Downtown revitalization checklist—

how to make your destination unforgettable in 8 steps.

1.

Who is your audience?

Are you looking to attract young professionals?

Perhaps a Gen X couple with expendable income?

Is your community the right place for a family who wants an escape from city living?

Decisions about who the intended audience is can help to shape a municipal marketing campaign. It’s tough to be all things to all people—what is it that you have to offer as a destination, and who would respond to that?

2.

Change can be challenging for some folks, it’s important to give residents, business owners, and activists an opportunity to have their ideas considered.

Focus groups, Town Hall discussions and fact finding research conversation are all an important part of building momentum for a project like this, designed to revitalize a community.

Stakeholders and
community involvement

3.

What makes your community unique and distinct? Describe the best parts about living there. Are there challenges that we could possibly address with better communication?

It can be difficult to define—but that’s why cities and towns turn to an agency like Trampoline. We provide options, conversation starters and design that demands attention.

Brand and
message creation

4.

Design and
development

This is where our creative team goes to work. Having defined goals, established who we’re creating for, and an understanding of why a place is special, design is the way we communicate all of that awesomeness.

5.

Review and
revisions

Trampoline is a partner with municipalities. Input and direction from locals is an important part of the process, and allows for community buy-in, an understanding of the strategy in use, and how we position communities to represent themselves positively, for residents and visitors alike.

6.

When the design process is completed, and a new, spectacular identity has been created, it’s time to make some noise! A well executed rollout includes a press event for earned media potential, and some orchestrated touch points for the public to understand the new brand.

Merchandise, bannering, and other placemaking elements meant to amplify the new mark and message should already be in place before the big reveal.

Brand launch and
press releases

7.

A well designed brand will allow communities to remain consistent in their image, but also targeted with their outbound messaging. A strong visual foundation with consistent color and typeface use, sets the stage for repeat impressions across all types of media.

We’re creating a message that starts a conversation, evokes a sense of wonder, and possibility. Brand standards allow for the repeat impressions needed to influence consumer decisions.

Marketing and
media management

“Design-led companies outperformed the S&P 500 by 211%. Design-centric businesses increase their revenue 32% faster than their industry counterparts.”

— DMI & Motiv Strategies

8.

The end of this process is really the beginning of a new chapter of messaging for municipalities. Is it working? What are the outcomes?

Our creative and accounts teams review post-launch analytics, consider click-through rates, and pay attention to video view metrics. We even (gasp) read the comments.

Adjusting creative campaigns to show more of what’s working is a science made accessible by the immediacy of social media data. So, let’s tweak some things, try something unique and distinct. Make something new.