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Sweet marketing music

Tanner Montague came to town from Seattle having never owned his own music venue before. He’s a musician himself, so he has a pretty good sense of good music, but he also wandered into a crowded music scene filled with concert venues large and small.But the owner of Green Room thinks he found a void in the market. It’s lacking, he says, in places serving between 200 and 500 people, a sweet spot he thinks could be a draw for both some national acts not quite big enough yet for arena gigs and local acts looking for a launching pad.“I felt that size would do well in the city to offer more options,” he says. “My goal was to A, bring another option for national acts but then, B, have a great spot for local bands to start.”Right or wrong, something seems to be working, he says. He’s got a full calendar of concerts booked out several months. How did he, as a newcomer to the market in an industry filled with competition, get the attention of the local concertgoer?

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by Andrew Tellijohn
May 2006

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Economic development


State hires 35 ‘businessservices specialists’to help companies grow

Some 35 business services specialists are now working at Workforce Development Centers throughout the state. They are filling new positions created last year at DEED, the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development.

Their charge is to talk with business owners of all-size companies in their area, and connect them with whatever resources they need, “kind of like consultants would do,” says Erik Aamoth, director of the program.

The service is free, or as Aamoth puts it, pre-paid. “We thought it was the best use of tax dollars. Businesses have already paid through their tax dollars.”

Small companies, especially, are using the specialists for help with their employees. “We find that smaller businesses aren’t aware that they could increase the productivity of their workforce through training,” Aamoth says. The specialists “will connect those people with the institutions of learning.”

The department itself has loads of resources, from tax experts, economic development experts, labor market data, trade office help for exporters and importers, etc. Aamoth says the new positions were filled with redeployed staff, not new hires.

“We’re going to be the single point of contact and provide the owners with those options,” he says about the business services specialists.  “We’re going to have them visit and contact as many employers as they can.”

To find one near you, visit  www.deed.state.mn.us, click on “business services” and then “business services specialists.”

Aamoth says he recognizes a need for change. “This is a different approach” from other states. “I know that business’s experience with government isn’t always favorable all the time. This is letting the business assess what they need.”

Erik Aamoth, Office of Business Services, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development: 651.296.9137; erik.aamoth@state.mn.uswww.deed.state.mn.us