EUSTIS — The City of Eustis received a marketing study and a recommended first-year marketing program on Tuesday aimed at attracting employers that pay above-average wages and supporting local business expansion.

The economic development director, Al Adamer, told the commission the city received a $20,000 grant from the Duke Energy Foundation, matched by the city, and hired True North Marketing to prepare a marketing plan. Lori Shabayan of True North presented the plan, saying the work should begin by building basic assets — a business-focused text mark, messaging platform, a business web portal and a “sizzle” video — then move to targeted outreach. “We want to educate and inform and elevate awareness during that time so that when they do arrive at a place where they are looking for an expansion and looking to make a decision, they’ve heard of us already,” Shabayan said.

Shabayan described a three-part strategy: brand identity, tools and content, and activation with advocacy and partnerships. She recommended focusing on audiences (existing businesses, prospective businesses and intermediaries such as brokers and site selectors) rather than geography, and suggested LinkedIn, targeted newsletters and trade-mission attendance as primary activation channels. She also proposed partnerships with Lake Tech and CareerSource to support local employer competitiveness.

Adamer said the study’s one-time creative and setup costs were estimated at about $78,000, and that a full-service engagement to manage and activate the plan would likely run $5,000 to $7,500 per month (about $60,000–$72,000 annually). He told commissioners the plan is intentionally foundational: some objectives cannot be numeric until the city’s targeted-industry study is completed.

In a separate, related presentation, Al Adamer introduced Applied Marketing Sciences, which proposed a focused lead-generation campaign for Eustis. Lee Hao, president of Applied Marketing Sciences (participating by video), told the commission her firm would mine databases, build company profiles and conduct email and phone outreach. “From this initial campaign … we expect three company leads and at least four site-selector appointments,” Lee said. The city manager said Lee’s firm bid $7,500 and the campaign scope was increased to $10,000 to add food-processing and ag value‑added targets to a data-center focus.

Commissioners expressed support but also asked for timing coordination with an ongoing downtown master plan and the upcoming targeted-industry study. Commissioner Aspati said the county’s packaged catalyst projects and the city’s downtown master plan must be considered in the marketing rollout. Commissioner Holland asked whether the audience focus implied outreach beyond Florida; Lori Shabayan answered the campaign could prioritize the Southeast while remaining open to national or international prospects if the targeted-industry results require it.

What happens next: Adamer said staff will circulate the full research report to commissioners and expects to return with measurable objectives after the targeted-industry study is complete. The commission did not vote on the broad marketing budget during the meeting; it did approve moving forward with the $10,000 lead-generation campaign for specific targets.

Ending: The presentations mark the city’s first funded, coordinated economic development marketing effort in recent years. Staff told the commission they plan to sequence creative work, outreach tools and advocacy so the city can present a polished business brand when active prospecting begins.