NEWS RELEASE
CITY OF BARRIE
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The City of Barrie has a new look. Tonight, Council approved the city’s new corporate brand identity which includes a logo and the taglines Well Played and Well Connected.
“Our corporate identity plays an important role in how we present our community to businesses, workers and families,” said Carla Ladd, CAO. “The new brand honours Barrie’s rich past and positions the city for the future. It also reflects the feedback we received from our business leaders and residents, who overwhelmingly said the brand should represent the outstanding quality of life and opportunities that Barrie provides.”
The city’s current ‘sun and waves’ logo was created by staff in the Economic Development Office approximately 25 years ago. An internal team comprised of staff from Access Barrie, Invest Barrie and the CAO worked with a brand expert and an advisory panel of business leaders to develop a new corporate brand identity that is an evolution of the ‘sun and waves’ logo.
Research included document reviews, case studies, stakeholder interviews, business leader workshops and a resident survey. The new logo was designed by the city’s Marketing and Communications team.
The taglines Well Played and Well Connected are themes that consistently came up through consultations. Well Played refers to the outstanding quality of life and opportunities that Barrie provides (parks, trails, waterfront, events, restaurants, etc). Well Connected is about the city’s geographic location which makes it well connected to Toronto and Muskoka. It also relates to the connections that Barrie has to family, neighbourhoods, nature, people, businesses and our past.
#Barrie #WellPlayed pic.twitter.com/WbJIvhuJl3
— The City of Barrie (@cityofbarrie) June 18, 2017
Creating a unified brand identity was identified as a key priority at Ideas in Motion, an interactive business event held in 2012 that attracted over 200 of Barrie’s most creative business leaders.
Ideas in Motion outlined an action plan to create a brand identity that would become the single rallying point for the business community and residents, and identify what Barrie is for potential investors.
The City of Barrie Coat of Arms will continue to be used by the Office of the Mayor and Members of Council for official correspondence and ceremonial use, such as proclamations, letterhead and stationery. It is also used for official business functions and city awards originating from the Office of the Mayor and the City Clerk.
The new corporate brand will be phased in over time to minimize costs. The majority of city assets and materials will be updated with the new logo over time, as they are re-ordered, re-printed or replaced from existing budgets. Digital assets including the website, intranet and social media platforms will be immediately transitioned to the new brand at no cost to the city.
Visit barrie.ca to see the new logo and watch the launch video.
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