GCEDC launching marketing initiative in Japan

Targeted approach to 7E7 suppliers preferred

Grant County will soon be putting its best face forward in Japan.

Last week, the Grant County Economic Development Council announced the launch of a new large-scale marketing initiative to directly approach Japanese companies in an effort to encourage the establishment of new subsidiaries, trade, joint ventures and investment in the county.

GCEDC executive director Terry Brewer told the Columbia Basin Herald last week that the organization was working on marketing the area to aerospace sectors, particularly those involved with Boeing's new jet, the 7E7. He said this is what the GCEDC had in mind.

"We believe a targeted approach is better than a broad-based, shotgun approach and by targeting Japan, we are in fact limiting ourself to 35 percent of the 7E7 program," Brewer said. "Thirty-five percent is better than a shotgun or no approach to 100 percent of it."

Brewer pointed to the Japanese companies that are already doing business in the county, and the trading that is already done with regard to agricultural commodities and exports.

"That's all meaningful to us but minimal in Japan compared to their total food and commodity imports," he said. "There's a lot more room for us to work and grow these exports and a lot more companies to talk about the advantages of being here. We are not talking about something they won't understand. We can build a good case for more success for them."

The efforts proposed by the GCEDC will include a video presentation on Grant County, collateral and display graphics aimed at Japanese audiences. The video presentation will be shown at trade shows as well as on Japanese national television. Print articles featuring the region are planed to broaden the impact of the message.

"It's a must that it be in Japanese, not only their language but their style," Brewer said, adding that Japan has a different culture and things are viewed and perceived differently. "We're hiring a Japanese production company to do this for us, so it will be in their style and of course their language for use in Japan."

Brewer said the video footage can be edited for use in additional versions in English for whatever target the EDC is focusing on, whether it be agriculture, aerospace, tourism, etc. A version in Korean is also desired for exposure in South Korea.

"For some time we've wanted to produce our own Grant County video to put in the hands of Gunpo City, and they will do the marketing for us once we have the video for them," he said.

Brewer said that the initiative will be very expensive compared to anything the GCEDC has done in the past. The contract is not negotiated yet, so the costs are only preliminary estimates until the details are worked out.

"The EDC has committed $50,000 towards the effort in 2004 and is talking to other stake holders and interested parties to make this happen," he said.

The GCEDC has already been approached by the Grant County Tourism Commission to support the production of the video presentation, according to a press release.

"We are confident that this approach will help fulfill the EDC"s mission and further increase economic opportunities throughout the county," said Brian Kuest, GCEDC president and a commissioner for the Port of Quincy, in the press release. "The EDC's project is proactive, targeted and a determined effort which will get us results in terms of exposure, investments and, ultimately, jobs."