Purpose of Report

Update to Cabinet following completion of the work to create a Brand repositioning Strategy for the city.

Decision

Cabinet agreed to:

1. Support the city-wide brand strategy and new narratives to position Plymouth as a place to ‘live, work, study and visit’.

Reason:

To create positive external perceptions of the city and repositioning Plymouth as somewhere to live,

work, study and invest. This in turn will support long term growth in the city particularly the work of  ‘Team Plymouth’, Plan 4 Homes, and the Local Economic Strategy.

2. Adopt key components of the city branding work including narratives and visuals and ‘main streams’ them into key delivery programmes including ‘Team Plymouth’, Homes England housing development, recruitment initiatives and Plymouth Plan where consistent, positive city wide messaging is required.

Reason:

To ensure that consistent messaging reflecting the strengths, unique personality, character and positives of Plymouth are used widely both within the city and externally and are amplified outwards. This will help to change perceptions of the city over time.

3. Mandate Destination Plymouth to a broader remit as a city-wide place marketing organisation with strategic responsibility for leading the brand strategy and implementation, positioning the city’s ‘place’ brand going forwards as well as continuing to drive the Visitor Plan.

Reason:

To provide strong and broad city leadership and focused support for the city’s place brand.

4. Recognise the support of key city partners in funding and driving this work forwards.

Reason: The creation of the City Brand Strategy, research to support it, key city narratives and new visuals would not have been possible without funding from Babcock, Princess Yachts, University of Plymouth, The Box and UK shared Prosperity fund.

Alternative options considered and rejected

Cabinet considered the alternative options as set out in the report.

Councillor Laing (Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Children’s Social Care, Culture and Communications) introduced this item and highlighted:

a)    The cross-city, cross-party and cross-sector collaboration involved in developing the new city brand strategy;

b)    Plymouth’s significant upcoming changes, including a £4.4 billion investment in the dockyard, Homes England’s support for 10,000 homes, and new towns funding for city centre regeneration;

c)    The need to attract 25,000 people over the next decade to fill new jobs;

d)    The importance of positioning Plymouth as an attractive place to live, work, study, visit, and invest;

e)    Research by Bloom Consulting showed that perception impacted 86% of decisions to live, work, invest, or visit a destination, and that improving perception by one decimal point can increase tourism receipts by 15%, talent attraction by 21%, and foreign direct investment by 17.5%;

f)     Research commissioned by Destination Plymouth had found that most people didn’t know very much about Plymouth, but that any firm perceptions were rooted from 20 years previous, not of the city it was in the present day;

g)    The report suggested ten opportunities the city could move forward with to reposition the city’s brand and grow its reputation nationally, and internationally;

h)    Importance of developing a new narrative for Plymouth that was reflective of the contemporary city in the present day;

i)     The extensive engagement process, including 2,000 hours of meetings with local communities, partners and organisations, 250 public responses, 100 UK-wide surveys, and 100 street conversations and workshops, resulting in overwhelmingly positive feedback;

j)     The launch of the promotional film, which received over 119,000 Facebook views and 3,200 LinkedIn views in its first week;

k)    Thanks to all those involved.

Paul Fieldsend-Danks (Arts University Plymouth) added the following:

l)     He had served as the Chair of the branding group and thanked everyone at Plymouth City Council (PCC) and Destination Plymouth for facilitatying UK shared prosperity funding for the process, and thanked funding partners: Princess Yachts, Babcock, The University of Plymouth, and The Box;

m)  An explanation of the brand development process, emphasising authenticity and community engagement;

n)    Three core values had been identified to underpin the actions and capture the unique personality that made Plymouth the truly outstanding place it was: Go Boldly, Go Together, and Go Far;

o)    Six key narratives were presented, including Plymouth’s 500-year history of innovation, marine autonomy leadership, employment opportunities, unique natural environment, creative sector strength, and investment pipeline;

p)    The new visual identity was designed to reflect Plymouth’s geography and energy, supported by a media hub and image library accessible to all stakeholders.

Adrian Bratt (Princess Yachts) added more on:

q)    Recruitment challenges and how the new brand toolkit would help attract talent by showcasing Plymouth’s lifestyle and opportunities to encourage candidates to relocate encouraging people to live and work in the city, not just to visit.

Amanda Lumley (Chief Executive of Destination Plymouth) emphasised:

r)    The need for widespread advocacy and embedding the narratives across networks, schools, and community projects.

David Draffan (Service Director for Economic Development) added:

s)     Thanks to Amanda for her leadership;

t)     The engagement had been exceptional and the brand was of Plymouth, from Plymouth and for Plymouth;

u)    The consultants that had worked on the branding had worked on some of the best branded destinations in the world;

v)    The brand could only be for Plymouth and was authentic to the city.

During discussion, the following was added:

w)   Plans to showcase the new brand on Civic Centre hoardings within two weeks were confirmed;

x)    The brand had been designed to not have ownership, so it could be used across the city by business and communities alike;

y)    Data on usage of the media from the toolkit would be measured;

z)    The importance of authenticity, stakeholder engagement, advocates, and using the toolkit to amplify positive messaging citywide.

Cabinet agreed to:

1. Support the citywide brand strategy and new narratives to position Plymouth as a place to live, work, study, and visit;
   
   
2. Adopt key components of the city branding work, including narratives and visuals, and integrate them into delivery programs such as Team Plymouth, Homes England housing development, recruitment initiatives, and the Plymouth Plan where consistent, positive city wide messaging is required;
   
   
3. Mandate Destination Plymouth to broaden its remit as a citywide place marketing organisation with strategic responsibility for leading the brand strategy and implementation, positioning the city’s ‘place’ brand going forwards as well as continuing to drive the Visitor Plan;
   
   
4. Recognise the support of key city partners in funding and driving this work forwards.