Made for Rockford targets potential boomerangers with ‘it’s time to move home’ campaign

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — An advertising campaign that will hit billboards Wednesday aims to encourage people visiting Rockford for the holidays to make the city their home once again.

This is the second year that Made for Rockford has bought billboard space that targets potential boomerangers, the name given to people who return home after time living away.

“So many people return to Rockford for the holidays and instantly reconnect with what they loved about growing up here,” said Whitney Martin, director of GoRockford’s Made for Rockford program. “Our message is simple: if it feels like home for one weekend, it can feel like home for good.”

The billboards are going in four locations around the area: Near the U.S. 20 bypass at Illinois 251, along South Alpine Road across from the former Colonial Village Mall, on Riverside Boulevard west of Perryville Road, and at the Forest Hills Road and Riverside intersection.

They have messages such as “Paying double for half the life? Time to move home.”

The billboard campaign runs through Sunday, and then again over the Christmas holiday from Dec. 23 to New Year’s Day.

The billboards will also be followed-up with targeted digital ads so that visitors see the campaign both in town and when they return home.

“Rockford still feels like the hometown people remember, but it’s not the same city they left,” Martin said. “Today, affordability is one of our biggest strengths. You can buy a home, shorten your commute, and spend more time with the people you came home to see.”

Made for Rockford is a talent and resident attraction initiative under GoRockford, the region’s tourism bureau. It’s supported by private sector partners as well as city and state funding. The program’s goal is to grow the region’s population and help local employers recruit talent.

Last year, the campaign got about 2 million impressions via its four billboards and digital advertisements. Martin said it drove tens of thousands of people to the MadeforRockford website, which this year also has a redirect from movetorockford.com.

This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas