web01.fireside.fm Fri, 13 Mar 2026 08:55:07 -0500 Fireside (https://fireside.fm) Econ Dev Show Podcast - Economic Development - Episodes Tagged with “In House Agency” https://podcast.econdevshow.com/tags/in-house%20agency Mon, 19 May 2025 00:15:00 -0500 Dane Carlson explores the strategies, ideas, and insights that are driving economic development forward into the future. You'll hear new insights from passionate ED's about their successes and struggles, and you'll learn from attraction and retention experts about how to apply actionable strategies inside your EDO. We'll help take your organization, your community, and your career to the next level. en-us episodic Actionable economic development strategies and stories Dane Carlson Dane Carlson explores the strategies, ideas, and insights that are driving economic development forward into the future. You'll hear new insights from passionate ED's about their successes and struggles, and you'll learn from attraction and retention experts about how to apply actionable strategies inside your EDO. We'll help take your organization, your community, and your career to the next level. no econ dev, economic development, ed Dane Carlson show@econdevshow.com 174: Building a Regional Brand: Kansas City's Marketing Success with Jonathan Knecht https://podcast.econdevshow.com/174 e88ae6dd-54b1-4fab-96d0-738366ca6f90 Mon, 19 May 2025 00:15:00 -0500 Dane Carlson 174 Building a Regional Brand: Kansas City's Marketing Success with Jonathan Knecht full Dane Carlson Jonathan Knecht shares insights on marketing Kansas City to businesses and talent through collaborative regional branding strategies and industry-specific initiatives that highlight the region's unique advantages. 31:24 no In this episode of the Econ Dev Show, host Dane Carlson interviews Jonathan Knecht, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Creative Services at the Kansas City Area Development Council, who reveals how his team markets the greater Kansas City region to attract business investment and talent. Jonathan, a self-described "refugee from advertising" who's been with the organization for 21 years, discusses their collaborative approach to regional branding centered around the iconic KC Heart logo, their focus on key industry sectors like digital health and sports architecture, and how Kansas City's central location, affordability, and quality of life create competitive advantages. He also shares insights on building consensus across state lines and how their in-house creative agency supports economic development efforts throughout the region. Like this show? Please leave us a review here (https://econdevshow.com/rate-this-podcast/) — even one sentence helps! Actionable Takeaways for Economic Developers Consider adopting organically popular community symbols rather than creating new brands from scratch to ensure authenticity and community buy-in. Build collaborative relationships across political boundaries to present a unified front when pursuing major projects and investments. Leverage your region's unique industry clusters (like KC's sports architecture) to create compelling specialization stories for targeted marketing. Create an in-house creative agency to support marketing needs across your region, especially for partners with limited budgets. Develop talent attraction initiatives like KC's "Team KC" that connect employers and equip them with shared marketing resources. Create specialized content for different audiences, such as belonging guides for various cultural communities, to support talent recruitment efforts. Focus on tracking meaningful metrics tied to actual business attraction and expansion results rather than just marketing activities. Identify and promote quality of life advantages such as central location, cost of living, and cultural amenities as competitive differentiators. Establish sector-specific initiatives (like KC's Digital Health and Animal Health Corridor) to target industries where your region has competitive advantages. End counter-productive incentive competitions between neighboring communities to better focus resources on attracting new businesses to the region. Special Guest: Jonathan Knecht. econdev, economic development, eco devo, regional branding, economic development marketing, KC Heart logo, collaborative development, talent attraction, place marketing, industry targeting, cross-border collaboration, in-house agency, authentic storytelling In this episode of the Econ Dev Show, host Dane Carlson interviews Jonathan Knecht, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Creative Services at the Kansas City Area Development Council, who reveals how his team markets the greater Kansas City region to attract business investment and talent. Jonathan, a self-described "refugee from advertising" who's been with the organization for 21 years, discusses their collaborative approach to regional branding centered around the iconic KC Heart logo, their focus on key industry sectors like digital health and sports architecture, and how Kansas City's central location, affordability, and quality of life create competitive advantages. He also shares insights on building consensus across state lines and how their in-house creative agency supports economic development efforts throughout the region.

Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps!

Actionable Takeaways for Economic Developers

  1. Consider adopting organically popular community symbols rather than creating new brands from scratch to ensure authenticity and community buy-in.
  2. Build collaborative relationships across political boundaries to present a unified front when pursuing major projects and investments.
  3. Leverage your region's unique industry clusters (like KC's sports architecture) to create compelling specialization stories for targeted marketing.
  4. Create an in-house creative agency to support marketing needs across your region, especially for partners with limited budgets.
  5. Develop talent attraction initiatives like KC's "Team KC" that connect employers and equip them with shared marketing resources.
  6. Create specialized content for different audiences, such as belonging guides for various cultural communities, to support talent recruitment efforts.
  7. Focus on tracking meaningful metrics tied to actual business attraction and expansion results rather than just marketing activities.
  8. Identify and promote quality of life advantages such as central location, cost of living, and cultural amenities as competitive differentiators.
  9. Establish sector-specific initiatives (like KC's Digital Health and Animal Health Corridor) to target industries where your region has competitive advantages.
  10. End counter-productive incentive competitions between neighboring communities to better focus resources on attracting new businesses to the region.

Special Guest: Jonathan Knecht.

Sponsored By:

Links:

]]> In this episode of the Econ Dev Show, host Dane Carlson interviews Jonathan Knecht, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Creative Services at the Kansas City Area Development Council, who reveals how his team markets the greater Kansas City region to attract business investment and talent. Jonathan, a self-described "refugee from advertising" who's been with the organization for 21 years, discusses their collaborative approach to regional branding centered around the iconic KC Heart logo, their focus on key industry sectors like digital health and sports architecture, and how Kansas City's central location, affordability, and quality of life create competitive advantages. He also shares insights on building consensus across state lines and how their in-house creative agency supports economic development efforts throughout the region.

Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps!

Actionable Takeaways for Economic Developers

  1. Consider adopting organically popular community symbols rather than creating new brands from scratch to ensure authenticity and community buy-in.
  2. Build collaborative relationships across political boundaries to present a unified front when pursuing major projects and investments.
  3. Leverage your region's unique industry clusters (like KC's sports architecture) to create compelling specialization stories for targeted marketing.
  4. Create an in-house creative agency to support marketing needs across your region, especially for partners with limited budgets.
  5. Develop talent attraction initiatives like KC's "Team KC" that connect employers and equip them with shared marketing resources.
  6. Create specialized content for different audiences, such as belonging guides for various cultural communities, to support talent recruitment efforts.
  7. Focus on tracking meaningful metrics tied to actual business attraction and expansion results rather than just marketing activities.
  8. Identify and promote quality of life advantages such as central location, cost of living, and cultural amenities as competitive differentiators.
  9. Establish sector-specific initiatives (like KC's Digital Health and Animal Health Corridor) to target industries where your region has competitive advantages.
  10. End counter-productive incentive competitions between neighboring communities to better focus resources on attracting new businesses to the region.

Special Guest: Jonathan Knecht.

Sponsored By:

Links:

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