How Local Small Businesses Can Market During the Milwaukee 2020 DNC

We all know the Democratic National Convention (DNC) is coming to Milwaukee this summer and the city is buzzing! Regardless of your political affiliation, there’s a lot going on, so many moving pieces, so much to do and so little time to do it! However, I know so many local businesses are wanting to get in front of the 50,000 people coming to town, but just don’t know how to get started.

Welp, I’m not one to sit on the sidelines. I’m more of a do-er. So, I put together a group of women and LGBTQ-owned businesses, of whom I’m proud to call friends, and we decided to take action. In an effort to help local businesses market themselves for the Milwaukee 2020 DNC, we have spearheaded a coalition of creative service agencies in town to be your one-stop-shop when it comes to creating memorable experiences during the DNC this summer.

The Milwaukee 2020 Marketing Collective is a coalition dedicated to helping businesses maximize opportunities and exposure during the convention. We are have partnered with Mueller Communications, Seadog Creative, Swarmm Events, and Bublr Bikes, uniting some of Milwaukee’s brightest strategists and creatives to provide a singular outlet for businesses and organizations to access services such as event management, strategy and public relations, digital marketing, advertising, video, and photography.

We’d love to help you make a big splash at the DNC this summer, but if you’re struggling to come up with a few ideas as to how you might be able to differentiate yourself, allow us. We’ve pulled together a few thought starters for you!

How Local Small Businesses Can Make an Impact During
the Milwaukee 2020 DNC

1. Add your business to the DNC Vendor and Venue portals. These portals just went public at the end of February, but nonetheless, you should definitely make sure you’re added to them. That’s your lowest hanging fruit, but now let’s talk about some more hands-on ideas you can act on!
2. Market local wellness. If you’re a local gym or yoga studio, these 50,000 folks coming to town might be looking for a one-week pass to the studio or gym nearest them. What are you waiting for!? Amp up support staff and launch a few geo-targeted marketing campaigns. If enough wellness facilities hop on this trolley, it’s worthy of some attention from the press. You might even want to launch a video campaign showing a quick tour of your location. The opportunities are endless, but if you want to increase sales for the week, just something to think about. Reports are saying people will be staying all the way from Kohler to Waukegan and from Milwaukee to Madison – so there’s a lot of room for Downward Facing Dogs in southeastern Wisconsin in July.
3. Sponsor Bublr Bike Stations & launch geo-targeted digital ads. Bublr is going to be one of the best ways to actually navigate the city during the DNC. So promoting your brand and getting your logo on bikes and/or bike stations isn’t a bad idea. When you couple that with a strategic geo-targeted campaign, your impact goes through the roof!
4. Join forces with your favorite local counterpart and launch a co-branded event together. Are you a kickass bar? Call up your buddies at your favorite kickass restaurant or food truck and set up a week of featured cocktail and food pairings, bags tournaments, you name it. Create a reason (other than you’re awesome) to draw a crowd. These folks gotta eat, so feed them!
5. Utilize mobility. We know the people joining us this summer are also in need of a quick bite and a cup of Joe. What can you take from your business and create an economically mobile version of it? Can you come to them? This could apply to spa services, food and beverage, shoe-shine services, blow-outs, anything really. How can you create a mobile version of your business and meet your new target audience where they’re at? Now that the juices are flowing, don’t forget to market the crap out of it so they know where and how to find you.

The opportunities truly are endless. So if your brand is looking to get in front of thousands of people all coming to the city for the same event, reach out to us at hello@mke2020marketing.com, we’d love to welcome you to our city and help you have a blast!