Marketing and Communications MarComm

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS

GOED Marketing and Communications (MarComm) is the voice of the state of Utah to the business community . We promote Utah as a premier global business destination and a business friendly environment where companies can grow, engage and prosper .

We provide strategic communication direction to support the GOED programs with public relations, social media, digital and traditional advertising, events and branding . MarComm serves our programs as an inhouse service center for public awareness and promotional needs .

FY 2016 Summary and Outcomes

Public Relations. The team facilitated more than 100 interview requests resulting in coverage from CNBC, Fortune Magazine and Fox Business News . We distributed more than 95 press releases and placed nine advertorials and articles .

Events. MarComm supported 70 conferences and exhibits throughout the year, including signature events such as the Governor’s Economic Summit, Outdoor Recreation Summit, Utah Global Forum, Governor’s Women in Business roundtable, and Venture Capital Summit . In aggregate these events reached audiences in excess of 15,000 .

Online Marketing. MarComm maintains active web, social media and email communication channels . The business .utah .gov website, which includes searchable databases for corporate recruitment and an up-todate newsroom, anchors these efforts .

Through use of promoted posts, social media followers increased 24 .7 percent year-over-year from 7,234 to 9,020 . Posts promoted events and services, and highlighted trends and economic accolades . Monthly emails to general business contacts extended awareness-building efforts to 10,551 individuals, up 23 percent from last year’s 8,558 .

Clusters. The team was instrumental in supporting the launch of strategic industry cluster initiatives such as the Aerospace and Diesel Tech Pathways Programs, the Outdoor Recreation Grant Program, and Technology Commercialization and Innovation Program promotion .

Corporate Recruitment. A variety of promotional efforts assisted our recruitment partner, the Economic Development Corporation of Utah (EDCU), in engaging with large companies and site selection consultants . These included development and placement of 18 print ads including a Site Selection magazine special section .

GOED print and online advertising generated 140 inquiries which were passed to EDCU and related offices for evaluation.

Business Support. Five print and one radio ad with Utah-based publications and stations promoted PTAC, Broadband and other GOED services . A total of 24 sponsorships drove awareness with stakeholders and out-of-state business visitors . Key efforts included the Utah Technology Council, Sundance Film Festival activities, VentureCapital .org and Utah Hispanic Chamber of Commerce .

In addition, the team produced 132 GOED senior management public presentations to local business and community groups . These presentations routinely cover the range of services GOED offers . The team orchestrated GOED’s first statewide small business awareness survey, to establish a baseline for future years to evaluate effectiveness of promotional efforts .

Moving Forward

For FY 2017, the team plans to deploy more video and public relations efforts to drive messaging and storytelling more effectively . The team is working with each internal customer to develop program-specific outreach strategies .

For additional information about MarComm, visit business .utah .gov or contact Aimee Edwards, Communications Director, at Edwards@utah .gov or 801-538-8811 Michael O’Malley, Business Marketing Director, at momalley@utah .gov or 801-538-8879