Main Street Station: The Brand

Transcription

1 BRAND BOOK DRAFT

2 DRAFT Main Street Station: The Brand Welcome to the Main Street Station Brand Book This book is meant to serve as a guide for defining and protecting the Main Street Station brand whenever any type of communications are created. So - what exactly is a brand? It s what Main Street Station stands for: its identity to all who see, visit, or engage with it. It is everything the building is, the image it projects, and the meaning it embodies for Richmonders and visitors alike.

3 DRAFT Why Brand Ourselves? Our brand will be our roadmap for clarity. It describes who we are to all audiences, helping us drive towards meaningful goals and creating clear touchpoints for people to connect with us. Our brand positions us in the marketplace. By having a distinct and recognizable brand, we move beyond simply just being there and tell a richer story about what role we play and why we add unique value to the community. A unified brand generates a collective identity. It solidifies Main Street Station s purpose and goals, inspiring everyone to support its mission and work toward it together.

4 The Main Street Station Brand For more than 100 years, Main Street Station has linked Richmond to the world, and the world to Richmond. It s now undergoing a transformation that will reawaken its role as Richmond s premier multimodal transportation hub, while creating new opportunities for locals and visitors alike to connect with the places, people, cultures, ideas, and experiences that make living here so great. Many know it to just stand tall and wave hello to all who pass it by, but now Main Street Station and its surrounding village have much more to say.

5 Action Rationale Audience Role DRAFT How the station and its village connects Transportation Network Richmond s Gathering Place Catalyst for Community Growth Premier Meeting & Event Space Gateway Destination for Visitors Residents, Officials & Opinion Leaders Residents Business Leaders & Opinion Leaders Event & Meeting Planners Visitors & Tourism Officials Most strategic spot for Richmond s hub; Reclaims station s historic purpose Richmond needs a central space to gather downtown Elevates Richmond brand to grow investor & business interest Dynamic & unique infrastructure that serves a city that loves festivals & events Ideal platform to introduce city to visitors & elevate this growing part of RVA economy High speed rail BRT / GRTC / Trolleys Bike share / trail Electric car charging Megabus Taxi / Uber Parking Programming 17 th St Market Festivals & events Pop-up dining & retail / markets Creative incubator Richmond cuisine & culinary cultivator Stoke investor interest & investment Retain talent Flexible, world-class event space (45,000 sf, jaw-dropping views) Expert food service input Seamless transport & easy traveler access Reestablish as RVA s front door and perfect place for orienting yourself to the city RVA / VTC Welcome Center Excursion tours

6 DRAFT The Elements of Branding There are four basic elements that go into defining and shaping a brand. Brand Strategy: In simple terms, what we are trying to accomplish with the brand. Brand Promise: The strategic statement that captures who you are and why the target should care. Brand Architecture: The blueprint for the brand. It takes the emotional proposition of a brand and diagrams supporting messages, organized under key benefits the audience will experience. Architectures are created for different audiences to articulate the nuances of messaging to different constituencies within the context of the brand. Brand Personality: Sets the tone for all brand communications. The following pages show each of these elements as they relate to the Main Street Station brand.

7 The MSS Brand Strategy Show what happens when a landmark connector is given the opportunity to do what it can do best; not just changing a building, changing a city.

8 DRAFT The MSS Brand Promise A magnificent space for Richmond to feel more connected. This simple strategic statement encapsulates The core of what Main Street Station does - offers an authentic, impressive venue which creates opportunities for discovery, enjoyment, and connection.

9 The MSS Brand Promise A magnificent space for Richmond to feel more connected. OUR ROLE OUR AUDIENCE THE RESULT WHAT: A one-of-a-kind destination, restored to create lasting impressions; thoughtfully and carefully designed for maximum utility and wonder WHO: Crafted with the spirit of the city and those who love it in mind, so that residents and visitors get an authentic Richmond experience WHY: Creating that rich, fundamental feeling that comes from connecting to places, people, flavors, ideas, cultures, etc.

10 Main Street Station Brand Architecture A brand architecture is a diagram of a brand s promise, benefits, and rational support messages. Separate architectures are typically written for each audience to articulate the nuances of messaging to different constituencies. They often feel similar, since they are all on-brand, but specifics are adjusted to build connection with each target. The following pages show the primary architecture for Main Street Station, followed by iterations for the three key audience groups shown here. Richmond Residents Community / Business Leaders Chamber / Convention Elected Officials SBA / Entreprenuers Tourism / Mtg Planners Visitors

11 Key Messages Promise DRAFT Brand Promise: Overall A magnificent space for Richmond to feel more connected A historically accurate, future-thinking reinvigoration of an iconic city landmark Energy spills into the surrounding village, including a reimagined 17th Street and new innovation hub A safe, convenient gathering place for local residents Unforgettable, dynamic space for a variety of uses including events, music, food, etc Designed with the people who love Richmond in mind Centrally located amongst Richmond s best: history, outdoors, food, art... A stunning gateway for showcasing RVA to the world Multimodal transportation and high speed rail will create unprecedented access within and beyond the city Creating new opportunities to discover and rediscover the city, its people, sites, flavors, culture.. Removes visual and physical barriers that stand in the way of downtown coming together

12 Key Messages Promise DRAFT Brand Promise: Richmond Residents A magnificent space for Richmond to feel more connected You may think you know MSS, but you ve never seen it like this before Rediscover MSS s village, including a reimagined 17th Street and new innovation hub An iconic place to help you love your city even more Created with the help of those who love and know the city best Take advantage of unprecedented access within and beyond the city, including multimodal transportation & high speed rail access Enjoy refreshingly open gathering spaces, that we ve made safe and easy to access An ever-changing space that comes alive with events, music, food, and people A central launch point for you to experience all that makes Richmond s great: history, outdoors, food, art... Discover ways to create deeper connections with the people, places, and experiences that make Richmond great See downtown reawakened and the city come together

13 Key Messages Promise DRAFT Brand Promise: Community / Biz Leaders A magnificent space for Richmond to feel more connected We re injecting new energy into the station and its surrounding village, reestablishing a central downtown experience Breathing life into an international beacon for Richmond s identify Be part of this historically accurate, future-thinking revitalization of an iconic city landmark An unforgettable, dynamic space that is made better by your involvement Crafted using an inclusive process in order to create authentic Richmond experiences Expert input from those who know Richmond best, including food, events, innovation A central spot for showcasing Richmond and elevating its creativity, history, culture, art, cusine... Creating a multimodal transportation hub, including high speed rail, provides unprecedented access to Richmond and for Richmonders Removing physical and visual barriers in the Bottom so that downtown can come together The most strategic spot to launch residents and visitors alike to discover more of the city

14 Key Messages Promise DRAFT Brand Promise: Visitors A magnificent space for Richmond to feel more connected You may have seen us before, but you ve never seen us like this - come discover more! A safe, convenient destination that is a must-see stop on my travels An energetic place that s steeped in history, but always feels fresh with events, music, food, people, art The ideal place for discovering what Richmond s so great An authentic sampling of the city s best: food, music, art, culture, history A centrally located launch point for my trip to Richmond, creating opportunity to always discover and rediscover This multimodal transportation hub, including high speed rail, makes it easy and exciting to travel to Richmond. We ve readied a variety of ways to make exploring Richmond easy, from visitor information to last-mile transportation. Connect with the people, places, and experiences that make Richmond great

15 The Take Away Main Street Station is more than just a train station: it s a place I need to experience

16 DRAFT Expressing Our Brand: Conceptual Direction

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24 DRAFT Let s get connected! If you have any questions about the Main Street Station brand, please contact Jeannie Welliver at Jeannie.Welliver@richmondgov.com We would be thrilled to help. All images in this Brand Book are for position only and cannot be used without permission of the photographer.