Published in the Feb. 19 – March 4, 2014 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Cheri Devlin
Cheri Devlin
February has been a busy month for the Morgan Hill Downtown Association. New board member applicants have been vetted and interviewed. A new class of officers will be announced soon. And the MHDA website is getting a new look that offers its members more benefits than ever before.
Members will now be able to log in to the Morgan Hill Downtown Association website (built on the popular and easy to use ShopCity platform) to update their own individual webpage with business hours, payment choices, coupons, functionality to load market place items, link to news blogs, upload photos and videos, and offer gift certificates.
Another new feature, when members make updates to their content it will automatically update to a variety of web-links, post to the MHDA calendar, news blogs, coupons and market place items.
The MHDA is focused on providing members visibility and awareness through all possible channels — especially our social media outlets. And our new website is the perfect platform to achieve that. We’re not just a nonprofit association that puts on great events, we’re creating real and measurable value for our members. The new web platform also provides its members easy access to webpage analytics for all pages and posts to more easily determine what is working and help determine the most effective ways to market through the MHDA. You can be sure we want this to be the best and easiest way for people to find out just what downtown Morgan Hill has to offer.
Events downtown have been the cornerstone for bringing new faces to Morgan Hill and the event season is already upon us — with a year-round calendar of reasons to bring friends and family downtown.
We all know events don’t put themselves on, so with Wine Week around the corner and Bites of Morgan Hill in the wings, it’s a perfect time to join a planning committee and be a part of the reason our events are successful. The events committee meets at 9 a.m. the last Wednesday of each month at the MHDA Office, 17490 Monterey Road, Suite 4.
The MHDA is also excited to announce the upcoming sixth season of the Thursday Night Street Dance — located on the corner of Third Street and Monterey Road. With better visibility and attendance thanks to its new neighbor the Thursday Night Farmer’s Market kicking off April 18, we’re lining up some great bands and music for everyone to enjoy free from 7 to 9 p.m., June through Labor Day.
But there’s a catch. In order to make this happen, we need the support of sponsors. With the goal of raising $10,000 before May 1 to cover all operational expenses, we have our work cut out for us. The MHDA needs help getting the word out about sponsorship opportunities, or else we risk having to cancel the series. Sponsorships start as low as $400 and include branding and marketing benefits both online and at the event, as well as verbal mentions from the stage. Contact MHDA office manager Raquel Crowell at [email protected] for more information.
Cheri Devlin is a Morgan Hill resident and member of the Morgan Hill Downtown Association Board of Directors. She is an associate director at KPMG, LLP who loves writing about life as a working mom. Find her blog at www.talesofcorporate-mommyhood.blogspot.com.
