The Macon-Bibb County Industrial Authority is showcasing its strengths and touting successes in a new data-heavy website.

Wednesday, the new site will give industrial prospects a more complete look at the potential workforce pool plus community entertainment and amenities.

Authority executive director Stephen Adams said after COVID-19 curtailed typical site visits, recruiting industry has become increasingly reliant on digital marketing.

“Nowadays, prospects are requiring a complete virtual package,” Adams told the authority. “More traditionally, they would be coming to town and get the chance to put their eyes on it. That’s not happening as much now, so we need to make sure anytime,  any one of our parcels, we’re able to provide a link that gives a very clear visual along with all the tests and reports we can find on those properties.”

Last year, the authority hired the Miner Agency to handle public relations, boost its image and redesign the website. A tweaking of the authority logo shifts from a brown, segmented diamond shape with the full name spelled out to a streamlined “mbcia” in lowercase letters that is dominant in the design that features a softer diamond shape in shades of green.

This week’s launch is the result of six months of work of gathering information, images and video to plug into the site, said Chrissy Miner, principal of the agency.

“This is infused with data. This is going to be a one-stop shop,” Miner told the authority while giving a preview of the site at Monday’s meeting.

Refreshing its image and website was a key takeaway from the authority’s Strategic Plan prepared by VisionFirst Advisors and unveiled in January.

The site also will tout the authority’s recent accreditation by the International Economic Development Council. A peer review determined the authority meets the commonly held standards of economic developers.

“We’re working with people all around the world, so having a website that is attractive, that’s easy to navigate, that clearly articulates our properties, again is another thing the Strategic Plan picked up on,” Adams said.

The new website will be a virtual gateway into the authority’s available property and community assets.

“This goes back to the strategic plan highlighting that you’ve got a lot of good properties out there, but you need to get that message across,” Adams explained in the meeting.

The authority tracks the hits on the website and sees where prospects are located. Currently, there are 28 open projects that could bring more than 4,200 potential jobs and more than a $500 million worth of investment, according to the monthly report.

“By the time they call Stephen to find out what we have to offer, they’re going to already have a lot of information at their fingertips,” Miner said of the new online site.

The website upgrade includes a chat feature that can immediately respond to inquiries, collect and store responses to frequently asked questions that can be disseminated again for future prospects.

The authority discussed at least a half-dozen projects in Monday’s executive session, including two entities known only as Project Ford and Project Diamond.

Back in open session, the authority voted to proceed with real estate negotiations for both of those prospects discussed behind closed doors, but no further details were released.

–Civic Journalism Senior Fellow Liz Fabian covers Macon-Bibb County entities and can be reached at [email protected] or 478-301-2976.

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