Free Parking
How’s that for an attention-grabbing headline?
I understood that free parking was a wonderful thing before I could even drive. At the least, Free Parking was a safe space to land on the cut-throat Monopoly board or a place where you won a $50 jackpot. (If we weren’t playing by the official rules.)
A marketing message as simple as “Free Parking” might be the easiest way to gain new customers. Why? “Free Parking” is only two words, and everyone gets it. Free is the best four-letter word in marketing. Parking is something we all need.
The magical combination of these two simple words can help any business. Customers generally have an irrational fear of “downtown.” I have friends and clients who don’t want to come to Richmond because they don’t think they’ll find a place to park. The same is true in Lynchburg and Harrisonburg.
According to Parkopedia, there are 28 free parking spots within one block of Madison+Main. There are 430 paid parking spots. In the booming metropolis of Harrisonburg, there are a whopping 387 free parking spots within a one-minute walk of my restaurant, The Texas Inn. Yet, day in and day out, I hear the same thing about Richmond. “I dunno, parking might be a problem.” The availability of parking is not the problem. The lack of awareness that there’s an abundance of parking is the problem.
The City of Richmond developed the 6th Street Marketplace in 1985. It closed in 2003, after years of neglect because no one dined or shopped there any more. In 1989, the City of Santa Monica developed 3rd Street Promenade, one of the most successful urban malls in the U.S. There are many reasons 6th Street died and 3rd Street thrived, but chief among them was that Santa Monica provided 1,400 free 90-minute parking spaces and took great lengths to advertise them. That city also had a $31 million budget surplus in 2022.
If you know Mayor Stoney, please tell him to give me a call. I have a solution that will help RVA fill a chunk of our $37.5 million budget deficit. It’s pretty simple.
Here it is: The city gets more meals tax and more sales tax when people spend money in Richmond. Let’s start with “free parking.”
MONDAY:
BACK-TO-BACK BIRTHDAYS
Over the weekend, Communications Specialist Kennedy Heidel and HR & Operations Manager Mollie Banks both celebrated their birthdays. The Madison+Main-iacs made sure to shower them with celebratory Slack messages the mornings of their birthdays. Kennedy got the party started earlier last week with a trip to Las Vegas while Mollie B. spent her birthday celebrating with her family. Happy birthday to these two wonderful women!
Speaking of her family, Mollie B.’s son, Ollie, and her husband, Jeff, recently took a day trip to our client Fort Monroe Authority and were kind enough to share a couple of snapshots from their time there. #FunAtFortMonroe
TUESDAY:
A DAY OF PRESENTATIONS
On Tuesday, Account Executive Leigh Ann Kiebler and Director of Business & Marketing Leanne Pillow took a trip to Innsbrook to visit our client Atlas 42. While there, they shared the Social Media Playbook our team has been working on for them. They loved it and can’t wait to get started. I’ll speak for the team when I say the feeling is mutual.
Some of our team also met with our client Carroll Plumbing & Heating for their Discovery (DISCO) presentation on Tuesday. The meeting went very well, and both of our teams discussed the overall brand identity they see within themselves and what they want their audience to see. Here’s to another great DISCO in the books!
WEDNESDAY:
OUT FOR LUNCH
On Wednesday, the Accounts Team got together in the afternoon for lunch at Blue Atlas Restaurant and Market. You know what they say, “A team that dines together, shines together.” Okay, I made that up. (But it’s true.)
THURSDAY:
WELCOME TO THE TEAM!
We welcomed our newest Account Executives Amanda Anderson and Brandon Segres to the team last week. Amanda graduated from Virginia Tech and has previous experience in marketing and communication efforts and business development activities. Brandon graduated from Liberty University and shares a similar background with Amanda when it comes to strategic marketing. We’re so excited to have them on the team and can’t wait for them to join in on the Madison+Main-iac madness. Their headshots are coming soon, so be on the lookout for their smiling faces in an upcoming edition of the Weekly Report.
FRIDAY:
BIG NEWS
Richmond BizSense recently shared the latest and greatest news related to advertising and marketing, which included the announcement that our very own Carissa Ghaffari has been promoted to Creative Director. Congrats on the new title and making the news, Carissa!
This morning, I jumped on the airwaves to spread more good news about events and happenings in and around RVA this weekend. As always, it was good chatting with John Reid, host of Richmond’s Morning News on WRVA 1140AM/96.1FM. ICYMI, here’s where you can listen. Highlights this weekend include Cousin Maine Lobster pop-up event at Isley Brewing Company, Nutzy’s Block Party at The Diamond, and the Virginia Wine Expo.
A FEW OF OUR FAVORITE EVENTS
Art & Cheesy Western Night!
Findings Art
4925 Boonsboro Road
Lynchburg, VA 24503
March 23 | 5-7 p.m.
Findings Art is teaming up with the Texas Inn for a special one-night-only event for art lovers and fans of the Cheesy Western. Shop from an array of curated art pieces that take inspiration from the T-Room while grabbing a Cheesy Western (on the house). Join them for this free event!
Chesterfield PAL Spring In Your Step 5K
Chesterfield County Police Training Academy
6610 Public Safety Way
Chesterfield, VA 23832
April 8, 2023 | 8 – 10: 30 a.m.
Put a spring in your step at Chesterfield PAL’s 2nd Annual 5K! Hit the ground running to help benefit the Chesterfield County Police Activities League (PAL). Register today.
“Life is a journey, but don’t worry, you’ll find a parking spot at the end.” — Isaac Asimov, American writer