Georgina Made
Website URL: georginamade.ca
Directory: https://madein.georgina.ca/
The Georgina Made directory and social media campaign was created to provide an additional go-to resource for residents and businesses to shop and support local and to instill a sense of civic pride.
Our office reached out to the company that provides our office with a customer relationship management (CRM) system to see if they had the capability to develop a front-facing directory that can sync with our contacts. This would allow our team more fulsome reporting and contact tracing for future marketing initiatives.
We worked with the company to develop the directory from the ground up. We aimed to make it eye-catching and easily navigable. It features lots of images, all necessary contact information and space for a detailed description to be found through search engines. If the business’s products are sold at a local retailer, that retailer will be featured and clickable through the profile.
To start building the directory, a call-out was made through social media. Outreach was also conducted to ensure key businesses would be featured. All artisans and businesses have access to a private portal that allows them to update their profile with new social accounts, hours and product photos.
To ensure the directory stays up-to-date, continuous communication with the businesses is ensured through automated messaging in the Town’s CRM. Admin access also allows our team to complete profiles for businesses that may not have found the time or lack the ability to do so.
The directory was launched in the fall of 2021. To date, 56 businesses that either grow, make or sell locally made products are featured on the site. To bring traffic to the site, businesses are spotlighted through a business and tourism blog and Economic Development and Tourism’s social channels.
The businesses represented in the directory provide a snapshot of Georgina’s economy. It highlights businesses in the following categories/sectors: agribusiness, artists, manufacturers and stores that sell.
Adding this directory has not only allowed us to achieve the goals set out for the initiative but also complements our other recovery efforts. The Town heavily promotes digital enhancement programs through Digital Main Street and a Community Improvement Plan Grant to encourage businesses to add new revenue streams or no contact communication with their customers.
Our office continues to improve the directory with search engine optimization and acquisition outreach. Moving forward, increased marketing opportunities such as decals and branding pieces will be available to businesses through the private portal to further promote the directory and increase traffic.
Georgina Made spotlight examples: https://www.georgina.ca/doing-business/economic-development/economic-development-news?p=georgina-made-spotlight-nadya-edwards
