Is Adani the answer? Before you automatically answer yes or no, ask what is the question. If it is, how do we positively stimulate our local economy, then the answer is money. I qualify this answer with extra, regular, significant injections of cash circulating through our local economy. Money to stimulate more local spending, leading to more jobs being created, more opportunities for our kids – here, less empty shops, provide more choice, more support of local causes.
Adani appears to be offering regional Queensland these outcomes by wanting to fill more local pay packets. On a more local perspective a second university in Rockhampton could also offer this. But Adani appears to be just within touching distance. If only the goalposts weren’t being continually moved the benefits it promises could be realised now.
Maybe this was why regional Queenslanders voted the way they did in the federal election, believing a bigger coal industry is the answer to the question, what is the most likely source of the significant regular cash injection required to stimulate their local economies.
Isn’t a dollar not spent outside the region (retained) effectively the same as an extra dollar injected into a region?
Last week I identified how up to an extra $5.5M could be retained in Central Queensland per year. Certainly small in comparison to what Adani potentially offers, but it is not reliant on the action of others outside the region for it to happen, only on our own actions. We position the goalposts.
Just telling (educating) people to shop local generally tends to win more sympathy than actual support. Cheaper prices, greater variety, one click shopping, and powerful marketing makes shopping with the multi-nationals more appealing, especially when budgets are tight. This shouldn’t mean we don’t try though and only invest resources chasing possible cash injection projects, able to blame others if they don’t come off because the goal posts were changed.
There’s a theory, the more you get to know and like someone, the more you interact with them. Shop with them if they are in business. Price, convenience, advertising become secondary to the personal relationship and in your decision where you spend your money.
Instead of local businesses putting all their advertising dollars into the margin sacrifice race to the bottom against the big boys, consider sharing their story. Enable personal connections to happen. Provide an insight of why they went into business, what their dreams are, or how they have changed.
An off-shoot of seeing and hearing a number of these local stories would be an overall sense of positivity and greater pride of our region. People may choose these featured local businesses over a cheaper price on the internet, over multi-nationals, because a more positive personal connection is being made with the business and region.
Also, by telling these stories you stir the hardly ever spoken desires of other locals (even out of towners) to go out and start or buy a business in the region. Creating more jobs, filling empty shops, providing more choice, and enabling greater support for local causes! Adani is not the only answer.