#22: The Power of Placemaking and Creating Community-Driven Events | Alisha Espey, Downtown Davenport Partnership/Alternating Currents

Local Marketing School

Oct 24 2024 • 34 mins

In this week’s Local Marketing School episode, Emily Steele interviews Alisha Espey, the Program & Events Director at the Downtown Davenport Partnership. We dove into one of the area’s biggest festivals, Alternating Currents, and all the details that go into drawing big crowds and executing on powerful partnerships across the city. Alisha discusses how she and her team create awareness and leverage local expertise as well as the power of placemaking and community-driven events. We discuss measuring success beyond traditional metrics and the value of creating a sense of shared ownership in community projects. We close out with a look at some fun upcoming experiences coming to the Quad Cities region!

TUNE IN FOR TOPICS LIKE:

2:43 Alisha’s journey from entertainment to wineries to the Downtown Davenport Partnership

10:07 The art of placemaking

12:46 Serving as the Festival Director for Alternating Currents, a music, film, comedy and art festival in Davenport

15:25 Attracting locals and visitors alike to attend events

16:50 Festival scaling strategies

19:41 Increasing foot traffic for area small businesses during events

23:38 Measuring success of events and activations

27:26 Building a cornerstone event in your city

31:01 What’s coming up next for Downtown Davenport


Listen to this week’s Local Marketing School conversation!


Other episodes you'll enjoy if you enjoyed Alisha’s episode:

#9: Integrating Into the Community and Keeping Social Media Fun | Hannah Kirkpatrick, Fareway

#14: Attracting Locals and Visitors with Engaging DMO Strategies | Rachel Greiner, Experience Grand Rapids


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Find Alisha: LinkedIn

Find Downtown Davenport Partnership: Website | Instagram | Facebook

Find Alternating Currents: Website | Instagram | Facebook


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