Jones County leaders met recently to decide on the design for the new brand for the county logo that will be the base for the logos of other community entities and agencies.
The Dec. 18 meeting was led by Heath Slapikas, director of Digital Marketing 365 Total Marketing, hired to assist with the process.
The Jones County Board of Commissioners and Gray City Council members agreed to fund the project this summer.
A kickoff to begin the process of development of the brand took place Sept. 5. The meeting was held in Butler Hall and was attended by about two dozen community leaders, including elected officials, those serving on various boards and interested citizens.
The Sept. 5 meeting was led by one of the founders of the marketing company, CEO Linda Mosley. The two-hour session consisted of multiple psychological exercises created to get to the heart of what Jones County means to its residents and how to communicate that message.
A meeting led by Slapikas took place Nov. 22, during which the local committee members saw the first concepts created by the marketing team that consisted of researchers, writers, public relations specialist and designers.
Those designs were narrowed down at that meeting and were further narrowed down with emails to those who could not attend the Nov. 22 session.
The designs were down to two basic concepts at the Dec. 18 meeting. One of the concepts resembled a traditional governmental seal while the other was a more modern, updated logo with brighter colors.
The group discussed the pros and cons of both concepts and spoke freely about what they liked and did not like about each. The question was how complex the logo should be and what icons might be included, if any.
One basic question was whether the logo should look traditional or eye-catching, but all the participants agreed it should be something that would represent and promote all of Jones County.
The idea of the branding initiative began following a conference at Valdosta State University’s Rural Development Institute earlier in the year. The conference was attended by representatives of Jones County, City of Gray, Jones County Development Authority, Jones County/Gray Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Gray and the Gray Downtown Development Authority.
The need for a brand for the community was one of the ideas the group brought back. JCDA Executive Director Haley Watson and Main Street Gray Director Ashley Roberson have worked together on the branding project.
After the logo was narrowed down to one base design at the Dec. 18 meeting, Watson and Roberson will continue to work with the other community agencies to development their plans, which will incorporate and build on the county brand.
The stated goal is to unveil the new community logos at the Jones County/Gray Chamber of Commerce annual meeting Jan. 17.
