Building a Place and a Community with Digital Communications and Social Networks

Building a Place and

a Community with

Digital Communications and Social

Networks

2007 – 2010

Major investments with massive frustration, the

Great Recession, pent up demand, and we were old

and stodgy;until January 4, 2010.

“A new approach is called for on the waterfront – one that is both more

deliberate and more experimental... The massive expanse of the South Boston

waterfront, with its existing knowledge base, opportunity for growth, and world-

class infrastructure is ripe to produce world-class products and services” - Mayor

Thomas M. Menino

2

Fort Point Channel

Fan Pier/ Seaport

Boston

Marine Industrial

Park

Convention Center

Area

7

Four distinct

neighborhoods

Draw on Curiosity for Purposeful Interaction Create an Emotional ConnectionEncourage a Call to Action

Use low-involvement, transformational persuasion tactics

Low-involvement: Low-risk, no cost activities or services.

Transformational: Intellectual stimulation or social approval (personal recognition) to help bolster the brand attitude and communicate information about the Innovation District for future opportunities.

Comm.

Plan

Because the City does not offer an immediate, direct benefit, the

strategy is rooted in leveraging the theory of social networks,

inspiring influencers to become brand ambassadors and

mutually-beneficial partners.

Comm.

Strategy & Tactics

Immediate Communications Strategies:

Dare to be different

Be risky, humble, nimble, always have the last word, and say “YES!” to everything.

This is not your grandmother’s city. In concert with the spirit of the Innovation District, we must

be as open and allow for idea dialogue. Nimble, fast, responsive, provocative, and imperfect

are how we define ourselves.

Perception is Reality

Give people information by being the source that makes and/or publishes the news.

Let’s face it, the more people know, the more accepting they are. Give the public the

information and they will respect the effort and even join in the sentiment.

And we make the news. Good, bad or indifferent, we make it and in order to control the

message in today’s fast-paced, instant-communication world, we need to be the ones reporting

it first, then the press as needed.

PositioningThe Boston Innovation District is poised to be on the

forefront of the Idea Revolution, and change the way

industries and economies of the world thrive. A

playground where individuals and companies inspire

their ideas to define the direction of the future. A place

where we can all make history.

New Media

Traditional Media

Independents (early and eternal entrepreneurs)

Developers

RE Professionals/Site Selectors

Foundations

Associations

Sector Leaders

Institutions

Global cluster groups

Investors

Target Audiences

Financial Influencers

Industry Influencers

Social Influencers

Change brand identityShift brand attitude and inspire investment.

TacticsMet with key players (internally and externally) to discuss the future

opportunities and current challenges.

High Involvement-Informational in person

(Seaport Square and Slideshare)

Developers

RE Professionals/Site Selectors

Foundations

Target Audiences

Financial Influencers

Change brand identityShift brand attitude and inspire collaboration and ambassadorship.

TacticsMet with local association leaders and universities to discuss the vision and concept for the

Innovation District and potential future opportunities.

Targeted industry publications and international social media channels.

Met with many international groups visiting Boston.

(PWC New Zealand)

Associations

Sector Leaders

Institutions

Global cluster groups

Target Audiences

Industry Influencers

Build brand awarenessNo one comes. Introduce and inspire commitment to the vision through

experiences.

TacticsMet with local entrepreneurship groups/leaders to discuss the concept for the

Innovation District and potential future opportunities.

Determined their needs and responded.

(Buzzient/GreenTown Labs/Kirsner, Wired, & Rxn)

New Media

Traditional Media

Independents (early and eternal entrepreneurs)

Target Audiences

Social Influencers

Comm.

Strategy & Tactics

Internal Communication

TBD

Develop Brand Guidelines soon

External Communication

There should be a tangible marketing/media packet soon.

The foundation for communications will be in new and social media - blog, Twitter, and by participating in others’ channels/groups.

Twitter

Style and Tone

Smart, personal voice. Fun with appropriate punctuation

Be gracious, but modest. Don’t RT kind words, just thank people.

Community Building

Talk when you’ve got something to teach.

Follow the right people. More is not better.

Support others’ news/events.

Stay tuned in to what else is going on in the district. Listen x3.

Frequency and Dialogue

Conversations happen organically, but have the last word if possible.

@IDBoston will RT misc info not from partners not directly aligned with vision

RT with quote on applicable partner messages about events, etc in IDBoston

Tech/Syntax Support

Use robust system: HootSuite

Think about allowing more access to handle

Auto tweet blog post (weekly)

Use active links to more information all of the time.

Website: Original and Emotional

Publish original content on updates weekly via blog. Always better to communicate our original information as opposed to mentions in other media

outlets (press page).

Advance the emotional connection between the ID and our key audience to increase attachment and participation.

Sustain and expand organic growth of the ID as an independent concept leading the future of Boston.

Event pages to expand and connect the communities

Tumblr: Press & Posts

Set up Google Alert, add bookmark, thoroughly approve content, and publish. Be mindful of images vs quotes and frequency of pushes to Twitter.

What Happened?The conversation spread globally and hyper-locally.

Broad local discussions were combined with extreme vertical issues.

Perception became reality.Demand drove opportunity in existing RE supply, which drove new RE growth.

It became self-sustaining.The emotional connection inspired collaborators to find ways to profit and a community to create (and defend) a place.