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Remember when we used to try to hide our accents?

By Chris Brogan

Two Small Town Guys

  By Chris Brogan I’m originally from Maine. Accents up there come through the nose. Most famously, people from Maine are supposed to say “Ayuh” when we mean “yes.” Midway through high school, I moved to Massachusetts, where you lose the nasal thing, but you also lose all “r’s” from conversation. “It’s hahd to sound […]

May 7, 2020 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, marketing, rural, shop local, trends Tagged With: accents, authenticity, branding, Chris Brogan, coronavirus, COVID19, effective marketing, email marketing, guest post, marketing, retail, rural, service businesses, small business, small business success, small town

Shop Indie Local adds a new twist to tired Buy Local campaigns

By Becky McCray

Shop Indie Local logo

  Shop Indie Local summary: Shop Indie Local campaign website This campaign’s advantage:  Usable year round, adaptable to local events and needs, not just a single day “Indie” message is resonating well right now, better than plain “local” campaigns Share the right message: People already think they want to shop local, just need a timely […]

November 11, 2019 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, marketing, rural, shop local Tagged With: buy local, effective marketing, marketing, retail, rural, shop indie local, shop local, shop small, shop small saturday, small business marketing, small town

Using events to promote service and industry businesses

By Deb Brown

Events that showcase your non-retail small business  You want people to learn about your business. Events sometimes help with that. You’re just not sure how to create an event for non-retail businesses that people will come to. Who goes to the insurance agency if they don’t need insurance? Who goes to the packing plant unless […]

September 11, 2019 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, marketing, rural Tagged With: chamber of commerce, events, experience, experience economy, industry, manufacturing, marketing, non-retail, promotions, service businesses, tours

How to publicize your biking trails before they’re finished

By Becky McCray

  Have you got a “coming soon” biking trail? Or a biking trail that is not completely finished yet? Well, don’t keep it a secret! A couple of places I’ve visited lately, I’ve heard about trails that are in the partially-finished stage. Some segments of the trail have been improved, others are still rough. “Once […]

June 10, 2019 Filed Under: economic development, marketing, rural, tourism Tagged With: bike tourism, Infrastructure, marketing, rural, tourism, travel

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