St. Lucie EDC wins three top statewide marketing awards
The Economic Council of St Lucie County was honored with three top marketing awards from the Florida Economic Development Council.
The Florida Economic Development Council (FEDC) presented its Best in Show 2022 Innovation in Marketing award and two other top awards to the Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County (EDC) at the organization’s annual meeting in St. Petersburg on May 17.
The Best in Show award recognizes excellence in creative, effective and meaningful marketing and is named in memory of Melissa Medley, who developed Florida’s first ever business brand while serving as chief marketing officer for Enterprise Florida. The award-winning entry, “On the Road with Jenn & Jill” created by EDC Director of Business Development Jenn DuBey, is an animated video tour of St. Lucie County’s industrial assets and projects designed to market the county in conjunction with CRE.Converge, a commercial real estate event in Miami in 2021.
“My role at the EDC had changed and I thought creating this video would be an excellent way to educate myself and others about the various projects we are working on in St. Lucie County,” said DuBey. “I started the video with no real idea of how to do it but ended up with something I’m really proud of.” To view the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8u_qi20xOc.
The other two top FEDC innovation in marketing awards recognized the EDC staff’s work during the COVID shutdown in 2020 and its ongoing Work Local St. Lucie campaign to make the county’s large number of commuters aware of jobs available in Port St. Lucie and Fort Pierce.
Judges for the FEDC awards mentioned the innovative partnership between the EDC and the Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Lucie County during the COVID shutdown and its aftermath. Club members were recruited by the EDC to personally visit many small retailers, restaurants and service providers to ensure they were aware of available financial assistance from the federal government. EDC staff also worked with the staff of the Small Business Development Center at Indian River State College to assist with processing aid applications. In addition, EDC staff sent out detailed daily email communications about COVID response programs and related information to the local business community.
“This award is to recognize those EDOs who rose to the occasion and persisted, demonstrating dedication and commitment to the local economy and proved to be a critical resource during crisis and into recovery,” the FEDC noted about the Pivot and Persist award.
The Work Local St. Lucie program includes a section of the EDC’s website, www.youredc.com/worklocal, that lists featured local jobs and links to local employer job boards by industry sector. Regular social media posts, billboards, signage, print and digital advertising, and ongoing partnerships with St. Lucie Public Schools, Indian River State College, CareerSource Research Coast and many other area organizations to address awareness and training to help close skills gaps are all part of the multiyear program.
“The EDC staff is small but mighty, and absolutely dedicated to our mission of promoting economic vitality and enhancing the quality of life in St. Lucie County,” said EDC President Pete Tesch. “We are so honored and humbled that the state’s top economic development association selected our programs and outreach to receive these truly prestigious awards.”
About the Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County
The EDC is a private, not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting economic vitality in St. Lucie County through the attraction, retention and expansion of businesses in the community. The EDC works
in partnership with local governments and the private sector to advance its goals of creating more and better-paying jobs for residents, broadening the tax base and improving St. Lucie County’s economic
quality of life. Contact the EDC at 772.336.6250 or www.youredc.com.
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