Britain's councils and tourist boards spend millions on hiring brand consultants to choose the few special words they hope will attract new visitors. For many, it is the PR event of the year, a chance for an ageing image to be updated, a sullied name to be scrubbed up and polished.
Frequently, however, it all goes horribly wrong. In 2005, Leeds City Council suffered great embarrassment when, after bringing in the firm An Agency Called England to launch a new slogan at a cost of £150,000, locals objected to the resulting "Leeds. Live it. Love it". Initial antipathy turned to all-out hostility when they discovered that the idea wasn't even new: Hong Kong had been using "Hong Kong, Live it, Love it" since 2003.
A new logo for Nottinghamshire has been unveiled by the people responsible for its promotion as a tourist and business hot-spot. The new brand cost £120,000 to produce and a key feature is a new Logo featuring just the letter "N" standing alone.
It replaces the "Nottingham, Our style is legendary" Logo featuring a Robin Hood character and will appear in different forms all over the county on tourism leaflets, road signs and local firms' literature.
Belfast, too, has decided it needs a Post-Troubles makeover as it tries to embrace tourists keen to experience a destination touted as: "The New Berlin"!
Here are some slogans from other parts of Great Britain.
I particularly like: "Up here it's different" (Donegal) and "Uniquely Manchester" (I'm sure both statements are true!):
Moray: 'Malt whisky country'
Banffshire: 'Scotland's treasure'
Aberdeen and Grampian Highlands: 'Scotland's castle and whisky country'
Ayrshire & Arran: 'Your excuse to explore Scotland'
Angus/Forfarshire: 'Scotland's birthplace'
Perth: 'The fair city'
Fife: 'Kingdom of life'
Clackmannanshire: 'The Wee County'
Kirkcudbright: 'Scenic fishing town with an aritstic heritage'
Edinburgh: 'Inspiring capital'
West Lothian/Linlithgowshire: 'A jewel in Scotland's crown'
Tweeddale: 'Adventure, activity, culture, tranquillity'
Dumfries and Galloway: 'A touch of the exotic'"
Northumberland: 'Officially England's Most Tranquil County'
Newcastle/Gateshead: 'World-class culture'
Yorkshire: 'Alive with Opportunity!'
Cumberland and the Lake District: 'Make time for you in Cumbria'
Leeds: 'Live it, love it'
Yorkshire: 'Alive with Opportunity!'
Lancashire: 'Visit Lancashire – love it'
Southport: 'Day time, night time, great time'
Kingston-upon-Hull: 'The pioneering city'
Manchester: 'Uniquely Manchester'
Lincolnshire: 'Big County, Big Skies, Big Future'
Derbyshire and Peak District: 'Take a peak'
Liverpool: 'The world in one city'
Nottinghamshire: 'N'
Cheshire: 'Stay. Explore. Relax. Indulge'.
Shropshire: 'Love from Shropshire'
Peterborough: 'A city to surprise and delight you'
Norfolk: 'Time to explore'
Norwich: 'A fine city'
Suffolk: 'Choose Suffolk: As scene on the tube'
Bedfordshire: 'We Bedfordshire'
Rutland: 'Discover 100% of real England right here in Rutland'
Northamptonshire: 'Let yourself grow'
Warwickshire: 'Shakespeare's county'
Warwick: 'Experience The Past, Taste The Future'
Mid-Wales: 'Because mid-Wales is as unique as you are'
Pembrokeshire: 'Wales [sic] most popular coastal destination'
Carmarthenshire: 'The garden of Wales'
Glamorgan: 'Visit the Vale'
Worcester: 'An Ancient English City with a Modern Outlook'
Essex: 'Real Essex'
South Oxfordshire: 'So charming, South Oxfordshire'
London: 'Totally LondON'
Gloucestershire: 'England at its best'
Bath: 'Visit Bath and beyond'
Wiltshire: 'A rich history'
Kent: 'Relax, refresh, inspire'
Sussex: 'Better Mid Sussex'
Somerset: 'Jewel of the South West'
West Dorset: 'The world heritage coast'
Devon: 'Discover Devon'
Cornwall: 'Kernow Bys Vykken/Cornwall for ever'
Plymouth: 'The city of discovery'
Poole: 'Surf, rest and play'
Portsmouth: 'The waterfront city'
Eastbourne: 'The sunshine coast'
Donegal: 'Up here it's different'
Antrim: 'Live. Work. Enjoy'
Fermanagh :'Tell your own story'
30/11/07 @ 11:12