For decades, economic development organizations (EDOs) operated on a simple assumption: build a website, list available properties, and wait for site selectors to call. Those days are over.

Today, communities compete for a shrinking pool of business investment and talent. Site selectors receive hundreds of proposals annually. Businesses research locations online for months before ever contacting an EDO. And the communities that win aren’t necessarily the ones with the most incentives—they’re the ones with the most visible, credible, and compelling marketing.

This guide synthesizes proven strategies from leading EDOs, recent research on site selector behavior, and broader marketing trends to help you transform your community’s marketing from reactive to proactive.

Part I: Why Traditional Economic Development Marketing Falls Short

Most EDOs struggle with a common set of challenges:

• Under-resourced marketing teams – Many organizations lack dedicated marketing staff, relying on generalists who juggle recruitment, retention, and community relations alongside promotion .

• Website-only thinking – A modern, data-driven website is crucial, but it’s not enough. Many communities invest in a website, launch it with great anticipation, and then… wait. They assume businesses and talent will naturally find them .

• Audience confusion – EDOs need to reach site selectors, corporate executives, talent, existing industries, and state partners simultaneously. Trying to speak to everyone often means reaching no one effectively .

The reality? It takes much more than a great website to attract investment. Successful EDOs treat marketing as an ongoing, strategic function—not a one-time project.

Part II: The Foundation – Know Your “Market of One”

One of the most powerful concepts in modern marketing is also one of the simplest: identify one specific person and create content for them.

According to Vanessa Wagner of Georgia Power Economic Development, “Your market of one is the one person you create content for. The person should be real, and you should literally bookmark their LinkedIn URL to gut-check your posts” .

This sounds simple, but it’s difficult for EDOs. “We want students to know about manufacturing careers, existing industry to know about us, site selectors to know about sites, state partners… it’s hard,” Wagner admits .

The alternative—spending time creating messages for everyone that no one reads—is far worse.

Action Step: Create detailed personas for your top three audiences. Give them names, job titles, daily challenges, and information sources. Then, before publishing any content, ask: “Would [persona name] find this valuable?”

Part III: What Site Selectors Actually Want (Data-Backed)

Recent research by GIS WebTech, presented at the IEDC Annual Conference in October 2025, analyzed over half a million interactions with property listings across ~250 EDO websites. The findings are definitive .

1. Provide property listings (85% of EDOs already do)

You can’t generate interest in properties that aren’t listed. The vast majority of EDOs now offer property data on their websites—and the data shows this is foundational .

2. Focus on sites, not just buildings

Sites generate more than twice as many clicks as buildings. Even more striking: sites make up only 7% of property listings but generate over 60% of all clicks .

All sizes of sites are in demand—even modest parcels of less than 25 acres. Large buildings remain popular too, likely reflecting continued demand for industrial and distribution space .

3. Feature your best properties

Featured properties are more than 18 times as likely to be clicked as the average property. They make up only 1.4% of property listings but generate over 26% of all clicks .

The lesson: don’t bury your best assets. Call attention to them.

4. Stage properties with 3D virtual buildings

This is the single most powerful driver of engagement. Properties staged with 3D virtual buildings are 20 times more likely to be clicked and 10 times more likely to be shared via direct links or QR codes .

Just 0.3% of properties are currently staged with 3D virtual buildings, but these account for 6% of all property clicks and 3% of all property shares. All tech-savvy EDOs are now staging properties—and even among those that struggle with technology, the majority either are staging or plan to .

5. Use sharing tools and analytics

Tech leaders are heavy users of shareable links and QR codes in campaigns and RFI responses. Use of property analytics is growing rapidly, with a large majority of EDOs either using analytics or planning to .

Organizations that use analytics are far more likely to stage properties—meaning they have the data to prove their approach works and can continually refine their property, campaign, and RFI strategies .

6. Use a purpose-built GIS app

The most effective EDOs use dedicated GIS applications that integrate all these capabilities: featuring properties, staging sites, providing shareable links, delivering analytics, and showcasing workforce, demographic, infrastructure, and incentive data alongside property listings .

A simple property list on a website no longer suffices.

Part IV: Digital Marketing That Actually Drives Results

Digital Ads: Persistent Branding Wins

Many EDOs assume that posting organic content on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Google is enough. According to INBOUND24 speakers from Google and LinkedIn, that’s not the case. “Just posting without paying isn’t enough. Ads are the best chance you have of getting your message in front of your target audience” .

Key ad strategies for EDOs:

• Make branding persistent. Your logo should be visible within the first two seconds of any video or GIF. Consistent use of brand colors, fonts, and voice matters .

• Don’t fear looking like an ad. While “authenticity” is often praised, research from Atlassian’s Ashley Faus found “there are not strong ties between authenticity and revenue in B2B marketing.” Storytelling and thought leadership are advertising tools—embrace them .

• Use LinkedIn Carousel Ads to tell multi-slide stories that encourage engagement.

Email Marketing: The Underutilized Powerhouse

When EDOs ask whether they need to be on TikTok, the right response is: “How is your email strategy working?” 

Email ROI is an impressive $for\; every$1 spent, according to HubSpot’s 2024 State of Marketing Report. For under-resourced teams, email delivers better returns than chasing new, unproven platforms .

Three tips to improve your EDO newsletter:

1. Make your email the destination. Don’t force readers to click away before they’ve absorbed your message. Limit links to the end unless you’re seeking an immediate transaction .

2. Spend time on subject lines. With changes to how inboxes are organized, a snappy, relevant subject line is essential. Even in economic development, you can say “Our new sites are chef’s kiss” .

3. Energize your content. Morning Brew grew to over 4 million subscribers by knowing their audience intimately, solving a real problem, creating content that informs and delights, and executing consistently .

Part V: The Broader Marketing Context for 2026

Several trends from the broader marketing world apply directly to economic development.

Economic Adaptability Is Non-Negotiable

Heading into 2026, 56% of marketers cite economic volatility as a top source of uncertainty. Budgets are increasingly scrutinized, and every dollar must work harder.

For EDOs, this means:

• Measurement is mandatory. You need to track what works and cut what doesn’t. Accountability is the new business strategy .

• Balance short-term wins with long-term brand building. Over-indexing on performance efforts in one quarter, then pouring too much into awareness campaigns the next, creates instability. A full-funnel approach builds resilience .

AI Is Moving from Hype to Table Stakes

Marketers’ top technology investment priorities for 2026 are AI and machine learning (55%), big data and analytics (42%), and customer data platforms (41%) .

For EDOs, AI applications include:

• Predictive analytics to identify which companies are most likely to expand

• Personalization at scale for talent attraction campaigns

• Content production acceleration (Deloitte reports AI can increase content development speed up to 300×) 

However, proceed with caution. 85% of companies have increased AI investments, but achieving meaningful ROI typically takes 2–4 years. And trust concerns are real—marketers worry about AI-generated deception (28%) and replacing human interaction with AI (28%) .

Trust Is a Competitive Advantage

Data privacy laws and security risks are cited as “very serious” obstacles by 52% and 49% of marketers, respectively. In economic development, trust is even more critical—you’re asking companies to make multi-million dollar location decisions .

Be transparent about data use. Protect confidentiality (site selectors will ask how you handle public record laws). And remember: technology should enhance, not replace, human relationships.

Part VI: Engaging Site Selectors the Right Way

When a site selector or corporate executive reaches out, your marketing has worked. Now, don’t undo it with a poor first impression.

Gray Swoope, former Mississippi EDA executive and current location advisor, offers this advice:

Don’t lead with incentives. “All too often, companies schedule a meeting with the EDO and start the conversation by asking how many dollars they can get in grants. While a legitimate question, it is not the one to ask first. EDOs see hundreds of projects annually; the ones that are speculative and have no chance of ever getting done start the conversation with cash. It becomes a project warning sign” .

Instead, define your project first:

1. Talent needs – Jobs, wages, timeline (1–5 years). State incentive programs are directly linked to jobs, so be specific .

2. Capital investment – How much “skin in the game” do you have? Private investment signals lower risk to states .

3. Facility requirements – Existing building or new construction? Size, ceiling height, truck doors, utilities .

4. Location parameters – Which geographic regions work for raw materials and finished product delivery? 

5. Decision drivers – Will you choose based on skilled labor, utility costs, speed to market, or something else? 

When you engage the state EDO, ask these questions:

• How will public record laws impact my project?

• How do you maintain confidentiality?

• Who will be assigned to my project?

• What’s the incentive application process?

• Can you provide an overview of your process and available programs? 

View economic developers as an extension of your team. If you provide a concise, consistent, responsible project for consideration, they will be your biggest proponents. If not, the project is destined to fail from the start .

Part VII: Practical Action Plan for Your EDO

Quarter 1: Foundation

• Identify your “market of one” personas (top 3 audiences)

• Audit your property listings—are sites featured and staged with 3D virtual buildings?

• Assess your analytics capabilities. If you’re not tracking property engagement, start.

• Review your email newsletter strategy using the three tips above

Quarter 2: Activation

• Launch or refresh a purpose-built GIS app for property listings

• Test digital ads on LinkedIn (carousel format) promoting 1–2 featured properties

• Implement shareable links and QR codes in RFI responses

• Develop a content calendar focused on your “market of one”

Quarter 3: Optimization

• Analyze Q2 performance—which properties, channels, and messages drove engagement?

• Shift budget toward what’s working; cut what isn’t

• Train team on AI tools for content creation and data analysis (start small)

• Host a “marketing chat” with neighboring EDOs to share what you’ve learned 

Quarter 4: Scaling

• Expand digital campaigns to target talent (not just site selectors)

• Build a talent pool/database from campaign leads

• Develop case studies from your 2025 wins

• Plan 2026 budget around proven channels and tactics

The Bottom Line

Economic development marketing has evolved. A website alone no longer suffices. The communities that win investment and talent are those that:

1. Know their audience intimately (the “market of one” principle)

2. Provide data-rich, staged property listings (sites > buildings, 3D virtual buildings drive 20× engagement)

3. Invest in paid digital ads (organic reach isn’t enough anymore)

4. Leverage email as a high-ROI channel

5. Adopt AI and analytics thoughtfully, with attention to trust and privacy

6. Engage site selectors professionally (don’t lead with incentives)

As Vanessa Wagner of Georgia Power put it, “Marketing is the growth engine of every organization, but many economic development organizations are under-resourced in marketing talent and budget. Focusing on the two or three things you can do well, for the right market/audience, is the best path forward” .

Don’t try to do everything. Pick two or three strategies from this guide, execute them excellently, and build from there. Growth happens by doing the things you’re unqualified to do—and learning as you go.

Need help marketing your community for investment and talent? Insyteful provides the tools, data, and connections to power your economic development strategy. [Contact us to learn more.]