“On November 4th , 2014, Habersham County passed its local sales tax referendum with a 58 percent YES vote. The previous year it failed. The difference? This year, Habersham County engaged the services of Morton, Vardeman & Carlson to provide ideas and execute strategies as part of a marketing campaign to pass the SPLOST. Their experience, attention to the project, and commitment to their customer paid off for Habersham County.”
Judy Taylor, Ph.D.
President, Habersham County Chamber of Commerce
Over the past few months, Morton Vardeman & Carlson has been working with Habersham Partners for Growth, Inc., and the Habersham County Chamber of Commerce, to market passage of the county’s SPLOST VI referendum. The challenge was a big one.
In 2013, only 15 percent of Habersham County voters turned out to cast their ballots, rejecting an extension of the one-penny local sales tax by a slim margin. In effect, 1,519 “no-votes” spoke on behalf of a county of more than 43,000 residents and 18,649 registered voters. It was MVC’s goal, as a non-partisan firm, to educate Habersham County voters about SPLOST benefits and to encourage greater voter turnout.
Through a combined approach of direct mail, social media, newspaper and radio marketing and advertising, Habersham voters were informed about the “Top Ten Reasons to Vote Yes for SPLOST VI.” The campaign cited such key benefits as economic development, infrastructure improvements, enhanced public safety, lower home insurance rates, and debt reduction for the community hospital.
MVC assisted the Habersham Chamber with public relations and marketing strategies to assure a consistent and compelling message throughout all public communications. The result was successful passage of the SPLOST referendum with over 50 percent voter turnout and 58 percent voting in favor of the sales tax.
The “Penny Power” logo, designed by Morton Vardeman & Carlson.
John Vardeman, president of Morton Vardeman & Carlson, has personally worked on passage of eight SPLOST campaigns in northeast Georgia.
For more information about the Election Day results in Habersham County, visit Access North GA. If you are interested in more information about Morton Vardeman & Carlson’s marketing and advertising services, contact us.