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About Ben Wright
I started exploring cities and traveling at a really young age, inspired by my Grandfather, who had epic stories of the road from his time as a Broadway and traveling stage actor. I do now for work what I would do if I wasn’t working: get to know places inside and out. And, when I’m not working, I am lugging my wife and three daughters all over Denver and the western U.S.
Expertise
With a background in social science, I try to see how collective market segments will view and interact with places. At our firm, I have helped us build innovative models for how home buyers make decisions to buy a home, how businesses decide to locate and how tourists decide where to travel. These models guide our creative and technical innovation.
Places He Loves
I have found just as much joy in an $8-a-night beachfront bungalow in Thailand as I have staying at the Hotel Negresco in Nice, France, or at a beach house in Newport Beach, CA. Some of my favorite places are the biggest surprises: Omaha, Nebraska; Boulder, Colorado; Budapest, Hungary; Placencia, Belize; and the Riviera Maya in Mexico.
A Success Story
I get incredibly excited about telling people that our online campaigns generate three times the interaction of those by other agencies. In our very first large-scale
web project in 2002, we upped the usage on that website by an incredible 500 percent within three months of launch. That site was voted the best in the country
by industry experts the next year and became the model for the industry. This experience has fueled me (and us) to keep getting better as new media opportunities
arise–which they do almost every day.
Favorite Speaking Engagements
I love speaking about economic development marketing, websites, GIS, and on the future of economic development. Every year, I give 8-10 speeches in person, and 4-6 webinars. Here are a few of my favorites:
Atlas Webinar: How Site Selectors Are Using GIS to Shorten the Location Evaluation Process - Delivered via webinar with Keith Gendreau of Cushman&Wakefield, Denver, CO and New York, NY, May 12, 2011 Click here to view the presentation. Click here to watch the video.
What Would Google Do (If it were in charge of economic development) - Delivered at the Economic Developers Council of Colorado Annual Meeting, Durango, CO April 21, 2011 Click here to view the presentation.
Comprehensive Economic Developmment Marketing and Attraction - Delivered at the Georgia Tech Basic Economic Development Course, Atlanta, GA March 29, 2011 Click here to view the presentation.
I am available top speak to your organization, if travel schedule permits. Please contact me discuss speaking at your next event!
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