Alexandria Marketing Fund Application & Guidelines

The Alexandria Marketing Fund is a grant program providing seed money in the form of matching funds for new and innovative marketing programs. The Fund also provides funding for the expansion of ongoing or pre-existing programs. 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. The Fund seeks to support marketing programs that demonstrate how they will become financially self-sustaining over time.

The Fund is administered by the Alexandria Marketing Fund Committee. City Council appropriates monies for the fund on an annual basis and the Alexandria Marketing Fund Committee reviews and approves applications for funding.

The Marketing Fund Coordinating Council provides advisory support to the Marketing Fund Committee, providing preliminary application review and feedback to applicants as well as to the Marketing Fund Committee.

What's New

• Marketing in Alexandria 101 Workshop Presentation
  
  In September 2012, the Alexandria business community, nonprofit organizations, and community organizations gathered at a “Marketing in Alexandria 101,” a workshop presented by experts in the advertising, branding, promotion, and technology fields who serve on the Marketing Fund Committee.  Marketing in Alexandria 101 Presentation.
  

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Goals of the Alexandria Marketing Fund include:

• Foster new and innovative marketing projects that enhance the long-range marketing priorities of the City and that will become self-sustaining projects independent of Marketing Fund support
  
• Encourage collaboration on marketing initiatives among Alexandria civic, non-profit and business organizations.
  
• Increase awareness of Alexandria's diverse retail, dining, hospitality, cultural attractions and other businesses among audiences including residents and visitors.
  
• Generate additional business sales and tax revenues in Alexandria.

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How to Apply

The Alexandria Marketing Committee reviews applications three times per year. Application deadlines and review dates are provided below.

To submit an application, potential grantees must submit their proposals using the Alexandria Marketing Fund Online Application Form.

NOTE: To save time and minimize errors, applicants are urged to review this preview application and budget form before completing the online submission form.  Applicants may consider composing their applications using a word processing program and cutting and pasting their answers into the online application form.

The full process is as follows. Applicant steps are shown in bold:

• Organizations interested in applying for funds are required to contact Mrketing Fund staff before submitting a proposal. Contact Andrea Blackford at 703.746.3959 or email andrea.blackford@alexandriava.gov.
  
• Applicant submits application. The City Office of Communications receives the applications and sends them to both the Marketing Fund Committee (MFC) and the Marketing Coordinating Council (MCC) for preliminary review.
  
• The Marketing Coordinating Council holds its initial review meeting, discusses feedback from the MFC/MCC and, as soon as possible, shares the feedback with the applicants.
  
• Upon receiving preliminary feedback on their application, Applicants are then encouraged to submit an addendum to their application, if necessary, before the Committee Review Meeting Date; a specific date will be provided to applicants for each cycle to allow the MFC ample time to review any submitted addendums.
  
•  Applicants must attend the Committee  Review meeting, make a five-minute presentation to the Committee at the meeting, and be available to answer questions about the application to ensure that the Committee has adequate information for a funding determination. Following applicant presentations, the Committee will review applications and evaluate them based on the criteria included within this document. The Committee then makes a funding decision by majority vote of those in attendance. The Committee reserves the right to fund a project fully, partially or not at all.
  
• Following grant approval, Applicant must submit letter of request for funding, details for which will be provided upon grant award.
  
•  Applicants must submit interim and final performance report(s) as required.

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Application Deadlines and Review Dates

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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. Applications 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.

Grants will only be given for project costs approved in advance by the Alexandria Marketing Fund Committee, not for project expenses previously incurred.

Projects must be completed within 12 months of the award date.

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Expenses Eligible for Fund Support

Only direct marketing or advertising expenses, which must be clearly delineated in the applicant's proposed budget, are eligible for Marketing Fund support. General operational costs must also be included in the budget, but will not be counted towards the total eligible for Fund support. In general, the costs of creating an event are not allowable; however, the costs associated with marketing an event are generally allowable.
 

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Applicant Funding Responsibilities

Applicants must have secured funding at a ratio of least 1:1 for every dollar requested from the Marketing Fund. Applicants must show evidence of available funding for their project, detailing the various sources of their funding in the provided budget pro forma and providing written commitments from project partners. Secured funding may come from financial participation by additional project participants, sponsorships, other organizational dollars, etc. If the applicant is already receiving City funding, those funds are not eligible to be considered as a source of organizational funds and therefore not eligible for matching.

An example of the 1:1 matching of funds follows:

If demonstrated commitments for the Applicant's required funds are not finalized by the date of application, applicants must note on the application cover sheet and in the written application a listing of a least 50% of the financial commitments for an application to be considered. Applicants will be given an additional 30 days (or date established by the Committee) to obtain remaining 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 demonstrate funding in cash form.

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Repeat Funding Consideration

The Alexandria Marketing Committee gives preference to new, innovative marketing efforts and projects. However, increased or expanded marketing efforts that demonstrate innovation on previously funded projects – and their ability to become financially self-sustaining over time – may be considered. If and when considered, Marketing Fund grants may be made available in support of previously funded efforts; however, a grant award does not guarantee that similar requests will be awarded and no assumptions should be made about repeat awards.

If awarded at all, repeat funding will be provided in no more than a 1:1, 2:1, and then 3:1 ratio over a period of 3 funding requests, whereby the applicant must raise or contribute $1 of matched funds for every $1 requested from the Marketing Fund, and then with any second request for Fund support, $2 of matched funds for every $1 requested from the Marketing Fund, and with any third request for Fund support, $3 in matched funds for every $1 requested from the Marketing Fund.

Examples are as follows:

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Reporting Requirements

Applicants receiving grants from the Marketing Fund must provide interim reports, and a final report is due 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. Reporting guidelines and sample reports will be provided upon grant award.

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Evaluation Criteria

The Alexandria Marketing Fund Committee evaluates applications on the following criteria:

• Completeness of the application
• Relevance to Marketing Fund goals and objectives
• Level of innovation and/or expansion of past efforts
• Quality/depth of plan to become a self-sustaining program or project without Fund support
• Level of collaboration among different participating groups
• Realistic and clearly articulated budget
• Quality of the overall marketing plan including identification and appropriateness of the target audience
• Quantifiable measures of success

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Application and Budget Form Preview - Word 

NOTE: To save time and minimize errors, applicants are urged to review this preview application and budget form before completing the online submission form.  Applicants may consider composing their applications using a word processing program and cutting and pasting their answers into the Alexandria Marketing Fund Online Application Form.  

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Marketing Fund Committee Members

• Corry M. Robb, Alexandria Resident, Chair
• Nancy Belmont, Belmont, Inc.
• Ab Emam, Web Development Group
• Patricia Gaston, Booz Allen Hamilton
• Laura Machanic, New Target, Inc.
• Rebecca Mullen, Motley Fool
• Roger Parks, American Advertising Distributors of Northern VA
• Joanna Pineda, Matrix Group International, Inc.
• Scott Shaw, Fishbowl, Inc.

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Marketing Fund Coordinating Council Members *

• Paul Smedberg, Alexandria City Council
• Stephanie Landrum, Alexandria Economic Development Partnership
• Lance Mallamo, Office of Historic Alexandria
• Patricia Miller, Alexandria Commission for the Arts
• Andrea Blackford, City Manager's Office (staff)

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Alexandria Marketing Fund FY 2012 Grant List