Wednesday, January 21, 2004
Denver's mayor wants a new brand, so the search has begun. The city's consultants have refined three themes that they are testing. The leadership hopes to complete this process in the next month. Read more.
As one observer notes in the article, ""It's a hard thing to do, branding. There has to be agreement on the positioning, what Denver stands for, and then you have to get everyone on the same page."
Meanwhile, in Albany, NY, leaders are trying to establish the brand of Tech Valley. While the brand is taking hold locally, leaders are finding it tougher (understandably) to establish the brand with outsiders.
Equally important, Albany working on a transformational branding strategy. While Denver is working off assets that are widely known (beautiful mountains, frontier spirit), Albany if focusing on an emerging economy. Its tougher, because you have to deliver on the brand promise.
As one Albany leaders notes, ""We're talking about a total transformation of a region's economy and image. You can't go out with real slick advertising campaigns and say you are this thing Tech Valley if you haven't set the foundation showing that there is in fact depth and breadth to the tech sector."
Read more about Albany. Go.
posted by Ed Morrison |
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Some Background on EDPro Weblog
The purpose of this weblog is to help economic development professionals -- EDPros -- keep up with the changes sweeping our profession. Strap on your goggles. It's a whole new game. There are no experts any more. The only place to learn about economic development is from other EDPros who are doing it.
One other point: the prevaling approach (paradigm, if you like) in economic development is shifting from competition to collaboration. There are a lot of reaasons underlying this shift, but here's the important insight: You, your community, and your region will do better by collaborating and sharing information.
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Speaking and workshops on Open Source Economic Development
As the idea of Open Source Economic Development starts spreading, more people are asking about it. Visit the I-Open web site to learn more. My colleagues and I are happy to explain the basic concepts in a talk or a workshop. E-mail Susan Alshuler if you'd like to learn more about workshops and speaking.
Background on Ed Morrison
Download some background information on me here.
The tough task of branding
