Main Street Organizations are great at many things. Put on an event…check. Save an historic building….check. Organize a campaign to educate city council on the importance of an issue…you bet! However, when it comes to strategic planning many Main Streets don’t take the time necessary to not only create a long-range plan, but enact the plan to continue their growth.
Many smaller non-profit organizations suffer from the same syndrome….the ones doing the work are doing so much of it that planning for anything else is a dream. Maybe you’re one of the few that has taken the time to do some long-range planning…but are you implementing that plan? Strategic planning on Main Street can be a wonderful tool for any organization. Creating a long-range plan can provide a road map for carrying out your mission and measuring success.
When most people hear long-range plan they think of some huge study costing thousands of dollars that has a ton of features. That is certainly an option, and may be a good one, but long range plans can also include a smaller 3-5 year plan that helps move the organization in right direction. I’ve worked in and on both, and they both have their merits.
Let’s start small, shall we? Most organizations can create a 3-5 year plan pretty easily. Focusing on larger, multi-year projects or goals these strategic plans are great at giving you benchmarks for tracking success. Things like creating a new event, dealing with those constant problem properties, or attracting a certain retail segment (new women’s fashion boutique) are ideal for these types of strategic plans.
Your bigger, let’s say 20-year plans often focus on things such as streetscape projects, community enhancements, wayfinding, downtown entranceways, and other large-scale projects that will benefit not only the organization, but the community. These are great to have, and a wonderful tool to continue to keep downtown priorities on the radar of elected officials. These plans usually are done by a planning firm, and have a larger price tag to not only create but to implement (streetscapes and entranceways don’t come cheap)!
The real key though, isn’t in the creation of the plan. It doesn’t matter whether you’re creating a two year plan or a twenty year plan – the key is in the execution. Once you have a plan in place, use it to create your annual work plans, make sure that your yearly goals reflect the long-range plans, and continue to make sure you’re sharing your progress. You’ve taken the time to put together a plan, but it won’t do any good on the shelf. As an executive director we constantly talked about our plans, to the point where our aldermen were almost sick of hearing about them. However, when the 25-year plan got done in year 18 they were pretty pleased with the progress and getting funding for the next large study was just a little bit easier.
Whichever way your organization chooses to go, there are plenty of resources and firms available to help you achieve your goals. Just don’t allow yourself to put the plan on the shelf – keep it close by and keep working towards your goals.
