Launch: DowntownRochesterMN.com

CWS is pleased to announce the launch of Downtown Rochester MN.com, a new website developed for the Rochester Downtown Alliance. Occasionally, the complaint is heard that there's nothing to do in Rochester. In fact, the downtown district is quite active for those in the loop, and this website aims to substantially increase that number of individuals.

The site is intensely data-driven and represents a joint effort between the hardworking staffs of both RDA and the Rochester Convention and Visitors Bureau. The pool of information will be kept up to date constantly by these organizations and by downtown business owners themselves.

In addition to highlighting current and future activities in downtown Rochester, the site features information about new developments in the district and an itinerary planner that walks a visitor through the steps of planning a night out on the town. Information on parking downtown is integrated throughout the listings, so there's no excuse not to get out and explore.

Rochester offers a host of sights and sounds -- theatre, music, art, comedy, unique shopping, and excellent restaurants both old and new. Keep yourself up to date by subscribing to email updates or RSS feeds from the website. Have an idea for something you'd like to see happening downtown? There's a suggestion box for you.

Let us know what you think!

We're Alive and Kicking

It's been over a month since our last communication... and we feel horrible about that. It's kind of like when you forget to call your mother for awhile. You keep remembering that you need to call, but something more pressing seems to come up. We're sorry about that and promise to make it up to you real soon.

To bring you up to speed, here's what we've been up to:

Lyle:

Lyle went on vacation last month, which started a work overload at our office. (Yes Mom, it's all his fault). He was gone for nearly 10 days traveling the country and having a great time with his wife Sarah. His shoes are nearly impossible to fill, so we've been busy catching up ever since his big trip.

Alan:

The Walk America walk was a huge success. We had a fantastic turnout of over 600 people and raised lots of money to help save babies. It was very cool and Carson has agreed to continue to be the Ambassador for the March of Dimes Chef Auction later this fall. We look forward to helping this great cause as much as we can.

Ryan:

Ryan just finished another year of college and continues to get smarter by the minute (or at least that's what he tells us). Needless to say, we're happy to have him back on staff full-time for the summer.

As a company, we have some really exciting projects in development. The Rochester Downtown Alliance is set to launch in just a few short weeks (keeping Josh busy). In addition, we're starting or working on web projects for The Wing House, Chocolate Time, Dean Riggott Photography, the Mayo Civic Center, Mayo Clinic, ABPMR, Custom Alarm, and Tru Tain (to name a few). Look for launch announcements about these companies in the coming months.

As if that wasn't enough to keep us busy, we continue to expand our video production business with several projects in the works for the Rochester Convention and Visitors Bureau. Graphic design and logo development continues to be an expanding part of our business, so as of this week we have added a new section to our website.

Now that we've "gotten back in touch", we promise to call more often. We'll have more updates, marketing suggestions, and website tips in the very near future. Well, as long as Lyle doesn't take any more vacation. :)

Rochester Downtown Alliance Selects CWS for Website Development

CWS has been selected to develop a new interactive project for the Rochester Downtown Alliance following a final review of proposals last week by RDA board members.

We are extremely pleased to have an opportunity to work with RDA and promote downtown Rochester as a destination. We're proud of the city of Rochester, and we're excited at the opportunity to further its economic development.

The new website will be a deep resource, highlighting events and things to do in the downtown district, as well as providing information about RDA initiatives.

Look for a launch announcement next spring!