why city brands run out of steam
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Why city brands run out of steam and yours doesn't have toTRANSCRIPT
Why City Brands Run Out of
Steam and Yours Doesn’t Have To
Presented by:
Bill Baker
Total Destination Management
Portland OR USA
www.DestinationBranding.com
What is a City Brand?
A city brand is the totality of
expectations, perceptions, thoughts, and
feelings that customers hold about a city
– it’s your reputation – it’s your promise of
value that gives you a competitive edge.
The challenge for you as a city marketer is:
To orchestrate the positive thoughts and
feelings that you want to be known for –
then consistently deliver them!
Not capitalizing on the benefits and
opportunities that can arise
City leaders, key partners and stakeholders
need to understand branding and how it
relates to cities
Lack of commitment to the project
The level of understanding needed will vary
across the community
May be a need to break down some silos and
open some doors
1. Insufficient Understanding of Branding
2. Politics and Parochialism
A lack of vision by leaders
The brand is dictated from “on high” and out
of touch with the reality of the place,
customers and its competitive position
Self interest and parochialism
Lip service: leaders do not buy-in or actively
support the project
Failure to value tourism and economic
development marketing
Yes, but great cities to live, work and play
are everywhere – what else do you have to
give you an edge?
A reluctance to invest in the future
3. Mistaking a Logo and Tagline for a Brand
It takes more than a tagline and logo to
create a genuine brand
And it’s much more than an advertising
campaign
It involves more than looking good
And it’s really not about what you say, but
what your customers think
Never, ever conduct a competition among
residents for a logo or tagline – then think
you have a brand!
4. Lack of Stakeholder Buy-in
“The we don’t need to consult anyone”
attitude has repeatedly been proven to not
work
Not engaging the community from the start
Opportunity to look for “potholes” in the
road ahead
Harness local opinions, ideas and knowledge
It takes more than the CVB or chamber’s
marketing department
Everyone needs to be involved in supporting
the brand to greater or lesser extent
5. Too Much Focus on the Short-term
Establishing your brand identity won’t
happen overnight
It takes time, it’s long term and cumulative
Difficult to change perceptions and views in
short term. Afterall, it took years to get your
current image.
Must get beyond heads in beds next week
It takes a strategic plan involving the launch,
adoption and implementation over several
years
Changing perceptions and a poor image can
take decades, but reap huge rewards
6. Overlooking the Customer’s View
Your brand is what your customers think it is
– so pay attention to them!
Insufficient or irrelevant research can be a
problem
Low-cost research techniques can yield
volumes
Don’t let local opinion overshadow the needs
of external audiences
If the focus is tourism and economic
development, don’t research the
demographics and buying behaviour of
residents, its almost irrelevant to the city
brand.
7. Weak and Unrealistic Positioning
The trickiest part of city branding
Positioning designed particularly to keep
locals happy = recipe for failure!
Warm and fuzzy doesn’t cut it with
customers who have their own needs and
desires
Your city doesn’t “have it all” and you’re not
“the center of it all”
Weak positioning = a weak, irrelevant and
unsustainable brand
Must have positioning founded on city’s
strengths that are most relevant to
customers and you can deliver with greater
intensity and personality than competitors
8. Brand Fatigue
You will be tired of your communications and
brand platform long before your target
audience
An inch a month off strategy = miles at year’s
end
Constant need to refresh and innovate but
don’t stray from the brand strategy
Keep stakeholders energized and focused
Stick to the guidelines and brand manual!
Familiarize key new employees, Board
members, elected officials and partners
Conduct an annual forum for board members
and key partners
9. Engaging the Wrong Type of Agency
Don’t be distracted by beautiful advertising
examples and logos when choosing the
agency to lead the brand planning
Firstly set the strategy, then engage the best
advertising, graphic design and web agencies
Follow a proven systematic, consultative and
analytical brand planning process
Engage the services of objective,
professionals experienced in the challenges,
opportunities and pitfalls of city branding
It might be a time when “buying local” is not
in the city’s best long term interests
Telltale Signs That the City’s Brand is
Losing Steam
Controversy and negative local publicity
Failure to attain set objectives
Failure to enhance the city’s marketing
performance
Enthusiasm for the brand is lagging
Not widely endorsed or adopted
Positioning is weakening and becoming less
singular i.e. moving toward “we’ve got
everything” to keep stakeholders happy
Straying from the brand guidelines
Communications and designs miss their mark
and don’t resonate with target audiences
Customer satisfaction is falling
1. Ensure that key stakeholders understand branding – its strengths, limitations and benefits
2. Follow a thoroughly researched, systematic process
3. Engage experienced, objective, professional expertise
4. Don’t rush. It takes more than a brainstorming session
5. Consultation and engagement boosts adoption and use
6. Never loose sight of the real customers, and their needs and desires
Fifteen Essentials for Successful City
Branding
7. Objectivity and honesty. The brand must be grounded in reality
8. Dare to be different. But it must be relevant and attractive to the target audience
9. Focus on experiences and benefits
10. Optimize your tourism identity
Fifteen Essentials for Successful City
Branding
11. Make (and keep) a valued Destination Promise™ and use it as a beacon
12. Play as a team and build partnerships
13. Don’t water-down the agreed strategy
14. Live the brand everywhere
15. Measure, monitor and manage
www.DestinationBranding.com
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Total Destination ManagementPortland, OR U.S.A.
www.DestinationBranding.com