The turnout was light for a public workshop held at Meaford Hall on June 2 to discuss the re-branding of the Municipality of Meaford.
Linda Reader, a consultant whose services have been secured by the municipality to carry out the branding exercise gave a talk to the crowd of approximately 10 residents, local business owners, and municipal staffers about the importance of creating a brand recognition that can be used to effectively market Meaford.
Reader explained that the goal of this branding exercise is to capture the essence of Meaford and then create a logo and a slogan that reflects that essence.
An important factor in establishing the direction for the brand development is engaging the community in order to get a feel for how Meaford residents see their community, and to determine how Meaford wants to present the municipality to the world outside of it's borders.
Though the crowd that attended the session was small, there was some constructive discussion about how the municipality should be marketed, and how it shouldn't.
“One of the things that everyone likes about Meaford is that it is a small town in a beautiful setting,” said Meaford resident Greg Brown, “But the economic development strategy (MEDS) is to promote growth and development. Isn't that contrary to what we think is special (about Meaford)?”
Brown was concerned that an attempt to ramp up marketing efforts with regard to the Municipality of Meaford brings with it the risk of losing the small town charm that has drawn so many of the current residents to the community.
Reader suggested that if done properly the economic growth in Meaford can come from within by encouraging an entrepreneurial spirit amongst current residents who would safeguard the quality of life that is a selling feature of the community. The marketing of the municipality would then according to Reader attract new residents who share in the values that are so important to the community as a whole.
After some group discussion, Reader divided the attendees into groups and challenged them to create lists of the things that make Meaford special, and that should be incorporated into the yet to be developed branding of Meaford. Reader used the four pillars of the Meaford Economic Development Strategy (MEDS) as a framework for categorizing the various qualities of the community and asked participants to record their thoughts and ideas.
Reader told The Independent that she is excited about the challenge associated with establishing a branding strategy for Meaford.
“I think every branding that I do is a challenge to come up with something that is unique,” said Reader, “I find this work really rewarding.”
A second workshop held the following night in Woodford failed to draw a crowd.
Reader will be visiting local businesses in the coming week to seek more community input into the project.
