WABASH,Indiana – If Wabash can pull out a victory in the Small Business Revolution on Main Street contest and if Wabash actually receives the $500,000 worth of marketing services, business advice and other support and improvements, Monday might become part of the myth and folklore of the city forever. The mood of the brainstorming session at the Visitor’s Center was as dark and bleak as the weather itself Monday morning. Steve Downs, Executive Director of Wabash Marketplace, Inc., told the 30 or so local business owners and government leaders some rather shocking news. Wabash was losing in the competition. And it was losing badly. By9:30 Monday morning, the city was down 4,500 votes to our competitor in the contest, Silverton, Oregon.
By some accounts, the mood down at the Visitor’s Center became frantic. Various methods of getting out the vote was discussed: everything from going door to door to contacting all the Chamber of Commerce leaders in the state and asking them for help. But it was decided to keep up the social media blitz which, up until Monday morning, had proven rather ineffective against Wabash’s competitor.
And then something strange happened. MiBash News received a call from Downs around 1 pm Monday saying that Wabash has closed the gap to just 900 votes. Confused, I made a call to Downs to confirm this information. How in the world could Wabash have made up nearly 3,600 votes in just four hours?
Perhaps the answer lies in the heavy-hitters who posted and tweeted about the contest – acting as an advocate for the first electrically lit city in the world. People like Crystal Gayle. And Colts punter Pat McAfee. And county music writer Ira Dean.
Regardless, Wabash was back in the running. And by 3:15, it was announced that Wabash was in fact now winning, with 400 MORE votes than Silverton. Whether Wabash wins or loses, one thing is clear. The people in this town care enough to help each other. And that, my friends, is a victory in itself.
Votes will be accepted up until 10 pm deadline tonight at www.smallbusinessrevolution.org.