Brands Aren't Just For Cattle Any More

Nashua NH is ready to go through a Branding process. While the concept is easy to understand with cattle, toothpaste and tee shirts with a logo on them, the idea of a brand for a city is a little fuzzier for me. But one of the major problems with a downtown is that each visitor can come away with a different idea, and each merchant can emphasize different, maybe even conflicting qualities. And all of our ads and communications are radically different and vary in levels of professionalism.

City branding usually consists of creating a perfect tag line–"Alta, Utah: Way Up There!" (Just kidding, but you get the idea.) Add the right abbreviation for the city: Hendersonville is a long name to put on city banners, sooooo, "H" it is, in the right type font. And then a color palette, from which signage and banners will be chosen.

It's deceptively simple, but amazingly successful. The corker that puts it over the top is when the city encourages the use of the logo, tag line and palette, and it starts sprouting up all over. Voila! mission accomplished.

There are many books and web sites, and consultants, that specialize in Branding of cities. But, if you are looking for a good read while learning the ins and outs, check out downtownbranding.blogspot.com. Blogmeister Ben Muldrow IS a Brand designer and Partner at Arnett Muldrow & Associates in Greenville, SC. Ben says he has designed projects in over 130 communities.

What's fun is that when you see the illustrations on Ben's blog, the power of Branding comes into focus better. Here are some examples from the blog:
A photo shows the new Reidsville NC brand (sort of an "at" sign with an "R" in the middle) used on an intersection in the city. Very cool. I don't know if Reidsville NC used to be cool, but it is now.

A brief summary of the Opelousas, Louisiana project hit home for me, a closet Cajun accordion player and fan of Opelousas. The new logo, color scheme and tag line, "PERFECTLY SEASONED." are a perfectly seasoned gumbo. Good job!

Hendersonville, NC, will now be forever a special "H,"  with the tag "REALGenuine." And it works. I love the embellishments on the "H" and the tag over the seasons. Hendersonville has a CD with a style guide, templates for ads, color specs, printing instructions and the digital art that people can obtain and use. The whole town's graphic savvy and look just notched up about 5 points.

Well, I wonder where our Branding excursion will take us here in Nashua. Are we pink? Are we a serif font? Will we be able to come to agreement, here in the Gate City of the  "Live Free or Die" state? Mostly, I hope it doesn't take too long.

Now, go to http://downtownbranding.blogspot.com/ and check it out! Be sure to read the Wisconsin story.