ECONOMIC

Strategy 2:

Grow existing businesses and industries in the region.

About The Objectives

The second strategy focuses on existing businesses and industries in the region. The IND15RPC region already has several strong local businesses that are loved by many, and a number of successful industries. Changing trends and the impacts of the pandemic have forced unfavorable changes upon several employees including the loss of jobs and even the closure of businesses completely. To continue supporting the existing employees in the region, businesses need help expanding and growing. There are eight objectives that support this strategy.

Competitive Markets and Job Expansion

The IND15RPC region needs to have a competitive market that can stand up against other businesses and industries. In order to be competitive, the region must be able to meet consumer demand for a product or service. Additionally, the business could supply more products and expand services to places where the existing demand may not be met. For example, the region has a very strong transportation and wood products manufacturing presence in the region which supply their products outside the region and address the need of adjacent regions. When looking at the electronics manufacturing market within the IND15RPC region, jobs increased in the region, while decreasing at the national and state level. The majority of this growth was in Dubois County as it was established as the electronics manufacturing hub for the region. Ideally, the region needs to leverage the success of the existing industry found in Dubois County through supply chain support and encourage additional opportunities within the same industry in underserved markets across the rest of the region. This would increase job opportunities for people who are interested in working within the electronic manufacturing industry, provide the ability to innovate and bring in higher-skilled employees, and continue supplying products and services to areas that are underserved.

Marketing Job Opportunities

When there are jobs available and not enough employees to fulfill the need, businesses and industries need to be able to get the word out that they are hiring. Marketing is a huge factor in being able to replenish the workforce.

Businesses need to be able to advertise to people and meet them where they are. Newspaper postings, social media posts, job descriptions on various websites, and even flyers can help reach people locally and outside the immediate region to apply for jobs. Government entities can assist with this communication and provide ways for businesses to advertise job openings. However, a marketing campaign will organize a strategy that utilizes these many communication methods to reach targeted audiences which can provide better results and reach a larger geographic region.

Impacts of E-Commerce

Technology continues to change as new advancements are made. The internet is now a day-to-day necessity and impacts everyone’s lives personally and professionally. Businesses brand themselves and utilize websites to sell their products and reach wider audiences outside of their immediate clientele. Governments use websites to help residents and businesses find information, showcase their services and offerings, collect feedback, and connect people to other departments to find what they need or pay bills online.

Shopping today is done differently than it was done before the establishment of online shopping. While the benefits of shopping in person include not going through a waiting period to receive a product, e-commerce and the impacts of the internet have changed the way industries operate. Today, people enjoy the convenience that online shopping, automatic payments, and banking have to offer. During the pandemic, online shopping boomed and for an added fee, someone else could fulfill an order in a matter of hours and deliver it to your door. The downside of this is that not all businesses were equipped with these newly preferred online functions and may not even offer services such as product fulfillment and delivery.

E-commerce is expanding. Online shopping will continue to affect brick and mortar stores and businesses and other service providers have to keep up with changing trends. This means that businesses and facilities will have to continue to make upgrades to their equipment, how they contact people, and how they accept payments to remain competitive.