City of Alexandria, Virginia | Alexandria Marketing Fund

Alexandria Marketing Fund Application & Guidelines

Background

The Alexandria Marketing Fund is a program administered by the Alexandria Marketing Committee. Reinvigorated in October 2007 by the Alexandria City Council, the fund is designed to increase revenues within the City by fostering public/private partnerships that promote Alexandria as a destination for visiting, shopping, dining and doing business. City Council appropriates monies for the fund on an annual basis and the Alexandria Marketing Committee reviews and approves applications for funding.

Goals of the Alexandria Marketing Fund include:

Fostering marketing projects that enhance the long-range marketing priorities of the City.
Coordinating the marketing plans among City, civic, and business organizations in Alexandria.
Increasing awareness, while expanding the quality of Alexandria’s diverse retail, dining, hospitality, cultural attractions and other businesses.
Promoting Alexandria to specific target audiences including residents and visitors.
Generating additional business sales and tax revenues in Alexandria.

Application Review Process

The Alexandria Marketing Committee accepts applications three times a year. Completed applications are due at least THREE WEEKS PRIOR* to scheduled Committee meetings. Applicants can submit the required information online or by sending packages to:

Alexandria Marketing Fund
301 King Street, Room 3500
Alexandria, Virginia 22314

FY 2008 and FY 2009 meetings are scheduled as follows:

Application Due Date	Committee Review Date	Location	Time
March 17, 2008*	March 24, 2008	City Hall, Sister Cities Room	8:00 AM
July 7, 2008	July 28, 2008	City Hall, Sister Cities Room	8:00 AM
September 8, 2008	September 29, 2008	City Hall, Sister Cities Room	8:00 AM

* application due 1 week prior to meeting date in March 2008

The Alexandria Marketing Committee invites all applicants to attend Committee meetings. Applicants are requested to make a brief presentation and be available to answer questions about the application to ensure that the Committee has adequate information for a funding determination. Following presentations, the Committee will review applica¬tions and evaluate them based on the criteria included within this document. Committee recommendations will be determined by majority vote of those in attendance. The Committee reserves the right to fund a project fully, par¬tially or not at all.

Eligible Applicants and Projects

Applications may be submitted by non-profit organizations or groups of businesses interested in promoting visiting, shopping, dining or doing business in Alexandria. Only Alexandria-based organizations or groups may apply.

City agencies (defined as any agency under the direct control of an elected official; or which reports directly to the City Manager; or any board or commission where all its members are appointed by the Alexandria City Council) may not apply directly to the Marketing Fund; they may play a supportive role in a project proposed by an organization or group.

Eligible projects must meet the goals of the fund, defined above.

While new projects are preferred, Marketing Fund grants may be made available for increased or ongoing marketing efforts; a grant award does not guarantee that similar requests will be awarded, so no assumptions should be made about repeat awards. Grants will only be given for project costs approved by the Alexandria Marketing Committee; not for project expenses previously incurred.

Proposals must demonstrate measurable ways in which funding will promote the economic vitality of the City and/or improve the quality of life for residents, businesses and visitors. Proposals that do not clearly define measures of success will not be reviewed by the Committee for consideration.

Matching Funds

Grants from the Alexandria Marketing Fund must be matched at least 1:1 by private sector or other organizational dollars. Other organizational dollars include, but are not limited to, governmental funding. As noted earlier, the Committee will review only direct marketing or advertising (including distribution and postage) expenses when considering matching funds. Labor, office, and other logistical costs should be included in the budget provided, but will not be counted towards the dollar for dollar match.

If the dollar for dollar match is not finalized by the date of application, groups must note on the application cover sheet and in the written proposal a listing of a least 50% financial commitments in order for an application to be considered. Such groups will be given an additional 30 days (or date established by the Committee) to obtain re¬maining financial commitments or forfeit their grant award. Commitments must be presented to the Alexandria Marketing Fund staff. In-kind funding will be considered, though priority may be given to applications that dem¬onstrate matching funding in cash form. Projects must be completed within 12 months of the award date.

Final Performance Reports

Applicants receiving grants from the Marketing Fund must provide the Committee Chairman with a final report within 30 days of the completion of the project. Final reports should describe the project and identify how well it met the goals and objectives of the Marketing Fund’s contributions, including what measurements and evaluation process were used. Be as specific as possible.

Review Criteria

The Alexandria Marketing Committee will review applications to the Marketing Fund based on eligibility, complete¬ness of application and relevance to the Fund’s goals and objectives. Applications will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

Relevance to Marketing Fund Goals & Objectives
Identification and Appropriateness of Target Audience
Realistic Budget
Clearly Articulated Methods
Measurements of Success
Identifiable Competition
Differentiators

Overview

STEP 1: Submit online or written application and corresponding documents to the Alexandria Marketing Committee.

STEP 2: Present project proposal to Committee at a regularly scheduled meeting.

STEP 3: Following grant approval, submit letter of request for funding.

STEP 4: Submit final performance report(s) within required 30 day time frame.