North Star Research Identifies Communities with Greatest Resident Advocacy
(PRWEB) July 31, 2014 -- The research division of community branding expert, North Star Destination Strategies, just released its list of winning communities for the last 12 months in terms of resident advocacy for their community as a place to live, visit, and conduct business. The overall winner was Lee’s Summit, MO, which ranked highest in advocacy for all three categories. Johns Creek, GA was also a frontrunner.
This research tool called the Brand Barometer measures the passion of a community’s internal brand champions relative to a national average compiled using tens of thousands of consumer responses from coast to coast. The national sampling includes both North Star clients and thousands of responses from across the nation that aren’t associated with North Star. This national sampling mitigates swings in the economy and gives the truest look at advocacy in a given city, town or county.
According to North Star CEO, Don McEachern, these numbers can be used to help communities identify whether resident attitudes are helping or hurting the growth and vitality of the place. “Generally speaking, residents and stakeholders are much more critical of their communities than are outsiders. You can develop the best brand in the world, but if your residents aren’t buying into the key messages of that brand and repeating them, it won’t work. In some cases, residents actually advocate against their communities. Before you promote your community to the outside world, you’ve got to get the talk right on your own streets. This research tool is a way of gauging the tone – good or bad – of your community’s ‘talk.’ ”
A Great Place to Live
The national average for consumers who are net positive promoters of their community as a place to live is 11.7%.
The highest net promoter scores in this category amongst North Star clients over the last 12 months are:
• Lee’s Summit, MO: 64%
• John’s Creek, GA: 55.5%
• Dublin, CA: 41.3%
A Great Place to Visit
The national average for consumers who are net positive promoters of their community as a place to visit is 13.1%.
The highest net promoter scores in this category amongst North Star clients over the last 12 months are:
• Lee’s Summit, MO: 52.8%
• Highland Park, IL: 49.7%
• Las Vegas, NM: 28.3%
A Great Place to Work
The national average for consumers who are net positive promoters of their community as a place to conduct business is -1.5% (generally speaking, business scores are considerably lower in communities):
The highest net promoter scores in this category amongst North Star clients over the last 12 months are:
• Lee’s Summit, MO: 39.3%
• Johns Creek, GA: 33.4%
• Godfrey, IL: 22.6%
“These communities are to be commended,” says Rupa DeLoach, North Star’s Vice President of Research. “A high net promoter advocacy score is hard to obtain in any category. That’s why the national average is so low. These scores are significantly elevated above that average, which is something to be proud of and to leverage further.”
The Lee’s Summit score was re-measured three years following the completion of that community’s branding effort. It is important to note that Lee’s Summit had exceptionally high advocacy scores pre-branding, but each score went up following the branding effort.
“Our scores went up because the positive messaging from and about Lee’s Summit became more focused, compelling, and clear,” explains Steve Arbo, Lee’s Summit City Manager. “It’s not a matter of suddenly residents have a logo they recognize. Branding is so much more than that. It’s turning your residents into ambassadors by giving them the communication tools and messaging that allow them to share their enthusiasm about their community with others.”
Nashville-based North Star is a full-service place branding and research agency. Having partnered with more than 200 communities in 43 states nationwide, North Star is considered an industry leader in the field of community and destination research and branding. North Star specializes in regional economic development branding, destination branding, city branding, and community-wide branding.
Eric Steltenpohl, North Star Destination Strategies, http://www.northstarideas.com, +1 (615) 232-2103, [email protected]
Share this article