Urban Brand Marketing

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properties, providing advices and support to future investors (Commercial Sites in FrankfurtRheinMain, 2012). Within these frames, the Rhine-Main metropolitan region is marketed in the light of its potentials to generate success,¹⁰⁷ and is thus promoted as international traffic hub, leading financial and dynamic services centre, modern industrial location, and global exhibition and trade location, with high-performance data networks, high quality of life and growing research and development.¹⁰⁸ The City of Frankfurt itself is promoted as the heart of the region and “one of the Europe’s top business location” (Commercial Sites in FrankfurtRheinMain, 2012: 5), setting the focus on its infrastructure and international airport, international atmosphere, concentration of successful companies and home of the ECB headquarters.

Another important element in making Frankfurt a distinguished urban brand is achieved through tourism marketing, conducted by Tourism+Congress GmbH. The company is active mostly in the segments of tourism and congresses, with the main task of promoting a positive image of the city worldwide.¹⁰⁹ The institution at the same time functions as competitive business company, responsible for providing and distributing information and activities for tourists – such as sightseeing, hotel rooms reservation etc. – and for overall city marketing, including festivals, events and congresses. For these purposes, the company developed

‘Marketingplan 2012’. The strategy primarily strives to contrast the weakest points in the general image of the city - in particular in stereotypes that are showing Frankfurt as “cold business city without flair”; an image certainly supported by the high-rise closure regarding any public use (Marketingplan 2012, 2011: 15). Therefore, the strategy aims to position Frankfurt as the city of culture and sport, to make it an attractive place to visit and suitable for various congresses and manifestations. The plan sets its priorities on art and culture, congresses, meetings, festivals and events (Marketingplan 2012, 2011) – not only to promote positive image of the city as a whole, but rather aiming to demonstrate diversity and contrasts in order to reach variety of target groups. In this regard, the strategy also supports variety of landmarks and identities, on one side recognizing skyline and high-rise as strengths of the city, and on the other strongly supporting the on-going reconstruction of the medieval Altstadt (F3: Schalk, 00:25:40), perceiving it as an important chance for overall urban recognisability and tourism development (Marketingplan 2012, 2011: 15).

107 FrankfurtRheinMain is officialy presented as “an international traffic hub“ which “offers next-generation high-speed data networks, innovative university and research facilities and a synergetic mix of industry – enabling companies to generate real success. Many headquarters venture forth from here to develop new markets. Right across Germany. Right across Europe. Across the globe. And we support them. Right from the start. We are committed, dedicated to service and pro-active.” (Source: Frankfurt/Rhein-Main GmbH, http://www.frm-united.com 2012-10-31)

108 Frankfurt/Rhein-Main GmbH, http://www.frm-united.com 2012-10-31

109 Tourism+Congress GmbH Frankfur am Main, http://www.frankfurt-tourismus.de 2012-11-01

Image 4.19.

Example of urban projects branding in Frankfurt

Maintor project (from left to right): website, promotional video opening scene, construction site billboard, “The Riverside” promotional magazine and the model of the project.

Source: screenshots, http://www.maintor-frankfurt.de, 2012-11-12

In addition to active marketing of business and investments possibilities, and aside from the rising role of culture in marketing process, Frankfurt’s overall image is also being shaped through branding of locations and attractions, involving both build heritage and signature architecture. Especially interesting is the rising trend of marketing significant urban and architectural developments and future landmarks and brands, especially as this powerful process uses the existing urban iconography in combination with the future developments. Such marketing of developing projects in an attractive fashion has a strong side effect that in addition strengthens the brand of the city itself (image 4.19).

4.2.1.2. Media-generated Image

Various media in printed or electronic form, such as postcards, tourist maps, publications, promotional movies, websites and other, are frequently used in the purpose of promotion of the Frankfurt brand. The widespread media-generated image of the city traditionally represents Frankfurt as a metropolis of international financial capital and as an international transportation, commerce and fair hub. The present trend however follows the

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previously established directions¹¹⁰ of some additional values for the existing urban image, representing Frankfurt also as a city to discover through promotion of cultural enjoyment and attractive leisure shopping.

Image 4.20.

Frankfurt coat of arms, flag and official visual identity

Source: www.wikipedia.org & http://www.frankfurt.de, 2012-11-08

Image 4.21.

Two opposite images of the city for two main types of Frankfurt postcards

Michel & Co. Frankfurt am Main. Photos by Heinz Zimmermann and Gerd Kärmer

In graphic terms, the City of Frankfurt uses its historical coat of arms as its official logo, which also features the official logo of the municipal authorities (image 4.20). On the one hand, multitude of photographs, postcards, videos and other printed and digital material are often supporting promotion of traditional image of the city, featuring iconic built heritage and traditional architecture. On the other hand, in contrast to such rather common visual representation of a European city, contemporary imaging of Frankfurt is more often resorting to alternatives, using favourite globally accepted metropolitan symbols; such as skyline, high-rise, city lights, and riverside (image 4.21). Such an image of a metropolis, however, developed long after the appearance of early skyline in the central Frankfurt zone, during the 1960-es. The general public apprehension of the rising urban symbol was at first described by many mocking names, such as ‘Bankfurt’ or ‘Mainhattan’. The negative attitude towards the high-rise gradually reversed during the 1980-es, when the skyline took the role of a dominant symbol of the city, and slowly became a source for identification of the local residents. The weakness was turned

110 Head of department for culture in city’s government, Hilmar Hoffmann, published in 1979 his book Kultur für alle. Through its general promotion of culture in the city, and particularly of free groups in urban culture, his ideas represent a certain beginning of reshaping Frankfurt’s image.

into the strength when the mocking name ‘Mainhattan’ gradually lost its negative connotation and became widely accepted and welcomed, as a witty comparison with the well-known skyline of the New York City. The mocking name was thus turned into an asset for urban tourism, and is nowadays often used along with the motif of the skyline on postcards and other printed material, as well as by many associations and institutions in the city. Thus, the most recognizable and the most dominant media-image of contemporary Frankfurt is generated by the city’s ultra-modern skyline, as its prime recognizable landmark.

Image 4.22.

Frankfurt tourist map

© StolzDesign, www.stolzdesign.de

The duality of the Frankfurt image is recognized in other media as well. Among the outstanding urban sights on some editions of the tourist map by ‘Toursim+Congress GmbH’

(image 4.22) are mostly symbols that refer to the iconic built heritage, museum promenade along the river and historic streets, squares and urban areas. Its design practically and functionally points to the most important landmarks and attractions of the city, however, there are no additional accents on financial district, its iconic skyscrapers or signature architecture within. The reasons for such an example of the opposite extreme can be found in the actual marketing strategies that are tending to get rid of prejudiced unilateral image of an uninteresting financial hub, striving to put an accent instead on other assets and contents, which Frankfurt should offer to the targeted group of tourists and visitors. In addition, analysis of the websites promoting the city (image 4.23) is revealing to a certain level themed domain that is either

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focused primarily on tourists and visitors or on attracting international business and investors, offering plenty of information within the focus of these interest groups. The Frankfurt brand is therefore highly versatile and flexible, whose media-generated image, that aims to attract business and investors, significantly differs from the tourism-oriented one.

Image 4.23.

Frankfurt Branding websites

Left to right: City of Frankfurt am Main (http://www.frankfurt.de), FrankfurtRheinMain GmbH (http://www.frm-united.de), Tourism+Congress GmbH Frankfurt am Main (http://www.frankfurt-tourismus.de), FrankfurtRheinMain

Webportal (http://www.frankfurt-rhein-main.net) Screenshots, 2012-11-12

On the basis of the analysis of the various media, it could be concluded that the general media-generated image of Frankfurt contains both ‘traditional’ and ‘modern’ elements, strategically positioned between ‘global marketplace’ and ‘global village’, producing a final representation of a metropolis that is on one side aware of its rich tradition and past, and on the other has an attractive environment both as a tourist destination and as a place of investment.