Tennessee Begins Its Business Day to C-suite executives and leading site location consultants. NETWORKS’s project management and marketing team continued to rely heavily on its partnerships and relationships with the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, Tennessee Economic Partnership, TVA, AEP, Northeast Tennessee Valley Regional Industrial Development Association, and other local and regional economic and community development organizations to reach a broader audience as well as find some new vehicles to carry our message.
“A community or region of our size can certainly do a great deal to build and promote its own brand and even generate a fair amount of leads and prospect activity,” Clay Walker, CEO of NETWORKS, said. “Still, we can’t develop nearly the amount of activity and prosperity on our own than we get from our partners, TNECD in particular. So, through being a leading partner with TEP, staying in close contact with the state’s management team and business development directors, other communities and support organizations, we maximize the benefit of Team Tennessee. While we pride ourselves in creative marketing, it would be foolish to ever get away from this great network of partners.”
Team Tennessee
For the third consecutive year, NETWORKS was represented at every outbound TEP event and the organization’s two state-wide inbound events – the CMA Festival and Consultant Connect’s ECONOMIX conference – both held in Nashville. (TEP sponsors three other inbound events that are exclusive to the members in the regions in which they are held, one of them being NETWORKS’s Northeast Tennessee Red Carpet Tour.) Last year’s slate of events included the IAMC conference in Savannah, Georgia, and target market trips to Detroit, Chicago, and New York. “Where Tennessee Begins Its Business Day is a brand that sends a strong message about Sullivan and Hawkins counties, and really the entire northeast corner of Tennessee,” said Kyle Spurgeon, President and CEO of the Jackson Chamber and 2019 Chairman of TEP. “NETWORKS has developed and promoted an image supported by its legacy of economic development success. As we market Tennessee through the Tennessee Economic Partnership, your brand resonates and strengthens the appeal of an already desirable location.” Although not affiliated with TEP, NETWORKS joined a large group of economic development organizations, including TNECD and TVA, at the Site Selectors Guild annual conference in Cincinnati, arguably the premier event for interacting with site location consultants. Not only do these events represent great opportunities to familiarize consultants with our state and communities, they enable our team to strengthen our relationships with state partners, particularly those with TNECD. “Within our strategic plan, you find Recruit the Recruiters as a key activity,” Walker said. “Our state’s economic development team works across 95 counties; we want to make sure we are always front of mind as they represent the front door to Tennessee for a vast majority of projects. We make sure they are aware of what we have to offer, in terms of properties, workforce, and our culture. It is our responsibility to keep them informed of pertinent news that helps them sell us. The best way to do that is to demonstrate our value as a partner.”
MA RKE TIN G & ATTRACT ION
Each year presents challenges and opportunities to tell our region’s story and extend our brand of Where
Northeast Tennessee Red Carpet Tour
Working under the TEP umbrella, NETWORKS and its partners hosted the region’s signature marketing event for the fifth straight year, the Northeast Tennessee Red Carpet Tour. Some of the nation’s top consultants attend this annual event, showcasing the area’s business advantages and unique quality of life. The weekend culminates with VIP access at the Bristol Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. This year, a songwriter’s night NETWORKS Sullivan Partnership Annual Report • 2018 • 3