GREENFIELD — The city of Greenfield has a new contract for marketing services aimed at attracting young people to the community — this time with a local partner, Hancock Health.
The contract was finalized on Monday, February 3. It replaces a similar agreement made a year ago with an Indianapolis firm.
Greenfield City Council member Dan Riley, who has taken the lead on the project, said the goal is to create a positive image of Greenfield through public relations that will attract young people working in Indianapolis to make the city their home.
The agreement includes the creation of a strategic communications plan at a one-time rate of $3,000 and initial set up of social media channels for the city at a one-time rate of $1,300. The city will also receive a monthly invoice for hours worked, including social media and communications management, public relations, website management, custom art design and other marketing services.
Work will be completed by Hancock Health’s marketing department, headed by director of marketing Jenn Cox.
NineStar Connect and Greenfield-Central schools are also partnering with the city on the project. NineStar will pay an upfront sum of $4,000, and Greenfield-Central will contribute $2,000. Hancock Health will also contribute $4,000. Each entity will be featured on the Greenfield Community website as well as on other marketing materials.
Riley said the centerpiece of the campaign is the city’s new website, greenfield-community.com. The website features information on local businesses, attractions, neighborhoods and schools.
“We have to be active on social media to get people to look at that website,” Riley said.
The new partnership comes after the end of a marketing agreement with Indianapolis-based marketing firm Matchbook Creative the city established in February 2019. The city was slated to pay $28,533 in website maintenance costs over two years and between $76,266 and $81,066 for two years of social media management. The city, however, chose not to continue the contract.
If the city is billed for the maximum permissible cost under its agreement with Hancock Health, it will pay $42,100 during the first year.
Riley said the city was not displeased with the work offered by Matchbook Creative, which built the greenfield-community.com website.
“Most of what you’re seeing on our website and Facebook page is the result of their work,” Riley said.
The city decided to move forward with Hancock Health instead for a variety of business reasons, Riley said. He declined to say more about what those were.
Riley said marketing to young people who work in Indianapolis will put Greenfield in direct competition with a number of other cities in the metropolitan area, including Carmel, Fishers, Avon and Brownsburg.
“We feel like we are poised geographically and amenity-wise to compete with those,” Riley said.
Greenfield offers proximity to Indianapolis with a relatively easy commute as well as good schools, parks and a growing downtown district, Riley said. He expects those factors to be more appealing to young people than retail offerings in the age of online shopping.
Greenfield will reevaluate its agreement with Hancock Health after the first year. Riley said the city will look at Google analytics and other measures of online traffic and hopes to receive a boost in attention from both inside and outside Hancock County.
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The city of Greenfield agreed to pay Hancock Health up to $3,166.67 every month, based on hourly rates for various marketing services. Here’s how much the city will be charged for each type of work.
Strategy/project management/PR: $95 per hour
Project management/social media management: $80 per hour
Social media implementation: $40 per hour
Website management/search engine optimization/keyword research: $90 per hour
Graphic design: $70 per hour
Source: City contract with Hancock Health
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