When Chinese solar-manufacturer Suntech Power started to look at sites in the United States for a manufacturing facility, they had 28 locations in mind. After an 18 to 20 month process, the company picked Goodyear, Ariz., and opened its plant in the Phoenix suburb in October 2010.

"We were the underdog," says Rudy Vetter, senior vice president for international business development at the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, a public-private partnership that works to attract investment to the greater Phoenix area from around the world.

Vetter says he believes one interaction between Suntech's CEO and the mayor of Goodyear helped the city stand out from its dozens of competitors. "She went to him and said, ‘Dr. Shi, if you come back to my little city…I will bake a cake for you,'" Vetter says. "You know, Dr. Shi has told me that story many times and says, ‘Give my regards to the mayor and thank her for the cake.' I believe that was an emotional tie breaker."