City rebrand claims mixed reviews

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This article was published 09/06/2022 (929 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Ryan Voth wasn’t sure how to feel the first time he saw Winnipeg’s new brand.

The software developer likes the logo design, but has seen a brash reaction on social media.

“I think people will warm up to it. I don’t mind the logo at all,” he said. “There’s been a lot of outrage on Twitter and I think it’s probably not as big of a deal as some think.”

The city’s new slogan “Winnipeg: Made from what’s real” and logo were revealed Wednesday by Economic Development Winnipeg and Travel Manitoba.

The research and development costs to create the brand cost $250,000 and was in the works since 2018. The process included input from 700 residents who got to give suggestions on what the new slogan should be.

Namita Bhatnagar, a marketing professor at the University of Manitoba, thinks it will resonate with its target audience.

“The new logo and slogan would fall under the sincerity domain when it comes to personality types. They are saying the city is genuine, sincere and real. If you are focusing on hospitality and family-friendly tourism, I think this will work well,” she said.

Bhatnagar focuses on consumer psychology and said the next step for Economic Development Winnipeg and Travel Manitoba should be to continue to communicate the meaning of the new brand.

“People tend to take slogans at face value. Some of the comments I’ve seen ask what it means. You need to continue to flesh out the underlying message that you are trying to promote so that people understand what you mean by having integrity and being real,” she said.

Kieran Moolchan said he, too, saw the backlash on social media, but thinks people will warm up to it.

“I don’t personally think it looks the best, but I know I couldn’t have done better. I think we could’ve gotten much worse than we did,” he said. “If there’s anything that’s guaranteed on social media, it’s that people will make jokes.”

Peter George, chief executive officer of Mckim Communications Group, helped design the new brand and welcomes any opinion on it.

“The whole point behind ‘Made from what’s real’ is that we aren’t trying to paint this unrealistically euphoric picture of Winnipeg. We’re saying that we have great assets, we’ve got great attractions and it’s a great place to live, but at the same time, we know there are problems and issues from infrastructure and potholes to long cold winters and cars that won’t start.”

bryce.hunt@freepress.mb.ca