Attract More Tax Revenue to Your City or Town With a Retail Gap Analysis
Most managers of cities, towns and incorporated areas are always looking for new ways to attract more retail businesses to the area.
Why? Because more local retail businesses means a bigger tax revenue base, which in turn supports all of the services required to keep the city moving.
And, more revenue means less reliance on debt as means for keeping the fiscal books balanced.
So, how do you compete with other regional cities in the ongoing struggle to attract retail revenue to the area? The answer is to arm yourself with knowledge about which types of companies you should be targeting - and then to put together an effective outreach program designed to attract their attention in a big way.
Here the 3 steps you should follow to attract more retail revenue to your city or town: Step 1: Perform a Retail Gap Analysis A retail gap analysis is a way to compare actual retail revenues currently coming into your city to the current retail demand on behalf of your residents.
The key is to perform the analysis on a category-by-category basis.
That way, you can see for which categories you are experiencing more demand (by city residents) than there is supply (by retailers) for those same categories.
Those are your sweet spots.
For example, you may learn that your city has an excess of restaurants, service stations and men's clothing stores relative to actual demand, but that you are not meeting demand for shoe stores, hardware stores, and pharmacies.
You would then want to focus on getting more of the latter into your area.
Step 2: Compile a Targeted Retailer List Once you know the types of retail businesses of which your city is in need, you should develop a list of specific retail companies that you wish to target for your outreach and recruitment efforts.
To do so, start by researching which particular companies in your target category are operating in cities that are similar to yours.
Of course, to do so, you will need to develop a list of cities or towns that are similar to yours.
A comparison set of at least 20-30 similar cities is a good start.
Step 3: Develop an Effective Outreach Plan Once you have your list of target retail businesses, it is time to create an outreach plan to start reaching them.
Two of the most essential tools for your outreach toolbox are: a.
A script that your marketing or outreach team can follow as you carry out your e-mails, letters, and phone calls to the companies.
This will contains important messages that the companies need to hear, such as the reasons why your city would be an attractive choice for them: not the least of which is the untapped demand in your city for what they offer.
b.
Also have ready a printed or electronic portfolio about your city that includes key demographic information, information about access to major transportation resources, maps, and a list of selling points that make your city desirable as a location.
You can send this to interested parties at any time, upon request.
By taking these three steps together, you will be well on your way to targeting the right retail companies with the right messages.
Why? Because more local retail businesses means a bigger tax revenue base, which in turn supports all of the services required to keep the city moving.
And, more revenue means less reliance on debt as means for keeping the fiscal books balanced.
So, how do you compete with other regional cities in the ongoing struggle to attract retail revenue to the area? The answer is to arm yourself with knowledge about which types of companies you should be targeting - and then to put together an effective outreach program designed to attract their attention in a big way.
Here the 3 steps you should follow to attract more retail revenue to your city or town: Step 1: Perform a Retail Gap Analysis A retail gap analysis is a way to compare actual retail revenues currently coming into your city to the current retail demand on behalf of your residents.
The key is to perform the analysis on a category-by-category basis.
That way, you can see for which categories you are experiencing more demand (by city residents) than there is supply (by retailers) for those same categories.
Those are your sweet spots.
For example, you may learn that your city has an excess of restaurants, service stations and men's clothing stores relative to actual demand, but that you are not meeting demand for shoe stores, hardware stores, and pharmacies.
You would then want to focus on getting more of the latter into your area.
Step 2: Compile a Targeted Retailer List Once you know the types of retail businesses of which your city is in need, you should develop a list of specific retail companies that you wish to target for your outreach and recruitment efforts.
To do so, start by researching which particular companies in your target category are operating in cities that are similar to yours.
Of course, to do so, you will need to develop a list of cities or towns that are similar to yours.
A comparison set of at least 20-30 similar cities is a good start.
Step 3: Develop an Effective Outreach Plan Once you have your list of target retail businesses, it is time to create an outreach plan to start reaching them.
Two of the most essential tools for your outreach toolbox are: a.
A script that your marketing or outreach team can follow as you carry out your e-mails, letters, and phone calls to the companies.
This will contains important messages that the companies need to hear, such as the reasons why your city would be an attractive choice for them: not the least of which is the untapped demand in your city for what they offer.
b.
Also have ready a printed or electronic portfolio about your city that includes key demographic information, information about access to major transportation resources, maps, and a list of selling points that make your city desirable as a location.
You can send this to interested parties at any time, upon request.
By taking these three steps together, you will be well on your way to targeting the right retail companies with the right messages.
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