Branding Rochester: From the Perspective of Geographically Distant Marketing Executives by Brad VanAuken, BrandForward, Inc. March 2010
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I teach brand management principles to marketing executives throughout the world. One of the case studies that I use in my educational workshops is “Branding Rochester (NY).” That case study focuses on the use of quantitative brand positioning research in conjunction with marketing intuition to create the strongest brand position possible. In the past three years, marketing executives from Accra, Ghana and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Atlanta, Georgia and Silicon Valley, California have worked this case study. The research results from which they develop their conclusions can be found here: Results

I ask them to develop the most advantageous brand position based on the following criteria: the brand position must be compelling, unique and believable. The most important two criteria of those are compelling and unique. One can always create more poof points for believable. Further, brands should always play from their strengths and not try to address their weaknesses in their brand positioning statements (unless they can turn a weakness into a strength).

Below are some of the more interesting recommendations from this band positioning exercise:

Rochester, NY

• Small town feel, big city culture
• A progressive small city where science, culture and families thrive
• Connection to community and culture without the big city hassles
• Cultural gem of the Finger Lakes
• Cultural gateway to the Finger Lakes
• Jewel of Upstate New York

Several insights regarding target audiences occurred during these discussions.

They are as follows:
A healthy business climate (low taxes, minimal regulations, low energy costs, talented employee base, etc.) will lead to more jobs, which leads to increased population (people follow jobs), which in turn leads to more amenities, culture, etc. High taxes and the regulatory climate in New York State largely preclude attracting additional people to our communities. We must focus on retaining the businesses and people that are already here.

People come to Rochester for the following reasons: to attend a college or university, corporate relocations, to find jobs (mostly from other Upstate New York locations for which job prospects and city amenities are even more limited), refugees sponsored by churches, people who grew up in Rochester who wish to return and others who wish to be closer to families who live here. If these insights are true, they have implications for who is targeted and what the message is.

Rochester has an unusually high proportion of technical workers (engineers, scientists, etc.), cultural workers and college/university students.

If high school and college students receive a very good education and have a good experience overall while living in Rochester, we can expect some portion of them to return one day when they begin to form families. We should not expect them to return immediately after they graduate from college as many of them will want to experience more vibrant larger cities first. Efforts to link area college students with activities in the metropolitan area will result in a better experience for everyone and may increase the chances that the former students may return to Rochester one day.

Other insights:
Even though Rochestarians talk about their 20 minute commutes, they still underestimate how lucky they are compared to their big city counterparts who often suffer 1 to 2 hour commutes and more.
People in bigger cities are jealous of our significantly lower housing costs. Housing costs are a significantly lower percentage of our incomes and we have a much higher standard of living compared to people with similar positions and incomes in other larger cities.

People in larger cities are often surprised that we have multiple museums, film festivals and a significant jazz festival. They don’t think of smaller cities as having those cultural amenities.

Ultimately, to be successful, a brand position must resonate with the target audience. Current residents are the target audience for Rochester, NY branding. Do any of the above mentioned brand positions resonate with you?

Brad VanAuken is president and founder of BrandForward, Inc., a full-service brand management consultancy with clients throughout the world. Previously, Brad was the vice president of marketing for Element K, a leading e-learning company and director of brand management and marketing for Hallmark Cards, Inc. During his tenure as Hallmark’s chief brand advocate, Hallmark received the Brand Management of the Year award. Recognized as one of the world’s leading experts on brand management and marketing, Brad is a much sought after speaker and writer. He wrote the books The Brand Management Checklist and Brand Aid. His free online brand management and marketing newsletter is read by thousands of marketers throughout the world. Brad has a BS degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Email: vanauken@brandforward.com
Company Profile: BrandForward, Inc.
Company URL: http://www.brandforward.com
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