Last week I sat in on a Quality of Life Committee meeting at the Cincinnati City Council. I have to admit this experience was pretty different from the image I had concocted in my mine. I was under the impression that decisions were made at each meeting and that all the City Council members would be in attendance. Turns out I was wrong. Had I put two and two together, I would have realized that committee does not equal full council. The concept of “committee” didn’t really resonate with me before sitting through this meeting. Good thing every moment is a learning opportunity…
The meeting itself was very interesting. The agenda included a phenomenal and thought-provoking presentation by Thom Mariner about branding and the lack thereof for the City of Cincinnati. Citing all the great things about this city has to offer, Mr. Mariner showed the council how Cincinnati does not need to invest much money into creating a wonderful culture because it is already here. After listening to Mr. Mariner highlight the strength of the arts scene here in Cincinnati, I actually started to like this city. The power of good marketing is pretty impressive.
After Mr. Mariner’s speech, the committee allowed for commentary from individuals who had filled out request forms before the start of the meeting. Hearing different Cincinnatians from all walks of life talk about how the arts were important to them AND to the city was inspiring and oddly comforting. It was really encouraging to see so many people in attendance to the meeting.
So what did I learn from this experience? Aside from finally connecting that a committee meeting does not require the attendance of all City Council members, I learned that Cincinnatians really care about this city and that Cincinnati has a lot to offer. Too bad, no one is marketing that.
Carolyne Hall
Following our discussions in class about this issue, I believe that Cincinnati lacks a positive image because no one is marketing its identity just like Carolyne said. Sure, there will be arguments about what exactly Cincinnati's identity is, but the point is to show the country what happens in Cincinnati. It doesn't have to be about showing exactly what is unique to the city either. Show outsiders a typical day in Cincinnati.
ReplyDeleteMoving from Chicago to here a year and a half ago, I didn't have the highest opinion of Cincinnati. I may still not have an overall positive opinion of the city, but there are fantastic things going on here that need to be promoted. Take Detroit for instance. I think that many Americans may have a negative perception of the city. I was one of those people until I saw the Chrysler Detroit Superbowl Commercial (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKL254Y_jtc). While Chrysler produced the commercial, it's actual focus is on the city itself. It's a powerful statement (and it would have been even without Eminem's presence). Maybe Cincinnati needs a statement like this.
One of the first steps in marketing Cincinnati and showing others what is special about the city is to ask the people who live here what they love about Cincinnati. This was exactly what Seven and Sixty Productions did in Minneapolis/St. Paul, asking people "Why are we here?" What resulted is a beautiful, moving film that Minnesotans can take pride in and that can be shared with others not from the area.
ReplyDeleteSee the video here: http://vimeo.com/19115634