In 2018, we surveyed 1,000+ people in target metros across the country to learn their perceptions of Raleigh and the Triangle region.

Their biggest association? “Don’t know.”

Which was followed by words like “southern, coastal, hot, cold, agricultural, and higher education.”

We were at the starting line. How do we promote this market as the best place to live, work, and play, when people “don’t know?” This question led us to the revamped Work In The Triangle campaign, complete with refreshed messaging, a new talent attraction website, new videos, and digital advertising.

At the end of 2023 we set out to understand how the Triangle has move the perception needle, and to better understand talent’s behaviors and motivations. We asked questions about why someone would or wouldn’t relocate to the Triangle and how heavily lifestyle factors rank against professional and career opportunities.

The results are in.

We conducted concurrent surveys with both talent and corporate executives.

Key Findings from the Corporate Executive Perception Study:

• The region’s business climate rating is high and matches or exceeds ratings of key competitors.
• Factors that contribute to high scores include operating costs, cost of living, research/innovation ecosystem, skilled workforce, and quality of life.
• Top reasons contributing to low or neutral scores include a general lack of perception, market size as it relates to depth of talent pool, and state politics/social climate.
• The technology and life science industries are most associated with the region.

Key Findings from the External Talent Perception Study:

• The survey was presented to individuals in San Francisco, Boston, New York City, Washington, D.C., and Atlanta.
• Though perceptions of the Raleigh region as a place to live and work have improved since 2018, the region faces tough competition from other tech hubs across the United States.
• Familiarity with Raleigh leads to more favorable views of the region as a place to work.
• It is important to continue building on the momentum seen since 2018 by leaning into how the region can address talent’s “pain points.”

These results are shaping our marketing strategy as we move into EDGE 7.

Key Takeaways:

1. Our community is not reliant on “one single thing.” We have a diverse economy, excellent quality of life and a competitive cost of living. We do not have a single calling card, nor are we defined by a single challenge or message. This is only an opportunity.
2. We have an opportunity to showcase our partnership with organizations like Visit Raleigh and the Research Triangle Regional Partnership and leverage our collective influence.
3. Finally, the results demonstrate that we can’t be complacent with our recent success. It is our mission to decrease the “unknown” factor of our market. There is always room for improvement, and it takes investment– like investment in EDGE– to move that needle.