Come November, Jasper will be sporting a new and improved brand.
It will be one that evokes an emotional response and resonates with active explorers, who are ready for an epic wilderness adventure.
That’s the goal, anyway.
“We’re drilling down to what Jasper is,” said Mary Darling, CEO of Tourism Jasper, the town’s destination marketing organization. To do that, consultants from Stormy Lake Consulting and Copithorne and Blakely—the company’s that created Travel Alberta’s “Remember to Breathe” campaign—have been collecting data from both locals and visitors.
Darling described those interviews as an opportunity to put “a finger on the pulse” of what Jasper is and whom it attracts.
In a presentation last month, the consultants reported back with what they heard.
Included in that report were Jasper’s distinct selling points and its challenges. For instance, according to their interviews, Jasper presents unlimited options for exploration; it’s awe-inspiring, authentic and prepared; and it’s a base camp for adventure.
On the other hand, it’s a long distance from the closest airport. To combat that challenge, the consultants suggest it’s important that the new brand and marketing campaign capitalize on the idea that the journey is as important as the destination—and, in Jasper’s case, with the Icefields Parkway in the park, that journey is spectacular.
With the research done, the information is now in the hands of Copithorne and Blakely to come up with a new sales pitch for Jasper.
Tourism Jasper—which is funding the project—will have meetings with its consultants in September to provide further feedback and then it will be a couple of months before the brand is completed and unveiled to the community.
It’s at that point when the real work starts, said Darling.
“There will be photo shoots that will need to be taking place, video shoots that will need to be taking place, revising and refreshing content on our websites, and our agency will be putting on workshops to help businesses relate to the messaging that’s going out there and to help them with how they fit in and what works the best for them within that story.”
For the past 12 years, Jasper has been luring tourists to town with the tagline: “Jasper. Wonderful. By Nature.”
“In the past 12 years a lot has changed in the whole world,” said Darling, noting that when Tourism Jasper was created in 2009, rebranding was one of the organization’s priorities. “It’s time to look at what we were saying and whether it was the best way to get people here.
“We needed to relook at our messaging and see if it still resonates with people.”
Nicole Veerman
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