Downtown Mesquite earns statewide honors for small business project

Downtown Mesquite earned a statewide award this month for its digital marketing project that highlighted small businesses during the pandemic.

The Texas Downtown Association honored Mesquite with the Best Digital Promotion award for its Small Business Saturday project at the group’s annual downtown revitalization conference on Nov. 4 in Denton.

Downtown Mesquite volunteers partnered with Mesquite ISD students, who conducted interviews, filmed and produced videos about local businesses, according to a city statement,

“We loved how the videos turned out,” said Lisa Harr, Mesquite Downtown Development Advisory Board Chair and video anchor. “But even we were surprised at how far-reaching the impact of the videos would be in terms of sales, Metroplex media attention and awareness in general.”

Plans for Downtown Mesquite’s traditional Small Business Saturday promotion in November 2020 had to be adjusted and tailored to the conditions of the pandemic, which limited in-person visits and crowded gatherings, a city statement said.

Downtown Mesquite, which also won a People’s Choice award for the video project, has been honored at the event for three consecutive years.

During the conference, Mesquite has also been featured at three workshop sessions with Haar, downtown development manager Beverly Abell and assistant city engineer Wes McClure participating in panels.