Another Venue for Go Local!

During a presentation on blogging to the International Downtown Association earlier this year, BIA staff discovered that most downtown district blogging across the country (examples cited include Huntington Beach, CA and Providence, RI) is in support of retail promotion. Since then, the BIA has been working with the Downtown Merchants Group to explore creative new ways to use this blog for that purpose in downtown Tacoma.

This past Holiday season, business leaders in Ypsilanti, MI deployed a multi-faceted campaign to encourage residents to shop locally. More than just telling people about the benefits of buying locally, the Shop Ypsi effort involves downtown shoppers through an effective printed piece partnered with a website that includes a blog where people can post great gift ideas that they've found downtown. The website encourages visitors to take a pledge to do either 80 or 100 percent of their holiday shopping locally; while taking the pledge, they can also post comments on why they shop downtown.