By Ryan Lewis
Correspondent
KIMBALL, Tenn. – When city administrators ran out of suggestions for how to market Kimball to new businesses, they turned to local residents for a fresh perspective.
“We’ve sent a package out over the years to companies, businesses and developers, and we get some response, and sometimes we don’t,” Mayor David Jackson said. “We’re trying to improve on promoting Kimball. We were all out of ideas, and that’s the reason we put this marketing committee together.”
Last week, resident Billy Watkins presented the committee’s proposal on advertising the town.
Watkins said the panel wants to make a promotional DVD that will begin by asking the question “Why Kimball?”
“It’ll be about a five- to six-minute DVD showing our business areas and available properties,” he said. “At the end of the DVD, we’re going to ask people, ‘Why not Kimball?'”
Watkins said the city will use Dennis Video Productions, which has done similar marketing work for Marion County, to create the DVD.
Jackson believes some of the new businesses that have come to Kimball in the past several years have done so because of the advertising packets the town has sent out.
“It’s tough right now trying to recruit new business with the economy the way it is,” the mayor said. “I think this would be a big benefit and will probably help us get some more business.”
The marketing committee asked the Kimball Board of Mayor and Aldermen to approve a $5,000 budget for the DVD, which unanimously was approved.
“If we get a new business out of this, we get our money back,” Alderman Jerry Don Case said.
Officials said they hope to begin mailing out the DVD and other recruiting materials in the spring.
Ryan Lewis is based in Marion County. Contact him at ryanlewis34@gmail.com.