Colu is a platform that helps cities engage with residents by rewarding them for taking actions that promote their strategic goals using a unique City Coin.
How do you market to cities?
It’s a mix of different methodologies. Building a brand and using social media is very important and through writing thought leadership pieces. We write a lot of blog posts and columns for different sites like mayor’s innovation projects. Secondly, it is important to find the right timing to approach cities with a very accurate value proposition.
What has been your most successful campaign and why?
A reinvigoration campaign was the most successful. We reached out to cities that we had been speaking to months ago and we did that by “checking in”, in an honest but also sophisticated way. We had an impressive reply rate and this is because when you reach out again and again, after a while the prospect on the other side doesn’t look at you as a salesperson. They see you as a regular player in the ecosystem.
What are your best marketing channels?
Now that conferences are taking place again, we see a lot of appetite from cities to meet one-on-one. That changes everything. People get used to building relationships virtually but face-to-face still plays a strong role. Of course, a warm introduction helps create interest and engagement.
What are the biggest challenges in marketing in the city sphere?
The decision-making process is very different from one local government to another and it really varies between states and countries. The biggest challenge is to understand who would be the best prospect on the other side and then maximising the value while being very concise with the message.
What did the pandemic teach you and what advice could you provide to other colleagues elsewhere?
Covid-19 accelerated the speed of things changing in our prospects’ world. As a company that markets to local government you need to understand where the market is going, and now you need to understand much faster and react. On the micro level, the tactical level, the response of people answering their phone has changed as has the openness of people to use LinkedIn as a tool to communicate.
What are your campaign priorities for this year and 2022?
Because of the pandemic we see more local governments are open for innovation. The number of potential prospects has grown dramatically. Our first priority would be to focus again on quality and not quantity. We’ll do more account based marketing and really focus on a small number with a lot of thought behind each one.
What are your biggest lead sources – Google ads or search engine marketing; social media and content marketing; own events or third-party events?
Content marketing, mostly based on emails, right now provides us the biggest ROI. But definitely events and conferences play a part. We’re a “smart city” company, but we’re shifting away to focus on specific positions in government. But that varies as sometimes it could be a conference tailored to city managers or a conference focusing on economic development.
Which events/conferences will you attend and why?
We haven’t built our complete plan for 2022, but I can say that the ICMA (International City/County Management Association) annual conference is one that we have already secured our spot.
Biography: Elad is an urban innovation professional with a passion for cities and social change. Elad has led Colu’s global businesses development efforts since 2019; helping promote small businesses and minorities in Israel and the US. Elad’s experience combines strategy, law, and journalism with a strong social impact background.
Right after finishing his mandatory military service in the IDF, Elad ran for the city council of his hometown becoming one of the youngest council members in the country at the time. Before joining Colu, Elad served as an attorney in one of Israel’s leading law firms, where he specialised in Municipal Law. Elad has also led the regulatory department in Israel’s largest renewable company, with operations in the United States.