Marketing for Organizations Working in the Public Sector

Most managers in the public sector understand that they have customers, but the service they provide is the only option available in their geographic area. This means their customer base has no other choice but to do business with them.

If you don't have any competitors, then marketing is unnecessary–right? Wrong. The role of marketing must move beyond selling and demonstrate an understanding of the public's needs.

Marketing is not the same as advertising, sales, or communications. It is centered around customer service. A well thought out marketing strategy helps you address complaints and deliver better value to your customers.

“Marketing turns out to be the best planning platform for a public agency that wants to meet citizen needs and deliver real value.”

Kotler and Lee

Marketing for the Utilities Industry

Electricity is seen as a commodity because customers have very few choices for their service provider. Because of this, it doesn't make sense for utility companies to sell electricity. They need to promote awareness by focusing on topics like safety, community, and energy conservation.

Commited to the Community We Serve - PVREA — Poudre Valley REA (Committed to the Community Campaign)

Poudre Valley REA is an electric cooperative located in Fort Collins, Colorado. They are a Touchstone Energy Partner. Touchstone is a national utility network that provides their member utilities with branding guidelines, ad slicks, and stock photography for marketing purposes.

PVREA was worried about relying to heavily on this clip art. They didn't want to lose their local identity and look like every other Touchstone Energy Partner across the country.

We helped PVREA develop a marketing campaign following national guidelines. But, instead of using clip art, custom photography and artwork was created. Poudre Valley REA is more than ad slicks and stock photography, they have a local story to tell. And it is best told by their employees and the community.

Local Government Marketing

Marketing for local governments is about building trust and creating goodwill. Marketing provides the tools to improve transparency, boost accountability in operations, and increase citizen involvement.

Sara Turner - Studio Vino (Campaign for City of Loveland Downtown Development Authority)

The mission of the Downtown District in Loveland, Colorado is “To create a vibrant Downtown that provides a safe, dynamic environment to gather, live, educate, shop, work and play.” Spreading their message to downtown residents and business owners is paramount to the success of their initiative. Even though they are not selling a product or service, they are most definitely using marketing to achieve their goals.

Friendly faces of local business owners sharing why they support the Downtown Development Authority is a simple but effective message.

If you are interested in learning more about our approach to the items discussed in this article, call (970) 744-3611 or send us an email so we can talk about what that would look like.