Aderly: founding partner and project lead for ONLYLYON

ONLYLYON, a pioneering brand in France and in Europe, and the standard bearer for the community and the region’s ambition, celebrated its 15th anniversary in 2022. An opportunity to reinvent itself in order to take on new societal challenges and stay one step ahead by offering services of unprecedented interest.

Created in 2007 by thirteen founding bodies based in Lyon Métropole, ONLYLYON has, since then, been both the brand and the programme used to promote the region on the national and international stage. With 26,000 Ambassadors, over 20 partners, and marketing campaigns and events held worldwide from Boston to Tokyo, every effort has been made to enhance the region’s reputation and attractiveness, with very positive results. ONLYLYON is the most recognised regional brand in Europe, and is perceived by 30% of AB+ profiles worldwide (IPSOS ONLYLYON survey November 2022).

The ONLYLYON programme

The ONLYLYON brand is evolving and being refreshed to take on new societal challenges and stay one step ahead. A paradigm shift was needed for ONLYLYON to integrate local objectives regarding quality of life, cooperation and impact. After several months of team work, a new brand platform was finalised and then presented at a gala event to celebrate ONLYLYON’s 15^th anniversary in October 2022. 

To portray this new momentum, we redesigned the brand identity with a new logo and new brand labels for partners and Ambassadors. The new logo has a stronger focus on the brand’s anagram and its originality:

The brand continues to structure its plan to promote Lyon and its region around the three values of “Humanism, Cooperation and Audacity”, and a new corporate purpose: “Taking action together, at home and abroad, to make the region welcoming and attractive in the long term.” 

While our ambition is still to focus on the basics – to raise the region’s profile by focusing on multifaceted attractiveness (economic, tourist-focused, academic, cultural, etc.) – we have added new objectives, one of which is enhanced awareness of local residents. This is in line with our wish to bring local residents on board, for the long term.

So, the ONLYLYON programme now has two new strategic indicators for the years to come: to make Lyon Métropole one of the best known metropolitan areas on an international scale (external audience), and one of the most highly recommended (by residents and visitors). These indicators will be measured every three years by a reputation and impact survey.

From the “5 lives” (5 lives) poster advertising campaign to video portraits on social media, our marketing has focused on diversity and on the positive initiatives undertaken in the region.

Rich content that approaches the future with an optimistic outlook by integrating it in all areas: