Quinte Economic Development Commission (EDC) asked McSweeney & Associates to produce a Target Market Study that would identify industry sectors offering the best prospects. The Commission also asked for marketing collateral designs for each target industry.

Response:

Produced in partnership with TD Graham + Associates, the Study included an economic base analysis, a labour force analysis, a competitive positioning analysis, documentation of local workforce development capabilities and a SWOT analysis. It employed economic and export forecast analyses to review target sectors, industries and markets. The Study identified food processing, particularly prepared cereals, as the highest priority target industry. It included marketing analysis and plans for target markets and sectors.

Results:

The research led to a strategy and implementation plan, and a new marketing strategy and collateral. These have helped some tourism operators reach for new opportunities—and many are beginning to adjust their product offering to suit the new target markets. This work recently won a national EDAC award. Dryden recently launched a new tourism website.

Challenge:

Ontario East Economic Development Commission (OEEDC) wanted to strengthen the abilities of its member communities to attract tourism investment. That meant developing a method they could use to assess the feasibility of a tourism investment idea without engaging a consultant—and to develop the idea to the point at which it could be marketed.

Reponse:

McSweeney & Associates researched self-guided workbooks and tourism investment analysis, and developed a Community Workbook in consultation with OEEDC Tourism Investment Sector Team and Ontario's Ministry of Tourism. The self-guided Community Workbook helps OEEDC member communities gauge the pre-feasibility of tourism capital investments.

Results:

For its proven user-friendliness and self-assessment strengths, the Community Workbook recently won an EDCO Marketing Award.