Another Cool Shout Out for the Creative Corridor

By Julie Hein, General Manager

Well, another mention by the national media about how cool we are around here.  Yeah, we know it's a great place to live.  This time it's the Wall Street Journal.  I'd link you to the article, but it's only for their subscribers.  The title is "Need a Loan?  Where Do You Live?" if you are a subscriber and want to find it.  Or the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance has it too.

I'll give you the Cliff Notes version here.  In Cedar Rapids, the 177th largest metropolitan area in the U.S., banks make 11% more consumer loans in 2011 than they did in 2006.  Q4 alone was 52% hirgher than the same period in 2006.

We didn't have a huge housing bubble to drop from.  We don't have a lot of fluctuation in any of our markets--housing, employment, whatever.  Auto loans and mortgages are up 38% and 18% respectively, the largest increases in the country.  Low interest rates even with below average credit scores--also a bunch of those around here.  2.9% interest on car loans?  We got that. Mortgages without closing costs or origination fees?  Those too!  Our deliquency rates are low. 

Quoting Eliot Keller, "Yay.  I love us."  We love the Corridor!

Boo!

By Kellie J. Lala 

 

Hard to believe that Halloween is truly right around the next scary corner!  I just decorated my home for Halloween over this past weekend.  According to CNBC and the National Retail Federation’s Halloween survey, a record 170 million of us will celebrate Halloween this year.  I have heard that Halloween is becoming one of the most celebrated of our annual holidays…right behind Christmas (of course).  It gives grown adults a reason to let loose and have a good time.  Spending is to be around the $8 Billion (yes, that is a B) mark which shows a growth of over 16% over 2011.  The average person will spend $79.00 on décor, costumes and candy.  I just bought a small bag of candy corn and it is a hard candy to resist. The bag is nearly gone!  Costumes continue to be the biggest spend and retailers say that they become more elaborate and require more accessories each year.  Social media is playing a bigger role in how people select their costumes.  Friends ask friends for inspiration or go to consumer sights like Pinterest for ideas.  While families with children make up a big chunk of the total spending, adults continue to be more active with their dollars around Halloween.  Don’t forget about the pets.  People continue to love on their pets and dress them up.  So what are your plans?  How will you celebrate on Wednesday,

October 31^st?  Be sure to turn to Z102.9 to hear all of the fun and spooky things that we will be doing  this year.  BOO!

 

 

 

 

 

Home Improvements Anyone?

 

By Kellie J. Lala

 

I have been wanting to paint my front door red for about a year.  Finally got it done (4 coats of paint I might add), and it looks great.  I also added some black and white tile to it and a customized saying (yet to be done).  It took a while to noodle around in my head before it became reality but the end result is awesome!  How about you?  Got any home improvement projects on your “to do” list before the cold weather hits Iowa?  According to Harvard University’s Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity; spending is expected to rise 12.2% by early 2013.  Here are some staggering numbers to wrap your mind around.  Complete home remodel: $192,724, new kitchen:  $24,766, swimming pool:  $34,190, bathroom remodel:  $10,723 and new roof:  $9,454.  The average cost of a custom-built home is $576,460.00 so a bit remodeling here and there seems a lot more affordable.  (These costs come from Remodeling Magazine).   

 

What would you like to have new in your home?  I see my home as a sanctuary and I want to happy in it when I slow down long enough to actually be home to enjoy it!  So spruce up the front porch with pumpkins and corn stalks.  Fall begins this Saturday, and it is never too soon to think about the holidays and what needs done before the relatives head over to your house.  Enjoy the change of our seasons!

 

 

 

Stayin' Alive

By Glen Gardner/ Marketing Consultant

Do you have any idea what the #5 album in the country is right now
according to Billboard? Here's a clue: It's not K$sha, Taylor Swift or
Katy Perry. According to Billboard, the fifth best-selling album in the
nation is the Bee Gees "Number Ones" at about 32,000 units.

Thinking this to be a bit odd, I dug a little deeper to find out why a
band with only one surviving member and an album released before Moses
was a kid saw a 3,000 percent sales increase in the last charting period.

It turns out the reason is a little outfit called Amazon. If there was
every any doubt that Amazon has done a great job of dominating the
retail landscape, Billboard provided a pretty good lesson last week.
Amazon priced the 2004 offering from the brothers Gibb at 99 cents for
three days during the reporting period. That accounted for virtually all
of the 3,000 percent sales increase.

Next time you consider your competition, don't forget to include Amazon.
The recent problems that electronics giant Best Buy is experiencing also
have some roots in the explosion of Amazon. It seems Best Buy has become
Amazon's showroom. Folks head out to Best Buy, touch and feel the
components they are interested in and then order them on Amazon. It will
probably result in Best Buy closing scores of stores and drastically
reducing square footage in the brick and mortar stores that remain.

To survive in this new retail landscape you have to offer your customers
much more than a commodity that they can get on Amazon. You don't want
to become an Amazon showroom. Not only do you have to offer superior
service, but you have to let the potential customer know how you are
truly different. That means a consistent marketing message aimed at
making sure you are staying alive!

Congratulations!

By Julie Hein, General Manager

The Iowa City Area Development Group and the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance just released some great news for the Creative Corridor. 

CNN Money ranked Iowa City and Cedar Rapids in their "America's Best Small Cities" list.  Iowa City also was on the list for affordable homes and Johnson County make the list of counties nationwide in the category of "where the jobs are." 

It's a nice place to live and work!  It's great when someone else notices too. 

The word on Mobile Advertising

By Kellie J. Lala 

Do you pay attention to mobile ads?  According to a recent survey by Hipcricket, 25-34 year old consumers have the most interest and interactivity with mobile ads.  70% have made a purchase and 58% say they would provide personal information in exchange for a reward or coupon.  This is twice as many than the 45-54 year old consumer.  The study goes onto say that the younger consumer thinks more positively about their favorite brands after interacting with them via their mobile device.  They even are more likely to recommend the brand to a friend.  Don’t get too excited yet….  For those who have yet to engage with a mobile ad, the reasons are varied.  43% say that the ads weren’t relevant to their interests and 39% said the ad didn’t appeal to them.  We are all going at warp speed and are time starved.  To take time to pay attention to everything that comes our way in any given a day would give us all a headache!   Don’t get me wrong, I love a coupon, bargain or a deeply discounted sale but on “my” terms.  I recently bought some lotion at a large bath and body store (you figure it out) and they asked for my email.  Sorry, I don’t want to give that out so I have delete the weekly (or more) offers they shoot over to my mailbox.  How about you?  Do you have a smart phone that is always making you an “offer”?   Is your email box filled with offers and coupons?  

Thanks for reading and if you want to engage in some way with us, give us a shout or email.  We would love to talk to you.

By Kellie J. Lala

According to an article by eMarketer, one in three online consumers will use a Tablet by 2014.  No, not a headache medicine tablet, silly, an iPad or Android tablet.  They are relatively new (2 years or so) but at the end of 2011, 33.7 million Americans were using one monthly.  That is an increase of over 158% since its first year out.  I think Apple is such an amazing company that consistently sets the bar really high.  They never stop inventing or out-doing their last invention.  Can you say that same thing about you, your business or your career?  I know, it is hard to stay fresh in an ever changing world.  I try to stay current by reading magazines, trade papers and sales articles.  I love sharing a relevant story with a prospect or client.  With our fast-paced world, we need to always be striving to be better.  What have you done to improve yourself this week?  Think about it and have a great Z day!  Thanks for stopping by.