City with identity crisis to get image makeover
Council bosses looking to improve ‘negative perceptions’
IT’S a city with something of an image problem. Wolverhampton has many great attributes but getting that message out – and getting more visitors in – is now something city bosses are taking very seriously.
Work has now started in earnest on a makeover for the Black Country city’s identity after concerns it suffers from a negative perception in national surveys and the media.
Enterprise bosses at the council are striving to build a stronger brand that reflects positive attributes and ambitious regeneration in and around the area.
The council’s Stronger City Economy Scrutiny Panel will discuss the new branding and marketing strategy – designed to give the city a better public profile with outsiders – on Monday.
Research has identified a number of qualities which need to be captured and addressed – namely that the city portrays a warmth and friendliness from ‘Wulfrunians’, and the fact there is a history of ‘honesty, endeavour, enterprise and evolution’. Head of Enterprise at the council,
Isobel Woods said: “Wolverhampton needs to have an identity that moves the pride many people expressed in the past into the present and the future.
“We want to be known as a which has a narrative of ‘can rather than ‘used to’.
“The people of Wolverhampton have a unique spirit that you won’t find elsewhere.
“As a city we think big but keep our feet on the ground in harnessing the spirit of possibility.” She added: city do’ “Unfairly, the city sometimes suffers from a negative perception through national surveys and some media reporting.
“This has led to a number of audiences outside of the city feeling discouraged from visiting Wolverhampton, and has also led to some communities feeling disheartened about the city’s future, so we are working hard to address this.
“In 2016 the Economic Growth Board, a partnership of public organisations, private enterprises and strategic businesses, put forward a proposition to create a new positive identity for our city.
“The aim was to raise the positive changes taking place locally through our recent ambitious regeneration programme, and bring these to the attention of audiences outside of Wolverhampton – and importantly, to engage and connect these with local residents and businesses already in the city.”
An ‘insight exercise’ has already been commissioned to capture views about the city from a wide range of stakeholders, identifying a number of unique attributes.
A design company was then commissioned to create an identity that represented the positive qualities which make Wolverhampton unique.
This was shared with the Economic Growth Board in early 2017 and has now started to appear in a number of campaigns.
Ms Woods added: “Momentum has slowly been building, recognising that in order to establish a high-quality, meaningful place brand it needs further buy-in from key partners and stakeholders who have an interest in the city.”