TDC Brand Meetings

will there be an opportunity for public opinion? this seems like a "done deal" ?

will there be an opportunity for public opinion? this seems like a "done deal" ?

The workshops are open to anyone and opinions and input are welcome. The "done deal" part is the concept of re-branding which was approved by the county commission. However the process is ongoing and decisions are still being made how to carry it all out.

thanks.

Not that the Walton Sun is a rock of journalism, but this weekend's front-page story clearly makes "To each your beach" out to be a done deal.

I still am amazed how many times both the consultants & the TDC staff are quoted as saying that the visitor's geographic confusion is going to be resolved, by switching from "Beaches of South Walton" to "South Walton: to each your beach". How is that so different and, more important, how is that $1.3 million better for telling one where one is?

I'm no marketing major, but isn't the new "brand" actually a combination of a brand (South Walton) and a slogan or tag-line?

The Walton Sun - May 8, 2011

It is not really a news story, but kind of a fluff overview of the TDC's branding process to date. It is informational - which is a step in the right direction, imo. The ideas presented here in this tiny review sound very reasonable and on target - except that one little tag line (to each your beach.. it isn't sounding any better with time). Also, it sounds like the focus is still just on the beach communities along 30A - so it is too bad we no longer have the name "Beach" or "Beaches" in our town name.

FROM OIL, AN OPPORTUNITY: TDC retires Beaches of South Walton brand to combat ‘geographic confusion'

May 08, 2011 1:53 PM

Deborah Wheeler
After last year’s oil spill, it’s a brand new South Walton.
The Tourist Development Council is retiring the 27-year-old brand name "Beaches of South Walton."
"One thing the oil spill gave us was an opportunity to do introspection," TDC executive director Dawn Moliterno told Wednesday's Chamber lunch crowd. "We had to evaluate how much brand damage we had."
To find out the answer, the TDC hired LKM Ad Agency.
What the ad agency's research revealed was:
•49 percent of people polled had trouble recognizing the Beaches of South Walton brand.
•Less than 50 percent of visitors to South Walton know where they are.
•6 percent of South Walton visitors thought they were in Destin.
"The existing brand conveyed very low awareness of the area and geographic confusion," said the agency's Jennifer Jenkins.
The answer to the problem was to change the name used by the TDC to market the area.
The new branding name is "South Walton: To each your beach."
The new name simplifies the formerly complicated brand name, which visitors were not able to remember or identify with, said Jenkins.
"A brand is an emotional feeling people have about a company, product or service — a connection that leads to loyalty. The recognition should be higher for a brand that had been in place for a decade," said Jenkins.
"More than a tag or a logo, brand is everything," she added.
In doing the research, things visitors said they liked about South Walton included: its Southern heritage and the value found here for their travel dollars.
Those polled said the area's strengths are: the water, the area's design, the people's shared passion, and its preservation.
More plusses noted were the area's scenic beauty, clean beaches, and even the relaxation and laughter it brings. Tourists also liked the sense of belonging people feel when here and the ability to free themselves.
"People felt it is a restorative beach and locals are respectful of it," said Jenkins. "They appreciate its Southern and Gulf coast character, traditions, the nature, and the way it feels."
The main negative was the area's indistinct geography.
"A brand has soul," said Jenkins.
In an earlier interview, Moliterno said the TDC embarked several months ago on the $1.3 million project with LKM that began with a re-examination of the brand. The project is being funded with TDC reserve funds, Moliterno said.
Through advertising using the new brand, the TDC intends to encourage the area's discerning upscale visitors to "find their perfect place" along the strand of South Walton beaches to create memories.
“With South Walton you have 15 very unique and interesting stories,” she said.
"We are emphasizing choice," she added.
So far, so good in data for this year.
Moliterno said bed taxes were up 19 percent for the month of March.

By looking at the words people use to search google on a monthly basis, it looks like "South Walton" outperforms "Beaches of South Walton" almost 3 to 1, so it appears that "South Walton" should be even more recognizable to most and if they know to look here, they know about the beaches.

What keeps getting lost in discussions about the "rebranding" is that ACCORDING TO THE TDC'S OWN SURVEY RESULTS WE DO NOT HAVE A GEOGRAPHIC CONFUSION ISSUE!!!

Yes, "Beaches of South Walton" does have a low geographic recognition. BUT, when that "slogan" is combined with an actual geographic name of any neighborhood, development, etc. the "geographic recognition" is almost 10% HIGHER than Destin or Panama City.

Tourists know they are here. They know that they are in Alys Beach, Rosemary, Dune Allen, Blue Mountain, Watercolor, Watersound, Grayton, Gulfplace, on 30-A etc. They just don't know the latest advertising catch phrase.

It's the damn slogans/branding that are the problem, NOT visitors being unaware of where we/they are and what the places are called.

Very well said. This whole re-branding thing is a bunch of marketers trying to fix something that isn't broke. Since I live in this area, I would like to ask people in other markets (Atlanta, Nashville, Dallas, Birmingham, Etc.) what kind of advertisements for the Beaches of South Walton do you normally see on your media outlets? Perhaps, just maybe, we need to have better, or more, good old advertising rather than "re-branding...huh?

Well as someone who interacts with tourist particularly on the west end, they believe they are in Destin. If you look at some businesses there, including Sacred Heart Hospital, they seem to believe they are located in Destin. Tourist seem to believe they are located in Destin because of rental agencies and business advertisments. I think Silver Sands and Grand Blvd both use Destin when advertising.

Yes, I agree. People know where Destin and Panama City Beach is because of years and years of branded advertising. The Beaches of South Walton's beauty has been that it is a realtively undiscovered paradise nestled inbetween a more well known spring break and gulf fishing vacation destination. This is very appealing to those that "discover" this beauty on their own. It is something we feel more a part of because we discovered it on our own and not with an advertising/marketing campaign. The new brand should not take away from this adventurous and special place. Part of the allure is that it is not PC or Destin! This is not about change. This is about targeting a special group of tourist, investors and businesses that feel a part of something much bigger than themselves. When you bring in people not from this area to advertise and market these resources it will lead to people that come to see what the marketing is all about and not what our special place is all about. We have a "village". Please do not turn our special place into an "event"...

mputnal, you are right that South Walton is nothing like Destin and PCB, yet we've been featuring the same thing they have, the beach. Part of the new branding evolution also goes into their marketing plan, showing that South Walton is much more than just the beach.

IMO the new brand does not market this area other than the beach, "South Walton: To Each Your Beach". The use of a semi colon further defines South Walton as a Beach. Why do we need to be rebranded? This area is populated from tourist who "discovered" a quaint and shockingly beautiful resource while visiting the more well known "Spring break haven" and "fishing haven" of PCB and Destin or from "word of mouth" of other tourist visiting the area. Rental marketing has further targeted specific geographic regions. The "Beaches of South Walton" brand is not holding back tourism and investors but a poor economy certainly does. Anything that negatively affects the economy will affect tourism. The oil spill certainly affected this economy. The TDC can spend as much money as they want on marketing a new brand but it does not change the fact that we are dependent on a pollution free resource. If we want to keep our special place a "shockingly beautiful village" then we will have to defend it against negligent oil drilling corporations. I think the effort to fix this problem is misplaced...

I can't make it to tomorrow's meeting - could someone please do me a favor and ask these questions:

1) How does stealing a dumbarse slogan from Ft. Meyers help us promote our area as unique. Fort Meyers' slogan is a "A Beach for Each." Our latest "rebrand" is "To each your beach."

2) How does "To each your Beach" show that South Walton is "more than a beach?"

3) Obviously our clean gorgeous white beaches are the major tourist draw - what is the TDC doing to ensure that resource remains our biggest asset?

4) And if you're feeling pissy - The TDC has spent years and millions advertising this area with dumb slogans that don't seem to work. When do we get a refund or change the process to something that does work?

4) And if you're feeling pissy...

Now I understand why you have two fours. :lol:

scooterbug, this thing seems to be important to you. Why weren't you at the meeting last week to give real input?

Because the meetings conflicted with my work schedule - and many other people's I imagine, since they are being held during the work day.

So you've written them a letter or email, or called to talk to them, right?

Perhaps someone who works for the TDC who is responsible for gathering/considering community input might read this type of thread? A community's online forum(s) contain a wealth of feedback on many topics. A no brainer for taking the temperature of what folks would say at a meeting if they could attend. two cents...

Perhaps someone who works for the TDC who is responsible for gathering/considering community input might read this type of thread? A community's online forum(s) contain a wealth of feedback on many topics. A no brainer for taking the temperature of what folks would say at a meeting if they could attend. two cents...

Stay tuned. :cool: