Photo Credit: “2018 April 5th flight over Collin County” by bk1bennett, used under CC.
One of the fastest-growing counties in Texas, Collin County was a municipality on the move, and businesses were taking note. Proximity to Dallas, a capable workforce, and thriving industry put Collin County businesses on the map, and the local Small Business Development Center wanted them to stay there.
As a front-line community resource, Collin Small Business Development Center (SBDC) provided technical assistance to small businesses starting and growing. Their support services were sought after by early-stage entrepreneurs but less utilized by larger firms. Determined to communicate their value to firms of every size, Collin SBDC contracted PPR Strategies for a communications audit, coaching, and a winning outreach strategy.
Over the course of a year, PPR Strategies helped Collin SBDC evaluate its marketing efforts and crafted a strategy with impact. Components of the plan included a public relations strategy, a website and SEO audit, team communications coaching, and customizable marketing plans for businesses at every stage of growth.
As part of our strategy development efforts for Collin SBDC, our team conducted a SWOT analysis that revealed strengths in the SBDC’s internal operations and budget, along with opportunities for growth and improvement in its newsletter, networking efforts, commercial real estate prices, and more. These findings informed our recommendations for Collin SBDC’s communications efforts, thus resulting in a comprehensive document to guide messaging via social media promotions, website updates, email marketing, media engagement, and advertisements.
The PPR Strategies team also developed five unique personas to segment Collin SBDC’s target audiences. Using the information from these personas allowed us to better customize Collin SBDC’s communication efforts and turn our various suggestions into relevant, tangible actions for each persona.
At the conclusion of our partnership, Collin SBDC was able to apply takeaways from our audit, consultations, and detailed deliverables to improve its perception with target businesses and better communicate its value to various constituents. Today, Collin SBDC’s services are more widely utilized by businesses at all phases of development, and the brand now speaks with a more confident, unified voice that benefits the community on a grand scale.
Marta Gomez Frey, Director of the Collin Small Business Development Center, was our main point of contact for this partnership. When asked about her experience with our firm, she noted, “PPR Strategies transformed our marketing and public relations opportunities because of their customized approach. PPR consultants demonstrated a significant depth of knowledge and passion for helping our business grow. I’m absolutely confident that PPR Strategies can help your organization.”
