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From what I read, the livestock industry is moving away from the traditional practice of branding calves with red-hot irons, and moving toward ear tags, bar codes and even RFID transmitters.
But in other commercial pursuits, branding
is a
hot current buzzword. It's easily as important now as a
mission statement
was in the '90s, or a strategic
vision
was in the '80s.
When a branding consultant
set up shop in Chaffee
County a couple of years ago, I figured that somebody had
spotted us as rubes, easy prey for a spiel about how it was
worth thousands of dollars to establish and build a brand
identity that would serve as a marketing focus while
projecting a unified and cohesive message.
I also figured that sophisticated city people were a lot smarter about such matters, but apparently I was wrong. As it turns out, there's a group called the Mile High Alliance which is trying to develop a brand for the city of Denver.
Denver is already known as the Mile High City.
In
Colorado, being a mile above sea level is nothing special,
but to the great masses elsewhere, it allegedly connotes
outdoor life with mountains, snow and skiing. Marketers
claim that Mile High City
doesn't promote Denver's
role as a center of business. And they claim it's important
to present a unified, cohesive identity to attract more
commerce.
Like any other city, Denver wants more business; so the city is looking into a new brand -- because companies interested in expanding or relocating reportedly care more about a city's brand than they do about shipping costs, cost of living, utility rates, school quality, availability of skilled labor or any other factors that used to be important.
But what kind of brand works best? According to Angela
Baier, marketing director for the municipal government,
they need to find something that means all that we are
and not just the Rocky Mountains and outdoors.
This branding business is not easy work, though. An old
slogan, Queen City of the Plains
would be
immediately denounced by Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, and
Denver for a Rocky Mountain High
might attract the
wrong kind of business.
Thus it's not surprising that other cities have failed.
Omaha, for instance, is known for beef, and in 2001 came up
with Rare. Well done.
That replaced previous slogans like Omaha: America's
Best-Kept Secret,
and I'm in Love with Omaha.
It's easy to see why these weren't good branding
mechanisms. They had nothing to do with Omaha. You could
substitute any other place, as with Nathrop: America's
Best-Kept Secret
or I'm in Love with Villa
Grove,
and the saying would make just as much
sense.
But Omaha residents hated Rare. Well done.
So the
consultants have produced O! is for Omaha.
And all
this time I thought O
stood for either oxygen or
Oprah. Besides, why would that slogan make me want to visit
the place or spend money there?
Denver, of course, won't settle for D! is for
Denver.
For one thing, Dallas is the Big D,
and
Denver is not going to win a contest about who owns that
initial. But what should the city's slogan be?
One perennial favorite is too long: The difference
between yogurt and Denver is that yogurt has live
culture.
Largest American city in the Mountain Time Zone
has a nice ring, but it's not true. The rest of Texas runs
on Central Time, but El Paso is on Mountain Time, and it
has 577,000 residents, as compared to Denver's 500,000.
Besides that, the rest of America doesn't even know there
is a Mountain Time Zone, since the TV networks never
mention it.
Our air is thin, but you can see it.
On many
days, the air is indeed visible. But it's a slogan that
Mexico City could also use, and we're looking for something
unique.
America's longest street runs through it.
Many
authorities say that Colfax Avenue, at 26 miles, is the
longest street in the U.S., extending from Golden to
Aurora. The slogan is distinctive, but it just doesn't
resonate.
Gridlock with a great view.
Not always, of
course, but if you're looking toward Mt. Evans or Pikes
Peak when you're stuck in city traffic, it works.
Further, you don't have gridlock in quiet backwaters like Salida; you have it in bustling cities. So this slogan projects the idea that Denver is a place to do some business, while maintaining the city's image as a center for outdoor-minded people.
So there it is, a new brand for the Mile High City, one that builds on established strengths while moving to a vibrant commercial focus. Now, if someone will just send me the $300,000 that they were going to spend on brand development.
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