Why the ‘All in NC’ Campaign Still Matters

From the Desk of Mike Rusher

Today, I’d like to provide you with an update on the impactful All in NC marketing campaign, which stacked up success stories during its three-year run.

The All in NC marketing effort stemmed from a small group of North Carolina business leaders who recognized early that having a strong pro-business climate was not enough… the state also needed a coordinated effort to tell its story nationally. Using their own resources and expertise, they helped build the foundation for a statewide economic development marketing strategy that ultimately evolved into a successful public-private partnership through the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. Their engagement helped rally legislative support, attract broad stakeholder input, and position North Carolina more competitively against states investing heavily in business recruitment. The effort demonstrates the powerful role engaged business leaders can play in shaping long-term economic growth and statewide competitiveness.
 
The campaign’s funding lapsed during the budget debate, but there’s optimism lawmakers will renew the effort this year. It’s easy to see why.
 
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The 2021 state budget launched a fully-funded three-year program for a proper national branding effort to attract businesses to North Carolina. The state had incredible business assets (which have only improved since then), and policymakers had an interest in educating business leaders across the country about them.

The result was “All in NC,” a $30 million full-scale marketing initiative housed within the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC) that targeted national employers. All in NC featured “highly targeted, creative and memorable messaging that brings to life assets including the state’s natural beauty, high quality of life, mix of urban and rural settings, affordability, business-friendly tax climate, educational ecosystem, spirit of innovation, and more,” an EDPNC press release announced in 2021.

Between its launch in 2022 and the expiration of its funding in 2025, the campaign generated 798 million impressions, 267 million engagements, and more than 10,700 business inquiries. Those inquiries funneled down to 169 qualified selling opportunities for the EDPNC recruitment team.  Sixteen projects have been announced, representing 948 jobs, $243 million in capital investment, and an estimated $154 million in total economic impact.
 
Against a campaign that cost $30 million to run, those are the kinds of returns that economic developers crave.
 
Beyond the hard numbers, the state’s reputation shift was perhaps the campaign’s most important accomplishment. North Carolina has risen from middle-of-the-pack to the top spot among site selection consultants and C-suite executives asked to rank states for business relocation consideration. Positive and very positive ratings improved by 11% between 2021 and 2025. That kind of movement in perception among decision-makers, the people who actually choose where companies locate, happens because the state is consistently present in the right channels with the right message.
 
The campaign operated across digital advertising, trade publications, industry conferences, and targeted outreach to site consultants and corporate real estate executives, the gatekeepers who often shape or narrow a company’s location search before it ever becomes a formal competitive process.
 
Here’s how it worked. Impressions generated inquiries, which yielded qualified opportunities. EDPNC’s recruitment team worked those qualified leads through a competitive process that often involved multiple states vying for the same project. Brand familiarity, established relationships, and a track record of positive coverage in the business press all matter at that stage, which North Carolina has nurtured in recent years. The net result was project wins.
 
If it receives funding in this year’s budget, All in NC hopes to add an international component to target overseas companies and investors. Foreign direct investment makes up more than 45% of the state’s current business recruitment pipeline, and a sophisticated marketing campaign can grow that share even further. North Carolina, ranked the nation’s top state for business three of the past four years – has competed well in national development competition. It’s time to expand our horizons even further.
 
Other states have taken note of North Carolina’s success. Georgia’s fiscal year 2027 budget appropriated roughly $14.2 million across its Global Commerce and International Relations divisions for comparable functions. Ohio’s JobsOhio spent $63 million on marketing in FY 2025. Virginia budgeted $4.87 million for economic development marketing in its most recent fiscal year, and Utah budgeted approximately $5 million for business services broadly.
 
One could look at the past year’s dormancy with a pessimistic eye, but the numbers actually underscore the effectiveness and promise of All in NC.
 
With the campaign dark for roughly a year, lead generation dropped from an average of 245 inquiries per month to 15. Website traffic fell 57 percent, and social media engagement dropped 99 percent.
 
Since 2021, North Carolina has attracted tens of billions of dollars in capital investment from familiar names like Toyota, Eli Lilly, Jet Zero, and Genentech. The All in NC campaign complements and expands the state’s stellar business reputation, creating synergies that will keep the good times going.



Mike Rusher serves as the Chief Client Engagement Officer of The Results Company