Monday, August 26, 2019

Branding Hudson

In the world of marketing and advertising, branding seems to have a larger meaning that involves such complex and nuanced concepts as perception, recognition, and image, but discussions of branding in Hudson tend to reduce the term to two things--a logo and a slogan. The idea of branding Hudson is frightening to those who believe that the phenomenon of Hudson defies easy definition and cannot be adequately communicated in a logo and a slogan.

Screen capture: Dan Udell
Unschooled in the subtleties of the industry, I tend to think of branding and marketing as two different things--related, yes, but different. Marketing being general; branding more specific. Apparently, that is not true. If you watch Dan Udell's partial coverage of the "Hudson Tourism Branding Brainstorm!" event that took place last Friday, you will hear Chris McManus, at about 3:35, paraphrase something I said before Udell started recording: "If you don't brand, you're seceding. You're allowing somebody else to brand you." In truth, what I said was something like, "If Hudson doesn't market itself, others will market it for us," making specific reference to the episode of Stay HereNetflix's real estate reality show, which effectively marketed Hudson as a place to invest in a building and see a $72,000 annual return on investment by offering it for short-term rental on Airbnb.

At about 3:52 in the video, Jeff Starr expresses something that many of us have thought. He starts out by saying he believed for years there had been a very subtle tourism board at work, because "the New York Times routinely had amazing, glowing articles about Hudson," and he figured someone had to be planting them. He then concludes: "Don't tamper with it. It's working just fine. You get into this silly tampering, and it ruins the coolness quality." Interestingly, three years ago a Bard senior named Nora Cady analyzed those very articles to demonstrate how they had driven the gentrification of Hudson--gentrification being seen as not a good thing: "Fit to Print: Hudson's Gentrification in the New York Times, 1985-2016."

Screen capture: Dan Udell
Most of the ten people gathered around the table for the "Branding Brainstorm" on Friday seemed to agree that Hudson needed to avoid "jumping the shark" and losing its appeal to visitors. John Kane expressed the opinion that Hudson had already "peaked past the cool factor," saying people used to come from Manhattan, then from Brooklyn, and now they are coming from Long Island and "down the shore." Of course, the ten people who had come out for the brainstorming were a pretty homogeneous lot--white, college educated, somewhere on the spectrum of middle class; the majority were over 50, in some cases by a decade or more, and half of them lived on Worth Avenue. Hardly a representative sampling of Hudson.

The issue of branding Hudson is complicated and contentious. There are those people who fear branding because they don't want Hudson reduced to a logo and a tagline. Then there are those who don't want branding or marketing because they don't want tourism, arguing that tourism, like gentrification, displaces "indigenous" people. It has been suggested that before we can market Hudson to the world we need to come to some consensus about our vision for the future in a new comprehensive plan, although consensus in Hudson always seems elusive.

If we must brand Hudson, maybe we should imitate Austin and Portland (it's not clear which city used it first) and come up with our own version of "Keep Austin/Portland Weird." Since the adjective used most often to describe Hudson in those "amazing, glowing articles" that chronicled and encouraged the city's renaissance is quirky, I propose that this be our slogan: "Keep Hudson Quirky."
COPYRIGHT 2019 CAROLE OSTERINK

19 comments:

  1. The grassroots Hudson branding movement should have started much earlier in the process instead of expressing their thoughts on the night of the vote, given the months the Tourism Board has been working on this project.
    The members of the Common Council who seemed confused and concerned should have also been involved at the Tourism Board meetings. Also all information concerning the Lodging Tax and Tourism Board was posted on "Fourth Ward Hudson"
    by Alderman Volo.

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    1. I totally agree with this and count myself among those who have worked in branding a long time and should have gotten involved.

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  2. Nora Cady’s study was really off-base and illogical in several respects.

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  3. I'm not a big fan of branding and vision exercises. Hudson is already a very high profile city. What we need to do is focus on better stewardship of the resources we are blessed with.

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    1. I totally agree with this too. Since we're already a "there," it's a matter of stewarding what we have and expanding in ways compatible with what we like best about the city. That's where consensus comes in, and it would be a good time to start building that. Vision is key, and so is making sure that everyone in town has skin in the game.

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  4. Has anybody posted a list of Hudson’s assets that should be advertised. When I’m talking to people about Hudson, I tell them Hudson is a cool little town on the Hudson River filled with antique shops, restaurants and bars, design shops, art galleries and different kinds of architecture from multiple periods. You have the beauty of the River and the mountains, tons of outdoor activities like hiking and bike riding, Olana and the Thomas Cole Houses all available without needing a car.

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  5. For those who have been unable to attend any of the FUTURE HUDSON events, I wanted to share links to moments that I have found particularly moving and associated with the health of our community as it pertains to investing marketing dollars in promotion vs planning.

    Our first event in April was on urban planning, “WHAT MAKES HUDSON A GREAT CITY?”

    At the 7:19 mark, Joe Czajka of Patterns for Progress in Poughkeepsie - and a co-author of our city’s strategic housing action plan - shared staggering data on the demographic and economic reality of the Hudson and the County.
    https://www.yhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diDqn38iD04outube.com/watch?v=diDqn38iD04

    Our May even was on economic development, “HOW CAN HUDSON GROW?”

    At the 55-minute mark Linda Kelley of Pittsfield shares her experience of creating spaces for the community to listen to each other.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwBd9s61kkQ&t=33s

    Our July event explored historic preservation, “TO PRESERVE OR NOT TO PRESERVE?”

    At the 2:25-minute mark, Josh Simon from the Benjamin Center for Public Policy at SUNY New Paltz shares more data on gentrification, and the role of a Comprehensive Plan in Hudson Valley cities.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUWVxgQk8vA&list=PL-Ub_oW7Ar1bu2y9wmuN1M5xIVO1anL7G&index=4&t=0s

    Our June event was about parks and public spaces, “WHERE DOES HUDSON GATHER?”

    At the 1:02:27-minute mark, Kaya Weidman of Kite’s Nest argues that conventional development and PlaceMaking is better called PlaceTaking and calls for a new form of community engagement called PlaceKeeping.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25IuxIuwVNI&list=PL-Ub_oW7Ar1bu2y9wmuN1M5xIVO1anL7G&index=2&t=13s

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  6. I think another piece of it, which you didn't bring up in your post, is the simple issue of needs and priorities. If there is $75,000 to spend in our city, and if the goal is to in some way "market" the city, a number of us would love to see that $75,000 spent to improve the city itself. Countless people visit Central Park daily AND New Yorkers take advantage of their great park. With $75,000, we could turn the design concept for Oakdale into an architect's drawing; or we could build a new playground. We could get plans for a renovation of the beach house and fundraise for the construction cost. We could get a master plan for 7th street park--which isn't covered by the state funding. It could all go to planting trees. I'm just saying I think the issue of that much money in a cash-strapped city with lots of infrastructural and recreational needs is/was a very significant one.

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    1. Thinking the same, thanks. The parks need urgent attention. The 7th Street could be a beauty drawing in visitors as it should. Whenever I drive by, it's empty and forlorn. It shouldn't be.

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    2. Couldn't agree more. Parks, trees, planters and fix the sidewalks. I think I've said it before. Catskill does a better job. Just look at their beautiful hanging flower baskets and even Uncle Sam's bridge is overflowing with flowers. However, Hudson's Parks really need work. Individual volunteer groups before have tried to plant out the pocket park by Mexican Radio with limited success, the alleys, planting sunflowers, and St Winifreds at the top of Promenade Hill. A more concerted City effort would be good. And most of all, the 7th St Park really needs help.

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  7. bumper sticker: KEEP HUDSON UNBRANDED!

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  8. Hudson has already been branded Brooklyn North - nuff said. I left Brooklyn almost 40 years ago, I left Hudson 2 years ago.

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  9. As the adage goes, why mess with a good thing! Hudson has evolved naturally over time. That's how it became cool. There's a danger of Disneyland. Not cool! The artists and creatives would disappear (unless some may want that?). Artificial tampering (branding!) is sure to ruin it. It looks like these players are looking for a nice financial opportunity. Let's not be gullible please. Structural improvements and parks, sure.

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  10. If we MUST brand, my suggestion would be to reach out to the history AND current climate of everything positive that's offered. Just a thought, but how about Hudson Everything Old and New. Bring the entire population of residents and tourists together in a positive way.

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  11. It doesn't matter at this point whether people got involved early or late. That’s mainly sniping from disappointed members of the committee—whose responsibility it was to build support for their idea before bringing it to a vote. (Politics 101: Never call for a vote that you aren’t sure you are going to win.)

    The tourism gang should be thinking about how to restore faith in their mission, and what to do next, rather than whining that they are volunteers and thus deserve to get their way automatically.

    What matters now is whether this is still an idea worthy of public (and Council) support. As of today, that support isn’t there. The idea either needs serious revision, or should be scrapped.

    Some now-obvious missteps to learn from the next time around:

    – Clarify why this is necessary, besides “we have some money to spend”;

    – Make a greater effort to find consultants who are more local and don’t require a lot of time getting up to speed... or dispense with consultants entirely and let the community lead the way;

    – Question assumptions (including whether top-down branding and promotion are even necessary components of creating a better local tourism industry).

    — Focus on how to ensure that the benefits of tourism reach the broader community, not just lodging and restaurant owners.

    P.S. Hudson]s successes in the past 25+ years have almost entirely come through slow, steady, organic changes and small, incremental improvements—actions distributed among and taken by thousands of individuals, businesses and small groups.

    These improvements, unlike the debacles of the past, were almost entirely unplanned. Virtually all of Hudson’s progress forward has made without (or even in spite of) consultants like the one chosen by the committee.

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  12. To comment on Carole's comment: 'Keep Hudson Quirky' - too cute, I always think of Hudson as 'edgy' or 'gritty' like Soho or Tribeca once was - but 'Keep Hudson Edgy' ? not sure everyone would go for that. I think no branding is better, let it speak for itself. And Brooklyn North with certainly fade.

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  13. rebranding "The Hudson Opera House" ... nuff said.

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