Enlisting a contractor to share the story of “Bridgeport getting better every day,” the city has launched a $250,000 marketing campaign under the direction of Communications Director Brett Broesder to highlight city progress on television, radio and websites into the new year. Mayor Bill Finch, seeking reelection in 2015, will not appear in the campaign. In fact, Finch is not even mentioned in Broesder’s news release that follows and that’s a rarity for a city press item in a decision to leave Finch out of the promotions so close to the campaign cycle.
Bridgeport, Conn. launched a new marketing campaign today, promoting the city and how it’s growing an economy that works for everyone. The campaign consists of TV, radio, and digital ads, as well as a new website (www.Bridgeportbettereveryday.com), collectively telling the story of how the state’s largest city is getting better every day.
David Kooris, the city’s economic development director, noted that the goal of the campaign is to boost confidence in the city and its future, specifically amongst job creators, residents, and investors across Fairfield County and beyond.
“Bridgeport’s getting better every day,” said Kooris. “It’s becoming a place where companies want to invest and hire people, where people want to live and work, and where our strong communities are making for an even stronger economy. We want to ensure that job creators, Bridgeport residents, and folks in neighboring communities know this is the case. That’s what this marketing campaign is all about. And, who better to tell the story than the people who are living it.”
The overall marketing campaign will consist of six TV ads and radio spots–combined with digital ads and the website–which will run into the new year. The first television and radio ads feature Marshan Coleman.
“My name is Marshan Coleman. I’m a mason contractor from the city of Bridgeport, and I’ve lived in Bridgeport all my life,” said Coleman in the radio ad. “I started out as a laborer. When I first started this business all I had was a pickup truck and a small little office in my home. Now, I own my own business. Going to the small minority research office in Bridgeport, it was huge. Without taking that step, I don’t think I would be where I’m at right now […] We’ve hired over 100 individuals in the city of Bridgeport.”
Click here to listen to the radio ad: bit.ly/1upwrZh
(for the full-text of the radio ad, click here: bit.ly/1BxuRcD).“People thought it was risky to start a business here,” said Coleman in the TV ad. “Now we’re creating jobs. Helped build the Discovery School, now renovating Black Rock School. You see the progress. More people working, turning empty buildings into housing, businesses. You see it every day. The development downtown. Opening up the waterfront. Pleasure Beach. The Eco-Technology Park. We’re building a city that works for everyone. That makes me proud to be from Bridgeport. There’s more work to do, but Bridgeport’s getting better every day.”
Click here to listen to the TV ad: bit.ly/1q2G2Ff
(for the full-text of the TV ad, click here: bit.ly/11qNjUg).The television ad also features images that showcase progress across the city, including: Steelpointe Harbor, Jewish Home, improving downtown, Bijou Square, Pleasure Beach, Fuel Cell, Eco-Technology Park, and Black Rock School. These projects together are creating thousands of jobs in the state’s largest city. Many of these sites are also featured in the digital ads.
Brett Broesder, the city’s communications director and spokesperson, said the reason to launch this campaign now is because the city is on the verge of a major comeback.
“Now more than ever, it’s the moment to ask folks to get on board with the state’s largest city as it readies for a renaissance,” said Broesder. “The city is on the way up. For the first time in decades, there’s a clear vision for the future that is realistic and already taking shape–today you can stand on a newly re-opened Pleasure Beach and look back at Steelepointe Harbor where development is finally happening. We’ve still got a lot of work to do, but we’re getting there. We’re making smart investments in the future. It’s a great time to get on board with a city on the upswing.”
This is a City where the Mayor is present to take the credit, but rarely do we see him dealing with handling the blame and fallout. That is a leadership problem. An examples that come to mind as the outside temperature decreases is the “snow fiasco” that caused problems to so many who showed up to share their discontent but were not respectfully favored with a response. Another example comes from the $40 Million airport project where the Airport Commission has Mayor Finch and City Council Representative Tom McCarthy as members yet the public ends up paying $400,000 plus legal expenses for City actions that paid for an access road for a private citizen of another town. And property taxpayers are left standing alone as tax deal after abatement deal are passed by CC at the urging of OPED thereby reducing the “100% taxpayer status” to residential owners with no fiscal outline for how and when those initiatives will pay off. And the actual property values in Bridgeport have reduced by such an extent and foreclosures are so much a part of City experience, the Mayor worked hard and successfully to be able to ignore “revaluation reality” by getting a waiver from the State of CT while still paying for a report and reviewing that report but not sharing it with the taxpayer. I assume you realize the 2015 revaluation letters will arrive in November 2015, one year from now, but after the election.
I do not know Marshan Coleman but I wish this fellow Bridgeporter well. However, the script never references the business name, nor does it talk about the number of City residents who have secured jobs in the business. And why are most of the projects referenced those with major funding by Federal or State programs?
If “promoting the city and how it’s growing an economy that works for everyone” is true, why are there not more examples of success than recent failure or vacant status quo? And can subsequent scripts deal with how this is working for everyone? Time will tell.
Nothing moves in a straight line but Bridgeport keeps getting better every day. Here’s my personal ad campaign:
www .Only1canbethebest.com
I have to be honest. $250,000 for this campaign. Waste, unpolished, unprofessional and most unimpressive. Starting the ad with a small minority businessman telling people it was a risk starting a business in Bridgeport. Yeah, that should bring in big business. The radio split without. The visual is awful. I’d bet the students at Bassick High School could have made a more impressive ad. I am disgusted.
Steve,
It sounds like you are disgusted with the content and the treatment. But what about the budget and the use of firms from outside the community? I don’t know where this money was discovered. What budget does it come from? And just because there is no picture of the Mayor fishing, it does not mean any pro-Bridgeport PR fails to support an incumbent’s re-election campaign. The fishing photo really was a great picture and one the Steelpointe “anchor tenant” may wish to exploit sometime in the future. Will royalties come to the City?
What is the City fishing or gunning for in using these ads? New businesses? New homeowners? People looking to start businesses? Folks who want to get to Pleasure Beach? How many years have the creative folks spent in this City previous to their efforts? How many will change their plans because of their work? What data will be used to keep track of the results? Accountability? Time will tell.
JML, to be honest I do not care where they found the money. I totally support any and every effort to market the City of Bridgeport. Furthermore, I have no problem at all with Mayor Finch in any promotional spot. He is the highest elected figure in the City and he does represent the City. Sour grapes for any would-be candidate. Finch was elected and should be out there bragging about the City. I am just disappointed with the message and packaging. It was a very unimpressive generic piece and the radio spot was a waste. I think Bridgeport was worthy of a 5th Ave. advertising group and Steelepointe should be kicking in big bucks. This for Bridgeport’s moment and it is a waste worrying about a 2015 election cycle.
A legitimate business looking for a location will not be convinced by this marketing drivel. This is just a feel-good message campaign to ensure Finch is appointed mayor again by the Democratic town committee.
Tom, honestly, you think this is going to ensure Finch is appointed mayor again? Not Steelepointe? lolololololol. If I were Mayor FINCH I’d BE LAUGHING MY ASS OFF WITH SOME OF THE COMMENTS ON THIS BLOG.
Steve, the expression ‘laughing all the way to the bank’ seems to apply here. The taxpayers made a quarter million dollar contribution to his re-election campaign, approved by the city council.
It would be interesting to review the grand list from the area designated ‘Steelpointe’ prior to it being made ‘development ready’ and compare the tax revenue it generated to what taxes (of all kinds) will be generated when the announced developments are up and running. Perhaps our legislatures are working on bills to allow taxes on cups of coffee and sandwiches.
Steve, especially yours.
If Bridgeport were a castle, Tom White and Andrew C Fardy would be the alligators swimming in its dirty moat. Both display the kind of negativity and doomfreak-ishness that prompts me to nominate them as OIB
pukeheadsbloggers of the day. On a sad note, neither will ever graduate from the prestigious Steven Auerbach School of Heavenly Skies and Uplifting Optimism, where students learn the value of a friendly remark.Local Eyes, go change the aluminum foil surrounding the interior of your house and also change your aluminum foil hat. Thanks for the writeup.