The hard work is done. Almost.
After what may seem like ages of interacting with your community to understand the perceptions of your neighborhood, followed by determining what to change, setting measurable goals, and creating a neighborhood logo, you’ve got in hand the physical beginnings of your new brand. You’ve got a cohesive brand identity—one that your community loves and can stand behind.
Now, it’s time to engage your community and spread the word about your new brand.
Consistency is Key
There’s a reason why you labored over creating a style guide for your logo. When you’re ready to launch your brand, it’s important to be prepared to introduce your new campaign and then move forward full throttle.
“Strive for an all-out, consistent launch, rather than slowly introducing various elements of a new image,” says graphic designer Jeff Fisher of LogoMotives. “The piecemeal approach presents a mixed message to those not familiar with a neighborhood or brand and complicates the desired message.”
“Part of that all-out, consistent introduction of a new image is making sure that all individuals involved with the organization have the latest and greatest image and marketing materials available for their use,” Fisher continues. “Volunteers often play a great role in many neighborhood and community groups. I’ve often seen the wrong logo, or marketing message, sent out by a well-meaning group volunteer who was never provided the proper materials.”
“A well-coordinated big splash in introducing a new logo, brand, and marketing or promotion program presents a newsworthy activity and helps totally define the brand introduction,” Fisher explains.
So, why not throw a party for yourself? (And your community, of course.)
Leverage a Popular Community Event to Launch Your Brand
Many Portland neighborhoods draw big crowds at regular, or even annual, events they host, so it makes sense to leverage the audience of events like Last Thursday on Alberta or First Thursday Art in the Pearl to unveil your new neighborhood brand.
If your neighborhood doesn’t have a signature community event, it might be a good idea to plan one in conjunction with the launch of your new brand.
---
Find out more about launching your brand physically and digitally on Neighborhood Notes.
Successful brands are always defined by logos—the combination of a stylized name and image that represents a concept much larger than the sum of its parts.
Yet, our modern world is full of too many poorly created, or even unbranded, brands. If you think people have the wrong perception of your neighborhood, it’s not because your neighborhood lacks its own unique identity, but rather, because your neighborhood lacks a cohesive brand identity.
The simplest, most easily understandable and recognizable part of your neighborhood’s brand should be a visual identity—your logo—followed by the physical implementation of that logo on street light banners, decals and other signage.
Establishing a logo is the first step to making your brand come to life.
So, if you’ve done the hard work, which includes taking the time to understand your neighbors and local businesses, as well as your audience, and set realistic, measurable goals, it’s time for some action.
Creating Your Neighborhood’s Logo
Be forewarned, choosing an agreed-upon logo that the community feels is representative of itself is no easy hurdle to overcome. But it’s important to remember that a well-designed, thought out logo is an ideal way to invigorate an intangible idea, the qualities of your community.
Local logo experts Dee Heffernan of Sol Identity, a brand strategist and designer who is currently leading the branding effort of the St. Johns Main Street Coalition (SJMSC); graphic designer Jeff Fisher of LogoMotives; and Brooke Preston, a communications consultant and the owner and founder of The Word Brewery, offer the following tips on designing your neighborhood’s logo:
---
And once you've created your logo, learn about making a style guide on Neighborhood Notes.
This is the third article in a series about neighborhood branding. After exploring the perceptions of your neighborhood and determining what to change, we will now provide tips on how to create your neighborhood’s brand.
What image comes to mind when you think of your neighborhood?
If you live in St. Johns, it's likely the verdant green rivets lining the contours two distinctive Gothic, cathedral-like towers, which jut skyward flanked by lush hills on either side and flowing water below.
The most easily recognizable and instantly understandable aspect of a brand is often a visual identity. But as discussed before, you can’t simply slap branded stickers on windows or hang logo banners from light poles and expect people to change their perception of your neighborhood. In fact, if you did, you’d likely have a lot of displeased neighbors.
But once you’ve collected feedback from your community, what does it actually take to create a brand?
To bring your neighborhood’s identity to life, begin by defining realistic, measurable goals.
What Are Your Goals?
“Creating and documenting measurable goals, in regards to branding or rebranding, may not be the easiest task for neighborhoods or business districts, in part due to the fact that the impact may not be immediate,” says graphic designer Jeff Fisher of LogoMotives. “It takes time to initiate the branding effort, go through the research and design phase, determine how to introduce the new identity, and then measure actual results.”
Setting goals and documenting them is nevertheless important. Common goals for a neighborhood or business district often include instilling a sense of pride in the area while “project[ing] a polished and professional public image,” Fisher explains.
But in an areas with “a rich and long history” like St. Johns, one of the main goals is preservation, according to Josh Guerra, the design chair for St. Johns Main Street Coalition (SJMSC).
“The fine line we have to walk is somewhere between respecting and preserving the architectural character of the district, but also encourage responsible development,” Guerra says. “The design committee in particular is working on creating [a] cohesive vision for how community members want the district to ‘look’ based on our vision session, which took place in January 2011.”
For Dee Heffernan of Sol Identity, a brand strategist and designer who is currently leading the St. Johns branding effort, this vision must address, "How are we going to attract people from outside of St. Johns to live in and to invest in our community?"
In order for St. Johns to get on the map, "there needs to be some kind of demand," she continues. She believes St. Johns is deserving of the “special trek” it takes to get there, but part of the branding goal is to show others why.
Citing historic landmarks and natural areas like the bridge, Cathedral Park, and access to the river, Heffernan says there are plenty of “untapped properties” that deserve to be highlighted. The main challenge is defining the intangible quality of community for a diverse and changing community.
But Heffernan believes the kind of community St. Johns has is unique. “It's a little bit simpler out here,” she says. But, in terms of branding, "How do we communicate that sense of community—old school community?” she asks. How does a brand convey a concept like acquaintanceship—everyone knows their neighbors in St. Johns?
The people have "a lot of pride" and "are protective of it [St. Johns]," Heffernan says, and the appropriate brand can rejuvenate and unite the community.
While Heffernan says she, SJMSC and the community are still determining the exact goals they’d like to achieve, it’s important to "start with values. What I want to try to get to are a set of core values that the community can basically agree upon." By listening to her neighbors, she’s documenting early trends such as: "‘I want to know who my neighbors are.’ That's a real value—feeling connected to the people that live next door to you."
---
For more guidelines on how to create your brand, read the rest on Neighborhood Notes.
Potentially dubbed the "Independent Republic of St. Johns" or the "Best Little Town in Portland," the St. Johns Main Street Coalition is currently working to brand its community.
“Branding is more than a logo,” the coalition states. “It’s a long-term journey of discovery that unleashes who your community is, what your community does, and how it communicates to potential consumers.”
But branding is not simply about communicating to customers. It’s also about creating a shared identity in your community between neighborhood associations and business districts. Your brand is something the whole neighborhood can stand behind and share with outsiders saying: “This is what it means to live, work and play in St. Johns.”
Why Would It Be In Your Best Interest To Rebrand Your Neighborhood?
“Some neighborhoods in the city are not as well known as others, [some] have kind of gotten lost over the years, [some] are victims of sometimes negative reputations or are simply not clearly defined,” explains Jeff Fisher of LogoMotives. “Branding one’s neighborhood offers an opportunity to create a verbal and visual identity, reintroduce a community, instill pride in the residents, and make the place known to others in the city.”
“Such branding does increase the public awareness and positive perceptions of specific neighborhoods and business districts throughout the City of Portland,” Fisher continues. “Many individuals have never even heard of some neighborhoods in which residents have enormous personal pride. Logos, banners, bumper stickers, T-shirts, signage, neighborhood business or walking maps, and other graphic elements may be very effective in introducing and informing the public about the location, history and attributes of a neighborhood. At the same time, resident pride in their own neighborhood may be enhanced.”
But don’t think you can simply put banners on your light poles and logo decals in storefront windows to make people view your neighborhood differently. Branding is a huge undertaking that requires the input of your neighbors, the local business community, and even outsiders.
How do people react when you reveal which Portland neighborhood you live in?
Cully neighbor Justin Houk has been told that he lives in the "hillbilly part of Portland by people that live one street over in Beaumont," while University Park neighbor Christa Stephanie Denise relates that someone "straight up has said to my face where I live sucks." And who hasn't heard about the childless Pearl, gang-infested NE Portland, or crime-ridden Felony Flats?
Or worse yet, what if the mention of your neighborhood or business district garners no reaction at all, or people ask, “where’s that?”
Whether you live in a neighborhood known by its stereotype or not, many Portland neighbors and business owners are seeking to create an identity for their community or to change a negative perception of their neighborhood—to outsiders and insiders.
Although the area considered Felony Flats in Portland may not have defined boundaries, the Lents neighborhood has often been considered smack dab in the middle of this “undesirable” area.
“There are a lot of really pervasive false perceptions about Lents that are perpetuated citywide, mostly by people who've never been to the area,” Lents neighbor and community leader Cora Potter says, “and their reason for not coming is usually one of the incorrect assumptions or perceptions that they heard from another person or persons—so it's just a vicious cycle.”
Lents Neighborhood Association board member Jess Laventall echos Potter’s sentiments. “Often the only brands that have been applied to Lents have been labels from people who do not live here, or have only driven past Lents, or have only read about certain events in the news. It's unfortunate some people unfairly label Lents in the media where it often has high visibility, thus affecting even more underinformed perceptions.”
Thinking about your neighborhood or business district as a brand can give community members and business leaders the opportunity to assess the realities of their areas before determining which positive aspects to highlight for the city to see.
So, where do you begin the process?
Assessing Reality: The Facts
The first step is to “assess the reality,” says communications consultant Brooke Preston of The Word Brewery. “What is the neighborhood’s reality, from insiders’ perspectives? Be honest—every neighborhood has assets and drawbacks.”
Business owners may have slightly different strategies and goals than neighbors for branding their sector, but on the whole, graphic designer Jeff Fisher of LogoMotives believes both “feel a need to brand a neighborhood to create a sense of community, give the area a recognized identity within the city, and convey and instill pride in that neighborhood.” Business districts may add the “desired results of bringing business traffic to the district and producing an economic impact,” Fisher says.
In an ideal world, the perspectives of both neighbors and business owners would align to establish a vibrant brand and community that everyone desires to stand behind. Recognize the positive aspects of your community, whether that’s history or nascent culture, to create a new brand that speaks to the spirit of neighbors and business owners alike.
