Manchester’s branding initiative

Sharing our story

Manchester is reaching the end of year one in a research-driven, community-wide identity initiative. This effort will help Manchester stand out in the marketplace as we grow toward our preferred future. Our goal is to increase interest and investment in our community from residents, entrepreneurs, companies and visitors. At the end of this first year, we have developed a brand that will allow us to continue sharing our story with a unified voice. This page will continue to be updated as we enter into year two of this initiative where we begin implementing our brand story.

RESEARCH

We started by conducting research inside and outside of the community to uncover perceptions, attitudes, and what's unique about Manchester.

CREATIVITY

All of that data was transformed into compelling creative tools that tell the Manchester story in ways that visitors, businesses, and residents can understand.

ACTION

Next begins the integration of the new brand, not just into marketing and communications, but also into the fabric of our community and our daily lives.


Working together for a unified voice

  • THE WHY

    Why has Manchester developed a new brand?

    As we look toward the growth and prosperity of our community, our brand was developed to equip all entities and our residents as we communicate and grow through municipal activities, event recruitment, culture, assets, and amenities.

    In a collaborative effort between the City of Manchester, Manchester Economic Development Office, and local stakeholders, a unified approach has been taken to develop a brand to tell the unique story of our city.

  • THE PROCESS

    Our brand process began with examining the community of Manchester through resident surveys, focus groups, one-on-one interviews, and feedback from outside community. This part of the process revealed valuable information and key insights to move forward in the strategic development of a refreshed brand. We gradually pieced together a design that captures the unique ideas and imagery representing Manchester as a community.

    The process included the following steps:

    Step 1: Stakeholder, Resident, & Community Education

    Step 2: Insight Gathering & Research

    Step 3: DNA & Strategy Formation

    Step 4: Creative Brand & Message Development

    Step 5: Brand in Action

  • THE OUTCOME

    The brand developed will be a long-term tool to help us reach our preferred future.

    As we compete for growth, our brand and story will be used to communicate to those around us that we are a community this is always exceptional.

    Our community entities are equipped with a unified brand to use for promotional, educational, and informational purposes. Updating and implementing our brand will take place over time, and will occur as existing materials, signage, and equipment need replacing.

    The brand’s application on vehicles, apparel, and other city infrastructure will help our community be more visible and recognizable. Any brochures, social media, and marketing materials will use the new design to stand out amongst other cities to show what makes Manchester distinct.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

  • Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not around. In other words, your reputation! Just like people or products, communities have reputations based on all the different experiences people have had with that community over time. Branding is the process of changing, clarifying, refining, or improving that reputation.

    The first step in our community branding initiative is conducting research to figure out what Manchester’s existing reputation is. At the same time we will conduct research to determine what Manchester’s greatest strengths are. What makes our community special and unique? This allows us to look at where we are reputation wise, where we want to be based on our greatest strength, and then we come up with creative tools, strategies and advocacy programs that help close the gap between the two.

    A new brand won't solve all our problems. What branding can do is focus people on the positive differentiator in Manchester, which can help us stand out as a preferred location. The stronger and more defined our reputation, the more people will want to live, work and play here.

  • Just like people or products, communities have reputations based on all the different experiences people have with it over time. Community branding is a process that clarifies and refines a reputation to help a community reach its preferred future. The stronger and more defined our brand and reputation, the more we can positively influence those considering living, working, investing, and visiting here—strengthening our community as a whole.

    By re-imagining and refreshing our brand, we’ve created a forward-looking identity that embraces our city’s innovative, bold, and unique spirit. We’re excited for this brand to help shape our reputation and goals and to tell the story of our past and future.

  • First and foremost, a brand is not just a logo or a tagline. A brand is a set of ideas and images (such as a logo) that set an expectation of what our community is about. Our brand is our unique story. If we, as a community, don’t define it and tell it, others will for us. It was important for Manchester’s brand to be built from a foundation of research and sound strategy.

  • Steps to roll the brand out are currently being made. Over time, the new brand will be shared digitally—through updated websites and social media—and throughout Manchester’s environment. When new materials need to be replaced or created, you will see the new brand being placed where the previous logo and branding was used.

  • Several organized groups will begin promoting the new brand and bring others along in the journey. Whether an organization, a business, or one of our local branding vendors or brand ambassadors, we see this as a community effort and look forward to partnering with those who want to get involved. If you are interested in becoming a brand ambassador, contact Jodie Nazaka for more information at jnazaka@manchesternh.gov.

  • No. Residential tax dollars were not spent on this project. Funding for this project was provided through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) as part of the ongoing relief from COVID-19. The City of Manchester conducted a study to see how the ARPA funds would be best spent. One key area of focus was the economy, businesses, and events. Funds were allocated to support the City’s economic development office as well as a long-term brand and positioning strategy to support the local hospitality and tourism industries that were heavily impacted by COVID-19.

  • City of Manchester leaders determined that it made sense to contract with North Star Place Branding + Marketing, the industry leader in community branding and marketing, to complete this work. Their thorough process intentionally sought out opinions, perspectives, and experiences from our local residents and business leaders, as well as people from around the New England region. This approach ensured our story was distinct, authentic, and ownable. It also enabled all elements of the brand to be based on research, ensured that creative elements would be thoughtful and of good quality, and provided our staff with a comprehensive, multi-year marketing plan to strategically focus efforts against community, business, and visitor initiatives. You can view other examples of North Star’s community branding and marketing work on their website.

  • No. While the new brand may be used in a variety of areas to advertise Manchester as a great place to live, visit, and do business, this effort is not an ad campaign. This initiative is about projecting a cohesive, collaborative, and enticing image of Manchester to residents, investors, and outside markets.