Canad Unveils Marketing Plan
By Tu-Uyen Tran, Grand Forks Herald, N.D.
Feb. 13–Canad Inns could start marketing the Grand Cities to Canadians some time in April, kicking off a $1.05 million, five-year campaign, according to a plan it provided to City Council members last week.
The money would come from the city while the marketing expertise would come from Canad, a major hotel chain in Manitoba.
In the short run, the aim of the campaign would be to generate more sales for area businesses, which would include Canad’s hotel and water park complex at the Alerus Center. In the long run, the company said it wanted to build “brand awareness” for the community in Manitoba.
Council President Hal Gershman said he supported giving Canad the marketing dollars because of the company’s ability to put Grand Forks at the “top of mind” for Canadians.
The marketing campaign takes into account several factors.
First, more and more, when families take vacations they’re looking for two- to three-day getaways, Canad marketing chief Lorne Perrin told the council Monday. Grand Forks being only 2.5 hours from Winnipeg’s most populous city, is well-positioned.
Second, most Manitobans know Grand Forks for its shopping, Perrin said, and they want to know about new stores in the city.
Third, the plan assumes that women make most of the decisions when it comes to purchases and vacation destinations, which is why they are the primary target of the marketing campaign. Business people who travel to Grand Forks regularly are secondary while sports and community groups that travel to events here are tertiary.
Most of the money is expected to go into TV and radio ads with a smaller percentage going into newspapers, magazines and direct mail. Canad will be conducting surveys to figure out if the campaign is working. Traditionally, some Canadians have bypassed Grand Forks in favor of Fargo, so a measure of the campaign’s effectiveness might be a more positive attitude to stopping here first.
The April kickoff is the first phase of the campaign and is meant to capture the summer traffic. It coincides roughly with the opening date for Canad’s Grand Forks complex. A second phase to capture the fall and winter traffic will start in the fall.
Other news
In other news, City Council members also discussed:
— Modifying a loud noise ordinance that’s proven very unpopular with UND students. Several council members agree that a mandatory $250 fine on a first offense was too strict and would support changing it to a warning. A second offense would result in a $750 fine, though council members, heeding complaints that that too would be excessive, is studying to see if it needs to go lower. The fine is higher than that for a second drunk driving offense.
— Allowing bowling alley patrons to bring beer out to the lanes. Jim Flynn, the owner of Red Ray Lanes, said Grand Forks is the only city in the state that doesn’t allow drinking and bowling. The proposed ordinance change comes at the behest of council member Curt Kreun.
Tran reports on City Hall. Reach him at (701) 780-1248 or ttran@gfherald.com or see his blog at www.areavoices.com/gfhcitybeat.
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Copyright (c) 2007, Grand Forks Herald, N.D.
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