Question

Topic: Taglines/Names

Naming Our Park Volunteer Program

Posted by Anonymous on 9/16/2011 at 6:43 PM ET 250 Points
I am the marketing manager for a city park department. We are in the middle of a complete reorganization of our volunteer and donation program. As a piece of our launch into new collaborative ways of doing business - focused on more park adoptions and long range partnerships with organizations and businesses - we are updating our branding package including a new name. This is where I need your help!

There are some words that seem to resonate, but I have yet to put them together in a concise way that sings “I’m the one!” We even have a tagline that we like, yet still can’t land on a name: “Connecting People, Places and Open Spaces.” Words we are drawn to include Connect, Team, Network, Action, Stewards, Partnerships, People Powered, and Friends

We have had several lively discussions on our team and have narrowed down the unique personality of our program. And yes, as it turns out … she is a she…

“She is a casual professional who is contagiously enthusiastic and knowledgeable. Her approachable manner inspires her community to connect with each other and the outdoors. She makes you feel good and want more.”

We also named her Sage. In addition to the obvious color association, this name connotes wisdom, a philosophical/spiritual mentor, seasoning (definitely not bland), plants (including native to the region), and magical properties. It directly complements the our division’s tagline – Keeping “city name” Green. We now have the filter “What would Sage do?” to keep us focused and true to our intent.

To further dig into our program’s personality we even envisioned what she would drive:

Hybrid Ford Escape 4WD
- Burgundy color with tan “pleather” interior
- Sporty and stylish but not in-your-face flashy
- Features a tow package and off road tires with a bit of mud on the fenders
- Well maintained, though not spotless
- 54,000 miles
- Equipped with a smart phone, GPS and a rockin’ sound system
- A bumper sticker that reads: I Love My Park
- Trunk filled with: Emergency and first aid kit, a diamond plate tool box filled with things like tools, shovel, vest, cones, measuring wheel, marking paint, rain gear, boots, waders, and a Carhart jacket. A camera and some scraps and garbage leftover from recent events.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 9/17/2011 at 9:16 AM Accepted
    I'm not sure how much you're using Sage as internally focused exercise or how much you want to share Sage with the public. If the latter, consider:

    WWSD? (What Would Sage Do?)
    Color Me Sage
    I Am Sage
  • Posted on 9/17/2011 at 9:11 PM Moderator
    Who exactly is your target audience, and what is the unique benefit for them? The brand personality helps, but it's missing the specific target and the reason why they should do whatever it is you want them to do.

    Even causes and not-for-profit organizations need to be clear about their objectives, metrics and messages. Have you interviewed people in your target audience to see what's on their minds and what words they use to express themselves on this subject, or are you just trying to say what YOU want to say?
  • Posted on 9/19/2011 at 1:05 PM Author
    Thank you Jay, for the ideas. We have toyed with the idea of making Sage our public face but haven''t quite landed on that. For now she is used as a decision making tool in helping to stay true to our brand personality.

    Moderator, We have been doing a lot of informal market research with our existing volunteers. We do know that our target market for our volunteers is baby boomers and young professionals. The newly structured program now includes an enterprise element capitalizing on partnerships with businesses. These two programs being under one umbrella is a recent development and complicates the naming in my mind.
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