TWO weekends ago I had the opportunity to share some ideas and best practices in terms of city priming and provenance-building, based on our experience working with local government units and other stakeholders from the public and the private sectors, when I was invited to speak before an audience during the recently concluded Maynila Urban Design Week + Festival.
The initiative, organized by our good friends Carlos Celdran and Julia Nebrija from Viva Manila, is one I would truly be proud to be a part of. I understand that, yes, most people know me as a brand architect—someone who cleans up after other people’s mess, especially during risk and crisis situations—but beyond that, I take pride in being an advocate of Mindanao and areas of great crisis and risk, like Samar and Leyte, for example.
In a span of more than a decade, I have been involved with a lot of urban priming work centered on areas like Makati, Cebu, Bohol and, just recently, the South Cotabato region. At the moment, we are also currently working with the European Union (EU) and the government of Singapore. And through all of these, I realized that it is our responsibility as stewards of the land and as advocates of progress to absorb every bit of learning we acquire from our involvement in these kinds of works and plow it back, not even to Manila—because I have Carlos, Julia, and the rest of Viva Manila for that; not even for Makati—because Ayala Land has been doing that for the longest time already; and not even for Bonifacio Global City—because we have the group of Charlie Rufino of the Urban Land Institute taking care of that—but to underadvocated areas and to make our cities more resilient and more progressive for future generations.
Strengthening a city’s character
I often get asked about what makes a thriving, livable city. Does it have anything to do with the overall master plan? Or having big brands and companies as locators? Perhaps, this quality rests on the abundance of residential options in an area? Or does it depend on the kind of reputation a particular location enjoys.
Most cities today fail to put a huge emphasis on the value of selling provenance to establish a strong reputation and attract good business toward them. The idea that you can attribute and create value for specific products or a specific activity, or an initiative because of where it’s from is called provenance building. The way by which you pursue this initiative can make or break your chances of hitting it big in the market. Cities command value based on their locations and the lifestyles associated with it, thus, provenance building makes for an important facet that spells the success of a city’s branding initiatives.
A couple of nights ago I realized that I have been eating on Burgos Street, which, as many of you may know, has earned the reputation as the red-light district of Makati. In all of my trips there, I realized that there are actually three very small commercial groups who are starting the re-gentrification of Burgos by promoting the growing “high-low” concept, meaning, you can eat authentic US Angus beef, for example, combine it with really expensive Japanese whiskey on the streets of the red-light district. The idea that you have a gentrified crowd reengaging in an area that’s been historically unpalatable, if not the most polite part of the city, and seeing people from various publicly listed companies go there and drink warm sake, mind you, is very gratifying and enriching to the heart.
Creating value through stakeholder engagement
Take for example Singapore and EU member-countries, how do you think were they able to build and strengthen their reputation? Simple: through sustained branding initiatives.
Singapore, after all the strife and the struggle for power that it has endured a couple of decades ago, has now emerged as the epitome of a new-age urban city, with its advanced infrastructure and economy. Today, far from all the conflict that dominated its landscape, Singapore now offers an array of sites and bites—from resorts to reserves to malls to markets catering to locals and tourists from across different social segments. It is a tourist favorite, as it has built a reputation as a destination for shopping, dining and a lot more.
The often popularized theme-park attractions and environment reserves are a must-see for tourists, but these national flagships are not enough for the high-value market to return. The challenge that the government of Singapore had before themselves was the fact that the country has only been perceived as a destination for people looking for business and higher-paying jobs. As consultants, we helped manage the reputation of Singapore as being a “one-dimensional” nation, spearheading their “See Where the World Is Heading” campaign here in the Philippines and curating world-class events, activities and facilities to serve as “your slice of the world.”
In our work for the EU, on the other hand, by championing the “We Inspire Each Other” campaign, we helped create a campaign to help establish the EU and the Philippines’s branding as valuable partners in business, environment and health, stimulating engagement between the EU and the Philippines, and spurring more economic participation and activity between the two entities.
As I’ve written before, branding is as much a scientific process as it is a creative process. It involves a great deal of identifying who your target market is, understanding the range of behaviors that influence their mind-sets, creatively strategizing how you can best engage them, and talking to them by fueling their urge to fill a gap through selling the promise of a well-rounded lifestyle.
Can cities as brands transform? Do they always have to stay the same way forever? Branding requires consistency. From the biggest idea to the smallest detail, your brand needs to shine throughout the entire process. For a brand to transform, it must embrace a bigger truth that encompasses what it is in a way that let the public see it in a new light—the same idea that our cities today should champion if, and only if, we as responsible Filipinos are to propel our country toward new heights.