Know-How Exchange : Strategy

Hi, all,

I've recently been referred to do some work for a downtown merchants association. This is a growing bedroom community, a suburb of a larger city. Currently, the association hosts 4 events a year to attract the public to its shops:
1) "garage sale" where all the merchants participate along a 2-mile stretch of Main Street;
2) Halloween walk, where kids go shop-to-shop to collect treats;
3) pre-Holiday golf outing (prior to Thanksgiving);
4) Crafts show of some kind, which is more of an open market along Main Street again.

My contact in the association has informed me most shop owners are also informal members of the good-ol'-boy system, just doing things one way because it's the way things have always been done. Newer (and younger) association members are meeting resistance to change, to try new promotional techniques or events. It's not that longtime members are combative; more like they are just not willing to risk their cash into new ventures for the association. Frankly, they are not risking much cash now--the annual dues are something ridiculously low, like $50 or $100, with a total membership of about 50 shops.

So, that's the group I'm meeting with soon to learn more about their purpose, their goals, etc., in order that I can help provide some direction for new and wise promotional expenditures. As you'll read in my profile, most of my clients already have marketing plans (or, at best, general ideas to build on), such that I can expend my energy on development of the creative. With this merchants association, however, things may be a bit different. In order to get started with them, I am anticipating our initial meeting will consist of my presentation of some of my background & portfolio, with the bulk of our time spent getting them to answer questions questions like:
* SWOT analysis
* What has prompted you to think you need to change anything at this time?
* What is the best result of your annual events?
* What is the downside to your annual events?
* What promotional means have you utilized in the past, and how did you measure results?
* What methods do you use to build on the annual events (e.g., new customer tracking, direct mail follow-ups, etc.)?
* How do members individually measure success of these events? (e.g., measurable increase of foot traffic, or increased revenue, or 'not sure'?)
* How do you think you are perceived by the metro public at large right now?
* How do you want your Main Street shops to be perceived by the metro public at large?
* Are you willing to increase membership and dues to meet new positioning goals?
* How much do individual shops spend on marketing/advertising annually, compared to your association dues?

I can't help but think there are important "big picture" questions that are just not coming to me. They are only giving me about 45 minutes at this initial meeting, so I want to make the most of it by prioritizing our Q&A. We can always schedule more time later, if they want to continue. This is not a group that will hire a full-blown ad agency, as far as I know, but my goal is to help them establish and meet some measurable promotional goals.

So I am seeking any suggestions for topics that should be addressed up front. Thoughts?

Thanks!
-- Paul