Question

Topic: Strategy

How To Market An Empty Industrial Building

Posted by kshowalter on 5/31/2012 at 5:01 PM ET 250 Points
The City of Lake Mills, a small town in north central Iowa, 9 miles west of Interstate 35, purchased a 120,000 sf industrial building. They want to help create jobs in this town. How best can they market this building and its attributes? Do they need to hire a firm to complete a study on best uses and then target those types of businesses first? Any suggestions? They wll begin with local contacts, then regional and move out in circles.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 5/31/2012 at 7:22 PM Member
    Why did the town purchase the building?
    What industries are already located nearby?
    How convenient is the building to your municipal airport?
    Because you're just across the border from Minnesota, what benefits would a company have to relocate to Iowa?
  • Posted by kshowalter on 5/31/2012 at 7:37 PM Author
    Oops- I lost my post - and thanks. They purchased it at a discounted price to be in control of it & the selling price. They felt it was a higher priority for them than it was for the Fortune 500 company that owned it. They have a small local airport. The international airport is 100 miles away in Twin Cities. They understand the cost benefit of Iowa vs MN and have spoken to their own firms. This town of 2100 had 1600+ manufacturing jobs but lost 600 in the past few years - quite a blow. They are being encouraged to hire the university to study the building for special uses and then target those kinds of firms. I wondered about other firms who might do that study and its value.
  • Posted by CarolBlaha on 6/1/2012 at 12:43 AM Member
    What is your association with this project? Are you with the university? A student?

    In marketing anything-- building space or toothpicks, you do need to find who your clients are and market lazar sharp to them.

    A lot of cities have purchased buildings like this to create incubators. They offer space to emerging companies to give the break to grow -- which eventually creates jobs.

    To answer your question about marketing locally then expanding, as Jay points out-- you will need a plan that incenticizes companies to relocate. This is not a stand alone project.
  • Posted by CarolBlaha on 6/1/2012 at 12:51 AM Accepted
    I want to expand a bit. When steel left Pittsburgh it also lost status of being the 3rd largest HQ city for Fortune co's in the US. I was selling office furniture at the time and my competition was all those I sold to years prior on the after market. They created those incubators from large complexes to attract high tech. But just low rent isn't enough.

    A city I lived in in Colorado had a man with a ton of industrial space. He went to Silicon Valley to bring those companies to Boulder County Colorado. His presentations were one of the most brilliant, after he was finished you were convinced that city was the center of the universe.

    None of these would have succeeded (and there are plenty more) if they went in and shouted free rent. They gave tax concessions and gave those moving a picture of the standard of living in the area.

    As in the Colorado example, they convinced the people in Sili Valley that moving to Colorado would positively effect the employees standard of living. They talked about the culture, the beauty, the outdoor living, the nearby universiites that will provide the companies a base of employees.

    Hope that all helps, Carol
  • Posted by kshowalter on 6/1/2012 at 11:25 AM Author
    I am the city planner. I have a background in economic development. Yes, economic gardening (aka fostering new local start-ups the Littleton Co way) is indeed an important option. Everything cycles. Incubators were BIG in the 1980s in towns of all sizes but failed to be filled or start many companies for lots of reasons. Now they are back. The laser targeting is what the hired ED staff needs help with. That's the reason they want to study the building.
  • Posted by Frank Hurtte on 6/2/2012 at 4:31 PM Accepted
    Kathy,
    Your post caught my eye because I am familiar with both Lake Mills and the building. I also have a 30 year background with industrials, distribution and other businesses in Iowa.
    If you would like to chat further, I would be happy to give you some perspectives. This is not part of my typical work, as I tend to focus on wholesale distributors but Iowans helping Iowans is important too.

    You can reach me via my profile. And, I will be in the office most of Monday and Tuesday.
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