During a work session last May, Fairfax City Council members discussed the creation of a City “brand” to better promote what Fairfax has to offer.

Councilman David Meyer suggested the connection between GMU and the City of Fairfax could possibly be part of that branding. And Councilwoman Ellie Schmidt stressed focusing on economic development to attract new residents and businesses to the City.

Since then, the mayor and Council approved an increase in the Economic Development Office’s FY ’16 budget to fund development of a citywide branding strategy, plus a plan to implement it. Staff sent out a request for proposals and, out of 10 responses, three firms were selected for interviews.

Then, because of its vast amount of experience in this field, Gensler – a Washington, D.C.-based firm – was chosen. The total cost of the contract will not exceed $100,000, and City Economic Development Director Nicole Hange said the goal is to be able to make a branding recommendation to the Council sometime around April.

THREE Gensler representatives attended the Council’s Nov. 17 work session and gave a presentation on some of their company’s past work and how they could help the City. They are Michael Altman, project manager and strategist; Kate Kirkpatrick, communications strategist; and Pierce Fisher, graphic designer.

“We want to make the best you there is,” said Kirkpatrick. “I’m a Robinson [Secondary School] grad who spent lots of time in high school at the 29 Diner. So we’re looking forward to putting our creativity and expertise to work to make you the most competitive city possible.”

She said her firm intends to discover “the core” of the City. And, Altman told the Council, “We need to learn your strengths and aspirations. We’ll do so by defining what Fairfax stands for: What’s unique here, what’s credible, what’s your story and what could it be tomorrow?”

Afterward, he said, “We’ll figure out the best way to express it visually – and Pierce will do this in a cohesive way – and how we should promote it. It takes about 24 weeks from beginning to end. We’ll talk to all the stakeholders and then come up with the best way to launch it.”

According to the group’s presentation, “Brand is not inventing what you should be but, rather, uncovering the potential of what you are.” So Gensler will help Fairfax determine what it wants to be and for what it wants to be known. It will also decide how to let people know about the City in “the most compelling and consistent way” and help the Council envision what the successful branding will look like.

“We bring both specialization and a broad perspective,” said Kirkpatrick. “We’ll look at your assets and point of view and also the market you’re competing in.”

Altman then described some of Gensler’s past projects branding towns, cities and businesses and explained how some of those techniques could be applied to the City of Fairfax. For example, he said, “We helped Herndon, which is also a historic place with many events.”

Kirkpatrick said, “It’s about bringing up and stressing your positives.”

“We need to find out who you want to target and how best to reach them,” added Altman. Councilman Jeff Greenfield then asked what next steps the City should take. And Altman said City Manager Bob Sisson, Mayor Scott Silverthorne and a few other people had already met to identify stakeholders with which Gensler should consult.

“So we’ll contact them and look at your assets,” said Altman. “And we’ll report back to you and tell you what we think are your best opportunities for positioning the City competitively. We’ll tell you what we’ve learned about you and your competitors, your strengths and your weaknesses.”

He said the City will receive a set of brand guidelines, plus information about how to address and reach different target audiences. “Pierce will develop marketing-campaign logos, taglines and headlines [for the promotional publicity],” said Altman. “And we’ll give you a marketing plan or strategy. And all of that will come together to support the brand guidelines.”

“I’m excited about this and am looking forward to pulling it all together,” said Schmidt.

COUNCILWOMAN Nancy Loftus then asked, “How will you make sure you’re reaching all the different aspects of our community?”

“We’ll have individual interviews, town hall meetings, polling, online surveys and exit interviews at various places in the City,” replied Altman. “And we’ll get information from the recent charrette. We’re making this more about igniting people around ideas, memorable moments, favorite places, etc.”

“The City, by design, is evolving, with changing demographics,” said Councilman Michael DeMarco. “How do you capture that?”

“A lot of it is about understanding your experience and core values,” answered Altman. “And I’m excited that GMU is part of this. I think it’s a great opportunity to have them at the table. It’s about holding onto the values and spirit of what you are and getting to what you’d like to be.”