By Kelly Whittet, North Bay.
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It seems to be the constant theme in North Bay...people are tired!
Tired of the high taxes, tired of closing businesses, tired of not having places to shop, tired of not being heard.
I know that the majority of the population looks to City Council to change all that, but, unfortunately, City Council doesn’t have the magic wand we all wish they had. Changing the dynamic of North Bay begins with the people of North Bay.
In order to grow North Bay, it needs to attract big business. Big business will only come if they see we support local business...crazy but true. When big businesses come, along with that come people and people are what causes a city to grow. So what do the Battalion have to do with all of this? Let me break it down.
The Battalion is a local OHL hockey team (in case some people don’t know) who play at least one home game a week from September till about March. Unfortunately, the Battalion have seen a huge decline in attendance since its inception in 2013. Some say it’s the cost of tickets, other say it’s the performance on the ice. Whatever the reason, it’s time to get back out there and support the Troops, not only for the players but for the city as well.
Let’s begin by increasing attendance at Battalion games. How do they do that? Here are some proven strategies that have worked for other teams:
Choosing a local school each week and giving each student a free ticket that must be accompanied by a paying adult.
Choosing a local school each week and providing discounted tickets for the students to sell. The school then gets a percentage of tickets sold to help pay for things like library books, school computers, sports uniforms, music programs (you get the point).
Having incentives at games: four random draws of $500 each game for ticket holders, shootouts to win vehicles, trips etc…, “Win a Battalion Player” for a day to do things like shovel the driveway, cook a meal, organize the garage etc…
What’s the outcome for this? You increase attendance at games, bigger crowds boost the morale of players which in turn helps win games, and you attract a whole new demographic of hockey fans with kids who’ve never been to a hockey game.
So how does this help local business?
On tickets, local restaurants can provide things such as one free appetizer with each Battalion ticket brought in
Local businesses can offer things like 25 per cent purchases in their store with each Battalion ticket brought in
Local attractions can offer things like 2 for 1 deals with each Battalion ticket brought in
What’s the outcome for this: Using a Battalion ticket as an incentive to shop locally, eat locally promotes growth in that sector by offering incentives to Battalion fans.
So how does this attract big business? When large corporations like Costco, Ikea, outlet stores etc… .see growth in a city that spends money locally, they want in on the action. If a community can sustain local economic growth it provides endless possibilities for big business. Many will argue that having a big business will detract from a smaller business but that’s not the case. Big business employs more people which mean people have money to go out to eat at local restaurants and more money to shop at local stores. It also means more people moving to the area to fill these jobs.
Think of it as a ripple effect, start with a pond and grow an ocean.
