Four Important Events
We are working very hard to bring traffic driving events to Freeport. The purpose of FMA driven events is to provide a great consumer experience, as well as marketing opportunities for our members. We can't tell you enough how valuable and important it is for you to get involved in the events we produce for you!
Here are four events coming right along, and bringing lots of opportunity with them...
Style Weekend featuring the best Freeport offers for Fashion, Home & Life, March 16,17,18
Resident Appreciation Days, say thanks and welcome to thousands of year-round customers, April 1 thru 30
AAA Member Appreciation Weekend, open to more than 800,000 AAA members in Maine, NH & VT, April 26,27,28
"SoccHop" Freeport Event reception for more than 15,000 Youth Soccer Championship athletes, fans and familty, May 29 thru July 3
As an FMA merchant, there's a place for you in any and all of these events. There's a chance to be creative and showcase your business, sponsor an event, offer a prize, and more. So jump in! Don't wait for us to contact you - be proactive and contact us. We're doing all the right stuff to reach thousands upon thousands of new Freeport visitors. You can have your name in front of them as easy as anyone else. Well...?
Off to a Good Start
Our first delivery of Shop Talk online went very well. Comments were overwhelmingly positive and we've had a couple of good suggestions which we will be working into the newsletter as we go along.
Most everyone received the newsletter successfully, with only a small percent being bounced by filters or some digital error. A few of you accidentally deleted it. Ah, well.
We will keep tuning and adding as we go along. If you missed a newsletter, you can find it by going to the Members Area of FreeportUSA.com, where you will find archive copies.
We also encourage you to share the newsletter with your DM's, home office, staff and business neighbors. Everyone can and should receive their own copy of the newsletter. Just have everyone go to the subscription form on the same Members Area page at FreeportUSA.com. There is no limit on the number of subscriptions. (You can also send us any email addresses you would like to add to the list.)
Keep sending new ideas and articles to be included in the newsletter, too!
And White Cedar Inn, Too! Last month we mentioned that 2007 is a big anniversary year - 95 for L.L.Beans, 30 for FMA, and 25 for Jameson Tavern. Monica and Rock reminded me that this is also the 20th year for the White Cedar Inn! Congratulations to White Cedar and appreciation to Monica and Rock for continuing a tradition of quality that has been part of the Freeport experience for 20 years! Anyone else got special anniversaries or other milestones to share?
Copy Services Available As you are probably aware, the Freeport UPS store has sadly closed. For those of you that found their copy services very handy, we want you to know that both Color and B&W copying is available at the FMA office. We offer the same low copy rates as the nearest office supply stores in Falmouth and Brunswick, plus we save you the long trip out of town. Call the FMA office for details. 865-1212.
Can we all come to your place? We are putting together a schedule of networking and social B to B gatherings. We're planning a once a month, after 6:00, informal kind of thing, just to meet and share info and ideas. Maybe a little snack and a little sip.
We're not sure what size group it might be, except that we hope it grows larger over time. If you have the space to host or sponsor such a gathering of local business folk, it would be a great opportunity to showcase your business. Give us a call to discuss the possibilities. 865-1212
Hampton Promotions
Joshua Cushing joined the Hampton Inn Freeport as General Manager in October of 2006. Josh has had management experience with several major hotel brands, most recently Hilton Garden Inn.Adrienne Patenaude, a 4 year veteran of the Freeport Hampton has had a recent promotion to Front Office Manager.
Veteran management staffer Angie D’Amours continues as Director of Sales, affording the property 18 years of hospitality experience. Other staff members moving up the ladder include Andrew Trueworthy and Ann MacLeod.
Where did the Factory Store go?
In case customers ask you, and they surely will, the L.L.Bean Factory Store is now open at it's new temporary location on Route One South, in the former SuperShoes location. The move will allow for exciting new changes in the Freeport landscape. Stay tuned!
Tim Samples Freeport
On Saturday, March 17, at the Freeport Performing Arts Center, Maine humorist Tim Sample will be appearing with The Augusta Symphony Ochestra, Maine Youth Orchestra, narrating the classic Peter and the Wolf, or as it is in Tim's world "Our Boy Hubert and the Wolf".
This should be great fun for all. For more information go to www.FreeportPAC.org
And the Winner is...
Oscar, Schmoscar, we're talkin' chowder here!
.jpg) Freeport's Morrison's Maine Chowder won the People's Choice Award for best Chowder at the 14th Annual Great Chili and Chowder Challenge in Portland. 
The savory event benefits the People's Regional Opportunity Program (PROP) In related news, Pedro O'Hara's (Coming soon to Freeport) won the matching award for best Chili. Congrats to both!
There's still time...
The 2nd Annual Boston Globe Travel Show is coming right up and there is still time to get involved!
This year's event is on March 23,24 and 25 at the Seaport World Trade center in Boston.
It would be great to have a collective Freeport group for attendence this year. Everyone would gain great exposure with minimal investment by sharing staff and expense for participation. Please contact Dick at the FMA office to discuss the details.
In a Nutshell
Here's something to look forward to - especially for those who value comfort as a part of their lifestyle.
Acorn products has chosen Freeport as the site of their first retail location. Acorn is a Maine based manufacturer of slipperwear,sheepskin, sox and accessories of unique character and uncompromising quality.
Look for the store to open this spring across form the Dooney & Bourke store in the Denney Block Courtyard.
The company refers to its product line as "Comfort on Earth". Customers around the world agree. Soon customers in Freeport will be able to enjoy the great Acorn product lines, including Classic Comfort, After Active, Studio Comfort and Spa Comfort.
For more information visit their website at Acorn.com
|
Executive Directors Messsage
It's the busy season!
I remember in mid December someone saying "Well, after the Holidays you'll get a chance to slow down, right?" Not so much. We don't have a "slow" button at the FMA office. At least not one that I can find, and not that we'd push it anyway.
We do have an "easy" button courtesy of the office supply place, that I push with great delight and surprising frequency. It cheerfully says, "That was easy!" It's not that there's often anything that's really that easy. (Sometimes I push it just for the irony.) I think I mostly push it as an ode to the value of a task completed with good results - easy or not. If I knew how, I'd reprogram the thing to say, "That wasn't easy, but it was worth it!"
That whole "it was worth it." thing has a lot to do with how busy things are at FMA. Last year we had outstanding growth in FMA membership as more and more businesses realized the tremendous value of FMA services. This year we are on track for even more success and offer yet additional value.
Expanding partnerships have generated more marketing reach, more events and more opportunity for our members than ever before. New FMA initiatives offer our members new and better services. All of which makes us busier than ever.
Now, being busy isn't always the same as being productive. So, how do you know if it's all working? We have lots of measurable results that say we are being both productive and successful the largest part of time, and that we are currently getting a good return on our investment. There is always room for improvement. Part of our plans going forward include finding additional ways to measure ROI and identify new opportunities for the future.
All of which will, no doubt, make us busier than ever, and then... Hmmmm. Now where do you suppose that button is?
The door is always open.
Dick
 Now that's some Style... WGME TV news personality Kim Block will once again host the Fashion Show portion of Freeport Style Weekend, March 16,17,18 at the Hilton Garden Inn. (Fashion Show is on the 17th) Also on hand that day will be Miss Maine, Karissa Staples and a host of other fashion and pageant "celebs."
Cold River Vodka has joined Hilton Garden Inn as an event sponsor. You can enjoy a Vodka tasting on both Friday evening and Saturday afternoon. Tickets for the Fashion Show are $18 and available now at the FMA office or any participating business. Check out the full details of this fashion, home and lifestyle event here. Want to see if your business can be involved? Call the office at 865-1212.
More Stats 'n Stuff...
Here are some interesting statistics from FreeportUSA.com:
Monthly visits for 2006 averaged over 189,000. This is up from an average of 35,000 in 2005. This represents an increase in traffic of more than 500%.
29% of visitor durations are between 4 and 8 minutes. 13% of visitor durations are between 8 and 15 minutes.
Overall site visits Jan 07 are up 15% vs. Jan 06
Busiest web traffic months are June, July, October, and November.
Tuesday is the busiest traffic day. Second and third busiest traffic days alternate between Thursday and Friday, with heaviest traffic 11am to 4pm, 2nd heaviest time is 8 to 9 pm.
In 2006 the Coupons download page was accessed 35,595 times.
The Special Savings page was viewed 21,204 times.
The Packages page was visited 944 times in January of 2007 (A 29% increase over 2006).
Not bad, huh? Read the next article for more Web related FMA news.
Freeport eClub launches in March
At the Governors Conference on Tourism in mid-February, a recurring theme was the need to be up to speed and strongly focused on electronic and Internet marketing. (Next newsletter will feature a recap of the Tourism Conference)
Featured speaker Peter Yesawich spoke of the marketing "Revolution" with accent on the "e" for electronic. Internet marketing expert Susan Sweeney focused in detail on the "Third generation of Internet Marketing" a phase of promotion with tools less than 18 months old.
I'm pretty sure they were reading from the FMA Marketing Plan. Well, probably not, but they could have been. We have been strongly focused on Internet marketing over the last year (with great results) and we are about to release new "Third Generation" electronic marketing products for Freeport this year.
One of them is the new Freeport eClub. I'm not going to say much about it here, just go to the web page and check it out. (Yes, you can join too.)
When Pigs Fly Opens March 1st
FMA is proud to announce a delicious new member to town! When Pigs Fly features Hand-crafted, Artisan Specialty breads that are made exclusively for their own company stores and farmers markets. They are all made in very small batches using the finest ingredients and will change with the seasons.
Sampling is encouraged at their 21 Main Street, Freeport location. (formerly the UPS store) Stop by to welcome them. They'll be happy to break bread with you!
Don'cha know?
It's membership renewal time and we are currently working along on the listings for the new FMA Visitor Guide and Map. The Visitor Guide is one of our most important marketing vehicles and we will soon be sending it into production.
With so many beneficial things going on, we must be sure we have all the details of everyone's membership finalized and complete before it goes to press. (Renewal form signature, any copy changes, payment, text and contact info as you want it to appear on the map, etc.)
So if you haven't already done so, please make sure all that stuff gets in to us quickly. As dozens of businesses can tell you, it's very important to be "on the map."
As that delightful lady who does the Marden's commercials might say, "Git up off of your "thinka" now. Ya don't wanna miss this one, don'cha know!"
Goodbye, So Long, Auf Wiedersehen, Farewell...
As I was talking recently with Christina Dargis of Lenox, (and our FMA Ex-officio, Immediate past President), about all the Freeport anniversaries this year, she mention that The Dansk/Lenox location opened in 1982, making 2007 the 25th anniversary. "As the outlet store that really started it all...I feel it's worth a mention," she said.
Probably so. And now we have. But what is more worth a mention, is that after several years of very successful managment at Dansk, now Lenox, and strong leadership in the business community through FMA, Christina is leaving us all. She will be taking an advancement position with Lenox in Florida.
Christina was a guiding force for the Freeport Merchants Association during several challenging periods. She invested herself heavily in the betterment of Freeport as a marketplace and a community.
That investment saw excellent return for her company and for the overall FMA membership as well. Congratulations, Christina and thank you!
The good news is that there are phones and internet connections that work between Maine and Florida, so even though she may not actually live here any more, we will be keeping as much of that "Dargis Dynamic" in Freeport as we can.
Switch It Up!
The Maine Switch is a fresh, visually unique, new lifestyle publication that promises to be both contemporary and catchy. The Maine Switch is the bold new replacement of our old pal, the Community Leader. Much of the CL staff remains, but with new opportunities to showcase their considerable talents in this crisp new production.
We are excited to announce that the introduction and first issue release of the Maine Switch will be at our Freeport Style Weekend Event on March 15,16,17. First issue copies and staff from the publication will be available at both Friday evening and Saturday events.
Switch Sections will include Fashion, Home Improvement, Technology, Books & Music, Arts,Business, Fitness/Recreation, Food, Health and Family. Articles will be presented in a conversational and engaging tone. Switch will offer great features for the life-loving 25-45 year old.
Come Flip the Switch with us for this great new publication. It'll be a turn-on! (Sorry. I couldn't help that.)
FCP and FMA...
So what makes Freeport different than any place else you can go shopping? There are a hundred or more answers to that question. One of them is Freeport Community Players.
This talented and dedicated group has been the heart of Freeport Theatre for more than 16 years. FMA is pleased to work in an active partnership with FCP to showcase the theatre company's work. FCP is one of the many cultural and artistic gems that are a part of the Freeport Experience.
Beginning with the March 2007 FCP production of Sisters Rosensweig, FCP and FMA invite all FMA members to a "pre-run" show preview. 
FCP will have flyers, posters and information ready for you to take back to your guests, patrons, and customers after the preview performance. Even though this is a full production, there is no cost for you to attend. (Well, you could certainly make a donation if you like - they'll take the money) The real idea is that you will enjoy the show and share the experience with those you greet who are looking for a fun thing to do!
The special preview date for Sisters Rosensweig is March 22 at 7:30 at Freeport Performing Arts Center.For additional info go to www.fcponline.org or contact Elizabeth Guffy at info@ddgweb.com
Two more things... Volunteers are needed for FCP - come on, you know it'll be fun. (same contact info)
Theatre tickets make a great stay-over package component!
|
