LEADER: HK is at least trying to spruce up image

<p>God knows the coals of the Hong Kong rebranding have been raked </p><p>over enough already. But, in general, it's been in the most superficial </p><p>way imaginable: there's a picture of a dragon and a three-word brand </p><p>line, and they cost a lot of money. What seems to have been lost amid </p><p>all the furore over the new brand icon is that there was also a </p><p>year-long research and brand development project, and there'll be brand </p><p>communication work well into the future. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In other words, the project has suffered from the same problems </p><p>rebrandings always do: it looks like a lot of money - HKdollars 9 </p><p>million in this case - for a logo. People see the physical </p><p>manifestations of the brand, but not the work behind it. They see the </p><p>duck floating on the water, but not the furious thrashing of its legs </p><p>beneath the surface. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>A holistic location brand isn't an easy thing to pull off. A city brand </p><p>needs to address several different audiences with several different </p><p>messages. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In these circumstances, you wouldn't expect the Hong Kong Government to </p><p>come up with anything devastatingly innovative - to a certain extent, </p><p>the brand has to be all things to all men. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It's a bit like trying to make a company's business and consumer brands </p><p>one and the same thing. On the other hand, you could see it as an </p><p>overarching corporate brand - a framework for more specific </p><p>communications. The brand's fortunes may rest on how much the Government </p><p>is prepared to invest in those communications - on how much it is </p><p>prepared to put into its advertising and PR efforts, both abroad and at </p><p>home. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>So yes, it might look a bit like it's been designed by committee, yes, </p><p>the dragon is not a hugely original image, and yes, the brand line is </p><p>middle-of-the-road. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>But at least the Hong Kong Government is making a sincere attempt to </p><p>formalise its communications programme and push out a consistent </p><p>message. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>For that it should be applauded. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>