The Town of Sunnyvale is a small, upscale community in eastern Dallas County. The Town covers 16.54 square miles with a population of just more than 9,000 and is growing at a rate of 5 percent annually. While the Town’s economic development opportunities are thriving with new retail and entertainment options, its rural atmosphere featuring trails and rolling green spaces is a valued attribute the Town continues to embrace and enhance. As Sunnyvale grows, its residents, businesses and other stakeholders have an increased need to be more engaged and informed about Town programs, initiatives and projects. Their understanding of these processes is critical to facilitating quality growth and development while maintaining key lifestyle and community assets.
industry
- government & economic development
services
- communications assessments & planning
- creative services – branding and collateral
- creative services – web and digital
- crisis communications & issues management
- key message development
- media relations
- public involvement & stakeholder engagement
the challenge
Creating a Consistent, Effective Communications Function
The Town of Sunnyvale had previously established a weekly e-newsletter, some basic social media accounts, a professionally designed website, and a print newsletter. While the Town benefitted from a staff member’s talents in managing these channels, only a portion of that individual’s time could be devoted to those responsibilities. Sunnyvale needed day-to-day communications support as well as a review of existing assets and priorities upon which to build and grow an ongoing communications program.
the strategy
Assess In Order to Engage
Cooksey undertook a Comprehensive Strategic Communications Assessment, also known as an “audit,” for the Town of Sunnyvale in the spring of 2023. At the same time, the Cooksey team took over management of website content, specific social media channels, and the weekly e-newsletter and provided media relations and other strategic communications support. The Cooksey team conducted interviews with various internal and external stakeholders to gather perspectives and end-user preferences about the Town’s communications effort, along with a survey to identify the best-used channels. Benchmarking was conducted with peer and aspirational cities inside Texas. Further, Cooksey evaluated the Town’s various communications channels and offered recommendations to build on the best-utilized channels and revive the print newsletter many community members said they missed. The result of the process was greater strategic engagement on the part of the Town in its communication with stakeholders.
the solution
Optimize and Build Consistency
While the Town of Sunnyvale had some basic communications structure in place, the Cooksey team’s report prioritized key components for focused growth and enhancement, while building policies and processes to facilitate consistency and quality. The Town chose to continue to utilize the Cooksey team as their strategic communications resource to manage day-to-day messaging and strategic communications and help facilitate public engagement and outreach. In response to community feedback, the Cooksey team helped Sunnyvale revive its quarterly print newsletter and build consistency in its digital and online presence.
