THE CHALLENGE: Port business is competitive. And along the West Coast there are many large, well-known players. Smaller ports can get looked over or dismissed on the assumption that they haven’t the resources to manage the cargo. To raise awareness and increase business, Port of Vancouver USA turned to Coates Kokes.

THE APPROACH: Idle ships waiting to offload or load are expensive. So what customers want is a swift, flexible and efficient port. No secret there. After a series of interviews and workshops with the client, we learned the secret that was being kept: the Port of Vancouver USA works harder than just about every other port to actually be swift, flexible and efficient. With red tape out of the way, well-kept and recently expanded facilities, new high-capacity cranes and (the rarest of rare) room to grow with their clients, it was time the port let the cat out of the crate, so to speak.

THE WORK: We developed a tagline to express the port’s can-do attitude and the very real opportunity there was here: The Port of Possibility. Next we settled on a half-dozen traits that set the Port of Vancouver USA apart and created an ad for each. Because ports are busy and security is tight, we used photo-real illustrations in print. Road, river and rail icons were introduced to emphasize the shipping options easily accessed at the port. For continuity, we redesigned their website. And as an unusual, fun way to get the word out, we developed animated holiday cards that demonstrated the brand promise.

THE RESULTS: Business at the port is up. Our marketing efforts have helped solidify the port’s reputation as one of North America’s premier entry points for wind turbines and blades. Last, but not least, we can confidently say when shippers see Port of Vancouver they no longer automatically think British Columbia.