The Monmouth business survey suggests that many business owners do not have somewhere to turn when they have problems with their business. The City can partner with the Chamber of Commerce and the Business Council to provide formal or informal workshop events covering a range of topics that could be useful to downtown businesses, including:
Online sales and marketing
Identifying customer markets
Business budgeting
Creating pro formas for improvements or new capital acquisitions
Design or renovation assistance for façade/interior improvements
Community Example: For an example of the types of technical assistance provided, see Mount Vernon, Iowa.
The City of Monmouth and downtown businesses should jointly establish an online presence that provides news about the downtown and promotes downtown business. The City and small businesses can take advantage of relatively free or inexpensive social media technologies such as Twitter, Facebook and blogging to promote businesses through cross-promotion or co-marketing. Cross-promotion can increase customer markets and enhance the credibility of small businesses – especially those that are just starting out (Fishman, 2012).
The City should work collaboratively with Monmouth College to create opportunities for students and faculty in the downtown area. Monmouth College students represent a pool of applicants for employment, internships, volunteering and shopping in the downtown. One way to accomplish this would be a more formal mechanism – such as a Town and Gown committee – to promote collaboration and dialogue among faculty, staff and business owners. Some of the topics to be addressed through this collaboration might include:
A discussion of the types of retailers and service businesses that would be attractive to students
Ways to make the downtown more accessible to student shoppers through pedestrian amenities
Locating services from Monmouth College within the downtown (as opposed to on the campus)
Collaboration between the business community and faculty members, such as through joint art programs
Volunteer opportunities for students in the downtown