Small Biz Survival

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Brain Drain Fighters #2: "Come Home" Programs

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More on the subject of combating “brain drain.” This time: how to get your alumni back, at any stage of life.

Action Items for Everyone:

  • Hold awe inspiring alumni reunions. Cross the Year boundaries and combine all the classes. Do this more than once every millenia. (Waynoka does it every 5 years.)
  • Pick one online tool for alumni, and promote it ceaselessly. Work to get everyone you can find signed up on classmates.com or some related tool. Encourage the networking!
  • Include all alums. Private schools, church schools, rural schools, vo-tech schools, schools now closed or consolidated, all the schools you can think of. Remember the colleges, universities, junior colleges, beauty schools, and trade schools. Heck, include the pre-schools if it will help!
  • Develop an outstanding mailing list of alums. Use it wisely to promote your the quality of your town, events and opportunities to return.
  • Publish an alumni directory. Make it the fashionable place to have your name listed. Allow alums to provide a bio or some personal info. Promote networking!
  • Create incentives to move in. Can you finagle reduced utilities? Streamlined permitting? Free or reduced building lots? If not, what about compiling a list of standard incentives anyone could qualify for, like homebuyer assistance, free checking or anything you can think of! Now, the kicker is that you must promote these incentives.
  • Promote your business opportunities to alums. Do you have an industrial park? Building incentives? Do your alums know about them?

About Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.

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