Civic Pride Abounds in Winnipeg!
September 2011 - by Jeff Nixon
Welcome Home Jets!
The good people of Winnipeg have been bursting with pride since welcoming back their beloved Jets. Web and social media sites are buzzing, and on every street corner, in every café and around every office, everyone’s in on the conversation — dads, sons, moms, sisters, neighbours, co-workers are all excited about having a hockey team back — more than just a team, an identity to call their own!
Funny thing is, this Jets team is largely the same Atlanta Thrashers team that finished 25th in the league last year, five points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs and just ahead of the Ottawa Senators. No major off-season trades, acquisitions or really any other big changes other than the launch of the new team jerseys. Despite these less than stellar stats, the townsfolk are pumped, ready to live and die behind their team’s success.
An NHL team moving to another city is nothing new. We have watched Hartford move to Carolina, Minnesota move to Dallas, and Shane Doan and the original Winnipeg Jets head off to Phoenix — all successes, save for the last. This spring, rumors ran rampant of Phoenix moving back to Winnipeg, but in the last hour True North Sports and Entertainment made the deal with Atlanta. Would it have made much difference which team made it to Winnipeg? More than likely not.
Why is this relevant to place branding?
I always pose a leading question during stakeholder sessions in place branding programs: What is truly unique about your community? The typical off-the-cuff responses? “Oh, I don’t know… ample parking… proximity to work… you know, the usual.” Not exactly the gut-level responses for which I’m trolling — then again, in my participants’ defense, true, poignant differences aren’t easy to identify. What I’m hoping to draw out during the exercises are self-expressive benefits that go beyond the work-and-live-a-day functional. How do residents, business owners and civic leaders express their community brands in personal, passionate terms that precisely and dynamically depict the vitality of the lifestyles they truly value, even love?
It all starts with expressing who they are and what they value most as people. Really??? I agree it might not be as apparent as a pastor blasting down the highway showing his “free spirit” on his Harley Davidson or the high-priced lawyer showing just how “successful” he is driving downtown in his Bentley. But it is there. What makes a community unique may be “assumed” and oft left unspoken, but transplant a resident to another place and out it flows. Try dissing Edmonton to a former Edmontonian living in Vancouver. Trash Vancouver to a student from Coquitlam studying at the University of Toronto. While arguments may often turn to functional benefits, the heated discussion that pursues when the gloves are off and words are thrown like cross-checks truly proves there are emotional chords to communities that individuals connect with and are much more powerful than any functional benefit could ever be.
Why should elected officials and community leaders take notice?
Boosting civic pride is a major challenge for city leaders. Dismissing self-expressive benefits as irrelevant to place branding can be a costly mistake that results in same-old, lackluster marketing. Sports teams connect people with places, creating a strong sense of pride — an intangible but extremely valuable civic asset. Positive, emotional attitudes improve productivity, encourage local engagement, and attract new talent and investment. Civic pride is a critical branding tool used to build higher profile images and garner far-reaching publicity.
Team rosters and standings change over time but home-grown loyalty rarely does! Is the battle of Alberta between Calgary and Edmonton all about rosters? The point is so many communities are not tapping into self-expressive benefits that keenly express their desired brand images. Trying to compete by bragging about blah functional benefits is a tough hill to climb and a battle field to die on — ample parking just don’t cut it! Self-expressive and empowering benefits are what keep residents residing, businesses flourishing, and visitors engaged and interested. Capture what is truly unique and worth loving about your community, embed it in the living, breathing DNA and scream it from the roof tops. Be truthful, memorable, different and passionate!
You don’t have to be a hockey fan to appreciate the connection between team and place loyalty. Winnipeg is back in the NHL! The Jets might make the playoffs this year or five years from now. What truly matters is Winnipeg is rejuvenated, and its citizens are seizing the opportunity to show the world just how much they love their city! Now that’s brand spirit at its resounding best!
Jeff Nixon is a senior consultant at Synergist Communications (www.synergistcommunications.com). He is an expert in strategic place branding and takes pride in helping organizations to improve public perception, encourage investment, and create a better community through effective brand management. Follow on Twitter @Jeffrey_Nixon.