FAVTOWN Launches New Features to Enhance Community Engagement and Local Connections

Enhancing Local Connections: FAVTOWN's New Features

In an effort to bridge the gap between locals and their hometowns, Synergy Marketing Inc. has officially launched new features on its community engagement platform, FAVTOWN, on June 9, 2025. These innovations, titled the "Local News Delivery Function" and the "Community Engagement Dashboard," promise to foster deeper relationships among residents and support municipalities in policy planning guided by data.

Understanding FAVTOWN

FAVTOWN aims to maintain and deepen the ties between young individuals who have left their hometowns for education or employment and their local communities. This platform encourages future returnees and contributions to their hometowns, creating a sustainable engagement model.

Traditionally, engaging with potential stakeholders from outside the community has involved high costs. FAVTOWN instead focuses on the challenge of maintaining connections amidst population decline, establishing a new regional revitalization model that transcends physical distances.

By redefining former residents as valuable community assets based on their shared value of "loving their hometowns," FAVTOWN collaborates with municipalities, businesses, and educational institutions to build strategic and sustainable community relationships.

Beginning in February 2023 in Wakayama City, FAVTOWN has taken strides to expand into additional regions, such as Matsuno, Kihoku, and Ainai towns in Ehime Prefecture by July 2024. In Wakayama, the platform collaborates with over 56 partner businesses to enhance regional activities, including the delivery of local specialty products and participation in local events. This initiative has garnered significant recognition, earning the Good Design Award for the 2024 fiscal year.

Introducing the New Features

1. Community Engagement Dashboard

This essential management tool for participating municipalities visualizes member demographics such as age, gender, and location, as well as tracking member growth over time in graphical form. This feature enables municipalities to evaluate the impact of their policies based on solid data, paving the way for more effective strategic planning.

2. Local News Delivery Function

By automatically gathering and curating news from local information sources, FAVTOWN sends updates directly to members via LINE. Collaborating with local media partners ensures that information reaches former residents in real-time, fostering ongoing interest and engagement with their hometown.

Benefits of the Features

For Municipalities:

- Enhanced strategic planning through data-driven insights and the PDCA cycle.
- Efficient communication of relevant information even to outside stakeholders through news delivery.

For FAVTOWN Members:

- A daily sense of "gentle connection" to their hometowns.
- Opportunities arising from potential return visits, donations, and connections with businesses in their region.

The Significance of FAVTOWN's Approach to Community Engagement

FAVTOWN's focus on individuals who already have ties to their communities reframes them as vital local resources. By fostering a sustainable and strategic model of community engagement, municipalities can push for regional revitalization based on data and genuine connections, rather than relying solely on intuition or sporadic initiatives. FAVTOWN signifies a contemporary approach to engaging with community members beyond borders, offering municipalities and former residents a means to rediscover their ties and sustain regional growth.