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Place Branding for an Exciting Community
Strategy & Positioning, Messaging, Campaign Creation & Development, Adaptable Creative, Copywriting, Website & Voice Development
The Challenge
In order to breathe new life into a cherished part of the local community, National Real Estate reached out to us to create an engaging “place brand.” They were looking for a visual identity to represent the creative and inclusive vibe of the Hourglass District, and what it means to residents and visitors. As a place branding agency, we set out to create a brand that’s just as bold and innovative as this exhilarating area.
Our Approach
Looking to beautifully brand this up-and-coming area, we created a vibrant and intriguing visual aesthetic that exists in the space between retro and hipster. Our neighborhood marketing was aimed at promoting the district to residents as a place to gather and interact while inviting visitors from all over Orlando to get involved in the community.
Results
The Hourglass District has been featured as the new “it” spot for local foodies by Orlando Weekly, an outdoor market has debuted for the summer weekends, and many new restaurants have taken off. Plus, the Hourglass District social media pages are skyrocketing! We’re proud to work with our local community as a skilled place branding agency to give back to the city that we love and the home that’s shaped us.
Reaching Our Audiences
The challenge for this engagement was to truly capture the spirit of the area and establish a strong place identity that would resonate with residents past and present – and that outsiders would want to be a part of. Our place marketing team approached the development of the new brand with an audience-first mindset. They first reviewed published Census and economic data for the area, identifying patterns in lifestyle choices, what residents buy, and how they spend their free time.
We then conducted in-market qualitative research to identify types of people with a propensity to get involved and support this next chapter for the district. Insights yielded from the combination of primary and secondary research data led to the identification of two key audiences. Our primary audience was a mix of older Millennials and younger members of Generation X who live in the district and surrounding areas. Our secondary audience consisted of people who have lived in the Hourglass District for 40+ years – residents who are very connected to the area and invested in its future.
Bringing Personality to the Neighborhood
As an experienced place branding agency, we crafted a personality and style that weave the history of the Hourglass District into a bold, modern, urban aesthetic. We then extended the range of the district’s reach, which has brought this hyper-local culture to surrounding areas. Our creative team designed everything from logos and websites to crosswalk art and skateboards.
Creating an Immersive Place Brand
One of the goals of this project was to create a cohesive brand to span the entire area. To meet it, our skilled environmental designers found ways to bring the visual aesthetic to every corner. Leveraging all we’ve learned in decades as an environmental branding agency, we delivered thoughtful designs that promote the creative spirit of the neighborhood.
