communities establish a vision , a mission , and a strategic plan . His ability to take his knowledge of our communities and take those strategies and weave that into the storytelling was unsurpassed by anyone else .”
How it went down
To come up with the toolkit and suggested formula for success , Ashby and Ben Muldrow of Arnett Muldrow & Associates completed a brand score assessment and conducted intensive on-site workshops in each of the participating Main Street organizations , then crafted a customized process and solution set . They also developed visual and verbal collateral , including logos , photo documentary , brand identification , social media calendars , and storylines to help tailor the organizations ’ messages .
“ Not every community received the same deliverables . Some had the more
visual approach . Others really just needed the storylines to be able to run with ,” Ashby said .
“ I like the direct nature both Ben ( Muldrow ) and Matt ( Ashby ) have . They aren ' t afraid to tell it how it is and position themselves as experts on the matter . Instead of coming into a community and being meek , they take the time to know the community and then deliver very powerful ( and might I add , accurate ) results .”
Chelsea Rosty , Main Street Manager and Director of Business Innovation & Tourism
City of Montrose / Montrose DART
Kallie Cooper , executive director of Wellington ’ s Main Street Program , said the Pickaxe Project helped brand the community as northern Colorado ’ s “ Front Porch .” Located about 15 miles north of Fort Collins , the primarily agricultural community evokes a comfortable , welcoming vibe and is full of small-town charm , “ but one of the things we struggled with was creating our own purpose and identity – and how to communicate that effectively with our business owners and residents ,” she said . The tagline given through the Pickaxe Project helped them develop messaging based on being Colorado ’ s northern gateway and visitors ’ first stop into Colorado .
“ What that Wellington front porch theme did for us is it allowed us to say ‘ Hey , Wellington is this small community , but this is why we ’ re special ,’ ” Cooper said . “ We ’ re special because we are that first impression . We are that community that greets you , and we ’ re your first chance of getting a glimpse of what Colorado is really made of .”
Through the project , the town received an assortment of coordinated logos to use with various events , an adopted www . AyresAssociates . com 29