LULA — Lula Mayor Jim Grier is proposing the city council consider a budget amendment that would allow the city to get a head start on branding itself before the end of the fiscal year.
During Monday night’s work session, Grier told the council that following discussion at the recent council retreat he gathered proposals from two companies for specialized branding work, and that utilizing both in their area of expertise would cost the city less than $7,000.
“We have a great opportunity to move forward,” Grier told AccessWDUN at the conclusion of Monday’s work session. “We talked about this at our retreat, and we’ve realized how important it is to not only our city but other cities, both in terms of presenting a consistent image to their citizens, as well as people that are coming in looking at opportunities for business development — and that’s really important to us right now, so we think this will be a great step in that direction.”
WSI Digital Rainmakers of Gainesville specializes in digital and social media branding, while Grier said Forum Communications is proficient in physical branding such as developing logos, color schemes and more with input of stakeholders through focus groups.
“These two firms have excellent credentials and, as all firms do, have their stronger suits and their proposals reflected that, and that was really helpful to us because one gives us the idea and the opportunity to develop the branding components and logo and vision as far as how we present our community,” Grier said. “The second proposal carries us forward into developing that in the digital space, both websites and social media as well.”
Councilman Vince Evans questioned how the city would fund implementation of the new branding, whether it would be a full replacement of business cards, letterhead, signs and the like, or if it would be phased in.
“You can’t do it all overnight, and we realize that,” Grier told AccessWDUN. “But as quickly as you can, with priorities of course, then you can move toward establishing a consistent presence and image everywhere that you go.”
The city council could vote on the measure at its meeting next Monday, May 21.
