The West Nipissing Chamber of Commerce has unveiled a new effort at branding the town’s small to medium sized enterprises.

“The West Nipissing business community is a diverse market in Northern Ontario but the vast amount of businesses are not currently joined under one identity,” explained Marketing Committee Chair and Chamber Director, Tom Lambert.

The new brand showcases local shops and services as a consumer destination and will assist in generating sustainable traffic and instill local pride. The brand reflects the diversity of the region and the language of the people that live in West Nipissing.

“We are working with a branding strategy that will implement a clear message that will build credibility, motivates shoppers and promotes consumer loyalty for the members of the West Nipissing business community,” added Lambert.

The Chamber’s Marketing Committee developed the tag line ‘Quelle surprise’, which it says creates a unique selling proposition that will be featured on marketing material. “This phrase promotes the variety of products and services in West Nipissing as being an unexpected surprise,” says Lambert.

In addition to the new brand, the committee worked on a commercial to highlight the local private sector and everything West Nipissing has to offer. It encourages the community to shop local and encourages those outside of the community to come see what West Nipissing businesses have to offer. The Chamber will be working to promote the video and the brand over the next several months. “We want our residents to support local businesses and enable our economy to thrive,” explained Chamber President Patrick Keough.

The Chamber has posted the SME commercial on their website as well as downloadable versions of the brand for business owners to incorporate in their own marketing materials. Local businesses will also be provided with branded materials to increase awareness. “By participating in this campaign and incorporating the brand, your business will be promoted as a consumer destination, it will establish local businesses as the best option for purchases and highlight the benefits of shopping local as convenient and a pleasant surprise. The goal of this campaign is to promote you, our local business community,” explained Lambert.