breakout session 1c. marketing trails & developing your trail...

Brianna TaylorAccount Supervisor Devine + Partnersbtaylor@devinepartners.com(215) 568-2525

Mary O’ConnorRails-to-Trails ConservancyVice President of Developmentmary@railstotrails.org(202) 974-5126

Breakout Session 1C.Marketing Trails & Developing Your Trail Brand

Section I:What is a brand?

At it’s core a brand is a

promise

Delaware & Lehigh

Washington & Old Dominion

The High Line

Brand Examples: Individual Trail Brands

• Great Alleghany Passage

• The Circuit Trails

Brand Examples: Multi-Trail Brands

Amenity Necessity

Trails are nice to have

I use trails for fun

I need trails in my

neighborhood

I demand trails for my community

The Relationship Evolution

Non-Profit Brands

• Website• Social platforms• Swag• Direct mail pieces• Online fundraising/Digital

communications• Magazine/Print collateral• Organizations voice• Events• Signage• Staff: what they say and how

they say it

Elements of Your Trail Brand

• Unified message

• Increase brand recognition• Individual trails

• Trail networks

• Motivate trail use & engagement

• Create excitement & advocacy for continued trail development• Among trail users

• Decision makers

Goals of Brand Building

Section II:How to Develop (or Refine) Your Trail BrandWhat is a brand?

STEP 1: Define your target audience

• Who are you trying to reach?• Casual trail users

• Avid cyclists

• Commuters

• Potential trail users

• Prioritize & be specific

• Locals

• Visitors

• History buffs

• Nature lovers

Primary: local resident end users of the trails – bicyclists, runners, hikers, pedestrians, nature enthusiasts, fishers and other visitors to the trail

Secondary: Visiting tourists, Circuit Coalition organizations, government, funders, volunteers, businesses

STEP 2: Create a brand mission statement

• Purpose of existing

• What are your goals for creating or redefining your trail brand?

• Logo, tagline, visuals, messaging all support this mission

Create a Circuit brand that reinforces that the Circuit offers users what they want (exercise activity in nature), while increasing awareness about the makeup and diversity of the trail system and it’s many uses.

STEP 3: Find your trail’s value

• Elevate, not differentiate

• What makes your trail special?

D&L – Nature, history, recreation; PA’s longest rail trail

Schuylkill River Trail – Connecting the urban to the suburban to the rural

Size: One of the largest trail networks in the country

Connections: Connects communities; people to green

space/waterways

Proximity: 79% of the region’s population will live within 2 miles

Use: Multi-use; Endless opportunities for recreation; commuting

STEP 4: Create a visual brand for your trail• Visual representation of your brand promise

• Official logo, font, and colors are all part of a unique identity system

• As brand strengthens, the logo alone will invoke the brand promise

STEP 4: Create a visual brand for you trail

STEP 5: Establish your voice• Brand voice should fit your brand purpose

• Opportunity to let your trail’s unique personality shine through

• Playful, professional, conversational, quirky

• Be consistent

Semi-informal, engaging to end-users, conversational

So whether you bike it, walk it, or run it, the point is – just

enjoy it.

Discover 100s of miles of happy

STEP 6: Define your key messages

• Who you are? – PA’s longest rail trail (D&L)

• What you offer? Access to nature, history, recreation (D&L)

• Why people should care? Access to green space, health and wellness, economic development

• Create an easy to deliver elevator pitch – 1-2 sentences

One of America’s largest trail networks is in your backyard.

The Circuit Trails is a vast regional network of hundreds of

miles of multi-use trails that is growing in size each year. The

Circuit connects our local communities, providing endless

opportunities for recreation and commuting.

STEP 7: Be consistent

• Your brand should be ever-present

• Across all aspects of your work – website, T-shirts, events, collateral

• Remember – everything communicates!

STEP 7: Be consistent

Section III:Developing Your Marketing Plan

1. Goals

2. Audience

3. Messages

4. Channels

5. Resources

6. Metrics

Elements of a marketing plan

• What are your top organizational goals?

More people on the trailInfluence decision makers

Raise more moneyConnect with the community

Engage youthGrow volunteer baseBuild public profile

Establish a new trail vision

ELEMENT 1: Goals

• As we discussed before- who are you communicating with?

• Be specific with how you communicate

ELEMENT 2: Audience

• What is your call to action?• What will you ask people to do?

• What do you want them to say about your trail?

ELEMENT 3: Messages

ELEMENT 4: Channels

Best channel for the

audience

Best call to action for the audience

and channel

Best audience

Carry messages across channels

Owned Content

WebsiteBlog

Annual ReportNewsletters

Email SignaturesSignageEventsFlags

Marketing Materials

Direct Mail

Earned Content

BroadcastOnline StoriesPrint Stories

Op-Eds & Commentaries

Shared Content

FacebookTwitter

InstagramEtc.

Paid Content

Traditional AdsDigital Ads

Boosted Posts

ELEMENT 5: Resources

• Budget• How much can you spend?

• What will you invest in to promote your brand?

• Staff time• Do you have staff with time budgeted to support your marketing efforts?

• Expertise• Do you have the expertise you need on staff? Do you need training,

consultants or new team members?

ELEMENT 6: Metrics

• Identify top level goals

• Keep consistent records

• Prioritize measuring your efforts

Measure what you want to achieve-It seems simple but it is not!

Section IV:Implementation Tips & Tricks

Partnerships – Give & Get

• Partnerships can help amplify your message

• Engage with partners and they will engage with you

• Meet with CVBs, important local businesses, town leaders• Make it clear how you can help them

• Be specific about what you need from them

Scalability

• Picking your channels• Be choosy

• Be smart

• Don’t use every social option• Choose the platforms (or platform) that you can do well and where your

audience can be found

• Be specific in prioritizing your audience

Resources• Brianna Taylor: btaylor@devinepartners.com, 215.568.2525

• Mary O’Connor: mary@railstotrails.org, 202.974.5126

• Blogs we like:• Beth’s Blog, Beth Kanter: www.bethkanter.org

• Kivi’s Nonprofit Communications Blog: www.nonprofitmarketingguide.com/blog

• John Haydon Social Media Marketing: www.johnhaydon.com

• Books we like:

Brianna TaylorAccount Supervisor Devine + Partnersbtaylor@devinepartners.com(215) 568-2525

Mary O’ConnorRails-to-Trails ConservancyVice President of Developmentmary@railstotrails.org(202) 974-5126

Breakout Session 1C.Marketing Trails & Developing Your Trail Brand