City Council June 15, 2026 1
City of San Leandro
Branding & Marketing
June 15, 2026
City Council Presentation
City Council June 15, 2026 2
01 Project Overview
City Council April 20, 2026 3
01 - CIVIC PRIDE
How to rally our diverse communities into one unified
narrative that celebrates San Leandro’s authenticity and builds civic pride
02 - DESTINATION APPEAL & ECONOMIC GROWTH
How to communicate San Leandro’s Value Proposition to
investors and businesses to strengthen its position in key sectors including life sciences (10% growth), advanced
manufacturing, clean tech, food tech, retail, dining etc… 03 - CONSISTENCY
How do we create a unified marketing framework and design system that guides all future City communications,
ensuring consistency across departments, partners, and
platforms.
Branding and
Marketing Goals
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Build upon
(we’re not starting from scratch)
Generate alignment
(horizontal not vertical)
Drive value
(address a need and identify success metrics)
Our Process - Key Considerations
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But about what maers
What is the challenge we’re trying to solve? We can’t
be everything to everyone. Your research shows
strong resident sentiment.
What truly sets us apart, and how does that maer to
our audiences?
What do we stand for? What are our unique values?
What brings our departments, partners, and
communities together?
What drives citizen-pride? What do we empower
people to do / to be?
It’s not talking about us.
Region of the
Future
Unrivalled
Quality of Life
“Natural Beauty
Meets
Metropolitan
Style”
“Big City
Amenities Meet
Small Town
Vibe”
“Small region,
big ideas”
“Connection to
the World”
City Council June 15, 2026
6 City Council June 15, 2026
“A shared business asset that
supports economic growth by
improving consistency,
dierentiation & destination
appeal.”
Our Process - Results
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It’s not talking about us.
Region of the
Future
Unrivalled
Quality of Life
“Natural Beauty
Meets
Metropolitan
Style”
“Big City
Amenities Meet
Small Town
Vibe”
“Small region,
big ideas”
“Connection to
the World”
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PROJECT PHASES
A thorough and collaborative, 3-phase
approach to keep San Leandro moving forward
PHASE 1
Discovery &
Situational
Analysis
PHASE 2
Brand Identity
Development
PHASE 3
Brand Application
& Strategy
01 Project Kick O
02 Brand Assessment &
Competitive Analysis
03 Stakeholder Interviews &
Survey
04 Revise & Finalize Research
01 Develop Brand Platform
02 Visual Identity
03 Create Brand Toolkit
01 Implementation Strategy
02 Sustainability Strategy
03 Revise & Finalize Plan
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TIMELINE
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 36 Weeks
Discovery & Situational Analysis
- Project Kick O
- Brand Assessment & Competitive Analysis
- Stakeholder Interviews & Surveys
- Revise & Finalize Research
Brand Identity Development
- Brand Narrative Development
- Visual Identity (Including Brand Mark)
- Create Brand Toolkit
Brand Application & Strategy
- Implementation Strategy
- Sustainability Strategy
- Revise & Finalize Plan
Discovery & Situational Analysis
14 WEEKS
1 Brand Identity Development
13 WEEKS
Brand Application & Strategy
9 WEEKS
WEEKS
2 3
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02 Our Experience
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PROJECT TEAM
We’re excited to bring an expert team in place branding Combined with a local engagement expert
Jeremie Feinbla
Principal
Jake Buganski
Vice President, Strategy
Dominic Prevost
Vice President, Creative
Ilana Lipse
Strategic Partner
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OUR CLIENTS
We partner with
visionary places that
seek bolder ideas and
beer futures.
Our team has advised cities and
destinations in more than 100 cities
around the world.
13 CASE STUDY
Baltimore
Bold Moves Reignite A Region
The Greater Baltimore Commiee engaged Resonance
to develop a unified destination and investment brand
that amplified civic progress and collective eorts to
transform the region. Extensive research with
stakeholders and residents showed that Baltimore is
defined by a history of nation-shaping innovation and a willingness to tackle complex challenges head-on. We
positioned Greater Baltimore as a region fearlessly
making Bold Moves that are defining its future.
A destination and investment brand positions Greater Baltimore as a dynamic region of reinvention, resilience, and progress.
The brand launched at SelectUSA 2025 with a new
investment website, marketing campaign, and unified
narrative—earning immediate praise. Co-created with a
panel of Baltimore-based creatives, the identity framed transformation in motion, showcasing all the Bold
Moves taking place in the region be it people, places,
and industry. Bold Moves became a rallying cry for doers and visionaries is now headlining major redevelopment
and innovation projects across the region.
14 CASE STUDY
Tulsa
Inspiring a Region to See Further
The Tulsa Regional Chamber and Visit Tulsa launched an
18-month project called Destination Tulsa 2025 designed to unite tourism, economic development and urban
planning initiatives and aract talent, tourism and
investment. Through stakeholder engagement,
destination assessment, open houses and workshops,
Resonance developed a brand and destination strategy
that identified 5 key characteristics that shape Tulsa’s personality—it’s entrepreneurial, creatively vibrant, active, family-friendly and historic.
Engagement reveals an oil and gas capital
ready for a creative positioning.
We turned these into a campaign – Tulsa Inspires – that reflects how the home of the Woody Guthrie Center and
the Bob Dylan archives stimulates the arts, and how its entrepreneurial spirit fosters startups and innovation, among other objectives. Tulsa Inspires proved resonant
and flexible enough to rally cities and towns in the region.
We connected the brand to a logo, distinct language and brand stories that were used in marketing and
communications eorts around the region.
15 CASE STUDY
Lynchburg Economic Development
Uniting people, a region, and a message
The City of Lynchburg Oice of Economic Development
and Tourism grounds its work in a central premise:
Every resident has the opportunity to thrive in the city.
However, the city’s stories and initiatives lacked the
unity and internal cooperation needed to unite behind a compelling message why to visit, live or invest in the
city. Resonance was contracted by the City of
Lynchburg to help develop a Blueprint for Opportunity.
Our competitive analysis, combined with community
engagement, resulted in the destination brand LYH
Loves You, which represented all players in the city and region, from talent araction agencies to local tourism marketers. The line was a play on the state’s timeless
Virginia is for Lovers tourism tagline. Resonance
then brought the city’s distinct, unified positioning
to life with a marketing strategy, advertising on all
platforms and implementation to aract audiences.
An Economic Development Blueprint and destination
brand spotlights inclusivity, welcome and warmth.
16 CASE STUDY
Houston First Corporation
Uncovering a City’s Superpower
Houston First Corporation, the city’s tourism authority, engaged Resonance to create a positioning strategy
and messaging to help Houston’s organizations speak
the same language as they worked to aract visitors,
talent and investment. Research and engagement led
to a strategy to leverage the powerful collaborative
energy made possible by the city’s inclusivity and
diversity.
The idea created a shift from Houston’s many facts and
features to its emotional benefits for the audiences it wanted to aract. United under the platform “The
Power of Together”, Resonance created economic
development and tourism videos, trade show
communications, graphic systems and other content
on B2B and B2C platforms. We continue to work with
Houston First, Greater Houston Partnership and other
organizations to bring the brand to life.
A strategic story helps a diverse city find a
common message for tourism and investment.
17 CASE STUDY
The Brussels Region
Portrait of a Perfectly Imperfect City
Brussels Between is collateral of a dierent
sort: an homage to the city between
moments—not the expected, beautiful
shots of iconic times of day, but those that
make viewers look twice, that help them
see the city afresh.
Our Brussels Between book is as unexpected
as the region itself, a souvenir that dares to
be Brussels.
Five dierent young photographers were
given licence to photograph Brussels
freely, and they found places, people and
moments that make the region
unforgeable.
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03 Outreach Plan
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LIVEABILITY
Facilitate authentic, inclusive conversations
with San Leandro’s diverse stakeholders.
Ensure the brand is rooted in what residents,
workers, and community leaders genuinely
feel, value, and aspire to for their city.
Bring futures thinking to the table — inviting
people to imagine not just what San Leandro
is, but what it’s becoming.
HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR APPROACH
Stakeholder & Partner
Engagement
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1:1 Interviews
Sector roundtables
Community survey
(fielded by San Leandro)
Pop-up conversations at existing events
(farmers' market, Cherry Festival)
Build on what exists:
(extensive community survey, community input
into Economic Development Strategy, etc)
HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR APPROACH
Stakeholder & Partner
Engagement
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Roundtables
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
Roundtable Participants include
Small Business & Retail Business owners, business orgs (chambers) Arts & Community Artists, cultural orgs, creative industry Science & Innovation Tech, biotech, clean energy
Large Business, Industry, Manufacturing Major employers, developers Community Services HOAs, neighborhood associations, civic orgs Immigrant & Diaspora Communities Spanish- and Chinese-speaking community leaders Government & City Sta Department heads, key city sta
Open to Residents Two (2) general public sessions
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San Leandro’s strongest emotional equity is belonging. Participants repeatedly described the city as rooted, connected, diverse, homey, and culturally layered, with “deep roots” and a sense that people know each other and feel they belong.
The city’s identity is both stable and evolving. Stakeholders framed San Leandro as a place with continuity and tradition, while also noticing new momentum around Bayfair, innovation tenants, biotech, manufacturing, and education partnerships.
Place assets are real, but not always obvious. Marina/shoreline, Lake Chabot, festivals, the farmers market, shopping, food, golf, and access to hiking were named as distinctive strengths, yet newer residents said the city’s character and destinations are not always obvious or easy to discover.
Practical quality-of-life issues shape the brand as much as amenities do. Safety around Bayfair/BART, housing aordability, food security, childcare, transportation access, and clearer awareness of existing resources all surfaced as factors that influence whether people feel San Leandro works for them.
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
What we’ve been hearing
so far…
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How These Insights May Shape Our Next Steps
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
Insight from Outreach Implication for Brand Strategy
Residents and stakeholders respond to themes of rootedness, diversity, and belonging.
Build the brand platform around civic pride, authenticity, and a unifying narrative that reflects lived experience.
San Leandro is seen as a city of both “small-town vibe” and metropolitan access/opportunity.
Refine messaging around quality of life, connectivity, and “natural beauty meets metropolitan style” in a more grounded,
community-validated way.
Bayfair, shoreline/marina, festivals, and innovation activity are promising anchors, but the city’s assets are not always obvious to outsiders or newcomers.
Prioritize place-based storytelling, clearer destination language, and a stronger hierarchy of signature experiences and districts.
Growth stories resonate most when tied to opportunity for existing residents, especially youth.
Position economic development through inclusive opportunity:
workforce pipelines, education, entrepreneurship, and family futures, not just recruitment.
Safety, aordability, transportation, childcare, and access to services aect whether people feel included in San Leandro’s story.
Ensure the final framework speaks to internal audiences too, giving departments and partners language to communicate services consistently and credibly.
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CONTACT
resonanceaco.com
[email protected]
@resonanceco.com
Thank you for your time