Burlington One Brand Project Update

Earlier this year, the City of Burlington announced a project team made up of staff from the City, Burlington Economic Development and Tourism Burlington was undertaking a rebranding project with the goal of creating a  single, unified brand that reflects one city, one story. The new brand will be rooted in a strong brand promise that reflects our community and speaks to our residents, our businesses, visitors and the world.This is a joint project between Burlington EcDev, the City Manager’s Office and Corporate Communications that will leverage existing budgets already allocated to marketing and communications.As I stated at the launch of the Burlington One Brand project, our city's brand is more than a logo or slogan. It’s our voice, a promise of who we are that we announce to our neighbouring cities and towns, across Canada, and globally. Likewise, this rebranding project is more than a logo or slogan, it's an opportunity to capture why Burlington is so special and hear from the changing and diverse demographics living in our city for their input on our brand. We will work towards creating a strong brand promise that reflects our community and positions our city to attract more investment, businesses, talent and visitors.Burlington EcDev and the City have provided an update on the project that I'm sharing with you and that will help residents get a better grasp of the benefits of the One Brand. Also, here's an infographic that helps summarize the project and its benefits: Burlington One Brand - Infographic.The One Brand will capture the Burlington story:

• This isn’t just about selling Burlington, it’s about celebrating Burlington. We want to build local genuine attachment and pride for our city.
• We will be able to provide more effective tools for our businesses and elected officials to tell the Burlington story and put us on the map.

The One Brand will reflect our diversity and be incorporated into the Burlington customer experience:

• Burlington is a community of diverse neighbourhoods, with unique stories and ideas. Tapping into every corner of Burlington will be a priority so that we capture all of this and incorporate it into Burlington’s overall identity.
• Burlington One Brand will be completely integrated into the Burlington customer experience. In other words, this isn’t just talk for us. It’s about taking action.

The One Brand will help our economy thrive:

• This is an investment that will benefit everyone. By better positioning ourselves, Burlington will be able to stay competitive and economically prosperous.
• We are actively learning from best-in-class examples around the world of how a strong city brand can not only align stakeholders behind a shared vision for the future, but also create real economic impact that benefits everyone.

The One Brand will save us money and create efficiencies in the long-run:

• Cities are constantly changing, and Burlington is no different. We need an identity that will move with us.
• A unified brand will allow us to share our stories about who we are as a city and the value of what we offer. Burlington’s current brand strategy is currently fragmented across different departments and agencies. This can be expensive and confusing.

BENEFIT DETAILS BENEFIT: The One Brand will capture the Burlington story:This isn’t just about selling Burlington, it’s about celebrating Burlington. We want to build local genuine attachment and pride for our city.

• Burlington was named the number one community in Canada for good reason. However, this ranking depends on us continuing to do better so we can keep up. By better positioning ourselves, we’ll improve our chances of STAYING number one. We also want to be perceived as No. 1 regardless of who says we are or aren’t.
• The current identity offers very little opportunity for residents, businesses, city staff, etc. to show their Burlington pride. People who live in Burlington LOVE Burlington. Problem is, as of right now we haven’t given them an easy way to showcase that pride. We want to provide the tools and opportunities to shout it from the rooftops. This shared pride and connection will only bring us closer.

We will be able to provide more effective tools for our businesses and elected officials to tell the Burlington story and put us on the map.

• Burlington is home to many international companies that are amazing global ambassadors for our city. They need key messages and visual elements that go beyond just facts and figures to help attract talent and new investment that will help us grow and sustain our economy. As part of the new brand strategy, we’ll provide these tools.
• Our Mayor and City Council are very enthusiastic about telling Burlington’s story and building meaningful and lasting relationships locally, and abroad. As our Chief Salespeople, we need to equip them with the tools they need to be successful and make sure we’re putting our best foot forward.

BENEFIT: The One Brand will reflect our diversity and be incorporated into the Burlington customer experience:Burlington is a community of diverse neighbourhoods, with unique stories and ideas. Tapping into every corner of Burlington will be a priority so that we capture all of this and incorporate it into Burlington’s overall identity.

• There will be extensive staff, stakeholder and public engagement in 2020. We want to make sure we get it right, and we need you to help us shape Burlington’s story.
• Diverse voices need to be heard from across the city to shape our brand. What do people think when they hear the word “Burlington”? What are we known for? What makes you proud to live, work or visit here?

Burlington One Brand will be completely integrated into the Burlington customer experience. In other words, this isn’t just talk for us. It’s about taking action.

• There should be consistency and clarity in our brand promise, regardless of whether you are engaging with the Burlington place brand in your day-to-day life, or with the Corporate Burlington brand at City Hall, a park, on a bus, on our website, etc.

BENEFIT: The One Brand will help our economy thrive:This is an investment that will benefit everyone. By better positioning ourselves, Burlington will be able to stay competitive and economically prosperous.

• This is a joint project between Burlington Economic Development, the City Manager’s Office and Corporate Communications that will leverage existing budgets already allocated to marketing and communications. For the average resident, the allocated spend for Phase 1 and 2 works out to about $1.25.
• A strong brand is essential in attracting new businesses, jobs and talent to our community. Developing a new brand for Burlington is part of our current 25-year Strategic Plan. We are following through on what we committed to.
• A strong brand will better position us to compete globally for jobs, investment and visitors.
• A strong brand will increase awareness of Burlington as a tourism destination and attract more visitors.
• The One Brand will help Burlington attract talent such as newcomers and young families, which will support the growth of a vibrant retail and commercial environment for everyone to enjoy. As a result, our overall tax base will grow and ultimately reduce the tax burden on you as a citizen.

We are actively learning from best-in-class examples around the world of how a strong city brand can not only align stakeholders behind a shared vision for the future, but also create real economic impact that benefits everyone

• Cities such as Helsinki, Oslo and Melbourne have already experienced success following the completion of a rebrand and offer tremendous insight into how a strong brand can position a city for long-term economic prosperity.

BENEFIT: The One Brand will save us money and create efficiencies in the long-run: Cities are constantly changing, and Burlington is no different. We need an identity that will move with us.

• The current visual identity was created in 2002. The community has changed a lot since then, and the current identity doesn’t reflect who we are today. Part of this is because the current identity is rigid, there’s limited room for flexibility, and it can only be used one way.
• The new identity will be flexible, adaptable, and have the ability to grow and evolve with our community. We hope it will represent Burlington for generations to come, therefore making it unlikely to have to go through this process again.

A unified brand will allow us to share our stories about who we are as a city and the value of what we offer. Burlington’s current brand strategy is currently fragmented across different departments and agencies. This can be expensive and confusing.

• With everyone doing their own thing, there is confusion about where service is coming from, and where residents and businesses can go for assistance.
• A fragmented approach gets expensive. When everyone is designing and printing different logos, materials, and messaging it creates a lot of unnecessary duplication and work. It also puts a lot of unnecessary strain on our creative services team to manage all of these pieces. Additionally, City agencies don’t have a lot of design capacity, so having one unified brand would save these teams a lot of time and money.

For more details, or to follow along with updates to the project as it progresses, please visit burlington.ca/onebrand.— Mayor Marianne Meed WardRELATED LINK:

• City Undertaking Burlington One Brand Project

--*Posted by John Bkila, Mayor's Media and Digital Communications Specialist