Until the logo do us part: An assessment of local stakeholders’ perceptions of a city brand after the introduction of a new logo

Abstract

Modern democratic governance dictates transparency and accountability by public entities in order to ensure good governance. Despite this fact, the City of Cape Town, motivated by a need to reorient its logo and pay-off line to its strategic intent, unilaterally appointed a contractor to design a new logo and pay –off line for the City. This paper interrogates this phenomenon using two theoretical lenses namely the agency theory and marketing communication theory. Using a qualitative methodology, the study sought to ascertain the local stakeholders’ perception of the City brand after the introduction of the new logo and pay – off line. Some purposively sampled residents were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule. Some open- ended interviews were also held with experts in marketing and communication. Primary data from research was infused with secondary data. The study found out that the City authorities did not quite live up to the dictates of transparency by acting unilaterally with respect to the designing of the new logo and pay-off line. There is strong possibility that the omission of stakeholders in the consultative processes fortified their disdain for the City brand. Agency problems were created by sidelining one of the City’s critical stakeholders – the residents. The City authorities hid behind a legalistic smokescreen to overlook the participation of the residents in the rebranding exercise.