INTRODUCTION TO BURLINGTON BRANDING

“YOUR BRAND IS WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT YOU
WHEN YOU AREN’T AROUND.”

HOW BRANDING HELPS BURLINGTON AND HELPS YOUR BUSINESS

· Expands awareness of Burlington and the region.
· Attracts people to visit, live, work, and invest.
· Maintains Burlington’s competitiveness — now and in the future.

OTHER SUCCESSFUL CITIES SHOW US THE WAY

Charlotte, North Carolina business and community entities joined together around a place-branding initiative that has produced these results:

• 30% increase in businesses either relocating to Charlotte or expanding their presence there;
• 64% increase in jobs;
• 77% increase in regional investment;
• 11% increase in leisure visitation;
• 23% increase in business visitation;
• Honored as the #1 “America’s Most Livable” by Partners for Livable Communities and the U.S. Conference of Mayors
• Named #1 “Pro-Business” city for last three years by Fortune Magazine.

SAMPLE BURLINGTON BRANDING RESEARCH INSIGHTS

• Montrealers think Burlington is “a whole other world.”
• Bostonians need “a real good reason” to visit Burlington.
• Visitors seek “escape” here, but not “retreat.”
• Tourists also want discovery, serendipity, and adventure — the “found experience.”

PROJECT BACKGROUND

Members of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce Tourism Committee and the Burlington Business Association saw the need to market the Burlington area in a consistent, unified, and unique manner, in order to remain competitive in the marketplace and meet challenges of tourism, attracting new businesses, and job growth. Business leaders in both organizations have donated time and money to the effort, entitled the Burlington Branding Project. The first step was to fund and initiate comprehensive branding research, which, after a competitive bid process, was conducted by Charism Advisors of Cambridge, Massachusetts (www.charismadvisors.com). Data from focus groups conducted in three primary markets plus online surveys resulted in the Burlington Branding Research and Recommendations and the Burlington Branding Creative Brief. The next step was making the data and recommendations “user friendly” and, thus, the Burlington Branding Tool Kit was launched on the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce website, featuring a Burlington Branding Logo and Slogan, and other useful marketing tools and ideas to help boost your business.

Research shows that people outside of the state and country think of “Burlington, Vermont” as the entire region. In this light, businesses throughout the Lake Champlain region may want to consider incorporating “Burlington, Vermont” into their marketing efforts, in order to fully benefit from the strong Burlington brand.

What’s next? The Burlington Branding Project is exploring cost-effective methods to market our region under the new branding guidelines. Stay tuned!

HOW CAN YOU PARTICIPATE?

As a member of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce and/or the Burlington Business Association you can now easily access and utilize the Burlington Branding Tool Kit elements on this website. However, in order for the partner organizations to monitor the appropriate usage of the Burlington Branding Logo and/ or Slogan Mark, members will need to submit the printable license application, found within the Tool Kit.

If you would like information on joining the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce, please click here; for the Burlington Business Association click here.