Some praise for NORTH on the Portland Downtown Marketing Initiative

An article in today’s Oregonian put a smile on our faces. Please excuse this moment of shameless self-promotion.

North was the standout among 13 companies invited to submit proposals, judged on criteria such as diversity, price, experience and demonstrated adherence to green practices. A five-person panel interviewed five finalists.

North has held the account from the start. Courtney Ries, marketing manager of the downtown initiative, said the contract was put out to bid again to make sure North was still the best fit. It was.

“Their creative product was very, very strong,” Miller said. “Their understanding of the downtown core was exemplary, and they had a unique sense of the opportunities for downtown that they brought to the table.”

He said the collaboration has worked. A survey after the recent holiday season found that 76 percent of respondents had a positive perception of downtown, compared with 66 percent before the season, Miller said.

The dining campaign in June, while aimed at the city’s core, was amplified over Travel Portland’s channels to attract out-of-state visitors.

And all those downtown drivers? Some 240 of them took advantage of the marketing initiative’s $1-off coupon at a city garage in June.

Read the whole article here.

Travel Portland and the Downtown Marketing Initiative

posted by Dave Allen, 5 Comments

Ok, I’m interrupting the regular flow of media posts here to do a little high-fiving and back slapping for the NORTH team.

As you may well know, the world is divided into two parts – those who live in Portland and those who wish they did. Well, we are the lucky. Not only do we get to enjoy our unique and eclectic downtown, we are privileged to sing its praises. Since 2006 NORTH has worked with the City of Portland’s Downtown Marketing Initiative in developing fully integrated campaigns for downtown.

Now all good things often come to an end, but this particular relationship just got extended – the Downtown Marketing Initiative went out for bid recently, and we are pleased to say that we retained the account and that we will continue to be partners with Travel Portland, with whom we partnered at the end of 2009.

We look forward to continuing to extoll the virtues of our vibrant city and its downtown core.