McKinley County Find Your JoyTM Brand Gaining Recognition

Strength and stature of community brand on the rise

Gallup, New Mexico — A brand is much more than a logo or a slogan. A good brand conveys the benefits and experiences the brand provides and creates realistic expectations about the product or service it delivers. A community brand is no different. It, too, shares what a city or county offers when living, working, or visiting the community. Equally important, it affords the opportunity for residents, businesses, and organizations to work together to deliver on the community’s desired brand promise.

To ensure there is a clear understanding of what McKinley County offers, the Find Your JoyTM brand was created. The essence of the brand is that McKinley County is a place that delivers experiences which lift your spirit. This brand promise relates to all aspects of life in the region for both residents and visitors and everyone in the community can participate by striving to lift someone’s spirt whenever possible.

“We are seeing tremendous community acceptance for the Find Your JoyTM brand and look forward to the positive perceptions and images the brand will create for the entire region moving forward,” said Anthony Dimas, Jr., McKinley County Manager. “We strongly believe McKinley County is a place that delivers experiences to lift your spirit.”

McKinley County is committed to building the brand and managing its integration with residents, businesses, organizations, and visitors. To ensure this ongoing effort, McKinley County hired Brian Leddy as the state’s first community brand manager. Leddy’s top responsibility is to ensure community members gain a thorough understanding of the brand and to work with community partners to strengthen the stature of the brand over time.

“My job is to work throughout the community to support efforts delivering on the brand promise of providing experiences that lift one’s spirit,” said Brian Leddy, McKinley County brand manager. “This is what the Find Your JoyTM branding effort is all about. Who wouldn’t want to live, work, or visit a community that brings you joy.”

As part of Gallup/McKinley County 2025 Economic Development Week, Leddy will be providing an overview of the Find Your JoyTM brand and how community members can support efforts to embrace and integrate the brand. Once businesses and organizations understand and commit to the brand promise, they can access the Find Your JoyTM logo and other brand assets for promotional and marketing efforts.  

Gallup-McKinley County Chamber of Commerce is working with McKinley County to help build greater awareness and participation for the brand. As part of this support, the Chamber will launch the McKinley Brand Action Team where community members can collaborate on projects and programs that provide experiences that lift your spirit. “Similar to the successful New Mexico True brand, which has created substantial awareness for New Mexico, we want to do the same for McKinley County. We want to make sure that our community is recognized as a place where residents, businesses, and visitors can truly find their joy,” said Bill Lee, Gallup-McKinley County Chamber of Commerce CEO. “It’s really important in today’s world that in this brand-driven and social media society, that McKinley County has a well-recognized brand.”    

Another example of the Find Your JoyTM brand integration is the upcoming 2nd Annual Joy Ride & Run, that will be held on June 7th. “This event is free and is intended for all community members to come out, enjoy the day, and find their joy. That’s why we live here, what McKinley County is all about, and the reason we produce this event,” said Brian Leddy.

To learn more about the brand, contact Brian Leddy, Brand Manager, McKinley County at (505) 619-9009 or brian.leddy@co.mckinley.nm.us.

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Contact Information:
Brian Leddy
Brand Manager
McKinley County
(505) 619-9009
brian.leddy.@co.mckinley.nm.us

Brian Leddy is a photographer, mountain biker and adventurer who enjoys exploring the Southwest on bike and in his old Ford pickup with his wife and dog. He is also president of Adventure Gallup and Beyond, a non-profit dedicated to promoting adventure tourism in McKinley County. He recently started working for McKinley County where he is using his skills to help promote a positive image of the region and the beauty it offers