final marketing plan open streets events - arusha...

MARKETING PLAN

GenerouslysupportedbytheCalgaryFoundation

2 Open Streets Events

MARKETING PLAN

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Vision and Mission Statement 3

Value Proposition 3

Positioning Statement 3

Customer segmentation: Top three personas 5

Unique Selling Point (USP) 15

Elevator Pitch 18

Marketing Budget 19

Open Street Events Marketing Team 20

Pricing Strategy 20

Distribution of Goods and Services 20

Website Design and Updating 21

Social Media Strategy 23

Email Strategy 25

Advertising Strategy 25

Promotional Strategies 25

Public relations Strategy 27

After-the-Sale Strategy 27

Measuring Marketing Activities 28

Summary of Recommendations 29

Appendix - Hashtag Marketing


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Vision and Mission Statement

Open Streets Events (OSE) raises awareness in CleanTech solutions and offers unique programs to inspire Calgarians to make informed energy usage choices. OSE does this through active engagement with participants by creating hands-on experiences. Participants are able to directly connect their daily living habits with their environmental impact and learn about innovative energy solutions.

Value Proposition

EVOKE. ENERGIZE. EDUCATE. (3E) ( or substitute one of the words with EMPOWER) OSEs unique family-friendly entertainment combines health and wellness with environmental sustainability to spark creativity and innovation for designing new energy solutions.

Positioning Statement

Calgary has been undergoing a shift in its economy. It is a city that has been heavily reliant on the oil and gas (O&G) industry and sits at the centre of Canada’s energy sector (https://www.calgaryeconomicdevelopment.com/industries/focus-areas/energy/). However, due to fluctuations in O&G global prices, politics, and environmental issues, Calgary is turning to diversifying its energy industry to be more economically resilient to impending changes. Citizens are generally apprehensive to change causing a polarizing effect in perspectives for what the city should do about its economy. OSE has an opportunity to be a voice of reason by sharing unbiased but fun and engaging information on new energy solutions to help people make more informed energy consumption choices. OSE programming links lifestyle change with broader


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social and environmental issues. Its method of delivery to encourage these lifestyle changes is through enjoyable family-friendly entertainment. So often, encouraging lifestyle changes is met with resentment because the marketing message is fueled by shame and guilt, as OSE has discovered through first-hand experience in running various events in the community. However, research has found that real, sustainable change comes from having a “positive platform” to make these behavioural shifts (https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/neuronarrative/201707/8-reasons-why-its-so-hard-really-change-your-behavior). As such, OSE is positioned to support Calgary to positively redefine its energy perspective to be progressive and resilient to economic and environmental changes through its fun and interactive event services. 30 Second explainer video script / elevator pitch How do you want your next family-friendly event to be remembered? OSE is the bridge between fun and education. OSE is not just your typical family entertainment source. We provide exciting interactive activities with experiential learning to inspire healthy living and energy awareness. Our programming, with or without our staff, lets you offer the thrill of charging devices, comparing light bulb wattage, blending drinks, playing music, and competing with solar panels to generate electricity all with one of our supercool fender-generator bikes! Contact us today to people power your event and electrify your group! www.openstreetscalgary.com


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Customer segmentation: Top three personas

Overall Market Segments: Non-Profit, Public, and Corporate Sector

1. Public Sector Customers are identified as Government entities/departments/branches, Public Parks/Zoos, and Educational Institutions such as schools and universities. The Public sector makes up 24.4% of total Open Street Customers served between 2013 to 2018. (Public Sector does not refer to Utility companies, or Public Serving Corporations)

2. Corporate (Private) Sector Customers include privately owned companies such as Oil and Gas, Financial Institutions and Local Businesses. 28.8% of Open Street Customers from 2013 - 2017 are from the Corporate Sector.

3. Non-Profit Sector Customers that are registered non-profits, charities, foundations etc. 46.8% of Open Street Customers are from the Non-Profit Sector, some of these non-profit organizations are membership or partnership affiliations.


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Total Revenue Per Year

TOTAL REVENUE EARNED PER YEAR

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

$7,790.00 $22,521.00 $47,945.00 $51,589.00 $41,390.00 $35,679.50 75,560.75

From 2012 to 2013 total revenue increased by 189%. From 2013 to 2014 revenue continued to grow at a rate of 112.8%. Due to the economic downturn the growth between 2014 and 2015 slowed to 7.06% and 2016 revenue growth declined by 19.7%. And 2017 last year saw a decline of 13.8%. However, by 2018 there was an increase of 111.78% largely do to some excellent grants. The renewal of Annual Events and the building of Sponsorship and Partnerships with other Environmental Education programs and organizations is key to increasing revenue growth next year.


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Revenue From Each Sector Although 46.8% of events served by Open Streets to date has been for Non-Profit organizations, the majority of revenue made to sustain Open Streets operations and programming between 2012 and 2018 have been from Corporate and Public sector customers. The Public Sector customers made up of provincial and municipal city government departments, educational institutes such as the University of Calgary, Public Parks etc. makes up 56.5% of total revenue collected between 2012 and 2018 at the amount of $154,490.00. The Corporate Sector is second at $74,744.50 or 27.3% of total revenue, and the Nonprofit Sector has contributed $44,090.75. Total Revenue made by Open Streets from all Sectors between 2012 - 2018 totals $273,325.25


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Total Revenue by Sector 2012 -2018

Sector Total Revenue Collected 2012 -2018

Public Sector $154,490.00

Corporate Sector $74,744.50

Non-Profit Sector $44,090.75

Total $273,325.25 Revenue Growth per Sector

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Revenue from Corporate Clients $3,250.00 $12,436.00 $17,975.00 $10,289.00 $11,325.00 $10,369.50 $9,000.00

Revenue from Public Clients $3,660.00 $8,085.00 $25,470.00 $25,775.00 $24,865.00 $17,260.00 $49,375.00

Revenue from Non-Profit Clients $880.00 $2,000.00 $4,500.00 $15,525.00 $5,200.00 $8,300.00 $7,685.75


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Revenue growth has been the highest in the Public Sector year after year, with 2018 show a drastic increase. Renewing annual events from the Public sector and building partnerships is key to the financial sustainability of Open Streets. Currently Open Streets animates many one off events for Corporate customers but has the potential to connect with more corporate organizations invested in community building and environmental initiatives to set up Sponsorship/Partnership agreements and offer animation services for Corporations to bring added value to events they are currently sponsoring already. Non-profit organizations also continue to be a key partner and the income has been consistent over the last several years.


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Growing the number of Corporate and Public customers that are able to pay or contribute funds for Open Streets programming will also help increase accessibility to vulnerable or low income communities. The challenge ahead is balancing the number of free community events attended per year while maximizing revenue growth to keep the programming running.


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Average Income Per Event

*Currently missing 2014 numbers *Map isn’t updating he 2018 numbers in link *Followed OSE Spreadsheet *OSE number seem incomplete The overall number of free events has been going down, and thus far the overall price per event has been on the rise, with a slight dip in 2017. 2018 saw a drastic increase in money per event because of the EEA sponsorships. The event number and income both changed significantly.


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Repeat Customers

Repeat Customers for the purpose of this report has been identified as organizations that have paid for Open Streets Services or Equipment Rentals multiple times in 1 year or hired Open Streets for events that occur annually.

The table below lists all organizations and events that has paid for Open Streets programming more than once or renewed services annually:

Organization Event(s) Years Total Revenue

Average Spend Each Year

City of Calgary (Public Sector)

Canada Day Mayor’s New Years Eve Culture Days Two Wheel View East Site sPark West Downtown Mayor’s Environment Expo Communter Challenge Earth Hour 20th Ave Living Lab Winter Bike to Work

July 2012 - April 2017 $55, 209. 50 $11,041.90


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Day

Oxford Properties (Corporate Sector)

Calgary/Edmonton Properties SummerHill Properties

June 2013 - April 2014 $19,900.00 $9,950.00

Town of Edson, Grande Prairie, City of Calgary, City of Lethbridge, Town of Grande Cache, Town of Greenview (Public Sector) ATB Tour of Alberta

September 2013 - September 2015 $17,560.00 $8,780.00

Ecoliving Events Ltd (Non-Profit Sector)

EcoLiving Fair Earth Hour Ecoliving Stampede Breakfast Ecoliving YYC (Hired by Enbridge)

October 2013 - May 2015 $8,268.00 $4,134.00

First Calgary (Corporate Sector)

Family New Years Eve First Calgary AGM First Calgary Stampede Breakfast Annual Sponsorship

May 2012 - 2016 $13,750.00 $2,750.00

Kensignton BRZ (Non-Profit Sector)

Beach in the City Sun & Salsa Festival

July 2014, August 2015 $4,800.00 $2,400.00

University of Calgary (Public Sector)

U of C Sustainability Ucalgary Strong U of C Bike Share

October 2013 - April 2017 $6,020.00 $1,505.00

Green Calgary Association (Non-Profit Sector)

Powering Our World EcoPavillion Green Calgary Third Party Booking Green Calgary Energy Fair

July 2014 - May 2016 $5,300.00 $1,325.00

Do it Green (DIG) (Corporate Sector)

Jack Singer Social Stampede Bike Valet Calgary Stampede Parade

November 2013 - July 2016, July 2018 $4,900.00 $1,225.00

REAP Calgary (Non-Profit Sector)

Food for Thought Sustainability Breakfast Reap Food

September 2015 - September 2016 $900.00 $900.00


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Student Union Mount Royal University MRU Sustainability Week

September 2013 & October 2013 $400.00 $400.00

HSCA Sunnyside Community Association

HSCA Farmers Market Bike Day 2012 - 2016 $1,450.00 $290.00

Annual Public Events Most Popular Activities/Programming Provided by Open Streets Over the years Open Streets has developed many new activities as a part of delivering Environmental Energy Education to the Public. The most popular equipment utilized to date is the Pedal Powered PA system and Blender. Other Pedal Powered attachments such as Projector, Bubblemaker, Charging desk and Pedal Power Tower are close seconds. Followed by bundled packages that include Educational Programming Workshop/Presentation, Photobooth, Penny Farthing Track etc.

Activity Number of Times Requested (2018)

Number of Times Requested (2017)

Revenue Generated (2018)

Revenue Generated (2017)

Pedal Power:

PA system

Blender

Projector

Charging Desk

Power Tower

Bubblemaker

Photobooth

Pennyfarthing Track

Workshop/Presentation:

Topic 1

Staff Needs


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Almost all events attended between 2012 - 2018 utilized at least one Open Streets staff member for setup. Larger scale events have utilized more volunteers to operate different stations. Equipment rental other than the button maker all required staffing.

Unique Selling Point (USP)

We are Calgary’s only purpose-driven family-friendly entertainment service. We specifically design our offerings to make your event both fun and a part of advancing the city’s environmental and social prosperity. Some suggested examples to increase OSEs social and environmental impact are: ● Every time you hire OSE a portion of the funds goes to helping this organization

in Guatemala use pedal power for their household needs (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oY-KWeYTU40&t=264s)

● OSE works with vulnerable youth in the city to advance their knowledge in New Energy education ○ Hold energy science fairs to showcase the work that the kids that have

been funded have done through OSE support ○ Tie the work that the youth are doing to an OSE hosted event

Competition The city of Calgary has a number of services offering event equipment rental and event management services, however, there are no organizations that offer these services that include an educational or social and environmental awareness component. Through interviewing some past customers of OSE, it was discovered that the main reason for hiring OSE is because it offered family-friendly entertainment that “goes beyond the typical face-painting and petting zoos”. OSE is attractive because of its interactive fun and educational factor. However, it was also discovered that OSEs fundamental operation is to provide event service, either through rentals or through management, and secondarily provide education. As such, OSEs competition should be compared to other event services and rentals. Other event services and rentals for comparison are: ● Just Kidding Events: https://www.justkiddingent.ca/


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● E=mc2: https://emc2events.com/about-us/ ● Fab Events: https://fabeventsinc.com/ ● Bass Bus: https://www.bassbus.ca/ ● Party Rental Depot: https://www.partyrentaldepot.com/ ● Good Time Party Rental: https://www.goodtimepartyrentals.com/ ● Tubby’s Party Rental: https://www.tubbys.ca/ ● Calgary Party Rental: https://www.calgarypartyrental.ca/ ● Radars Rental: http://www.radarsrentals.com/product-category/games-

entertainment/ ● Authentic Western: https://authenticwestern.com/

Message 1 Unique, Family-friendly, Interactive Entertainment. As you begin planning for your next community event or staff engagement, Open Streets Events is at your service. We have dozens of programming projects and activities that will engage, inspire and challenge your participants. Pedal power your activities! Open Streets offers bike powered smoothies, pedal powered live or recorded music,as well as educational programming, cycling education, and family fitness programming. Open Streets Calgary has gear for rent and provides programming for events big and small! Call us today and we can offer recommendations tailored to your specific needs. Message 2 Thanks for your interest in Open Streets Calgary. We are excited to work with you and your team to create an engaging, educational and fun celebration. Your participants can blend their own smoothies and power our sound system simply by pedaling one of our specially equipped bikes. They can take up environmental and social challenges in hands-on exercises that make a difference in our world. Open Streets does anything from pedal-powering smoothies to educational programming to live music. We have gear for rent and can provide programming for events big and small! Call us today and we can offer recommendations tailored to your specific needs. Message 3


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Make your Stampede event a party with a purpose. Share your love of Calgary and your love of the planet with all your guests. Open Streets Calgary can create an atmosphere of celebration and fun combined with a ‘hats off’ to the environment and culture of our great city. Your participants can blend their own adult smoothies and power our sound system simply by pedaling one of our specially equipped bikes. They can take up environmental and social challenges in hands-on exercises that make a difference in our world. Open Streets offers bike powered smoothies, pedal powered live or recorded music, office equipment, as well as educational programming, cycling education, and family fitness programming. We have gear for rent and can provide programming for events big and small! Call us today and we can offer recommendations tailored to your specific needs. Message 4 Looking for something different for your next team building event? Open Streets can help you create a memorable, fun learning experience. We can help you program ½ a day of social and environmental activities or simply engage your team as they power our sound system and blend iced cappuccinos or smoothies on our specially equipped bikes. Open Streets Calgary offers flexible, cost effective programming and entertaining activities to meet your needs and budget. Call us today and we can offer recommendations tailored to your specific needs. Message 5 Get your business noticed at your next trade show event. Open Streets Events has unique interactive props for rent to attract guests to your booth. Call us today and we can offer recommendations tailored to your specific needs Message 6 Have a sustainability event you’d like to host for your organization? Or need a sustainability event run under your organizations name? Call Open Streets Events today to help you plan and deliver your event. We have customizable options to make your event the most memorable and impactful. Call us today and we can offer recommendations tailored to your specific needs


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Elevator Pitch

OSE help event organizers create memorable, family-friendly and fun experiences while being socially and environmentally impactful. OSE has four different packages which can also be customized to accomplish all this and more: 1) Electricity and Transportation Package: Start with 1 or more FenderGenerators to power appliances, music or office equipment to experience how much electricity is needed for these items and learn about the impacts of our energy and transportation choices. Learn easy ways to reduce our power consumption, Discover renewable options are available and how transportation can be easier and have less impact. Add sound systems, bubblemakers, a pedal-powered virtual tour of the Calgary cycletrack or cell charging to add to the fun! 2) Bike Blender Drinks Event Package: Want a healthy drink that you made yourself? Start with a FenderBlender Generator and just add ingredients to make your own drink, blended by people power! Adult and all-ages options work equally well and there's no better way to reward attendees. You can even add a pedal powered sound system to add to the fun! 3) Cycling Education Package Indoors or outside, bicycle education makes sense for fitness, lifestyle, and transportation education. If it's outdoors we'll set up the practice course and you can practice signaling on a mini pennyfarthing and learn about seat adjustment, helmets, bells, routes, winter riding and more. If it's indoors, don't worry, we've got a presentation of what biking is like in Calgary to discuss everything from safety and showers to the cycletrack and Calgary Transit.


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4) Full Festival Package With all of the above as a starter, we add button and magnet making, raffles, bubblemakers, photobooth, pedal powered video projection, bike course, live music and decorations and you have a ready-made party! Themes of healthy lifestyles, sustainability, and participation are in everything we do but you'd never know it because it's so much fun!

Marketing Budget

OSE is a non-profit and relies on sponsorships and grants to fund its programming. It is recommended OSE use the adaptive, goal-based budgeting method to determine its spend on marketing (https://prosper-strategies.com/nonprofit-marketing-budget-part-one/). OSE should first determine some impact metrics and seek to establish a goal within each of those metrics. The marketing budget should then be set to support each of the impact goals the program seeks to achieve. Some examples of impact metrics are: ● Social OR Envrionmental return on investment https://uwaterloo.ca/waterloo-

institute-for-social-innovation-and-resilience/sites/ca.waterloo-institute-for-social-innovation-and-resilience/files/uploads/files/impact_metrics_for_si_barriers_or_bridges.pdf

● Number of vulnerable children given New Energy education ● Number of people signed up for renewable energy ● % of people switched to LED lighting ● % people seek further information about their environmental footprint ● % reduction of private vehicles on the roads ● % emissions reduced ● % increase in car sharing

The funds that are determined to be set aside will be items such as print material, and digital advertising through Google Adwords and Facebook Ads for Equipment rentals and events that are hosted by Open Streets. If there is a marketing team or event promotional material available from the events Open Streets is attending, repost and make custom edits with Open Streets logo and features on our own social media and email campaigns to save time on and money for graphic design work.


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Open Street Events Marketing Team

Open Streets has revolving staff of interns and does not have a dedicated marketing team. However, there are some specific roles that can be filled each year to help support the development of OSE initiatives. These roles include an event planner/coordinator, business developer or account manager, graphic design/copywriter, social media manager or web developer, and marketing manager/coordinator. All positions could be added in varying degrees depending on project scale and availability of staff or volunteers. Certainly some of these positions can be combined or not needed if operations or business structure changes for Open Streets. If needed, a potential funding opportunity to hire a youth to help with creating a project that reduces environmental footprint or increases sustainability can be found through Canada Green Corps (https://www.connectica.ca/i3/organization/1459/Funding/2336/view)

Pricing Strategy

Open Streets pricing is based on segment pricing and variable pricing strategy, meaning the prices for equipment rental will differ for a non-profit Arusha member then it is for a Corporate business and the customers selection of programming and budget limitations will determine the final fees for services/products provided.

Distribution of Goods and Services

Open Streets allows pick-up for some equipment rentals, however the majority of event services is delivered to the event site. Currently, OSE is renting u-hauls to bring all equipment to and from event site. OSE team members are typically responsible for setting up the equipment, running the program, and tearing down after the event.


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Website Design and Updating

DESIGN

Updating the navigation and choosing a more modern template layout for content would increase traffic and time spent on website by visitors. Navigation Buttons should include: ● EVENTS (Past and Upcoming) ● SERVICES & RENTALS ● ABOUT ● SPONSORS ● VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES ● PRESS ● CONTACT

○ Additionally, a booking or inquiry form would also help collect leads. This should be a button that is clearly display on all webpages.

Social media links for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram will be added to the top banner of the webpage. OSE is considering a visual and interactive design such as these three examples: ● Park Online: https://www.ourparkonline.com/ ● Springboard Performance: http://springboardperformance.com/containr/ ● Calgary Stampede: http://talentsearch.calgarystampede.com/

CONTENT

Content on the website will be basic. It will share information about what the organization is, the services it provides, and contact information, along with other information bulleted in the website design section. Updated content will be linked to the OSE’s social media profiles either from Twitter, Instagram or Facebook (as shown below). As social media posts are made, it will automatically upload to the website to simplify the process of continual manual updates.


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Additional content will highlight metrics that have been captured by supporting OSE. These metrics are covered in the Marketing Budget section. Furthermore, content include keywords that are found in the Search Engine Optimization section. As it is currently, there is no immediate association made between keyword searches and content descriptions on the website. See example below.

(OSE website, June 25, 2019: http://www.openstreetscalgary.com/rentals-services/)

A recommended addition to this descriptor: “...Open Streets offers FAMILY-FRIENDLY, INTERACTIVE, ENTERTAINMENT such as…”


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Some other recommendations for content are interesting links related to carbon footprint and CleanTech energy news. These two sites are examples: ● Global Footprint quiz: https://www.footprintcalculator.org ● CleanTechnica: https://cleantechnica.com

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

Complete keyword search using Moz and Google Adwords Tool. Customize Meta descriptions leading with top keyword searches. Content should also include keywords and should be updated to keep up with search relevance. For OSE, search relevant keywords to consider are: ● family entertainment ● family-friendly entertainment ● party rentals ● event planning service ● event rentals ● game rental ● event management ● kid party planning ● interactive family activities

Past customers of OSE are mostly event planners looking for “family-friendly entertainment” and it is likely that new potential customers may be using similar search terms. As such, the words ‘family’, ‘entertainment’, and ‘event planning’ are high priority keywords.

Social Media Strategy

The ideal is to focus on the social media channels that are easy for staff or volunteers to maintain and post to. For general updates, Facebook, Instagram and Youtube not only store files for Open Streets but can easily be linked to the website and are the strongest channels to use. Twitter can also be used when attending events to provide real-time information on community happenings that people may want to join. Since OSE is focused on environmental sustainability and promoting the links between lifestyle changes with broader social and environmental issues, it would be beneficial to include content on social media that are relevant to this cause. Social media posts


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should be a channel to display OSEs expertise in this field; when an organization hires OSE for an event, they can also feel confident that the educational experience will also be exceptional. Suggested posts include: ● Healthy living tips that are connected to environmental and social sustainability ● Innovations in CleanTech

○ Highlight Calgary-based companies ● Interesting news on climate change and sustainability initiatives locally and

globally that also promotes positive solutions and changes. For example: ○ Working a shorter work-week could tackle climate crisis

(https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/may/22/working-fewer-hours-could-help-tackle-climate-crisis-study)

○ Updates on Calgary’s sustainability plans - Sustainable Calgary: http://www.sustainablecalgary.org/state-of-our-city

○ Running modern society on human power: https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2017/05/could-we-run-modern-society-on-human-power-alone.html

○ Calgary Economic Development Initiatives: https://www.calgaryeconomicdevelopment.com/industries/focus-areas/technology/our-technology-sectors-of-focus/

○ Alberta awards 100 million for clean energy projects: https://www.jwnenergy.com/article/2019/3/emissions-reduction-alberta-awards-100-million-clean-energy-projects/

Social media should be maintained on a daily and at most weekly basis. It is important to use social media as a method of maintaining community connections and sharing relevant information to OSE’s organization mandate to reduce Calgary’s carbon footprint. OSE’s event services should be highlighted by sharing photos of OSE at work at the events. Photos and videos of participants taking part in the activities is highly recommended. Additionally, always add a call to action such as: ● Click here to book your event ● Sign up for our newsletter here ● Like our community partner pages ● Follow us on these other social media channels ● Learn more about OSE by clicking here ● Send us a message now to book your customized event


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Email Strategy

Opens Streets is collecting festival and lead information at the moment. Email campaigns to past and existing customers will be created to promote service renewal and promote new activities. A general promotional email for sign ups and draw in leads will also be sent out to the festival and lead contacts. Quarterly newsletters would include stories from events OSE attended over the past three months. It will share pictures of the event and what the highlights were. Additionally, always end every email with a call to action. Ask recipients to like OSEs social media pages to stay up-to-date on events happening around the city or get them to ‘book now’ to receive a promotional offer or ensure they get their book requested booking date. It is important to use an email service provider that allows you to create graphically rich material. An example service provider is Mailchimp (https://mailchimp.com) which allows for templates and automated messages to be created and sent.

Advertising Strategy PAY-PER-CLICK

Open Streets will create adwords that target businesses and event planners. Facebook ads and post boosts will be purchased to run during events. For further information refer to Search Engine Optimization section.

PRINT/TV/RADIO

Press releases should be created and sent out to local media stations for community calendars for Open Streets hosted and attended events. A small amount of printed newsletters should be sent to community partners to distribute.

Promotional Strategies

Partnership Channels Connecting with other environmentally driven organizations and applying for grants and sponsorship will build Open Streets network of potential customers. Also, align OSE with


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organizations and businesses that provide environmentally-friendly options. Some suggested connections to make are:

● Lime: a dockless bike sharing program (https://www.li.me/about-us) ● Car 2 Go: car sharing service (https://www.car2go.com/CA/en/calgary/) ● Tesla: electric vehicle maker (https://www.tesla.com/) ● Skyfire Solar: solar panel installation company (https://www.skyfireenergy.com/) ● Metaspace: Co-working for sustainable/cleantech startups

(https://www.facebook.com/themetaspaceYYC/, themetaspace.io) ● Green Building Council Symposium

(https://www.cagbc.org/CAGBC/Chapters/Alberta/Alberta_Sustainable_Building_Symposium_2018.aspx)

● Cap Energy: http://www.capopenergy.com/ ● Bullfrog Power: involved with sustainability events https://www.bullfrogpower.com/ ● Atco/Blue Flame Kitchen: has sustainability programs https://www.atco.com/en-

ca.html, http://www.atcoblueflamekitchen.com/ ● Enmax: has sustainability programs https://www.enmax.com ● Canada Post: seeking to raise awareness on climate change and last mile

challenges http://www.deliveringcommunitypower.ca/

OSE-hosted Events

OSE can use its assets to host its own fundraising events to help support its programming. It can draw upon its community relationships for sponsorship and work with the companies mentioned in the Partnership Channels section to showcase innovation in sustainability. Some suggested ideas could be the following:

● Host an energy challenge - similar to a case competition run by various post-secondary schools, the energy challenge could be a city-wide call to improve or innovate upon the bike generators.

● Host a block party - follow the tradition of other OSE organizations around the world and create a pedestrian friendly affair. The event could be a pageant of creative mobility solutions. Consider modelling the event after Santa Monica, CA held on June 19, 2019 (https://patch.com/california/santamonica/coast-open-streets-event-returns-santa-monica-0?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&utm_term=community%20corner&utm_campaign=recirc&utm_content=aol). The event could be held either in Calgary’s East Village or 17th Ave. The location should have unique retailers and


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restaurants in close proximity to make it easy for pedestrians to browse and eat while partaking in activities. ○ Potential to partner with Boy Scouts and add a soap box derby, however,

injury risks will require further investigation. ● Co-host an event with Canada Post. Canada Post has initiatives in creating

‘climate friendly’ delivery options (http://www.deliveringcommunitypower.ca/) ● Co-host a bicycle event with a bicycle group. Funding opportunities available from

Alberta Bicycle Association (http://www.albertabicycle.ab.ca/grants)

Public Relations Strategy

Opens Streets partners with influential organizations and reputable events and often mention Open Streets when conducting PR interviews and speeches. Submitting PSA articles when appropriate to news tip lines, freelance writers and the marketing/PR coordinator of community partners and event organizers will provide better coverage of the impact we have on event success and environmental education.

After-the-Sale Strategy

Open Streets follows up every event attended with a Thank you email or phone call. Event renewal email campaigns and phone calls will be made to strengthen customer relations. Giveaways such as Bike Bells to show appreciation for business. Offer special package promotions to encourage pre-bookings of services. An outline of the customer journey is below. CUSTOMER JOURNEY Open Streets customers are gained in the following ways:

1. Open Streets marketing and outreach to potential leads ----> Contacts Customer ---->Customer Books Services

2. Referral Organization ----> Customer Contacts Open Street ------>Customer Books Services


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3. Open Streets Attends Event -----> Potential Customer Attends Event ---->Customer Books Services after seeing Open Streets in Action

After an event, OSE follows up with customers by:

1. If OSE is managing the event, leave a ‘bike bell’ or other type of giveaway to show appreciation for the business

2. Send an email “Thank You” note a. include customer satisfaction survey b. include an invitation to book the next event with a promotional discount to

encourage early booking 3. Follow-up with a phone call to ensure expectations were met 4. Send updates on OSE such as a report on how supporting OSE has impacted the

organizations initiatives within the community

Measuring Marketing Activities

OSE will measure part of its marketing activities by the metrics described in the Marketing Budget section. Some of the marketing activities will be evaluated based on its ability to reach the impact goals OSE has outlined for itself. As an example, an impact goal could be “5 people sign up with a renewable energy partner at a co-hosted event” or “100 LED lighbulbs were given out at [event name] as a result of OSE [program name]. If the impact goals are being achieved, then OSE is on target, however, if the impact goals are not being reached, then OSE will conduct market research by interviewing participants to better understand the barriers for change and adapt its programming to suit participant needs. The other measure OSE will collect is repeat business and word-of-mouth referrals. OSE will want to measure the ratio of first-time-customers rebooking vs. not rebooking and seek to understand the motives behind the decision-making by following up with a phone call. OSE will also ask bookers if they have been referred by another organization or person to understand who and how OSEs services are being promoted. Through the insights gained by conducting follow-up interviews with customers, OSE will continue to develop new activities and programs that remain relevant to customer needs while evolving the educational component on environmental issues.


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Summary of Recommendations

It is recommended that OSE consider itself first and foremost an event service provider. As such, it should consider its communications to place a heavy focus on providing ‘family-friendly, interactive, entertainment’. Its value proposition is most valuable to event planners who are seeking unique, fun, and educational family entertainment. OSE can provide this service in a few different ways - through equipment rental, full-service event management under the OSE brand, or as a representative for organizations who do not have the assets or programming to carry on its own events and need someone else to run an event on its behalf.

OSE should consider community partnerships to leverage its events and educational factor. It can host its own sustainability events by featuring other sustainability organizations and businesses as mentioned in the Partnership Channels section. These co-hosted events can be a way of showcasing the progressive companies and resources available for Calgarians interested in learning about new energy solutions while also being a marketing channel to encourage participants to sign up for the promoted services.

Social media marketing is recommended as a platform to share information about emerging technologies and new research on climate change. OSE should consider using social media as a way of legitimizing its expertise on the subjects of emissions reductions and healthy living advice, while also showing how fun and exciting it can be to work on developing creative solutions through its event programming. Social media is also a method to share information about the work of other organizations and businesses in the community working along similar initiatives as OSE.


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Appendix - Hashtag Marketing for Arusha

Hashtag at the Arusha Centre potential hashtags:

● #relocalizecalgary: for workshop ● #relocalizationfair ● #supportrelocalization ● #celebraterelocalization ● #relocalizeyyc ● #yyccommunity ● #earthminded ● #BeLocal ● #Loveyyc ● #pedalpower ● #YYCliving ● #yycevents ● #Alberta ● #Canada150 ● #communitydevelopment ● #socent ● #soinn ● #neweconomy ● #sustainability ● #environmentalism ● #localcurrency ● #complimentarycurrency ● #awareness ● #greenyyc ● #energyefficiency ● #SpendLocal ● #BuyLocal ● #AlternativeCurrency ● #localpride ● (Cochrane: #cochraneproud #cochranedollars #spendwithpride)

Media ● @metrocalgary (Calgary Metro) ● @calgarysun ● @RenfrewCA (northeast community association)


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● @AbYouthCouncil (Aboriginal Friendship Center of Calgary) ● @AvenueMagazine (magazine that shares news, culture, food and people in Calgary) ●

Garage Sales and Flea Markets ● @familyfunyyc (community garage sale) ● @cgyfarmersMarket (Calgary farmers market) ● #UsedHelps (supports charities by buying and selling) ● @MarketonMacleod (flea markets focused on small business with local products and

services) ● @HillhurstSunny (flea market)

already existing: #relocalizenotglobalize Existing Strong Possibilities for Hashtag utilization: #BeLocalYYC - sept 4, 2018 priority (sierra and gerald) #belocal

a worldwide hashtag used to highlight local action in communities; ie. local business, economy, social movements, transportation, food etc.

#socent

a worldwide hashtag used for interests concerning social enterprises (used often locally by Trico Foundation, and some other local interest groups)

#soinn a worldwide hashtag used to highlight social innovation; some days are very active and other days can be fairly quiet for this hashtag

#neweconomy a hashtag which focuses on alternative economy, resiliency, and community driven economic activity #yyc the yyc hashtag is used by many and is a way to connect to the calgary community, although popular and diverse, it might be a good way to get our social media updates out to a broad based community


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Power of Hashtag Marketing Hashtagging is also known as micro-blogging. Purpose/Effectiveness

● Hashtags are used to connect people (@) through a string of related words of relevance. ● Powerful for brand marketing/connecting. Engagement and conversation between

organization and target audience. ● The symbol (#) has become synonymous with trends over social media. So people who

are interested in certain trends only have to click one # in order to get all the latest discussion on it and for information consumers to view and compare ideas.

History ● 1988 Internet Relay Chat used it to categories different areas of interest ● 2007 Twitter made it useful and popular as a way to connect ideas. They did (in 2009)

this by automatically attaching a hyperlink to the # symbol. Uses

● Over Twitter and Instagram- unique hashtags help build one’s brand. Non-unique hashtags increases visibility and relationships and could eventually be used to turn viewers into customers.

● If you Tweet/Instagram with a hashtag on a public account, anyone who does a search for that hashtag may find your post.

● Don't #spam #with #hashtags. Don't over-tag a single Tweet. ● Only use hashtags that are relevant to the topic.

Tips for Hashtagging ● Proper etiquette is necessary. All hashtags are available worldwide, therefore it is

important to not abuse certain trending #. ● Watch out for emotional “tagging.” Some hashtags have failed to fly because they

poked too much on the emotion of the public, as with the word ‘love’ or ‘hate’. ● Use industry/brand words. Brands and popular industry terms are highly relatable

and, more likely than not, Twitter users will find use for such hashtags in a particular event.

● Be Specific: Choosing specific tags will help you connect with other like-minded people on Instagram.

● Be Relevant: Make it easy for other like-minded Instagrammers to find you by making sure your tags describe your post. Using very general tags like #photo might get you a few likes, but with over 700,000 photos tagged #photo, it isn’t the best way to make your photos stand out and connect with the people most like you. Relevant tags will


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help you attract new followers who will take a genuine interest in your posts and continue liking and commenting on your photos and videos over time.

● Be Observant: Pay attention to the other hashtags used on posts that use the same tag as yours. You may discover a popular hashtag you hadn’t thought of on your own.

Tagging

● Tagging other people in your post (twitter/instagram/facebook) is a powerful tool to build further connections as well as audience.

● Tag people who: ○ Are in your post ○ Are not in your post but who you think would be interested/invested in the

content. ● *See notes under Instagram*

Twitter ● How to use hashtags: https://support.twitter.com/articles/49309-using-hashtags-on-twitter ● Examples of spam or hashtag abuse:

○ Adding one or more topic/hashtag to an unrelated tweet in an attempt to gain attention in search.

○ Repeatedly tweeting the same topic/hashtag without adding value to the conversation in an attempt to get the topic trending/trending higher.

○ Tweeting about each trending topic in turn in order to drive traffic to your profile, especially when mixed with advertising.

○ Listing the trending topics in combination with a request to be followed. ○ Tweeting about a trending topic and posting a misleading link to something

unrelated.”

Instagram ● Hashtags make your photos discoverable by targeted audiences. ● Using more relevant hashtags is recommended, but doing so in the “comments” section

rather than the “caption.” ● Tagging other people (@) in your photo connects collaborative partners that could

potentially help promote your organization simply by engaging in your photo (IE- “liking” the photo, “following” your account). This is powerful because people who “follow” your collaborative partners (@) can see if they “liked” a photo of yours and potentially follow/like on their own accord.

○ If your photos are public, anyone can see the photo and the person you tagged will get a notification. If your photos are private, only people following you can see the photo. The person you tag in the photo will get a notification if they're following you.


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● Numbers are allowed in hashtags. However, spaces and special characters, like $ or %, won't work.

● You can only tag your own posts. You can't tag other people's photos/videos. ● You can use up to 30 tags on a post. If you include more than 30 tags on a single

photo/video, your comment won't post. ● You can @someone on other people’s post instead of tagging them

Google+

● Google+ hashtags connect to more networks. See how it works here: https://plus.google.com/+RonnieBincer/posts/focQkGJGgg9

References http://digitalmarketingphilippines.com/the-history-and-power-of-hashtags-in-social-media-marketing-infographic/ Info on popular hashtags: https://www.hashtags.org/ https://www.hashtags.org/platforms/twitter/why-use-hashtags-guide-to-the-micro-blogging-universe/ https://support.twitter.com/articles/49309-using-hashtags-on-twitter Instagram for business: http://blog.business.instagram.com/ https://help.instagram.com/365080703569355/

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