education i.e.. Call centers, factories

Businesses - Mom & Pop shops, Young Entrepreneurs

Winter Texans

Families - ResidentsTourists Highly Educated Professionals - Medical Health Specialist,

Lawyers, Bankers, Contractors, Builders

Communication Strategies

Creating a distinctive brand that captures Creating a distinctive brand that captures the spirit of a city must be able to inspire the spirit of a city must be able to inspire

- the travelers, the industry, and the - the travelers, the industry, and the general populace itself.general populace itself.

Cities should Cities should brand themselves in ways brand themselves in ways that are believable to the residents.that are believable to the residents.

““Branding of Cities” Julia PfefferkornBranding of Cities” Julia Pfefferkorn

Creating a distinctive brand that captures Creating a distinctive brand that captures the spirit of a city must be able to inspire the spirit of a city must be able to inspire

- the travelers, the industry, and the - the travelers, the industry, and the general populace itself.general populace itself.

Cities should Cities should brand themselves in ways brand themselves in ways that are believable to the residents.that are believable to the residents.

““Branding of Cities” Julia PfefferkornBranding of Cities” Julia Pfefferkorn

Communication StrategiesBrand - Brand - City of McAllenCity of McAllenBrand association - Brand association - • McAllen has McAllen has MOREMORE of everything - This is of everything - This is believable! believable!

– It is the hub of activity in the ValleyIt is the hub of activity in the Valley– Offers fulfillment, opportunities, comfortable lifestyle, less Offers fulfillment, opportunities, comfortable lifestyle, less

hectic pace, growth & expansionhectic pace, growth & expansion

Slogan - Slogan -

McAllen =McAllen = M.O.R.E.M.O.R.E.MMcAllen,cAllen, O Opportunitiespportunities R Readyeady to beto be E Experiencedxperienced

Brand - Brand - City of McAllenCity of McAllenBrand association - Brand association - • McAllen has McAllen has MOREMORE of everything - This is of everything - This is believable! believable!

– It is the hub of activity in the ValleyIt is the hub of activity in the Valley– Offers fulfillment, opportunities, comfortable lifestyle, less Offers fulfillment, opportunities, comfortable lifestyle, less

hectic pace, growth & expansionhectic pace, growth & expansion

Slogan - Slogan -

McAllen =McAllen = M.O.R.E.M.O.R.E.MMcAllen,cAllen, O Opportunitiespportunities R Readyeady to beto be E Experiencedxperienced

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun July Sep Oct Nov Dec

Phase 1Phase 1

Phase 3Phase 3

Launch Strategies

• Promotion budget– Phase 1 - allocate 50% of promotion budget to unveiling

the image and media blitz (TV & Webisodes, Print, Billboards, Web content, and social media presence)

– Phase 2 - allocate 30% of the budget to support on-

going promotion over the next year – Phase 3 - allocate 20% of the budget to data

measurements of the campaign

Phase 2Phase 2

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun July Sep Oct Nov Dec

Phase 1Phase 1

Phase 2Phase 2

Public Relations• Strategy & Execution

– Develop a state-wide, two year (print, online and television) multi-media advertising, marketing and public/media relations campaign.

– PR strategies - • Have signage at all city events, • media releases, • website exposure - link to other websites cross-promote,• Google AdSense & AdWords programs

– PR plan highlights, send one message in all materials

McAllen = M.O.R.E.McAllen, Opportunities Ready to be Experienced

Advertising• Print Strategy advertise in

– In AARP and RV magazines for Winter Texans,– (TV ads on WinterTexanTV, and GoRGV in RV

parks and hotels)

– In Forbes, USA Today, Money, Texas Monthly for business professionals and tourist

– In El Norte Mexico newspaper and Selecciones, Reader’s Digest Hispanic version, during peak shopping times

Advertising• Print and Web Strategy - advertise

– Buy a Web banner on El Norte Newspaper website

– Buy billboards along the highway to Monterey• Advertise Shopping Tour Packages with bus lines that include

transportation, hotel, shuttles to shopping areas and discounts to restaurants

• Arrange shuttle services at the border crossing in Reynosa(Note: Foreign Nationals shop stores that are bilingual and accept the

peso - Tucson, AZ study)• Encourage stores to cater to the Mexican Nationals through

customer service, price and if possible accepting pesos• Extravagantly decorate La Plaza Mall to create a more festive

atmosphere - like an fantasy attraction• Arrange agreement with Volaris Mexico airlines to establish

shopping tour packages from other Mexico cities

Advertising– Create different TV ads for cable channels to promote

McAllen to segment populations such as:• CNN, MNBC promoting business growth for the business person• The History Channel, Travel Channel, QVC for the tourist, retiree

and Winter Texan - Show the City as balmy and tropical with a low cost of living (near Mexico for lower cost in medical services)

• Hispanic television stations Multimedios - Televisa in Monterey for the foreign national shopper

• Lifetime, Oxygen, and HGTV for female demographic promoting McAllen as a premiere shopping destination

• MTV, VHI, HBO promote night life, concerts and sporting events, Art Walk to younger people

• ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox for festivals and concerts to families

– To do just one ad or a couple of TV ads is not recommended - each ad must be different and fitting to the target

– Create different TV ads for cable channels to promote McAllen to segment populations such as:

• CNN, MNBC promoting business growth for the business person• The History Channel, Travel Channel, QVC for the tourist, retiree

and Winter Texan - Show the City as balmy and tropical with a low cost of living (near Mexico for lower cost in medical services)

• Hispanic television stations Multimedios - Televisa in Monterey for the foreign national shopper

• Lifetime, Oxygen, and HGTV for female demographic promoting McAllen as a premiere shopping destination

• MTV, VHI, HBO promote night life, concerts and sporting events, Art Walk to younger people

• ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox for festivals and concerts to families

– To do just one ad or a couple of TV ads is not recommended - each ad must be different and fitting to the target

Advertising– Specialize TV ads:

• Promote McAllen in the cities of San Antonio, Austin, Houston, and Dallas - Show McAllen as:

• festive, • exotic and resort like with the Mexico border, • Hispanic cuisine and music, • beach access, and • inexpensive.

– These cities DO NOT have:• International Border• Palm trees, Citrus groves• Beach nearby (landlocked)• Distinctly festive atmosphere found in the Hispanic

culture

Other Promotion

• Direct marketing to Foreign Nationals– Deliver direct-mail bargain bag filled with money saving

coupons and promotional fliers, bargain booklets, and information and resources about participating sponsors left at doors in strategic neighborhoods in Monterey and

Reynosa

– Deliver similar bargain bags to strategic neighborhoods in McAllen and surrounding cities

Other Promotion

• The M.O.R.E. Image – Create Guerilla Marketing - Use the already established

“M” create an artfully decorated “M” placed throughout the city - these are sponsored by businesses and organizations - example is the Bear in Knoxville, TN strategically placed around an inner city walking and shopping route

Other Promotion

• The M.O.R.E. Image – M.O.R.E. Guerilla Marketing - Use a large, powerful light

to shine a large “M” into the sky during weekends or special events like the Batman signal - into the air and on buildings at Art Walk

Other Promotion• Social Media

– Use Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Twitter, Blogs to distribute information about city events, news and festivals to the public

– Cross promote by linking with other city websites, partnering with local businesses, use Adwords to tag web searches to McAllen i.e. Birding

Other Promotion• M.O.R.E. Ideas

– Promote McAllen at other birding festivals around the country and in other countries - U.K., Spain, South America

– Promote McAllen at conventions in the colder areas of the U.S. in the North East and Mid West

– Create new festivals, especially a Music Festival that capitalizes on Tejano, Salsa, Merengue, Reggeton, Folklorico music, BUT also includes a wide range of music that can be held at venues throughout the city (similar to Austin)

– Create a major marathon maybe combine both music and running for a “Rock-A-Thon” (San Antonio)

– Embrace the “creative class” - work closely with the idea worker of creative class, people in science, engineering, architecture, education, art, music, and entertainment whose function it is to create new ideas and innovations - Creative Incubator or Creative think Tank

Other Promotion• M.O.R.E. Ideas

– Continue to expand current festivals held in the city and the Art district– Decorate extravagantly throughout the city during Christmas - This is

the time when Mexicans and Americans enjoy the decorations found throughout neighborhoods - An enormous Christmas tree at the McAllen park or Convention Center, Tour of Homes highly decorated to create a “festive feeling” for the city

– Form a partnership to work with surrounding cities to create a Green Belt and Regional Hike & Bike Trail that connects the cities together - Promote the McAllen as a “Green” city

– Promote the key areas unique to McAllen such as:• #1 location in the nation for birding ($23 Billion industry)• Located near one of the Top 10 beaches in the country (Discovery Channel)• Fastest growing metropolitan areas in the country• Low unemployment, stable housing market• Mild climate year around• Located at a international border of Mexico

Other Promotion• M.O.R.E. Ideas

Business related– Tax Incentives for new businesses moving into the area– Send a McAllen Business Climate portfolio that speaks about large

bilingual workforce, city incentives, low cost of living, etc. to factories, call centers, warehousing facilities in the U.S.

– Attract a national home builder to the region - to build upscale homes for less to attract wealthier clients and keep real estate market thriving

– Encourage Young Entrepreneurs to stay in the region - create a virtual business center on city’s website with downloadable tools for business with news, templates, copies of business plans, create workshops on business networking, bid processes, and incentive program that helps first time business owners succeed.

Remember:

McAllen, Opportunities Ready to be Experienced

Success Metrics• First year goals

– Create an integrated, customer-centric, cross-channel branding and marketing campaign to persuade customers to act, provide greater ROI, and ultimately improve the organization's bottom line. Create and promote a strong city brand that increases sales, business growth, tourism and resident loyalty for McAllen.

– Build a link-building strategy to business websites, increase better search tags, increase web presence and traffic

– Collect data on: tax receipts, web traffic, messages using social media, polls at border crossing, license plates at shopping malls, brand buzz, customer satisfaction, net promoter indices, visitor engagement, Web clickstream data

– Do research on cities that are similar to McAllen and what they have done to brand their cities - Tucson, AZ - “Branding of Cities” by Julia Pfefferkorn at Syracuse University

• Measures of success of branding if there is an:– Increase in tax receipts– Increase in attendance to festivals, Broadway in McAllen– Increase in tourist count for birding, shopping, “Heads in Beds” through tour

packages– Increase in “word-of-mouth” or “buzz” feedback from residents (positive and

negative)

Thank You

Questions?