1. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation, better known and the Michigan Advantage,
is a private-public partnership that focuses on the marketing arm of many companies dedicated to
economic development in Michigan. Therefore, their budget for social media is not going to be
extremely large. The focus of this corporation is to be economically savvy and connect people
across the state. Due to this, I believe that $500,000 would be sufficient to implement this five-
part plan. It plan will focus on many relatively inexpensive or even free ways to boost
knowledge and understanding of the company.
One idea for the Michigan Advantage is to host a Facebook competition on inspiring student
ideas. The company could ask students for ideas on entrepreneurship, new energy sources, or
anything “Pure Michigan” to acquire some fresh ideas on the subject. By providing some sort of
compensation or prize for the winner or the top three contestants would allow for greater
feedback from potential candidates. This is also a great way for The Michigan Economic
Development Services to gain Facebook fans and spread the word about the information and
services available on their site.
Another similar idea for the corporation is to host an online contest for companies already
utilizing the Michigan Advantage’s services. Each company could input a submission about why
they are making the most of “Pure Michigan” and then posts this on the Michigan Economic
Development Corporation’s Facebook under a special contest tab. The participating companies
will then have to get support from their constituents, customers, or whoever they can find to
“like” their submission which is how votes will be casted. This is a great way for consumers to
learn more about not only the Michigan Advantage itself, but also about how these smaller
companies are utilizing the services available to them.
Next, the Michigan Advantage could host a charitable event such as a “clean-a-thon”. Similar to
a walk-a-thon, participants would ask for donations from friends, family members, etc. Then,
they would clean certain areas of Michigan by picking up trash, painting over graffiti, or doing
other things to help communities across the state. Companies who use the Michigan
Advantage’s services could maybe even help with the financing by sponsoring some of the
event.
Further, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation could hold a webinar hosted by some
of the top clientele. These are companies that have been greatly impacted by the Michigan
Advantage’s services and can help others learn about how to utilize what there is to offer and can
put a face to Michigan success stories.
Last, I believe one very important thing to Michiganders in community. Because of this, I think
that having a portion of their website dedicated to community parks, bike trails, or little things
that can be done to improve the lives of community members would be a great addition to the
myriad of information already located on the site. There is already a link for “community” so it
wouldn’t be hard to include this information.