In Touch With Tourism
by ALISHA BURROW
Dallas-based marketing agency, Aria, announced completion of a five-month-long research, analysis and design project that culminated April 5 with the adoption by Buda City Council of its new, ethos-driven brand.
“Buda reminds me of Frisco 15 years ago,” said Ryan Thompson, Aria CEO. “You sensed the boom coming and a decade later Frisco was the seventh fastest growing suburb in the U.S., and that in itself is exciting. But what struck me at a deeper level, that really resonated, was that these city fathers feel a deep sense of responsibility and genuine stewardship for the people and the place – I left touched and inspired.”
So inspired, in fact, was Thompson that he pitched his own team as passionately as if he’d grown up here himself. After casting the vision, Thompson gave them the challenge of capturing, in picture and word, the very heart of what he’d heard.
“I challenged them to raise the bar higher than ever before,” he said, “because this city holds the kind of values we share.”
The new brand features a child on a tire swing suspended from the letter “x” in BudaTx, accompanied by the tagline that reads, “breathe easy here.” The rebranding promotes Buda as a “better place to raise a family” for young professionals who work in the Austin-San Antonio corridor, but prefer to leave the bustling city noise and hectic pace behind at days end.
The tire swing – this quintessentially American icon – captures our community identity. Aria really knocked it out of the park for us.
The branding project is one step in a 10-year comprehensive plan to direct future development and preserve the lifestyle and values Buda citizens prefer. Last November, Buda named Aria to spearhead brand strategy and creation.
Aria, known for its digital-design and consumer brand-experience approach, has been recognized for award winning work in Dallas, Addison, and Carrollton, as well as its extensive public sector experience. The process, which city sources characterized as “highly collaborative,” occurred over several months during which focus groups, surveys of Buda citizens, and the input of city leaders guided the direction taken.
We wanted results, not another logo with a star in it. Aria was well known to us for its reputation of innovation, branding expertise, and long history with municipal, economic development and destination-based clients.
Rollout of the new logo and tagline will first appear on the water tower in the Sunfield Development Division and as budget permits, will be incorporated in advertising and promotion, including billboard advertising.
Alice in Wienerland comes to town for the 14th annual Buda Lions Country Fair & Wiener Dog Races held April 30 – May 1 at Buda City Park. This event will include a bake-off, cook-off and live entertainment throughout the weekend, along with food and arts and craft vendors. For more information, visit www.budalions.com.
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Join the Downtown Buda Merchants Group for some Fiesta Fun as they celebrate Cinco de Mayo at First Thursday, May 5 from 5-9 p.m. Downtown businesses encourage local residents and visitors to wander the unique antique and specialty shops!
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The Downtown Buda Farmers Market opens May 14! Make sure you visit the market which strives to provide local residents and businesses of the community with the freshest, highest quality, most nutritious, and most reasonably priced produce and goods. For more information visit www.budafarmersmarket.com
