Andy Meek is a senior business reporter for The Memphis Daily News, a city in which businesses like FedEx and AutoZone have ensured a hotbed of entrepreneurship. You can follow him on Twitter @AndyMeekTN.
The stakes are high for maintaining a city's positive image. Bad perceptions can lead to lost economic development potential, and can be hard to reverse once they take hold.
But if your town's image is in question, you no longer have to write an op-ed in the local paper. Instead, try what the city of Grand Rapids, MI did -- pick up a video camera.
Community-Powered Video
In response to an article posted on Newsweek’s website in January that put Grand Rapids into the number 10 spot on a list of America’s Top 10 "Dying Cities," several thousand Grand Rapids residents gathered downtown to sing. The throng filmed itself in what became a nearly 10-minute long, one-take “lip dub” of Don McLean’s “American Pie.” The project’s director, Rob Bliss, used sponsorships and donations to fund the project’s $40,000 expense.
In doing so, they stuffed a slew of Americana into what Roger Ebert later described as “the greatest music video ever made.” Actress Alyssa Milano tweeted, “I (heart) this video so much. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy.”
