State rebranding effort continues with summit
Oklahoma is one step closer to having a cohesive brand.
Roughly 150 advertising, marketing, public relations, and creative professionals converged Thursday in Oklahoma City at a branding summit to brainstorm how to
market the state better.
The OklaX summit was part of Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell's push to craft a brand for Oklahoma — an initiative he anticipates will result in consistent branding across all state websites, a new state logo, slogan and license plates.
A state brand is somewhat intangible because it is how people perceive a state. But concrete products like a logo, slogan, advertising and more can influence the opinion people form about a state.
Pinnell, who also serves as the state's secretary of tourism and branding, sought out creative professionals from across the state to join in the branding initiative he dubbed Project Blue Sky.
Some asked to be involved in the summit and others were invited because of their experience and expertise.
“I' m so thankful that the creative community in Oklahoma is willing to rally behind this idea that we have to do a better job of telling our story,” he said. “This is a brand for Oklahoma built by Oklahomans.”
The lieutenant governor's office used an out-of-state company with experience in large-scale rebranding efforts to help facilitate the daylong summit at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Reporters were not allowed to attend, but Pinnell said participants initially gave their thoughts on the ideas compiled by his office and the Department of Commerce from research, a series of interviews with local leaders and more than 12,000 public surveys from Oklahomans polled about the state's notable qualities and characteristics. The survey at projectbluesky. ok.gov is still live.
Participants then divided into nine committees, including groups devoted to advertising, public relations and implementation, to tackle specific parts of the branding initiative, he said.
Those involved with OklaX, which Pinnell likens to a volunteer advertising agency, will continue working with their committees at least through the end of the year.
Pinnell plans to unveil the results early next year.
The branding effort is about bringing Oklahomans with different backgrounds together to share the great things the state's residents have in common, said Molly Helm, who is the chief thinker at Purple Ink Consulting and attended Thursday's summit.
“All of us come from different perspectives,” she said. “Some of us grew up here. Some of us moved here later, but we all have the same goal — to tell our story better.”
Jared Gallagher, a content writing specialist for Koch Communications, said he's confident those involved will craft something truly representative of Oklahomans that everyone can appreciate.
Gallagher, who doubles as the announcer for the Oklahoma City Dodgers, said he's thrilled to have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to leave a lasting mark on his home state.
“It's a profession to market things and communicate, but to be able to do it for something you're so passionate about like where I grew up and where I live and where is home is something I feel is a real privilege,” he said.
Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt said in traveling across the country he has noticed that some people are uninterested or misinformed about Oklahoma.
Better marketing the state could entice more people to visit or move here, he said.
Holt also views the branding effort through a larger lens.
Oklahoma, as a whole, also has to embrace the identity it hopes to project for the branding to be credible, he said.
“Maybe through this process, the lieutenant governor and other state leaders are getting a sense of what it is we need to actually be doing in addition to the story that we're telling,” he said.