By Megan Alley
Sun Reporter
Clermont County has been rebranded.
The Clermont County community was invited to join representatives from Connect Clermont, the Clermont County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Clermont County Park District and the Clermont Chamber of Commerce as they unveiled their new brands during an event held on Dec. 6 in one of the movie theaters at RJ Cinema Eastgate.
An early Friday morning cold rain stood no chance of dampening the spirits of event organizers, led by Connect Clermont Board of Directors Chairman Bob Pautke.
“This is a pretty big day here in Clermont County,” Pautke said in his opening remarks, and then proceeded to invite the audience in a round of something he called the “Slap, slap, clap, clap, woo, woo” game, intended to liven up those in attendance.
Pautke then explained the journey that brought the partnering agencies to their re-brand.
He said that developing a “clear and robust” brand was the second of 24 priorities identified by locals as they worked on the 2015 Agenda for the Future of Clermont County, a community vision and strategic plan.
The partnering organizations got to work in late 2018 and hired marketing agency Intrinzic, based in Newport, KY, to develop the new brand at a cost of $60,000.
The cost was divided among the project partners, according to Connect Clermont Board Member Michelle Hamilton.
Hamilton pointed out that Connect Clermont’s portion of the cost came out of its operating budget, and that none of the $750,000 funds that Duke Energy announced in 2018 that it was donating to the organization were used to pay for the rebranding project.
In his presentation, Pautke explained that, as part of the rebranding research process, community leaders, residents and business people representing all geographies within the county participated in focus groups to help identify what makes Clermont County unique.
What resulted were the following descriptors, which are the base for the new brand story:
– Modern-Rural.
– Discovery.
– Warmth.
– Rally-Around.
– Intertwined.
Intrinzic then developed a master brand for Clermont County, which was described as “a visual representation of how specific groups within the county can cohesively live together to represent the unique fabric of Clermont County.”
According to a press release from Connect Clermont, “The visual identity reflects a GPS pin made from Clermont ‘C’ to bring to life the magnetism and attraction to Clermont. ‘Clermont’ nestles in the GPS pin to show a sense of place and belonging. Colors show the collective impact of all groups coming together and to add energy and vibrancy; while bringing to life the fabric concept and the mosaic of people, places and things Clermont County offers, all being unified.”
Each of the four partner organizations then unveiled its own new brand and logo.
According to the press release, “The creation of the brand is just the first step. The organizations plan to find creative ways to bring the brand to life in 2020, including offering a ‘Proudly Clermont County’ logo or digital badge that can be associated with businesses, local governments, schools, organizations, or groups wanting to identify with the larger community.”
