Ames business owners are looking at ways to improve the downtown image.

Downtown business officials recently conducted a survey to pinpoint areas of improvement and ways to attract more people to the shopping area.

“Downtown merchants in general had a feeling that we weren’t growing,” said Mary Ketelsen, co-owner of Carr Hardware and a member of the Downtown Betterment Association [DBA]. “We felt that we were doing the same volume of business year after year. We wanted to discover who our customers were, who they weren’t, and why.”

Ketelsen, along with 28 other business owners, approached Norman Riggs, a community development specialist at Iowa State Extension, about determining how the downtown area is viewed by Ames residents.

Riggs began last July, conducting a series of interviews to survey public opinion. After interviewing five focus groups, Riggs met with downtown businesses to help them “learn how to improve their business” based on comments from the focus groups.

The focus groups consisted of six to nine individuals from the community.

Plans originally called for a sixth focus group of ISU students. But because the study was conducted over the summer, Riggs said he had trouble getting student participants.

“I do feel that there is an obvious huge potential audience that has not been factored into the interviews,” Riggs said. “Based on the survey, we just don’t know what the student perception of downtown Ames is, nor do we know what it might take to bring the students downtown.”

But, Riggs said, students don’t represent an untapped market for the downtown area.

“Although the majority of student opinion hasn’t been tapped, I don’t think students hold a lot of potential for possible downtown consumers,” Riggs said. “Students are usually strapped for cash and are looking for a good discount store. The strengths of downtown are its personalized service, its quality of merchandise, and its small-town charm.”

Ketelsen agreed.

“Right now we have no specific plans to attract students to downtown,” she said. “These businesses are not mall competition. We just can’t win against that. Currently, our marketing is directed toward middle class and upper-middle class people over 30 years old.”

Student opinion of downtown Ames appears to be varied. Many students expressed an interest in shopping at downtown businesses, but cited a lack of “trendy student stores” and inconvenient store hours as reasons to stay away.

“Downtown has more class than Campustown,” said sophomore Al Buck. “It has better restaurants and more practical stores. But if I didn’t have a car, I wouldn’t even know where downtown is. It’s too far from campus and there aren’t enough ads out for downtown stores to draw students there.”

Ketelsen said downtown merchants are working with hired consultants to determine what changes must be made to attract more customers. One change being considered is getting rid of the word “downtown” and replacing it with an alternative phrase such as “Main Street District,” which would make the area easier to locate on maps, Ketelsen said.

Also under consideration is standardizing store hours, creating more parking areas and implementing a more ambitious marketing campaign.