MMRDA to position MMR on global arena

Positioning will create opportunities and improve quality of life of common man

Mumbai, October 1, 2010: The vibrant activities in Mumbai Metropolitan Region by the development authority MMRDA have drawn attention of many global investors and development organizations. The city is largely perceived as a prominent business centre of India, a city which had terrorist attacks and a city with Hindi Film industry. However, there is a lot more than these elements in MMRDA, believes MMRDA and global imaging consultants. These key issues were discussed at a high-level meeting with presentations at MMRDA today.
Mr. Ratnakar Gaikwad, Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA said, “There is so much within the MMR which is not known to the outer world especially, foreign stakeholders. Now the region should be perceived as a rapidly growing destination for global businesses. The region has to be presented before the globe with its all inherent characteristics for which the exercises of branding and positioning on the lines of cities like Singapore, Sydney and Dubai etc. it is a well proven fact that such exercises serve as a long term positive investments for the development of regions. The development coming from such exercises will help creating opportunities for common man and improve overall quality of life.”
There are several ways of positioning MMR inculcating the culture, warmth, vibrancy and opportunities in the region. While branding and positioning MMR, the key factors to keep in consideration are the participation of citizens in image building, taking their opinions and making them aware of the advantages of infrastructure development, opined Ms. Ashwini Bhide, Joint Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA.
“So far, the perception of Mumbai city abroad in general is, a city affected by terrorist attacks, a city with Bollywood and an image of being a commercial center of India. However, that perception is incomplete as nobody in the world can imagine, how vibrant this city is, how much of energy is there than the expectations. Mumbai cannot be perceived without being here. And that is the scope for building MMR as a brand before the world,” said Fiona Gilmore, Chairman, Acanchi, a UK based company into Country Brand Capital Development while making presentation on branding MMR at MMRDA.
The work programme in identifying right branding and positioning includes; Exploratory Research, Research on External Perception of MMR, Development of Hypothetical Positioning Concept, Research and Exploration of Hypothetical Positioning Concepts, Finalisation of Positioning Strategy for Brand MMR, Articulating Brand MMR and Training & Prioritization of Micro-Initiatives.