Sing a song of Youngstown
Youngstown — Posted on July 24, 2009 at 3:46 am
I can’t stop thinking about Youngstown’s new designation as a Top 10 City for entrepreneurs. I also can’t stop talking about it. Everywhere I go I’m talking to people about how we can capitalize on it. I sent more e-mails today than the rest of the week combined.
I reached out to media contacts and political ones. I talked with a community organizer about ideas, and I reiterated the news of our economic renaissance at the usual places: the blog, facebook and twitter.
Please don’t misunderstand me, though. I’m not saying this to boast about what I’m doing; others are doing as much and more. I want to know what you’re doing. Share your thoughts on potential actions and any stories from what you have done.
I really believe this is a significant moment for us, don’t you? This is an opportunity to embrace our new selves and stake a new image. Let’s be frank: we’ve got a branding problem. I, for one, would rather not be known for organized crime, corruption or Jim Trafficant. I don’t want to be known for blight and decay.
I also sense that, though we still have much to learn from the 2010 process, as a marketing tool its days are–quite literally here in 2009–numbered. Again, I’m not suggesting anything inherently bad about 2010, though I’m sure we all have our own opinions on which aspects of right-sizing Youngstown are the most essential and perhaps critiques on how things have played out thus far. But even successful campaigns have limited shelf life in the public’s attention, then you have to adapt your approach to new developments.
This is where we’re at now. There’s excitement culturally about Kelly Pavlik. The Covelli Centre is turning a profit. We’re taking our first steps into deconstruction. The Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation is gaining steam. YSU has recently experienced record enrollment.
There’s also high unemployment, wide-spread poverty, low wages, depressed housing prices and a decimated tax base. The successes in approving school and mass transit levies are the exceptions to the rule: antipathy toward funding anything related to Youngstown makes it even more astonishing we’ve accomplished what we have. There’s money to be had even in this economy, but it’s going to Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus, not the Valley.
The Youngstown Business Incubator operates at a fraction of the annual budgets of its counterparts. And look what it has to show for itself with companies like Turning Technologies, Eris Technologies, M7 Technologies and Zethus Software. That’s a lot of technology. And YSU’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) College is two years old.
I’m not suggesting that we erase our past. It is the reason we stand at this junction today. Our legacy of innovation and hard work begat the success we have again achieved. Again, not at the risk of losing our identity, at the risk of not finding it.
That we are a community of achievers should never be in doubt. We once stood at the peak of the age of steel. We used to rule the world. We’ve laid low, and now we’re ready to shine again.
This is also not in conflict with anything we’ve already been developing. A shrinking city does not have to be a struggling one. Coming to grips with our past population loss need not assume the inevitability of future loss.
Finally, nobody’s going to do this for us. We must seize the moment and make something of it. Tell everyone our story. Start right here, if you would. Post a comment about what you can do, what ideas do you have for others and what stories do you have from what you’ve already done. Let’s brainstorm on possible campaigns to capitalize on the themes of business success and entrepreneurship.
Some suggestions I’ve heard thus far:
- ensure some kind of visual recognition goes up on the City’s and the 2010 Web sites to advertise the designation
- hang a 25-foot banner on the side of the City Hall Annex facing south or east to incoming Market Street bridge traffic
- hang vertical banners along street lamps and traffic light poles with “Youngstown Means Business” or “Youngstown is for Entrepreneurs” (or … you tell me–use the comment form below).
- an entrepreneur celebration in the Covelli Centre’s parking lot; invite both businesses who have been here for generations as well as new businesses; start off with a short film highlighting achievements and set up opportunities, exposition-style, to let the companies show what they do. The exhibitors can be organized by industry, to help guide users by interest…
- display “Entering Youngstown: A Top 10 City for new businesses” on the white signs that dot the city line’s boundary
- establish a prize to develop the best branding for the cause; then emblazon the logo on every business and news broadcast that goes out
- put a bid out to local marketing firms to submit proposals; best becomes a grant request to a local foundation
Your turn: what ideas do you have? What can you do? What have you done? We are now hereby deputized as Youngstown evangelists; spread the word.
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Tags: 2010, business, economy, ybi
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25 Comments
Great reflections and call for action Tyler. Maybe we also have to promote that people in this Valley are very hard working people. Cool ideas and entrepreneurs are required, but persons able to implement such ideas with a good work ethic are an essential ingredient to success. Our ethnic diversity, though at times it has become a stumbling block for mutual action, is a great asset and gift which should be promoted. Maybe we need to do something to connect the YBI and the Labor/Industry Museum to show links from past to now to future. Just thinking.
Thanks for kicking things off, Brian. Those are good thoughts. As we talk about new business and business success in general, we should be deliberate about also emphasizing our cultural diversity and international makeup; something also apparent by a glance at the diverse business faculty at YSU.
I remember going to a franchise fair once. The exhibitors all seemed to me to be a little shady and money-grubbing. I would rather see something more along the lines of education: educating our citizens on how to be an entrepreneur, how to start a business, how to determine their strengths and weaknesses. Ultimately, how to follow their dreams.
Education is key, good point. We can host “Entrepreneur City” workshops; we might even reach out to our fellow honorees (Las Vegas, Austin, Orlando, etc.) and find out who can share best practices from each location. Why not expand our local managed cluster concept and take this opportunity to establish connections with other leading entrepreneurial cities to create a mega-cluster?
As for your idea of branding and banners, it seems to me that Entrepreneur Magazine saw the important aspect of the Youngstown spirit when it labeled us “The Dreamer”. For a while now I’ve been wondering if Defend Youngstown is the right stance to take at this point. It’s militant, and while there are certainly reasons to defend Youngstown, it puts us on the defensive, and you know what they say about defensive people…
I think we should Dream Youngstown, and highlight the fact that we need not always be on the defensive, but can create through dreaming.
Rationalists have a weird response to words like dreaming, but in fact it’s the best thing human beings can do, it’s the word that encapsulates our ability to imagine new things, and to change our predicaments.
I say, Dream Youngstown.
Thanks for your thoughts, Chris. Along those lines, another approach would be “Youngstown: The entrepreneur’s dream” or “Where entrepreneurs dream.” (You know, I think I’ve typed entrepreneur more in the last week than in my entire life! I can spell it now.)
It’s a shame before all you cheerleaders get your panties all up in a bunch there are still people around this community, touting the corrupt past of Youngstown
Watch this video if you have the guts to post it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q026ippCBcg
or this one
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wz-W5HXZZOU
I took pains to acknowledge the challenges we face, and of course we know there are those who love to hate Youngstown. I don’t see how that has anything to do with what we’re talking about except reinforce the need to push forward a positive initiative.
I left Youngstown in 1999 and moved back here. It has great potential and to see videos like the ones posted by Hate Hannity is very discouraging. That makes the importance of revitalization in this community more important. We have been surrounded by crooks, officials in office that are corrupt, and a high murder rate. I heard about Youngstown all the way In California and we are a joke. We are the only ones who can fix it. Idiots like the guy working for Heidi Hanni just make us looks like idiots. He can take his book about Traficant and shove and leave this area. We don’t need him here when we are trying to make a positive impact not a circus show.
Erin, it’s good to hear from you. Thanks for your comments. A city that is recognized for being a good place to start a business is a far cry from the one Traficant inhabited.
Hi There,
My husband and I are in the process of moving to Youngstown and I have started following the Youngstown blogosphere. We are very excited to see the aura of hope and promise that the city is generating. I feel like we might be getting in right when Youngstown is taking off.
One suggestion I have regarding promotion as someone who has recently spent a lot of time trying to get to know the city from afar: add the Entrepreneur story and/or other happenings into wikipedia–honestly, it was the first place I went to start learning about the city. There are bound to be others that start Googling the city after this story–what are the first items they will see?
My two cents.
Thanks,
Hillary
Hillary, I can’t wait to officially welcome you to town. I’m excited to hear you will be moving in. Please give me a buzz when you arrive, so we can have you over.
Wikipedia is a strange animal. I like your idea of adding the information to the entry there, and we’ll see if it sticks. The moderators there relentlessly prune stuff, so it can be hit or miss.
Best wishes.
I guess the first thing to start with is to develop a definite purpose for rebranding. What is the end game? Is it just to let people know you can start a business here? Is it to make them aware of the national accolades? Is it to have something else on the resume besides crime and blighted neighborhoods? I would think the main purpose of rebranding, using the national attention from Entrepreneur would be help bring exposure to the wonderful entrepreneurs that already add to the economic fortitude of this Valley AND attract more talented entrepreneurs to the area. Why you ask would you make this your definite purpose? Let’s take a closer look.
Entrepreneurs are the creative force in economics. If you have a job, almost any job, it is the byproduct an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs take barren wastelands and turn them into tropical forest of economic prosperity. They are the ones who organize & manage the resources, develop procedures and take the weight of the risk on their shoulders in exchange for the rewards of a successful business.
GM, Forum Health, Y.S.U., V&M Star, Anthem BCBS all are the byproduct of a man or woman from lowly beginnings saying I can do what the next person does better, cheaper, faster and/or more efficiently. So now that we see why we might want some entrepreneurs in the Valley how to make it happen?
You have friends, don’t you? Well, why are your friends your friends? You probably have some common interests. Probably see the world somewhat in the same light. Happen to see each other over and over at the same functions. Am I getting warm? Well this is exactly the same case for entrepreneurs.
They think differently than the 9 to 5er. So how to catch more entrepreneurs? With other entrepreneurs silly! Just like a Star Wars fanatic clings to everything Star Wars so too do entrepreneurs. They will be drawn to each other like a magnet. So the first step would be to raise the profile of entrepreneurs already existing in the Valley. Make their stories more visible. Turning Technologies is a start but their are so many other wonderful companies too! As other entrepreneurs not only read the story of Youngstown and its opportunities but begin to connect on a more personal level as they read individual stories of other entrepreneurs just like them they’ll be drawn like a moth to an open flame.
People by nature flock to those who share their views of the world. This is not something that a politician can do or a government worker, this is something that can only be communicated by one of your own. A person who collects a paycheck can’t truly understand the mindset of a person who has to “kill” each and every meal to eat. And once you have all these economy building, know-it-alls together, what then?
LEAVE THEM ALONE!
From there your role is done, just rinse and repeat. If done right you should not only have a team of worlds greatest thinkers together right in your backyard but, individuals who are “DOER’S”. You know not just people who say, “It would be great if we had this” but, people who say the same thing and add, “Now let’s get it done!”. Also throw out any heavy government regulations and barriers which keep people from starting a business in the Valley. It should be a community effort. At least that’s my take from a fellow Valley entrepreneur. Thanks for reading!
QUICK RECAP:
1. Develop a definite purpose for rebranding efforts.
2. Raise the profiles of existing Valley entrepreneurs
3. GET OUT THE WAY!
Best Regards,
Derek Caffe
Qurble.com
Chief Executive Officer
http://www.Qurble.com
Derek, first of all congratulations on your success. I read about your business in the Vindicator and wish you all the best. You clearly have strong identification with and feelings for entrepreneurs, and I hope that you’ll find a way to contribute to the rebranding with your own efforts.
I think the need for the rebranding is clear, and I agree that putting a face to the brand is helpful to personify the movement beyond the city itself.
Too often one person becomes inextricably linked to a movement: Phil Kidd to revitalization; Turning Technologies and Mike Broderick to new business. It is up to each of us to tell the stories of all the activists and entrepreneurs that are here making business happen.
I hope to have more to report on such efforts soon.
I agree. Except their is not one face but rather a collection of “faces” working together who make a huge impact on the community through the creation of something greatly needed in this area. J-O-B-S! Thanks for sharing.
You mention that the YNDC is “gaining steam.” Can you report more specifics on that? Is the organization actually operating now?
What I know is they already have office space, they’re conducting late-stage interviews for an exec. dir., and they’re meeting this week or last week with political leaders. I think it’s an organization with great potential and look forward to seeing it develop.
I couldn’t agree more with the above points. The history of this community suggests a social and economic pattern that has a tendancy to place the hopes on the few. This takes the emphasis off what needs to needs to be in place – the efforts (and recognition of those efforts) of the collective. I am a communicator with a popular message as well as a community organizer working “on the ground”. This makes it easy for others to “point and look” to someone like myself when it comes to Youngstown. However, what’s happenign in Youngstown is much bigger than just myself (or other individuals)which we all know.
The story of how the pieces (and people) equal the sum is the story of the new Youngstown. Continuing to connect and create more of those pieces and telling the story of that collective effort is how this community and its perception will change. It will also begin to create a much different degree of “ownership” which, by extention, creates the level of civic accountability (political, neighborhood, economic) which may end up being the most important component of the effort in the long run.
I am happy to see more and more people like myself committed to Youngstown and our comeback. I have been a pioneer on the Northeside since 1990 when eveyone said I was nuts to move here and completely restore my home from the ground up. I have taken alot of guff but sucess is around the corner. There has been alot of talk about Wick Park developmemt but if the housing surrounding is crumbling why fix the park. We need an influx of young energetic people to move the neighborhoods forward. Positive acticals such as the recent entrepreneur artical and Wall Street journal are outstanding. Something big is brewing in Youngstown.
Rob, glad to have you as a Wick Park pioneer. Thanks for what you’ve done with your house, and I hope we’re able to get resources together to move on other at-risk homes in the neighborhood.
I found this in my Google alerts. It must be a dreadful pitiful place
Google Blogs Alert for: youngstown
seattle:
Have You Seen This GORILLA?
By Lanna Banana
On Saturday, outside the Youngstown Cultural Art Center in West Seattle, a 6ft tall animatronic Gorilla was stolen by 2 men in a red pick-up truck. During a yard sale for the Service Board (tSB), the Gorilla was placed on the street …
Seattle’s LiveJournal Community – http://seattle.livejournal.com/
Imagine that a Youngstown cultural Center, what a joke ha ha ha ha
First, you do realize this is Youngstown in Seattle, right?
Second, did anyone notice this was written by “Lanna Banana”? It’s all too good to be true.
Yes I noticed that joke and what other people know Youngstown is a joke
Youngstown is soon to be the laughing stock of the country. The hometown baseball team is having a Jimbo night, and they are having a party for the return of a convicted felon. How embarrassing that is
Millions are spent promoting Youngstown, it will allwill be wiped away in one fell swoop by the national media covering the fact that we honor the return of a convicted felon. where is the Chamber of Commerce, they should have a public statement condemning this Scrappers. instead the vindicator puts it on the front page top of the fold. Something to brag about we are having a party
The city of Youngstown pays Phiil Kidd to promote this area, and these people waste that money
How ironic is this event to be held at Cafaro field, JJ paid
the bribe and Jimbo did the time
This kind of diatribe isn’t productive. If you care about the area, then what are you going to do to address the litany of problems you see? If you don’t care about the area, then why waste your time and ours shouting it down?