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Forum Brand Milano 19 & 20 February 2015, Milano !!Eurocities WG City branding and city attractiveness Robbert Nesselaar, city of Rotterdam, co-chair (with Genova)

1. some findings Eurocities WG City branding !

2. a few experiences from Rotterdam !

3. some food for thought

1. some findings Eurocities Working Group City branding •partnerships in the city: co-branding, toolkit, image bank, etc •good governance, clear responsibilities •it’s not about slogans, logos •authentic communication/story telling, rather than advertising •limited budgets can be sufficient to be impactful •attractiveness in the city, look & feel, hospitality

2. just a few experiences in Rotterdam •combining assets: port & city; architecture & sport •co-branding: much enthusiasm by partners in the city •all parties in a city benefit from a strong city profile •‘creative’: too broad. Our focus within ‘creative’: architecture •credibility/authenticity: no ‘spontaneous’ flashmobs •cooperation > competition •communication > advertising

25 symbols form the corporate brand of Unilever

1.000+ ‘symbols’ form the city of Rotterdam and the corporate brand

Ambassadors: much enthusiasm, low cost

Mayor of Muscat, Oman Alumni as Rotterdam Ambassadors

Branding together: 3 Rotterdam brands

‘Ollimania’

ASR Insurance + Feyenoord + Blijdorp Rotterdam Zoo

city as a decor

Combining Assets: Port + Architecture

Combining assets: Food Market Hall Rotterdam architecture, food, housing, art, history, culture

Combining Assets: City + Port

Combining Assets: Urban development + Climate

Combining Assets: Sport + Architecture

Ambassadors

Soufiane Touzani, free style soccer Francisco Elson, basketball NBA

Christian Prudhomme, Tour de France

Rotterdam & delta technology, water management

Rotterdam & Architecture

Rotterdam & Events - Festivals

Rotterdam & Tourism

Rotterdam & Sport

3. some food for thought •what is a city on earth for? What’s the true mission? •purposeful, relevance, impactful, making a difference •in other words: does your city matter? •excellence + cooperation = impact •doing business, doing good: taking care of city & the planet •is the grass really greener grass in other cities?

3. some food for thought (II) •city brand: means to an end. Uniqueness is not a goal in itself •what needs to be solved? (performance low, importance high) •product development + image development •not easy to choose … but wise to do so •making the right choices, applying effective principles •Milano: beautiful city, many assets, economy & culture, icons, design, fashion, World Expo 2015 !

it’s not easy to be unique ...

‘Germany – simply inspiring’ !‘Edinburgh – inspiring capital’ !‘Istanbul, the most inspiring city in the world’

Not easy to be unique …

Source: Exactitudes (above: “Big Bears”) , Ari Versluis & Ellie Uyttenbroek (Rotterdam based creatives)

not easy to be unique …

Jerusalem Sevilla Dublin

Calatrava bridges in many cities:

“You’ll love every peace of Victoria” Colours showing the diversity

Letter-logo with flexibility Antwerp: municipality ! city

many city letter logos with a B …

Letter-logo; colours; many creative ways of using it

city logo municipality logo

!! thank you