Developing the ConnectGO identity was a collaborative effort with the broader communications committee, starting with researching brands of comparable transportation initiatives from other cities across the nation. The team discovered some of the names had nothing to do with transportation, and many were very simple, but brought to life with messaging, eye-catching graphics, and innovative tactics. 

Ultimately, “ConnectGO” resonated with each stakeholder group at every level because the word “connect” gets to the heart of what the transportation plan will do: connect people to jobs and opportunities, connect people to one another, and connect communities. We wanted every person impacted by the plan to feel connected to the process and the outcomes — that their voices are being heard and their transportation-related issues are being explored and addressed. 

With a solid brand in place, we developed a website and planned robust communications to grow awareness and gather input for the initiative — from social media to earned media, paid media and guerrilla marketing. Since the ConnectGO’s inception, we’ve designed reports and strategy documents, created online interactive experiences, partnered with local artists to create transportation-related art, and hosted a traveling bench.

Most recently, we executed a series of community conversation presentations with local neighborhoods in Omaha and Council Bluffs to further inform the ConnectGO strategy, and partnered with the City of Omaha and The Greater Omaha Chamber to lead media outreach for ConnectGO’s major transportation wins.