In professional communications theory, I was taught to avoid clichs and overused phrases. One of my instructors at Royal Roads University would encourage us to be creative in our descriptions, offering, "If it's been said before, it's been said before," as if an idea once shared lost its validity and value.
As I've travelled to five American cities over the past three weeks, I've encountered many clichs or ideas that seemed familiar to me because of the lifetime of exposure I've had to U.S. media and culture. The purpose of my travel, as a guest of the U.S. Department of State, was to witness and learn about women in trade and entrepreneurship. Each city I encountered was full of organizations, such as Texas Women in Business or the Small Business Administration, who described the cities they lived in as "great places to do business" that were the perfect locations to "live, work and play" and that they were "open for business." Sound familiar? Probably, because these descriptions could be, or are being used by cities across North America, including Prince George, to describe their unique business climates.
I've never met a city that would admit it was closed for business, so why do we choose to say the obvious and predictable when describing a business climate? Perhaps it is because it is difficult to articulate a city's strategic business advantage when it comes to a game where the teams are all wearing identical suits and ties. I think not. I think there is a better, more compelling way to describe what we do well in Prince George when it comes to business. It just takes some deep reflection and strategic creative thinking. It may also take a certain level of courage and pride as we work to set ourselves apart from our competitors.
I'll get the fun started by offering a couple of my own descriptions of Prince George's business climate that I believe would go a lot further than just being open for business. Along the U.S. Marine Core's theme of getting more done before 6 a.m. than most people do all day, how about "Prince George - getting down to business while others are getting to their business." Also true, with regards to our physical location, could be "Prince George - no matter where you start, all roads lead to us," or perhaps "Business in Prince George - a place where you can do more with more: more time, more money, more space." Although wordy, my personal favourite is, "Are you a small fish in a big pond? Come up stream and bring your headquarters to the
headwaters."
If I can come up with four cheesy taglines in half an hour sitting alone in my office, I'm sure the most creative minds of our city could express, in original language, what makes our city different from every other business centre in our province. This small effort would go a long way in clearly articulating, by painting a visual image, to outsiders why they should set up shop here. I therefore challenge all our chamber members, and business representatives to prove to me in words that P.G. is more than just open for business.
Until next week, stay in the black and keep coming back. Jennifer Brandle-McCall is the CEO of the Prince George Chamber of
Commerce.
