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FloridaWest CEO Scott Luth provided an update on Tuesday on The Bluffs project, an advanced manufacturing park near Cantonment.
Joe Baucum/jbaucum@pnj.com

FloridaWest Economic Development Alliance unveiled a new resource on Tuesday for marketing The Bluffs project that could push the organization closer to recruiting new companies to the advanced manufacturing park near Cantonment.

The organization premiered a new marketing video for The Bluffs during a virtual tour of the site at the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority Central Water Reclamation Facility. The Bluffs, an area consisting of four sites along a five-mile corridor north of Nine Mile Road, is among FloridaWest’s main priorities for strengthening the region’s economy. It includes more than 2,500 acres available for development. 

If built out to maximum capacity, the impact from companies relocating or expanding to the region could result in as much as $400 million in new local wages.

“This is the first time that the public has seen this,” said FloridaWest CEO Scott Luth, following the video’s premiere. “This is our primary marketing video to generate interest. So we’ll be using that at different trade shows. We’ll also be posting that on our website, once we roll out our new Bluffs website in the next 30 days.”

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Underhill remains firm on desire to defund FloridaWest

To date, Luth said his organization has submitted about eight proposals to consultant teams that specialize in scouting new locations for businesses looking to move. Out of those proposals, three companies expressed interest in relocating to The Bluffs, and from that group, one company is still entertaining the possibility.

Luth declined to name the company, but he said the deadline for the business’ decision on The Bluffs is unknown. He explained that in some cases, his organization receives an answer within a year. But in other examples, such as Mobile-based VT Mobile Aerospace Engineering’s commitment to expand operations to Pensacola, the company’s choice requires several years to make.

More: FloridaWest CEO responds to Underhill’s plan to defund organization

“The companies dictate the timeline in which they make decisions,” Luth said. “So we are just continuing to make sure that we are in the decision process for the company. Obviously, they’re looking at other sites across the United States as well.”

The nonpartisan Florida TaxWatch released a report in March that estimated job growth from recruiting the maximum amount of companies to The Bluffs would result in about 6,000 new positions in Pensacola’s manufacturing sector. But FloridaWest, in an announcement of its new state funding, projected a full build out could result in as many as 15,000 jobs.

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI News) – Aspiring entrepreneurs received tips on how to make their ideas turn into successful businesses.

Mississippi State’s E-Center hosted a free small business workshop today.

Attendees got tips on all aspects of running a business, including developing a plan, creating marketing strategies, and identifying target customer groups.

They also got a lesson in projecting start-up costs and preparing a cash flow statement.

Former marketing director at EA Chillingo, Stephen Hey, has set up a consultancy dedicated to video games.

The gaming expert intends to provide ‘plug-in’ marketing expertise for independent games developers and publishers.

Hey’s experience spans 24 years of promoting games, starting with Ocean’s ‘Jurassic Park’ in 1993, all the way through to games like this years ‘WarFriends’ on mobile.

He provides marketing guidance and expertise for teams at any time in a game’s lifecycle from steering the initial marketing vision all the way through to launch into console, PC or mobile markets.

Services offered cover everything from defining market position and consumer profiling early in development, to full marketing strategies, plans and platform pitches, closer to launch.

With a career that covers PR, advertising and marketing, combined with established industry relationships with key partners such as Sony, Apple and Google, Hey has a wide perspective to deliver impactful results for clients.

He said: “I’ve always loved working in games but always wanted to work with independent developers who are rich in ideas but don’t necessarily have the resources for full time marketing teams.

Lifelong pals reveal story behind booming mobile games firm Playdemic

“This role allows me to work with developers and publishers who are developing some of the most creative and innovative games in the industry and I can’t tell you how exciting that is.

“I’ve always lived and worked in Manchester, but seen the games scene here change dramatically, from having big publishers like Ocean, to the landscape now which has some great developers but no large publishers.

“The great thing is that Manchester, and the region, is still very active in creating games that compete on a global basis, so it’s a perfect base for HeyStephenHey.”

He has already started working with games developers around the world as well as local developers like Silo Black Games and Huey Games, both based in central Manchester.

Although his focus is on marketing he also has a wide network of support companies from asset creators to PR and influencer companies.

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President Trump again went after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals early Tuesday after it ruled against the president’s so-called travel ban.

« Well, as predicted, the 9th Circuit did it again, » Trump tweeted.

Well, as predicted, the 9th Circuit did it again – Ruled against the TRAVEL BAN at such a dangerous time in the history of our country. S.C.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 13, 2017

The California-based court on Monday affirmed in large part the Hawaii District Court ruling blocking parts of the order, which temporarily banned nationals from six Muslim-majority countries from entering the U.S., suspended the entry of all refugees and reduced the cap on the admission of refugees from 110,000 to 50,000 for the 2017 fiscal year.

In a unanimous ruling Monday, a three-judge panel on the court said Trump’s revised order does not offer a sufficient justification to suspend the entry of more than 180 million people on the basis of nationality.

Trump earlier this month renewed the debate over his order in the wake of the attack in London. In a series of tweets following the London attack, the president referred to his order as a « travel ban » and insisted it was necessary to keep the U.S. safe.

On Monday, the judges cited Trump’s tweets in their ruling.

The Trump administration earlier this month asked the Supreme Court to step in.

The Department of Justice filed two emergency applications asking justices to block rulings halting the ban and to review its case.

–This report was updated at 7:30 a.m.

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On the field and off, Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon is a born leader. An internal motivation to measure himself against the best athletes around propelled Moon to achieve a lucrative and auspicious football career. Today, Moon’s focus is on his global sports and entertainment marketing firm, Sports 1 Marketing, and his charitable foundation, Crescent Moon, helping kids get the education they need. Moon shares the core values he attributes to his success as we chow down on Skillet Diner’s gourmet grub. Chef Nick gives us a sneak peek at a bacon topped burger that isn’t even on the menu yet — how could we refuse?

Related: Shattering the Glass Ceiling with glassybaby Founder Chairwoman Lee Rhodes

Watch more videos from Business Burgers on their YouTube channel.

Entrepreneur Network is a premium video network providing entertainment, education and inspiration from successful entrepreneurs and thought leaders. We provide expertise and opportunities to accelerate brand growth and effectively monetize video and audio content distributed across all digital platforms for the business genre.

EN is partnered with hundreds of top YouTube channels in the business vertical and provides partners with distribution on Entrepreneur.com as well as our apps on Amazon Fire, Roku and Apple TV.

Business Burgers

All New Podcast/Video Series – Co-hosted by Scott Duffy and Alan Taylor, the show travels across the United States in search of the best burger in America, and a side of tasty business advice. Business, sports, celebrities, and food c…

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Five sets of twins to graduate Carbondale Area on Friday

CARBONDALE — For 18 years, they had each other’s backs. They hunted together, helped each other with homework, even pretended to be each other.
(read more)

Despite popular belief, modern marketing is not about disrupting your followers or trying to be the loudest voice in the room. Those who treat their marketing like one-way conversations will inevitably crash and burn as today’s followers and customers crave conversation.

Unfortunately, many businesses miss the mark as they try to crank out as much content as possible without taking a step back to think about what their followers and leads really want.

The solution is to pursue channels that allow marketers to interact with their customers and leads, essentially coming down to their level and having a meaningful dialogue versus marketing at them. As such, there are a wealth of platforms and options available for modern businesses today looking to reach their followers on a more personal level.

So, what sort of marketing channels are we talking about?

Developing Interactive Content

Your leads and followers should have some sort of stake in your content, plain and simple. If you’ve struggled for engagement in the past, consider some new avenues you can take with your content such as…

• Leveraging an interactive marketing platform: in an era of marketing dominated by visual content, pin-style platforms represent a prime way for new followers to discover and engage with your brand
• Encouraging user-generated content: from customer photos to product reviews, sometimes your best content is created on behalf of your followers rather than yourself
• Embracing QA content: beyond positioning yourself as a problem solver, frequently answering questions on behalf of your customers represents a surefire way to get on the level with your fans

Again, publishing a blog or social post here and there with no follow-up simply doesn’t cut it anymore. If you want to squeeze the most out of your marketing content, you’re going to need to provide a way for your followers to respond in some way, shape or form.

Getting a Handle on Hashtags

Hashtags are perhaps one of the easiest ways to clue yourself in on what your followers are up to. Brands who want to truly stay up on the latest trends should regularly check out what types of content are popping up in relevant industry hashtags. For example, those in the Internet marketing space should regularly check out the “#digitalmarketing” and “#growthhacking” tags to see what the biggest players in the industry are taking about.

The hidden power of hashtags shines through when you realize that these tags also clue you in on what types of content your followers want. Meanwhile, you can also use these hashtags to find followers to boost and potential questions to answer for your base. Considering that Twitter posts with hashtags receive twice the engagement versus those without them, there’s no reason why they shouldn’t be part of your marketing arsenal.

Taking Advantage of Video

The viral nature of video marketing is too powerful to ignore; however, the barrier of entry seems pretty high, doesn’t it? Between pricey editing equipment and the fact that most people tend to be camera shy, the hesitance to embrace video marketing is certainly understandable.

That being said, the ROI and engagement of video marketing are telling in terms of how much today’s audiences want to interact with brands on a visual level. This is especially true in the case of Facebook Live, as Facebook’s audience is glued to video versus any other type of content.

Facebook Live is the prime platform for marketers to get on the level with their followers and take advantage of what video has to offer. But why Facebook versus YouTube? Consider that…

• Facebook Live videos are typically “off the cuff” and don’t require any sort of fancy editing or script: as the content is organic in nature, you don’t have to worry as much about polishing your videos
• Viewers can react and comment on your content in real-time, representing the ever-so-important interactive element of marketing that so many businesses today miss out on
• Due to the fact that your audience is likely already on Facebook, you don’t have to spend needless time trying to chase viewers since they’re already built into the platform.

Modern marketers need to understand sooner rather the importance of interactive content and platforms which bring them closer to their audiences. These three innovative ideas could be potentially transformative to your marketing strategy if you give them the proper attention.

First lady Melania Trump and her son, Barron Trump, officially moved into the White House Sunday, reuniting the first family full time in Washington five months after President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Sunday’s announcement that the first family had officially moved into the White House came via Twitter from Melania Trump, who posted a picture of the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial from inside the White House along with the message “looking forward to the memories we’ll make in our new home! #Movingday.”

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The move, which had always been planned for the early spring, wound up happening slightly earlier than expected. A White House official had previously told POLITICO that Melania and Barron Trump would move to Washington on June 14.

Barron Trump, the president’s youngest son, is 11 years old and has stayed mostly out of the spotlight since the start of his father’s political career, especially relative to his high-profile adult siblings. He and his mother had remained in New York so that he could finish out the school year while the president moved to Washington. He will attend a private school in Potomac, Maryland, beginning in the fall.

Both Barron and Melania Trump joined the president on his return flight on Sunday from New Jersey, where he spent the weekend at his Bedminster golf resort.