BY Joe Marianek

Realeigh?

Imagine a utopian destination—a geographic equilibrium servicing the dualing needs of business & pleasure—conveniently near a regional airport. In this mythical location, one might fantasize about relaxing with a proverbial partner and two children at a waterpark, mall, zoo, or even an art museum. Maybe some golfing with executives followed by candid conversation…and closing a deal or two in a comfortable hotel lobby. There would be strong exotic drinks served by colorful and sexy locals in a continental atmosphere drenched in free wi-fi. This natural state of promise, abundance, and uniquely American opportunity does exist. It’s not in the Bahamas, not in Second Life, and not in Dubai. It’s in Raleigh.

Call the logo Pulse—the given name of the brand unveiled recently by the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors bureau to promote the Capitol City and Wake County as a premiere leisure and meeting destination. Part destination logo, part call-to-action, the City of Oaks has adopted this abstract signifier with enough buried significance to dizzy the spirits of Barthes, Baudrillard, and Sir Walter Raleigh himself.

The following stepped-out explanations have been gleaned from press-releases and other local reports in an attempt to economically decode the formal decisions, and implicit values put forth by the Great Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau. This is not a joke—it is a cluster-eff of meaning. Here’s the long-version.

12 squares=12 municipalities
Green Squares Around Red Square=City in a Park
Beveled Squares=Pixels
Pixels=Technology of Research Triangle Park
Green=Environment
Yellow-Green=New Growth
Blue=The Carolina Sky
Purple=The County’s Elegance and Sophistication
Star=Raleigh, the State Capitol
Loose style of star=”The Handmade Imaginitive Quality
of the Visual and Performing Arts in Raleigh”

Puzzling is the fact that two out-of-town firms handled the project. Cundari of Toronto handled the logo, website, attributes, and brand promise. Longwoods International did the quantitative and qualitative research and interviews. All this out-of-town help seemed to infuriate the locals, along with the price tag.

Apart from the formal similarity to, and channeling of, the celebrated Bahamas branding by Duffy & Partners, the most troubling result of visitRaleigh’s “Pulse” is that such energy has been given to the logic and PR explanation these anonymous squares. Conceptually, the squares have the potential to be geographically specific “vessels” for photos of all things uniquely Raleigh, but sadly end up containing stock(like) photos. The mark has complex colors break up over photos without serious control and management. Alarming, is the fact that missing from the program is any visual evidence of local authenticity and texture. At current, there is a lack of historical, natural, or local energy exercised in the program, in preference of safe neutrality. The abstract concept of “Pulse” lacks any energy unless of course one googles a geopolitical map of the area, or reads a press-release.

On my first trip to Raleigh, I went straight from the airport, into to a meeting at the IBM compound in Research Triangle and back to the airport. The only exciting leisure moment was a Quiznos luncheon while sitting on some soon-to-be-on-Ebay Herman Miller chairs covered in bespoke Paul Rand red, green and blue fabrics. One can only wish that Mr. Rand had been around to crack this one.

\n\nImagine a utopian destination—a geographic equilibrium servicing the dualing needs of business & pleasure—conveniently near a regional airport. In this mythical location, one might fantasize about relaxing with a proverbial partner and two children at a waterpark, mall, zoo, or even an art museum. Maybe some golfing with executives followed by candid conversation...and closing a deal or two in a comfortable hotel lobby. There would be strong exotic drinks served by colorful and sexy locals in a continental atmosphere drenched in free wi-fi. This natural state of promise, abundance, and uniquely American opportunity does exist. It's not in the Bahamas, not in Second Life, and not in Dubai. It's in Raleigh.

Many thanks to our ADV @ UnderConsideration Partners