New in 2007

To sign up for Sustainable Connections business membership - and automatically be included as a participant in this campaign, click here. For questions contact Michelle Grandy at MGrandy@Sconnect.org, or call 360.647.7093, ext 110.

•    March: St. Patricks Day Luck O' the Local posters delivered to business participants.

•    May: Mother's Day Make your Mother Proud posters delivered to business participants.

•    May:  "Guide to Where the Locals Go.  Sharing our community with your visitors” - This piece will list all participating businesses by category. The theme will focus on local tourism -- encouraging both visitors and locals to support our home region. These Guides will be distributed through Ski to Sea, local hotels, the Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Farmers Market, the Cascadia Weekly, the Bellingham Herald, and local retailers and restaurants.

•    May 27th: Ski to Sea/It all Ends in Fairhaven: A visible booth and prize wheel, the Be Local BEE Mascot, a race team dressed as local produce and sporting the Buy FRESH logo, and distribution of the new Where the Locals Go Guides.

•    Spring/Summer: “Buy FRESH” materials and farm maps delivered to restaurants and groceries.

•    July 1-7: ‘Independents Week’: Choose Independent Businesses First! Posters and "I choose independents" stickers delivered to participating businesses

•    September 9-15: Eat Local Week – includes an Eat Local Pledge, and local food and celebrations at local restaurants and food businesses.

•    November 1: New 2008 Think Local First coupon books available for sale! Sustainable Connections members and non-member campaign participants receive a free coupon advertisement in the book ($89 regular price). The current books is selling fast with over 2500 copies already in circulation.  This has been the number one best selling book at Village Books.  Many participants say this book is the most cost effective, targeted advertising they have done! 

•    December 3-9: Buy Local Week: This year’s materials will emphasize local business stewardship and the theme, “Friends and Neighbors Depend on Each Other!”

Materials and promotion will include:

- New posters, logo stickers and gift tags for customers and employees

- Point-of-sale in-store materials

- A sample newsletter article

- Balloons and promotional events at businesses throughout the region (business participants will have their events promoted by campaign)

- Game flyers for customers with chances to win local prizes

- Extensive publicity outreach

- A Winter Guide to local, independently owened businesses, listing all participants, specials sales and events, and local gift ideas (distributed through local businesses and restaurants, the Cascadia Weekly, and the Bellingham Herald.)

-Collaboration during the week with other North American communities to bring even greater visibility to key issues. 

•    Year round:

·    Campaign promotional visibility through an up-to-date website; advertising and media; and the BE Local BEE mascot, prize wheel, and promotional products at community events.

·    The opportunity to purchase a variety of promotional materials with the logo for re-sale or give away including stickers, buttons, bumper stickers and window clings. Participants can borrow the campaign Be Local BEE mascot costume or Think Local First prize wheel. There is also the opportunity to work with the campaign’s graphic designer, and pay her hourly to customize unique materials using your business name and logo and the Think Local First brand.

·    Support of business participants with updates to their *business marketing kits, the facilitation and design of point-of-purchase materials that identify locally made and grown products, and encouragement to use the logo in individual business ads, newsletters, websites, and other promotional and customer-relations materials. 

* Business Marketing Kit: Is this your first year in this campaign? All of the benefits listed above are for renewing businesses. Brand new participating businesses pay just $25 more to receive a Business Marketing Kit, (campaign participation and kits are free to Sustainable Connections members). The Kit includes: A Window Poster; a Think Local First Window Decal; a Welcome Letter; a “Top Ten Reasons to Think Local First” list; a “Frequently Asked Questions” sheet; a Tip Sheet for making the Campaign a success; the logo to use in your own ads; a set of book mark-shaped and index card-shaped 'thank you cards' for customers - each with a different factoid; a sample newsletter article; and a CD-Rom with monthly marketing materials, each of which features a holiday-inspired creative twist on the logo.