By Scott Robertson
Last week in this space, I mentioned the regional video funded by the NETWORKS Sullivan Partnership. It’s easy to find on NETWORKS’ Facebook page, and I recommend you take a couple of minutes to watch it.
Though NETWORKS’ charge is to be the economic development organization for Sullivan County, the video also does a great job of showcasing Johnson City and Washington County, as well as other locations in Northeast Tennessee. Last week when I mentioned the video, I said something to the effect that it might have been even better if NETWORKS had partnered with the Northeast Tennessee Regional Economic Partnership and/or the Greene County Partnership in producing the video.
When I made that statement, I meant no criticism of the excellent product NETWORKS produced. Nor did I intend to say that NETWORKS was somehow negligent in not having gone to those other organizations before making the video. I said only that something that was superb might have been made even better.
Where I failed in last week’s column was in not mentioning that NETWORKS, in releasing the video, immediately gifted it to the region. Any organization, business, or individual can remove the NETWORKS logo from the beginning and end of the video and replace it with their own, free of charge. Think about that for a moment. This organization, charged only with promoting business in one county, has produced a promotional tool for the region with no strings attached.
Already, organizations including Bristol Motor Speedway, Friends of Steele Creek Park , YPTri (Johnson City’s young professionals organization), NeTREP, Tri-Cities Airport, BTES and TCI Group – Jerry Petzoldt have expressed interest in using the video to promote their services.
So, would I like to see our economic development efforts be more coordinated in the future? Yes, and I stand by my premise of a week ago. In almost all areas, we will be able to do more together, and do it better. But please pardon me if in this instance, I made the perfect the enemy of the superb.
