Helping Attract New Businesses — and Bring Businesses to Life — on HHI

Hilton Head Island is primarily known as one of America’s most popular leisure and retirement destinations; however, its convenient location, easy travel access, low taxes and recreational opportunities/quality of life also make HHI an excellent location to locate a business. The HHIEDC was created to attract businesses to Hilton Head Island by showcasing all that HHI has to offer businesses – and turned to SmartMarketing Communications to help generate greater awareness of the benefits of locating or relocating a business on Hilton Head Island – and the advantages of “Bringing Your Business to Life” in one of the country’s most beautiful locations.

Solutions:

• Created a multi-faceted branding campaign, including eye-catching logo and tagline of “Bring Your Business to Life” to communicate the message of how business owners throughout the country can combine the benefits of a fast-growing business community and one of the country’s most beautiful locations to bring their businesses to life on Hilton Head Island
• Developed a visually appealing website to attract businesses throughout the region and throughout the country to learn more about the advantages of doing business on Hilton Head Island and what HHI offers
• Secured publicity in local and regional press to reach business owners/entrepreneurs about the growing business community on Hilton Head Island and the benefits of locating/relocating a business and/or opening an office on HHI
• Created a unique “Bring Your Business Idea to Life” campaign/contest to generate widespread awareness of HHI’s growing role as a business community, and offer new businesses the opportunity to compete for the opportunity to locate their business on HHI and receive a variety of prizes to help launch their business.

Results:

Through a comprehensive branding, marketing and public relations campaign, business owners/entrepreneurs/professionals throughout the Southeast were effectively reached with information about the benefits of doing business on Hilton Head Island. A steady and consistent flow of publicity kept information about the HHIEDC’s mission and the growth of the HHI business community in the news and top-of-mind for business owners in target markets, with articles appearing in the Island Packet, Bluffton Today, Hilton Head Monthly, CH2 Magazine and the Bluffton Sun, as well as numerous appearances by HHIEDC representatives on WHHI-TV, WJCL and radio outlets. In addition, SmartMarketing Communication’s creation of the “Bring Your Business Idea to Life” contest resulted in an overwhelming response from the entrepreneurial community and 73 entries submitted from throughout the country – all interested in bringing their businesses to Hilton Head Island. During our campaign, more than __ companies launched and/or located on Hilton Head Island, and awareness of the HHIEDC was significantly enhanced throughout the entire country.