Raleigh, North Carolina Wants To Hire A Branding Company

The City of Raleigh, North Carolina is looking for proposals for brand identity development and strategy. The proposals should focus on developing a city brand that reflects Raleigh’s community vision, rich culture, economic strength, visitor perception, and our strong place as a capital city. The brand should deliver the right message to residents, investors, and visitors.

The brand strategy should help city administration communicate the city’s message in all types of communications: direct, visual, and digital. The brand identity and strategy proposal must include: brand identity (logo), brand strategy (vision and mission), communication materials (print, digital, and video), brand guideline (styles and implementation), library (files and documentation, and stakeholder engagement).

The City of Raleigh, the Capital City of North Carolina, remains one of the fastest growing areas in the country. A great economy, top educational institutions, and exceptional health care facilities are some of the characteristics that attract people to the Triangle. The mild climate, diverse work force and inclusion in the Research Triangle Park combine to make Raleigh a great place to live, work, and play.

The Communications Department is responsible for developing marketing information for the public and the media about City services, policies, and procedures. The department also assists customers who call the information line with questions about City of Raleigh government. Communications manages the Raleigh Television Network (RTN), a state-of-the-art digital media center dedicated to serving the needs of Raleigh and Wake County through the operation of Public, Educational, and Government (PEG) access channels.

Scope of work:

Raleigh is a unique city that appeals to a wide audience but it lacks an easily-identifiable brand. Without a brand that clearly represents Raleigh, the Communications department has relied on the historical city seal to denote all marketing materials. This same city seal is used for official letters, on city vehicles, email notifications, city forms, and publications. It appears on all printed and digital materials in different formats, colors, quality and implementation, creating a high level of fragmentation in city communications.

City officials and the recently-adopted Strategic Plan identify the need for improved communications and a city brand that provides a cohesive message across the various departments.

A communication study (by Fleishman Hillard) brought to light the issues the city is facing in that area:

• City has not set communication objectives and/or branding strategy.

• Usage of the city seal as a logo: No style guidelines for the usage in printing and digital materials.

• Inconsistent message through our communication channels.

• Departments use their own communication strategy and identities creating a high level of fragmentation.

• Lack of staff and training in new communication standards and technology.

One of the main objectives of the City of Raleigh Strategic Plan is to develop a brand identity for the city. The brand will convey Raleigh’s profile, economic strengths, highly-educated workforce, its rich culture, historical foundations, quality of life, and vision. The city brand has to describe who we are, our strengths, and communicate that through a strong and solid message.

The branding process will involve stakeholders and leaders of the community, and it will include the following steps:

1. The selected firm will meet with Communications staff in charge of the branding process to learn about the city’s goals and community profile. In order to begin developing the brand identity, the firm will help identify and meet with stakeholders, and will also meet with elected officials, department directors, and other groups as determined by Communications.
2. Community buy-in for the branding effort is key to the success of the project. Input should be solicited from various sectors of the public, schools, businesses, and government agencies.

Based on the input received, the firm will develop a brand platform for the City of Raleigh and a message that crystalizes the city’s competitive advantage and distinctive strengths.

1. Schedule at least a meeting per month with Communications staff to show the progress of the project. The firm should be ready to answer questions and offer solutions.
2. After the branding process finishes, the firm should deliver the following:
3. A presentation to the Communications Board describing the proposed brand identity and its visual platform. Some changes may be requested.
4. A presentation of the final brand identity to the City Council Members and the community.
5. Brand Strategy: The plan should include the following components: Purpose, Consistency, Emotion Factor, Flexibility, Loyalty, and Competitive Awareness
6. City of Raleigh Brand Identity, including but not limited to:
   1. Branding strategy
   2. Creation of vision/mission statements

City of Raleigh brand, city logo, and sub-brand for all departments as well as general looks

1. Branding styles guideline for all collaterals including but not limited to: logo usage, typeface, color palette, text treatment, illegal formats, photography styles, iconography, etc.
2. Visual elements such as memo, business card, flier, brochure, postcard, report, sign, vehicle signage, PowerPoint templates, web mock-ups, email templates, etc.
3. Deliver all corresponding files to Communications for branding implementation, including: logos, collaterals, web mockups, presentations, brand style guidelines, and brand strategy reports

Proposal due on October 31 to:

City of Raleigh

Attention: Jorge Gao, Creative Director Communications

222 West Hargett Street Suite 301

Raleigh, NC 27601

M Booth & Associates and French-West-Vaughan have operations in North Carolina.