Oregon22 Small Business Prep Top 10 List

Is your small business ready to welcome the world?

Eugene has never seen an event of this scale before. For the first time in local major sporting event history, the fan festival will not be next to Hayward at the UO which means tourists will be exploring the larger community for food, shopping, and entertainment. Be prepared for this once-in-a-lifetime experience with Onward Eugene’s ‘Top 10 List’ for small businesses to help leverage the 50k+ tourists that are arriving in 50 days! 

Be on the lookout for the upcoming webinar in June where industry professionals from Travel Lane County and Turrell Group walk you through the actions you can take to prepare your small business to be successful and a good ambassador of our region. 

1. Check Your Listing

Have current business information across ALL platforms. Ensure that when people look online that they can find your business, and that the information is CURRENT & ACCURATE.  New hours, menu, events, offerings? Be sure to update them

1. Hours of Operation

Review the Oregon22 event schedule and consider increasing staff and/or extending hours to reflect when there are no track events happening. The fan festival will take place outside of Hayward at the new Riverfront Park. Review their events/hours Eugene Riverfront Festival

1. Visitors Out & About

Organize your events The Eugene Riverfront Festival will draw locals & tourists alike to the river.  Wayfinding signage will lead them from there to Downtown, Whiteaker, etc.

1. Market Your Events

Add any events you will have to the Travel Lane County Events page. This is a free service and it will be the landing page from the Oregon22 site about what to do in this region. Submit an Event 

1. Open Late?

Get listed on the Dine After 9 page on the Travel Lane County website. This information will be provided to all Oregon22 ticket holders and the 3,000 members of the media that will be covering the event.  A free resource to make sure people know you are open late! Info@EugeneCascadesCoast.org

1. Put Your Best Foot Forward

Beautify your business and create a welcoming street presence: plant flowers in Oregon22 colors, clean up any graffiti on your building, power wash your sidewalk, hang strings of flags, have an A-frame sign with info about your business out on the sidewalk.

1. Speak the Same Language 

Translation services are available through an app to help with onsite translation. Visit https://theglobalseal.com/experience for more information

1. Community Champion

Become a Champion World Hosts; get a crash course in places to send people to experience all this amazing region has to offer

1. Cash Is Not King

Internet stability/forms of payment: make sure your internet can keep up with the increase in transactions and use. Work with your provider to ensure you have what you need to keep your business running smoothly

1. Strength in Numbers

Talk to your neighbors and work together to create a fun and festive environment. This event is about bringing together our community and welcoming the world. Bring tables & merchandise outside, use sidewalk chalk to create fun art connecting businesses to one another, hire musicians or street performers, coordinate hours, use social media to promote businesses in your area.