Inspiring Local Millennials to Launch Manufacturing Careers in Cleveland County
Cleveland County, NC is known for its rich manufacturing history but was missing the talent needed to fuel the industry. To recruit millennial talent and build name recognition, DCI embraced the region’s proximity to Charlotte, building a modern brand and website—“Charlotte’s Backyard.”
Cleveland County, NC, located just outside of Charlotte, had hundreds of open manufacturing jobs and an urgent need to attract more talent to live and work there. To fill that need, DCI and the Cleveland County Economic Development Partnership joined forces to build a brand focused on increasing name recognition of the region and amplifying one specific industry – manufacturing – to attract talent to the area.
Through research, DCI discovered Cleveland County had limited name recognition on the national stage and could benefit from piggybacking on the greater name recognition and proximity to Charlotte, North Carolina. The branding and messaging campaign told the story of “why Cleveland County” to external talent and why the manufacturing industry provided opportunity for millennial workers.
DCI developed a fresh, new talent attraction brand aimed to recruit millennials living in Charlotte to relocate for rewarding manufacturing careers in rural Cleveland County. DCI created a modern brand, strategy and key messages focused on tying Cleveland County to nearby Charlotte—dubbing Cleveland County “Charlotte’s Backyard.” With this new brand, DCI produced a talent micro-website: CharlottesBackyardNC.com complete with job search, Community profiles and employer toolkit functions.
