UNIVERSITY CITY, Mo., Feb. 24, 2012--The City of University City will unveil its new brand identity at the city’s “Celebration of Diversity” community event on March 3, 2012. The event will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Centennial Commons and is free and open to residents and non-residents.
The celebration will include performances by local groups and musicians, information tables hosted by local organizations and institutions, refreshments and more. A special presentation by Mayor Shelley Welsch will begin at 7 p.m. and will include the unveiling of the city’s new brand identity.
“The new identity is the result of a formalized branding process undertaken by the City that included input from residents, businesses and community leaders,” said Mayor Shelley Welsch. “Our new community identity captures the true brand essence of University City.”
University City is at the leading-edge of municipal branding as more and more communities understand the importance of identifying their assets through formalized branding. As competition grows to attract residents, tourists, as well as business, branding provides a differentiated identity that assists communities in promoting and communicating their true core assets.
The University City branding effort began in August 2011. As part of their assignment, City Manager Lehman Walker charged the Avant Marketing Group, the City’s public communications and marketing firm, to develop a renewed identity for the City that would assist in promoting both the opportunities and quality way of life in the community.
“The Avant Marketing Group provided a formalized analytical approach to define our identity,” stated Walker. “Through focus groups, one-on-one interviews and online surveys, the new identity was developed based on community input and will highly resonate with our residents because of its source.”
The market research was a community-wide engagement effort and included focus groups with 39 residents and business leaders, over 25 one-on-one interviews with key community and business leaders, and participation from over 80 residents through an online survey.
The new brand identity will begin appearing on City signage and in communications. It will be used in the City’s economic development efforts and as a “calling card” for all marketing and promotional efforts. In addition, the new identity will be featured in several new planned City communications activities including a resident newsletter and website that will assist in the communication needs of residents, businesses, newcomers, tourists and business prospects.
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