GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The Michigan Economic Development Corporation is working on three advertising campaigns to promote Michigan’s beauty and potential as a new home.
“It’s impossible to discuss disruption or innovation without mentioning Michigan,” MEDC CEO Quentin Messer, Jr. said in a release. “We have a great story and must boldly tell it as Michiganders. So, to all risk-takers, game-changers, trailblazers and believers — we welcome you to build a life, career, business and future that is uniquely your own and about which you can be proud right here in the great state of Michigan.”
In March, the reimagined “Pure Opportunity” business marketing campaign kicked off, working to bring in new businesses. It will include a special focus on advanced technology and renewable energy.
Michelle Grinnell, the MEDC Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications, told News 8 that the organization is promoting the state by leaning into Michigan’s strengths.
“We have a world-class workforce, whether its our skilled trades, our engineers, we’re a state of innovation and entrepreneurship,” Grinnell said. “We make things, and we make things better here in Michigan. We’re a state with a really great quality of life and an affordable, high quality of life. So those are all things that we want to lean into while also addressing some of the old perceptions people may have of Michigan.”
That’s where the focus on new tech and green energy opportunities come in.
“Michigan is a growing high-tech hub,” Grinnell said. “Newsweek just named Detroit the next Silicon Valley. We are a place where we can take our tech and combine that with our natural resources; where clean tech and green energy can really be strong.”
Advertisements for the “Pure Opportunity” campaign will be hyper-focused on specific media outlets for young professionals, including Forbes magazine. However, some digital and commercial television advertisements will pop up later this year.
The second campaign is called “Keep it Fresh” and will work alongside the state’s “Pure Michigan” tourism campaign to attract travelers to check out Michigan’s beautiful sights and sounds.
“We’re bringing in some new voices and new perspectives,” Grinnell told News 8. “We’re really excited to have (Detroit poet) Jessica Care Moore as a new voice in the campaign. And the idea is that Michigan is a place that welcomes all and that is true whether we are talking travel and business or for talent and workforce.”
She continued: “Michigan is a place where people can come and get that fresh perspective and a new perspective, whether that is from our natural beauty but also our great cultural institutions, cities like Grand Rapids, Detroit, even up in Marquette.”
The “Keep it Fresh” campaign will be shared nationwide starting this summer, with ads running on Discovery, Food Network, HGTV and Magnolia Network, along with regional commercials across the Midwest.
The third campaign will work with the MEDC’s Talent Action Teams that were launched last year. The campaign will work to draw more skilled employees to the state.
The TAT has been working with electric vehicle and mobility designers and semiconductor companies to build a national network for attracting talent. Last month, the MEDC and TAT announced a new scholarship program working with Michigan universities and students to provide scholarship help in exchange for staying in state for at least 12 months after graduation.
More information on that campaign is expected to disclosed later this year.