Friday, December 14, 2007

Regional Branding: the KC Animal Health Corridor

I saw a small piece in a recent Economist on Kansas City's attempt to make itself into the Silicon Valley of animal health.

My first reaction - foolishly - was that "Animal Health Corridor" was a not particularly catchy or interesting name.

Then I paused for a sec, and reminded myself that it's a pretty good name in that it's straightforward, no nonsense, and absolutely tells it exactly like it is.

And they've apparently got the facts to back their claims that, when it comes to animal health, they are, indeed the place to be.

I found all this out on the KC Animal Health Corridor web site.

OK, the paw logo may be a little hokey - and seems to leave out our hoofed and feathered friends - but they build their case quite compelling. Nice to see a brand that can back itself up.

The Kansas City area is plunk in the middle of live stock country, and they make the most of it. They're also nearby to top tier veterinary schools and headquarters to a whole slew of corporate head quarters for animal health related enterprises.

Living petless in a city in the Northeast, I'm about as far from animal health issues as I can possibly be. Truly, my major animal health issue is hoping that we have enough of a cold spell to tamp down the rat population lurking beneath our trees, sidewalks, and foundations.

But I really like the fact that, when we keep hearing that the central part of the country is emptying out, Kansas City has looked around and staked a legitimate claim here. They are/were, after all, a big stockyard center. So why not.

And animal health is a huge business.

KC is going for it. Everything seems to be up to date and complete on their site: facts, figures, testimonials.

Hey, if I were running an animal health company, I'd sure consider locating it there.

Just like I'd put Massachusetts on my short list for bio-tech.

Nice branding, nice marketing, nice getting a city slicker like me to take a look at what they have to offer.

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