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WWW.GOTOSTLOUIS.ORG
Carries Ne Brand Message
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By Laurie Burstein
At the heart of the new branding campaign launched in October by
the RCGA and its regional partners is a new website. Linked with
the RCGA’s website, www.gotostlouis.org
is the primary communication and sales tool designed to reach key
audiences with a combination of business and lifestyle information.
It’s easy-to-navigate format provides a balanced picture of St.
Louis with rich data and striking visuals.
The site appeals to both a business audience—including site selection
consultants, real estate managers, entrepreneurs, and potential
employers—as well as to individuals considering relocating to the
area.
“We have developed a very strong website that communicates the new
brand platform for the region,” says Steve Johnson, senior vice
president of economic development at the RCGA.
“Our website tells the story of how Greater St. Louis offers a remarkable
blend of features from a skilled workforce and exceptional cost
of living, to great cultural and educational institutions. All of
this rich data and information is now in one place on our website
in a clean format and very intuitive for the user,” he says.
Johnson further explains, “Site selection searches always start
and often end on a website. That’s why it is so crucial for the
website to provide a balance of statistical data and business-related
information, as well as a glimpse into the personality of the St.
Louis region.”
The process for developing the website began in June when the RCGA
chose Fleishman-Hillard to develop the branding campaign and produce
the website. The agency put together a top team of researchers,
writers, designers and technical experts.
Fleishman-Hillard Senior Vice President Melinda Love directed the
website project for the agency, and says the core challenge was
timing. “A great deal of work was completed in a very short period
of time. In 14 weeks, research was conducted, a brand was created,
partners were consulted, and the website was finished.”
Research was a critical factor in producing the site and an audit
of 12 different regions across the country was conducted.
Love explains, “We compared key features of each site ranging from
brand message to general usability and structure of information.
In some cases, we had access to city leaders to gain key information
first-hand. In other cases we conducted our own research from materials
and websites available.”
“This research served as a foundation in building the RCGA’s website.
We wanted to take the best of the sites and combine them in a way
that was compelling for the St. Louis site,” Love says.
The agency then developed three prototype designs with different
approaches that were tested with site selection consultants, real
estate brokers and entrepreneurs. The tests were conducted over
the phone with the user connecting to a beta site and a researcher
documenting the feedback. This provided valuable user behavior information
from selections made—or not made—in real time. The research guided
the refinement of the prototype to a final format.
The economic development portion of the website provides information
on such topics as:
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Ratings
and Rankings
highlights St. Louis’ housing affordability.
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Success
Stories
features local entrepreneurs and other business owners.
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What’s
New highlights
several major business expansions underway and the new RCGA
branding campaign.
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Surprising
St. Louis
touts the region’s quality of life including parks and recreational
opportunities. |
From a business standpoint, the site covers everything from major
employers to the top five industry clusters including Plant & Medical
Sciences, Manufacturing, Information Technology, Transportation
and Financial Services.
Entrepreneurship and technology are highlighted, along with venture
capital sources, and details on taxes and incentives from both Missouri
and Illinois. The website details how St. Louis is business friendly,
with information on location and economic diversity.
The site also places a strong emphasis on quality of life in St.
Louis. This was a key finding in the research which revealed that
quality of life is a big issue for companies looking to relocate
or expand.
Information on neighborhoods, cost of living, climate, healthcare
and education is all covered. Additionally, details on professional
sports, parks, golf courses, outdoor activities and cultural attractions
can be found.
One of the most striking features of the site is the strong visuals.
The majority of the photography for the site is original work done
by local photographer Gregg Goldman who captured businesses, universities
and cultural sites, along with lifestyle shots. “We felt it was
very important to put a face on St. Louis and the new photography
and overall design provides strong images and graphics to tell the
whole story,” Love says.
Maintaining the site and keeping all of the information current
and up-to-date is a high priority for the RCGA. A tracking system
is also in place to monitor results from the number of hits the
site gets to the most popular parts of the site. The RCGA is also
working with its regional partners to provide links to each of their
sites as well.
Johnson says, “We want to make it easy for people to learn about
St. Louis. We believe we have developed a smart site about St. Louis
that will keep our target audiences coming back.” |
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