Using Your Data to Grow Your Organization

Too often in downtown revitalization we get caught up in the next project without taking time to tout the previous event. Sure, we may send a news release about the success of an event or letting people know who was recognized with an award. But how often to we write those before the event is even held? More often than not I would presume.

More than just telling the successes of your events, how often do we stop to tell people all the great things are going on each and every day in our districts? One great way to do this is through your data. We may think of reinvestment statistics as a chore that takes you away from another project. We fill out and submit the reports and don’t touch them again until the next report is due. Are you sharing those reports with your board? What about your city or county government? How about the media? I have found that taking time to share your successes will help to grow your organization.

As an Executive Director I would often hear “I didn’t know that” when I got the opportunity to tell people about our district. You see, they had their own impression of downtown. For some, it was great. For others, it wasn’t what it used to be…so it must be failing. When we told people how many businesses we had, or how many employees worked downtown you could see the lightbulb go off for people. Those revelations lead to more engagement with your district.

People want to be a part of a winning team, and it is our job to tell them that we are that team. Perhaps someone is getting ready to open a new businesses and your story makes them take a second look at downtown. Maybe they are looking to volunteer and when you tell them about how much your organization has done they are convinced to volunteer with you. Or maybe your successes help to win over your city council and your organization is able to secure more funding.

We have built Maestro to have a robust reporting interface that allows you to have these statistics at your fingertips. If you aren’t sure how to utilize them, we encourage you to check out the reporting and advanced search tutorials. Once you’ve mastered running your reports, don’t stop with turning them into a coordinating program…make sure you tell your community about all your successes and leverage those to have even more!