ARTIST'S CONCEPT
Quoting the opening crawl from all of the Star Wars films, "In a galaxy far, far away...", a design and signage consultant hired by the Town of Yarmouth told Town Council at a recent meeting how his firm had settled on a branding scheme which relied on the use of constellations and starlight theme to give the town a unique "brand" to set it apart from the thousands of other towns in North America clamoring for the attention of tourists and businesses seeking a place to visit or to which they might re-locate homes or businesses.
In making his presentation of what he described as a "very flexible" concept, Ian MacLeod of Dartmouth-based signage firm Form:Media told councilors that possible constellation names included "townus yarmouthus", "canis tollis" (for the duck tolling retreiver), "gourmeus elegantus" (cuisine) and "spiritus partius" (party spirit).
MacLeod explained that the constellation-themed branding logo and slogan, "On the edge of everywhere" could be readily used as an "anchor" to promote food and wine, music, sports. "This is the edge you've been waiting for", he added.
"I love it," exclaimed mayor Pam Mood.
Some councilers expressed reservations about the branding package.
Mayor Mood also weighed in enthusiastically at a Dec 11 council meeting when Form:Media suggested "Anchored in Pride" as a possible Town slogan. She said that the slogan "stands for exactly who we are."
"It's a beautiful way to brand Yarmouth," Mood added.
Community branding authority Roger Brooks cautions communities in Canada and the USA that re-branding a community is a serious excercise which can have very positive - or negative - consequences. "Logos and slogans are NOT brands," Brooks points out many times in his popular community branding presentations and videos. Brooks' theses on branding and tourism development are embedded in the current Nova Scotia Tourism strategies and those of several other regional tourism entities.
In presentations Brooks sets out several key elements for a successful community branding: create a brand which is very specific; brands have to come from within to be successful; great brands always start with a plan; logos and slogans are not the brand; brands are built on product, not marketing; communities must deliver on the brand "promise".
"This is where most communities fail," Brooks said in a 2014 Nova Scotia visit. "They start with a logo, a slogan, and good looking graphics, and forget that brands are about perceptions and are ONLY used to support, inform and reinforce that one thing that sets you apart from everyone else."
"Logos, slogans and tag lines are simply marketing messages used to support a brand. The logo and slogan simply reinforce the brand that exists. Do NOT get hung up on logos and slogans. They are way down the list in terms of branding a destination," Brooks repeated.
The "Edge of everywhere" slogan is already being used on advertising projects for the region.
PHOTO IN AD BY DEBBIE ROBERTS
