Why Bristol is 'hardest city to sell to'

I have a confession to make. I lived in London. I worked in advertising. I once owned some red braces.

I worked on brands such as Sky TV, De Beers diamonds, the National Lottery, BMW. I spent a million pounds making a TV ad for a famous brand of after-dinner mints. A million pounds. Naomi Campbell came along and refused to talk to anyone all day. Stephen Fry was much nicer.

So, could life get any better? Well, yes. You see I wasn't happy. I had a growing family. London was beginning to get on my nerves. The commute. The crime. The house prices. Bristol – where I was born and brought up – seemed to be a far better option.

So we moved back. In work terms I had this idea that because I'd worked at the top of the advertising profession in London, I'd be able to blow all the competition away, produce some great creative work, and be happy, wealthy and wise. How wrong I was. Because I hadn't reckoned on you lot. Bristolians.

Four years on and I'm happy. I'm wise. Wealthy? Well, money isn't everything is it? Hmmm. So what have I learned about you in that time? I've tried to sell you all sorts of things. Some you've taken to. Some you haven't. Here is an observation from an experienced marketer about Bristol, the people who live here and what makes you such a difficult market to advertise to.

Bristol is tribal. I'm not talking about ethnicity or social class here. It's great that there are lots of culturally different types of people in the city. But from a marketing point of view, Bristol is made up of two tribes, and while they're not at war, they really don't have much in common.

Who are they? They are Natives and Newcomers.

Natives, as it sounds, are born and bred Bristolians. Newcomers are those who have been brought here by work, study or lifestyle.

How do they differ? Well, let's go out on a limb here and say that the Natives don't know how lucky they are, and the Newcomers do.

Over the last few years, Bristol has won tons of awards. We've been praised for being happy. For being green. For being fit and active. For being a great place to live.

So what happens when we win? We whine. Don't believe me? Check out the comments on the various award stories on thisisbristol.co.uk. You'd think all the awards were part of some vast conspiracy to blind us Bristolians to just how awful the city we live in actually is.

What's more, the vast majority of negative comments come from Natives saying "I've lived here all my life and this award is nonsense because it's rubbish here". When a Newcomer strays on to the thread and says "actually, it's really good; I've lived in X or Y city, and believe me, Bristol is great" they get buried under a mountain of Native anger.

As I said before, this is not a class issue. Some of the worst Native whingers are in Clifton. Do they ever shut up about parking? Why are they so against any form of change? Some of the ones I've met can suck all the positive energy out of a room simply by opening their mouths and taking a single breath.

However, in a curious way, this negativity is a positive. How? Well, from my professional perspective, Bristol is a hard sell because the hard sell doesn't work here. Maybe it's the merchant history of the city, but it feels like the louder you shout in Bristol the less any advertising will work. Natives want to know the why, the where, the what of your pitch.

My mother used to tell me that you could always tell a true Bristolian because "they wanted to know the ins and outs of the cat's backside" before making a decision. Now I'm all grown up, I get mum's point and it's still true.

So whenever I'm writing advertising campaigns aimed at Natives, I try to keep that skepticism in mind. My concern is that in recent years it has slipped into cynicism, and downright negativity – especially over new developments such as Cabot Circus.

How many of us wanted that to fail? Called it Carboot Circus? Thought it was all a bit too flash and self-confident for our city? Or what of the new façade of the Colston Hall? Looks pretty impressive? Well do you know what I heard? They used the wrong kind of paint, or tile, or something, and it's all going to have to be redone. Typical Bristol. Typically Native more like.

Bristol has a long tradition of being a bit quiet. Of not wanting to blow our own trumpet. Well, like it or not, the character of the city is changing, and there's a whole tribe of people lining up to have a great big blow on that civic trumpet – the Newcomers.

So what are the Newcomers up to while we're whingeing? Well, they're out and about enjoying themselves. Having fun in this great city.

Newcomers are generally affluent, and a far more receptive consumer target than the Natives. So, easier to market to? Not really. The problem with these guys is the very opposite of the Natives – they're totally unengaged in any of the issues confronting the city.

For all their faults, at least Natives care. Newcomers don't listen to local radio; they don't read this newspaper (but of course they should); they just don't get involved. At the weekend, they'll load up the mountain bikes and the surfboards and head off to the coast. In the week, they'll be cocooned in their out-of-town campus workplace where they'll be surrounded by a lot of other white-collar Newcomers.

A lot of them even work in Cardiff, or, whisper it quietly, London. For Newcomers can visit, work in or even talk about London without developing an inferiority complex the size of Bradley Stoke.

So the problem with Newcomers is that they're just not connected to the communities around them. I don't mean that they don't talk to their neighbours or send their children to local schools. No – they just don't know what's going on.

Take the recent BBC Bristol/Sam Mason incident. In preparation for this article, I did a bit of research. I casually asked 10 people of my acquaintance, all of them what I would call Newcomers, what they thought of the issue. Racist? Not racist? None of them knew what I was talking about. It had completely passed them by. Of course, they were incredibly interested when I told them the details, and all had their own forthright opinions – but that's not the point here is it? The point is that something big can happen in this city – that reflects on our past, our present and what we want of our future – and they weren't part of that debate.

So there's the problem for us advertisers. Bristol has two big tribes with completely different attitudes, values and habits. One of them is too negative and cynical, seeming to want to tear down anything and anyone who gets a bit above themselves. But at least they care.

Better that than the Newcomers, who are completely disconnected, head in the clouds, too busy bundling the Boden-catalogue children into the back of the estate and heading off somewhere to talk to their friends about how fantastic Bristol is, while at the same time not really knowing or appreciating the character of the place.

So what would make things better?

Natives – you live in a wonderful part of the world. You care passionately about it. But the people who award your city prizes and who seek to improve the taste of the cider are not part of a global conspiracy to make you miserable. Really, they're not. Or if they are, they haven't invited me to join in. So change can be a positive thing. Development can be positive. You can be positive.

Newcomers. Get involved. Put the Man United shirt away and go and watch Rovers or City for a change. Maybe try the cider and see what all the fuss is about. Know who's running the city council. Go on – answer now. Don't Google it. Did you know? Thought not. Care more – and bring some of your positive energy to bear on the city where you live.

So, which are you? A Native or a Newcomer? Me? I'm a Native Newcomer. Which sounds like a cop out, but let me explain. I was born and brought up here. I went to London for 12 years. I came back because I love it here. So I'm Native, but with a Newcomer perspective. I suppose what I'm getting at is that I can't help but be Native about some things: Bristol Rugby relegated again? Typical. Why don't we have a big arena like Cardiff? Typical.

But then I get angry at myself – stop whingeing. Get out there and sort out the third of your objectives. Try a bit of wealth creation. Try and sell something to this city. Which brings us back to where we started. It's a hard sell is Bristol.

Pete Blackman