Welcome to the Billings brand.

Over the last year and a half, we’ve undergone a process including over a thousand online surveys, community workshops, service group presentations, strategic envisioning sessions and countless hours of planning and creative. The result of this process has brought to life the new branding for the Billings community.

Billings is Montana’s city. Where people share a common belief in family, opportunity, and adventure. Inspired by an authentic spirit of possibility and aspiration, Billings is a very special place - somewhere between “open space” and “western pace.” The new Billings brand is about our originality and discovery, and how we market our city. As long as the result is businesses and organizations communicating the true brand essence to residents, visitors, students, rising professionals, business leaders and others - current and potential - the brand will achieve its goal.

Throughout this guidebook you’ll read about the best ways to use the new logo, icons, positioning statement and kit of parts. Remember the graphic components we use to communicate our image reflect who we are and how we interact with others. A consistent brand message and visual representation are important in this process.

Be creative and expressive, but be disciplined in speaking with a single, unified voice. By speaking as one voice, we bring greater clarity to our city's brand, and we do it in a way that reinforces our uniqueness, our credibility, and our hertitage.

We look forward to partnering with you on these new branding initiatives.

Billings Repositioning Goals

To create a brand positioning for the city of Billings that defines and addresses the qualities, target segments and other brand attributes in order to create and sustain a consistent and cohesive brand message. Through the unified community identity we want to encourage business and individual relocation, recruit visitors, aid in workforce development, as well as build community pride.

Billings’ Brand Characteristics

Billings is Montana’s city. Shaped by the Yellowstone River and sheltered by the Rims. Billings is the cradle of progressive regional commerce providing healthcare, transportation, diverse educational opportunities, cuisine, arts and culture. A place of forever views, forever memories and the adventure of the untamed wilderness and history right out your front door.

Billings connects you to warm, genuine, hardworking people who possess a perspective on life that is uniquely Montanan and inherently individual. People who look you in the eye and take time to welcome you home.

Billings’ Essence

Montana’s city connects you to the authentic historical west. A city full of growth and development leading the country in the look of future communities. Immerse yourself in modern conveniences on the edge of the genuine frontier.

Billings is

Billings is the starting point for business growth, development and the gateway to finding community and raising a family. It’s a place to explore the many adventures Montana has to offer and still be home for dinner.

Color Palette

Inspired by the colors of the region, these carefully selected swatches are used in combination with one another to complement photography and offer relevant, fresh appeal to all print and digital applications.

Primary

• PMS 7509 C
• PMS 131 C
• PMS Black C

 

Support

• PMS
  1685 C
• PMS
  383 C
• PMS
  716 C
• PMS
  5493 C
• PMS
  160 C
• PMS
  612 C
• PMS
  5483 C

• PMS
  616 C
• PMS
  145 C
• PMS
  606 C
• PMS
  384 C
• PMS
  161 C
• PMS
  7500 C
• PMS
  159 C

Font Usage

These sans serif typefaces were developed by the United States Federal Highway Administration and used for road signage across the U.S. Whether driving into Billings or exploring the many adventures the surrounding area has to offer, these road inspired type treatments and fonts will be a staple of Montana’s Trailhead.

 

 

Highway Gothic B

 

Highway Gothic C

 

Highway Gothic E

Logo Design

Logotype
The primary type graphic in the logo was designed to promote movement, energy, artisanship and a hint of the west to represent the rich traditions and heritage in the Billings community.

Tagline
The tagline was designed using a contemporary sans serif typeface to balance out the traditional design of “Billings”. It reinforces the future and innovative qualities of the Billings community and sets a tone for confidence.

Logomark
The trailhead graphic supports the tagline by representing both the map inspired mark indicating a trailhead, as well as an arrow, guiding the journey. The mark points up guiding the eye back into the name “Billings” to reinforce the branding and strengthens the overall theme of opportunity.

Logo Coloration

The PMS 124 uncoated color combination with PMS Black and PMS Warm Gray 6 should be used whenever possible, and is the primary color combination. A coated and 4-color breakdown has been selected for applications where the uncoated PMS colors cannot be applied.

Uncoated Stock

 

PMS 124 U

 

PMS Warm Gray 6

 

PMS Black

Coated Stock

 

PMS 131 C

 

PMS Warm Gray 6

 

PMS Black

4 Color

 

C24 M44 Y100 K4

 

M6 Y12 K31

 

K100

Logo Implementation

The correct usage of the Billings logo is essential to the branding process and establishing consistency across all mediums and applications. Below are the correct logo usages, allowing slight variations for the logo while maintaining the integrity from its primary form.

• Logo
   
  
  
  Primary logo. Must be considered for application before other variations are utilized.
• Logo Application on Dark Background
  
  
  

 

• Logo BW Application
   
  
  
  
• Logo BW Application on Dark Background
  
  
  

Incorrect Use

Full commitment to the identity of Billings is critical as the brand is introduced on a local, regional and national level.

Typeface Change
Typeface changes should never be implemented on logo.

 

Additions to Logo
Drop shadows or any other additions to the logo must be avoided.

 

Improper Color Use
Logo colorations must follow approved color variations set forth in the previous sections. No other colorations should be applied.

 

Distortion
The logo must not be stretched, squeezed or in any other manner distorted from the established proportions.

 

Low Resolution Reproduction
When utilized in print, the logo should be reproduced in a high resolution format to avoid pixelation and blurred representation.

Whitespace Relationship

The Billings logo should use the relationship below of whitespace to logo placement in order to avoid graphics and copy from impeding on the established spacial relationships and to retain consistency.

Correct relationship to surrounding graphics/copy
(This is the minimum amount of whitespace to be applied.)

 

Incorrect relationship to surrounding graphics/copy

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Local Photography

View Local Map

Urban

For over 355,000 people in the region, Billings is the regional hub for finance, transportation, medical care and much more. These scenes include a multitude of imagery showcasing the urban benefits of the Billings community.

 

Lifestyle

Lifestyle photography for the Billings brand represents a vibrant energy with a strong personal touch. Bold colors and a combination of tight, intimate crops with large gatherings and views reinforce the excitment and opportunities offered within the Billings area.

 

Landscape

Landscape photography will always highlight the value propositions unique to Billings. The photography represents the distinct Rimrocks, Yellowstone River and other geographical qualities as well as a glimpse into “Montana’s City”, focusing on the architecture and cityscapes. The photography is dramatic in nature, setting the tone with morning and evening light, bringing out the true essence of the Yellowstone Valley.

 

Historical

A large image library of cultural, historical locations and structures in Billings was created to support the brand and drive our heritage within Billings. Our brand is about originality and discovery, and is determined through each person’s individual experience and how they interact with the city and surrounding area.

 

Regional Photography

View Regional Map

Historical

Montana’s rich history plays a key role in “Montana‘s Trailhead”. From the Bighorn Battlefield to ancient fossils and cave drawings, the photography paints a picture of the Montana experience. The photography is to be used in conjunction with marketing materials promoting Billings and the beginning of the Trailhead.

 

Geographical

The wide variety of activities and adventures Montana has to offer draws people from all over the world. As Montana’s Trailhead, dramatic photography is utilized in the Billings brand to reinforce Billings as the central hub for the Montana experience. Inspirational photography represents the geographical grandeur and uncovers a wide variety of activities.

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Call to Action

Throughout the marketing of the Billings community, the call to action will reward the logo and tagline and open the door for further exploration. The words were carefully chosen to convey a casual conversation between friends. It’s warm, sincere and invites everyone to experience “Montana’s Trailhead” in a personal and memorable way.

 

Graphic Elements

Varying capacities of these graphics create a unique, representative separation device offering intrigue through the use of diverse scale and careful silhouette selection appropriate to each piece.

Architectural Icons

 

Distinctive Geography

 

Historical Icons & Amenities

Ad Concept

Mouseover icon for more information.

Brand Tabs

These tabs have been incorporated below to show how these graphics should be applied on full page, half page or quarter page ad.

Full Page

 

Half Page

 

Quarter Page

Committee Members

John Brewer
Billings Chamber of Commerce / Convention & Visitors Bureau

Alex Tyson
Billings Chamber of Commerce / Convention & Visitors Bureau

Commissioner Jim Reno
Yellowstone County

Commissioner John Ostlund
Yellowstone County

Kendall Merrick
Rimrock Mall / Past Chamber Chair

Lisa Harmon
Downtown Billings

Mayor Ron Tussing
City of Billings

Mike Whitaker
Parks and Recreation / City of Billings

Sandra Hawke
MetraPark / Yellowstone County

Shari Nault
Big Sky Economic Development / EDA -EDC

Eric Finstad
Advertising Design, Inc.

Andy Yates
Advertising Design, Inc.