City of Pocatello to undergo complete rebrand — including change to 30-year-old logo
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POCATELLO — With a unanimous vote at a Jan. 4 meeting, the Pocatello City Council approved the use of $83,000 for a complete city rebranding.
As part of this rebranding, city spokeswoman Marlise Irby-Facer told EastIdahoNews.com, all city departments will be “unified” under a single design scheme. It will start with a new logo — replacing the one the city has used for over 30 years.
“We just feel like it was time.” Irby-Facer said of the city’s decision to begin the process of rebranding. “It’s time to get a fresh new look.”
The new designs, according to Irby-Facer, will not change the Pocatello city flag — which, in April, was named 11th-best city flag in the Nation. It will change just about everything else, though.
As Irby-Facer explained, the rebrand will include a new city letterhead, business cards and even designed powerpoint layouts. The primary focus, she added, is for all city departments — from the police and fire departments to the zoo, Ross Park and the airport — to be easily recognizable as city entities.
The rebrand will help advance the city in many ways.
“We believe it will bring in more business,” she said. “People will see us as a unified force for the community and it will actually draw businesses to Pocatello. It’s going to market the the city of Pocatello, and the community.”
The rebrand process officially began when the city council approved spending up to $100,000 on the rebrand during budget planning for the 2023-24 fiscal year.
The city then received 67 qualifying proposals, each of which were graded by a panel leaving the three highest-graded proposals as finalists to be interviewed. During those interviews, the panel focused on two primary factors — how the companies planned to involve the community and prior experience with municipalities.
At the conclusion of the interviewing process, the panel, of which Irby-Facer was a part, selected HUB Collective, LTD., a Portland-based design and strategy company.
“This group, when we did our interview with them, they talked a lot about community engagement — how they wanted to get into the schools and have open houses at the library. We really like that they were creative,” Irby-Facer said.
HUB has led rebranding efforts in cities throughout Utah, Washington, California, Virginia and others. While vetting the company, Irby-Facer spoke with city staff in Virginia, which offered a glowing review of the company and its work.
Irby-Facer, who is leading the rebranding on the city’s end, has held virtual meetings with HUB representatives as the work has begun. The next step, she said, is for HUB to begin its community outreach, which is expected in the coming months.
The official rollout is expected in August, though the city is flexible on the timeline.
Irby-Facer, who is excited for both the city and the part she will play in its rebranding, says there will be challenges along the way. But she is enthusiastic for what the process will bring.
“I think it’s going to be exciting. I’m very excited to see what HUB comes up with for the city,” she says.