Letter from the Publisher…

A Valuable Asset
In times of uncertainty, and with cities all facing the current economic downturn, it is especially important for cities, like businesses, to stay competitive, and to shift their attention toward a marketing campaign.
I cannot stress enough the importance of marketing. Let’s take Eve Doster Knepp, the city’s Events Coordinator, who is a valuable asset to our city. She has demonstrated her expertise by interacting with WXYZ Channel 7 to promote last summer’s Hamtramck Labor Day Festival and was largely responsible for the incredible success of that event. She is very gifted, and has shown her capability by working feverishly to make the city look good.
Without an Events Coordinator, how would the city function? Who would coordinate something like the Labor Day Festival? We have tried the volunteer system, and that was a complete failure. Hamtramck’s Events Coordinator acts as a liaison between our local government and the area’s entertainment industry, and that, my friends, results in money.
When speaking with Eve, you can sense her energy and love for our city. To be an Events Coordinator takes a good deal of time, and moreover you have to be both comprehensive and meticulous when putting events together. Eve Knepp has proven her ability to coordinate events effectively.
I also commend the City Manager, Bill Cooper, along with Mayor Karen Majewski, for recommending that the city preserve the position of the Events Coordinator. What will generate success for Hamtramck is our ability to create an image of safety, better schools, and, most importantly, having a clean city. When events like the celebration of Paczki Day (this year it takes place on Feb.16) fast approaching, thousands of visitors from all over metro Detroit will visit the city, and they will leave with an impression — good or bad.
They will determine if the city seemed safe, or looked presentable. They will talk about it, tell their friends, and then — if they had a positive experience — perhaps visit the city again, or maybe even consider purchasing a home and living here.
That’s the power of marketing.
The key is to get the people to visit our city, and then to show hospitality; for example, cops walking around, or coordinating traffic, on Paczki Day.
Let’s take a look at General Motors: they acknowledge part of their failure in the automobile industry was the result of cutting back on marketing and advertising to save money, while Toyota pounded away relentlessly, eventually capturing a large portion of the auto sales market.
I even hear on the radio stations, and read in the newspapers, about cities competing for students to join their public schools, advertising why they have a better system than their competitors.
In summary, budgeting money for positions (such as that of an Events Coordinator) was very wise of the city, and, in my opinion, even more of these marketing-type positions need to be created to strengthen Hamtramck’s position in the marketplace, and thereby secure the city’s financial future.