BRATTLEBORO — A lingering recession and the prospect of a year of disruption from the Main Street/Route 5 reconstruction project has contributed to a growing sense of unease among downtown merchants.
Brattleboro Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jerry Goldberg acknowledges these challenges, but refuses to dwell on them.
“We know people are worried,” said Goldberg, “but rather than retreating, we want to present ourselves in the best possible way we can. There's no better time than right now to promote our town.”
That optimism is reflected in the theme of the Chamber's new campaign highlighting the unique offerings of the area - “The One and Only Brattleboro” - which was unveiled at a community gathering in the Robert H. Gibson River Garden on Tuesday.
Goldberg calls this campaign the first-ever collaborative marketing effort between all the town's business groups, such as Building a Better Brattleboro, the North End Business Association and the West Brattleboro Business Association. He considers it a mini-version of the famed “I Love New York” ad campaign.
The Chamber has hired local public relations specialists Lynn Barrett and Martin Langeveld, graphic designer Meg McCarthy, and website designers Vermont Technology Partners to assist in developing and marketing the new promotional effort.
Goldberg said ads will appear in such publications as The Boston Globe, Vermont Life and Southern Vermont Arts & Living, and the new One and Only Brattleboro logo will start popping up on signs, banners and displays around town.
There will also be an expanded social media effort, with a new Facebook page and a Twitter account.
The marketing campaign will also use seasonal taglines, beginning with “Cool and Hot” for the summer season and “Swing into Fall” for September. Goldberg said that Swing into Fall will center on community events and business activities in the month of September.
“September has become a difficult time for local businesses,” he said. “We start the summer off strong with the Strolling of the Heifers in June and there's certainly lots of activity in July and August, but the momentum seems to drop off in the weeks between the Labor Day and Columbus Day weekends.”
“But we still have great weather and reasons to visit in September,” continued Goldberg, “and the Swing campaign will give us an opportunity to talk up Brattleboro by promoting events, special business offerings, and any and all exciting things going on.”
The Swing into Fall campaign will kick off with a Labor Day concert at the Latchis Theatre on Sept. 4 at 7:30 p.m., featuring the Beantown Swing Orchestra. Goldberg said the band played to rave reviews at the Brattleboro Retreat's 175th anniversary gala, and he has wanted to bring them back to Brattleboro ever since.
Other events in September include the Realtors Youth Benefit's “Em 'Body' Art Tour de Mannequin,” in which local artists will be painting mannequins that will be displayed around Brattleboro from Labor Day through Oct. 31. The mannequins will be auctioned off on Nov. 5 to raise funds for activity scholarships to southern Vermont youth.
Also scheduled for September are Gallery Walk, the Friends of Music at Guilford's 44th Labor Day Festival, the River Valley Kids Fair, Brattleboro Memorial Hospital's Touch a Truck event, the West Brattleboro Arts Studio Tour, and performances by the Center for Circus Arts, the New England Youth Theatre and the Actors Theatre Playhouse.
While the initial emphasis of the Chamber's campaign is on creating a buzz for a slow month on the tourism calendar, Goldberg said he wanted to create a promotional effort that is year-round and celebrates the town's unique and original elements and its history of firsts in a way that piques the interest of potential visitors.
“We have so much going for us that other communities don't have,” he said. “Wherever I go in the state, when I mention that I'm from Brattleboro, people smile.”
“There is something about this town and our story that people really love,” she said. “This is a challenging time, and there's no doubt about that, but we can't stop telling the story about this town. The need to tell it has never been greater.”