Please come to our fair city. Spend money at the shops—and some more with the cops.
A recent visit to downtown Grand Junction, Colorado felt like that. Mixed messages, brand dissonance...so, do they want me or not?
While I enjoyed their picturesque downtown, did a little shopping and had a coffee at an outdoor café I also got a pricey parking ticket. My car had out of state tags, so I was obviously a visitor. It would have been nice if the meter reader had noticed that and given me a "friendly warning/no ticket" note on my windshield. That makes a visitor feel special.
Instead, I just got a blazing yellow fine (almost the color of the aspens) with a city logo emblazoned proudly at the bottom of the ticket.
Who has the right of way?
I bet the local convention and visitors bureau would have wanted me to get a friendly warning.
I bet the meter reader didn't give it much thought. He or she was just following orders.
The irony is, instead of making me feel like a welcome visitor, I left downtown feeling a little deflated.
Silos are like huge speed bumps
Whether they're turf issues, lack of communication or interference from elected offiicials, they're obstacles to a healthy, profitable brand.
If the visitors bureau, merchants and law enforcement were working together to promote the city, my blog post might have been entirely different.
Of course, I'll give downtown Grand Junction another chance. It's a charming place. But their brand has some door dings now. At some point I might just trade in.
A friendly warning
If there are silos in your organization, they can wreak havoc with your marketing, your sales—and eventually—your profit. Don't wait to find out the hard way. Start looking now, and build some bridges.
If you'd like to contribute to my parking ticket fund, or if you need help finding (and tearing down) some silos, call Martha at 785.969.6203. We'll bring the bulldozer.
Tags: silos, brand, marketing strategy,
