Muonio Municipality Communication Strategy

Identifying the Real Need

Muonio is a municipality of 2,400 residents located along the Tornio River on Finland’s western Lapland border. The municipality’s communications are managed by its leadership team. As with all our projects, we began this one with a needs assessment — and it quickly became clear that Muonio required a structured and consistent approach to both municipal communication and marketing.
Previously, communication had been handled on an ad hoc basis alongside other tasks — meaning limited activity and minimal resources. Another emerging need was to update the municipality’s graphic materials and create a comprehensive brand guideline, especially since new websites were being developed after the completion of the strategy.

We carried out Muonio’s communication strategy and graphic manual through regular development meetings and workshops, ensuring the result wouldn’t become empty “agency jargon,” but a practical tool to support daily work.

Workshops Revealed the Real Challenges

In the early stages of the strategy, we discussed challenges common to nearly every municipality: limited resources, lack of digital know-how, writer’s block, and communication responsibilities spread too thin — essentially meaning no one truly “owns” communication.
By engaging a broader group in the strategic process through workshops, we gathered valuable, experience-based insights directly from the field. The written drafting of the strategy began during the summer.

Together with the strategy team, we reviewed progress at regular intervals, always ensuring the strategy reflected the realities of daily municipal work. The first version of the strategy was completed by year’s end. During development, one guiding principle quickly emerged: the future role of municipalities as enablers and sustainers of regional vitality.

Capturing the Essence of Muonio

As the project progressed, we increasingly focused on how Muonio presents itself — to visitors, residents, and those considering moving there.
Slogan development became a natural part of the project and was refined collaboratively with the entire team.
No municipality exists in isolation; each represents its people. According to national studies and surveys, Muonio’s residents are among the happiest in Finland — and the region boasts the cleanest air in the world.
The goal was a short, memorable slogan of two or three words — one that would also work naturally in English.
The result captured the spirit of the region perfectly:
“Onnellisia luonnostaan / Happy by Nature.”

A slogan alone, however, means nothing unless the rest of the communication aligns with it. Still, it serves as a compass — a constant reminder of the tone and direction of the municipality’s messaging.

Continuous Development and Learning

A strategy isn’t something that’s printed, distributed, and forgotten. Continuous improvement — both in content and implementation — is essential in an organization the size of a municipality.

We provided the Muonio team with practical tools and clear guidelines for implementing communications and marketing.
We also took into account varying digital skill levels and the software used by the staff. Communication, at its core, is made up of simple processes — there’s no need to make them more complicated than they need to be.

Mutual Learning

This project taught us as well — particularly about working with teams with different starting levels of communication experience. It’s essential that everyone involved in communication and marketing can easily read, understand, and apply the strategy.
Along the way, we also learned a great deal about traditional wooden riverboats, fishing, Lapland’s hidden potential, and the can-do attitude and natural happiness of the people living along the Tornio River.

A big thank you to the entire Muonio municipal organization for an inspiring and enjoyable collaboration!

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