Richland Chamber & Destination Mansfield seek Residents input

MANSFIELD, OHIO – Want to be a part of the future promotion and development of your community? Here is your chance!  A group formed to create a Community Brand wants to know what the residents from communities across Richland County think. This effort is led by the Richland Area Chamber of Commerce & Economic Development and Destination Mansfield-Richland Count and seeks input from across the county. 

“The goal is to develop an authentic brand story to be used by all Economic Development agencies and others to promote the area as a great place to live, work, visit or even raise a family,” according to Lee Tasseff, President of Destination Mansfield-Richland County. “You have to know who you are and what your story is before telling that story to the rest of the world.”

While marketing to visitors has been ongoing for decades, this is an opportunity for more coordinated efforts to position the entire community for overall growth for years to come. 

“Extensive and thorough research are key to creating an authentic brand story that will be cornerstone of future marketing efforts,” said Jodie Perry, President of the Richland Area Chamber. “The first phase of the research is conducting a public survey. Cubic Creative, the agency hired to conduct this research, needs to learn as much about this area from those that live and work here as they can. In order to be as accurate, we need the input of as many residents as possible.”

To that end, the committee is giving county residents the opportunity to be heard. All they must do is click on this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/MansfieldRichlandCountySurvey to take the survey. Deadline for taking the survey is Friday, March 13.

The research will start with this survey and provide Cubic with their first understanding of what residents think about the community they live. The results will guide them when they conduct in-person focus groups next month.

Once the research tells us our story, we’ll create a consistent message to tell the world. Whether we’re talking with a potential new business owner, a new family at school, or our friends across the country, we’ll all help promote and build up this great place. Then a standard playbook with a logo, tagline, and photos will be used in a consistent way by anyone telling our story, including in marketing campaigns, social media posts, videos, and media stories. 

The committee is working with local media, economic development and community organizations as well as mayors of cities and villages to get the survey out to as many residents as possible.

The project got underway last year as a steering committee was formed with representation from all over Richland County. The committee solicited and received proposals from 10 agencies from across the US and Canada that specialize in community branding. Cubic Creative out of Tulsa, OK was selected last October to conduct the project.