Letters to the Editor: Concerns over Castle Dale branding efforts

By LeAnne Seely

Dear Editor:
The purpose of this letter is to increase county citizens’ awareness of an action taken by Castle Dale City that has a negative impact on Castle Dale and Emery County. The action is this: Castle Dale has adopted the phrase “Get Dirty With Us” as a tourism-related “brand” for advertising Castle Dale and surrounding tourist attractions. I call for concerned citizens to write, call, or email Castle Dale City Council members to make their objections heard. Fortunately, Castle Dale City Council has recently voted to re-convene its branding committee to discuss possible alternatives to the objectionable brand. But that doesn’t mean the council will actually overturn it, unless citizens can talk them into it!
Citizens of Emery County can make a difference by letting Castle Dale City know that the brand in current use is inappropriate and should be rescinded, with or without a replacement brand. Bravo to the committee and the city council for wanting to increase the visibility of Castle Dale’s and surrounding area to potential tourists and new businesses, but this brand is not the way to do it.
While I appreciate the many hours our council members and other citizens spend serving the city and implementing projects to boost the economy, as an individual resident of Castle Dale and as a business owner, I object to the use of the above-named brand for several reasons.
The brand currently being promoted is negative, is offensive, and is not representative of either Castle Dale’s tourism opportunities or its businesses and citizens.
A brand about dirt and nothing else is a negative way to advertise our outdoor recreation hotspots. Not only does it leave out many appealing aspects of our area that do not involve dirt, but it insinuates that to come here means to become soiled and in need of washing off the experience afterward. This is not an appealing thought. And it is an insult to locals.
Worse, the brand currently being promoted for Castle Dale can be construed to have a double meaning that has a sexual overtone. In fact, if it didn’t have a sexual overtone, the word “dirty” would not be interesting enough to be considered as a catchy advertising slogan. A municipality should not stoop to using a double entendre for its economic initiatives, as if no other useful slogans can be found. And if the catchphrase has to be explained in order to put the “wrong” impression out of your head, then it isn’t doing its job as a catchphrase.
The “shocking” aspect of the brand gets people’s attention, but not in a good way. It appears to glorify the double meaning and to make something that is bad, such as dirty-mindedness or dirty politics, appear to be good or cute or funny or attractive. Our city should not participate in sending such a confusing message either to its own citizens or to the world through its branding. Consider how children and young adults look to “grown-ups” for guidance (consciously or subconsciously) on where to “draw the line” on appropriate civic behavior.
If this were a workplace slogan, I would have grounds for claiming that a hostile environment has been created. Perhaps the city council and the branding committee did not realize the meaning of “brand” is to label and define something. I object to my town or any town being branded with a phrase that is known to have a sexual double meaning.
If the citizens reading this letter feel the same way, please let your elected officials know they should err on the side of caution and rescind the brand in favor of something less likely to cause a mixed reaction in the voting public, especially when many or most of the city’s attractions are to be found outside the city or even in other towns that are then labeled with the same brand by association.
A final argument: The current brand for Castle Dale City does not reflect the mission statement of the city as set forth in the Castle Dale Municipal General Plan adopted in 2012. The mission statement says: “Castle Dale is a thriving, friendly community nurturing family values.” But, a negative, insulting, double-meaning brand does not promote Castle Dale as a thriving, friendly community, and certainly does not nurture family values. Though the brand can be said to be “memorable” and “unique,” it is not appropriate for representing a town that wants to be seen as thriving, friendly, and family-oriented.
If the objectives of having a brand are to make the city/area/county known far and wide, and to make people and businesses want to spend money here, then by having an objectionable brand, the council runs the risk that citizens and businesses may actively de-promote a brand they dislike, speaking of it with chagrin and embarrassment, avoiding participating in the activities associated with the brand, and otherwise causing the non-fulfillment of the brand’s objectives. “Any publicity” is not always “good publicity.” Why keep a brand that will definitely cause negative fall-out instead of adopting a brand that EVERYONE can feel good about?
Want to know more about branding? Here’s an interesting article at www.theguardian.com/society/2008/oct/01/city.urban.branding. The author of the article, Saba Salman, asked several world-renowned branding experts for tips and advice for city branding. Here are a couple of my favorite quotes from the article: “Branding a city is not just about the logo but the intricate details-as small as clean streets and as deep as getting a city’s residents to feel proud to be brand ambassadors. When citizens are proud, visitors are encouraged to find out what the fuss is all about and then tell the world.” Here’s another good one: “Successful branding can turn a city into a place where people want to live, work and visit. A strong identity is vital if you are vying with other places for attention in tourism and business . . .” And another one: “Start by working on reality, not image-do the regeneration, the investment, the transformation first, and only when change is visible should you start to “brand” it.”
I’m sure the branding committee for Castle Dale discussed many alternatives and can find another brand that is useful and good, and also memorable and unique, without being negative and offensive. Call, write, text, or tweet your opinion to Castle Dale’s city council, your own city council, and our Emery County Commissioners.
LeAnne Seely