The be Berlin capital city marketing campaign was launched in spring 2008 by the Berlin Senate. The campaign is financed by the Senate and partners from the Berlin business community. The goal of the campaign is to strengthen Berlin’s positive image and to promote the city on a national and international level as a great place to live, as a leading location for business and industry, and also as a travel destination for the many tourists who visit the capital each year.  

The campaign’s key visual element is its red speech balloon and well-known three-part phrase “be …, be …, be berlin.” These two elements are already familiar sights in the city and can be found everywhere be Berlin is active, i.e. on posters, brochures, stickers, t-shirts, etc. A red rectangle provides the framework for the three-part phrase and symbolizes two major elements: the inward messages of the campaign’s “ambassadors” and the external effect of these messages. Although it has a rectangular form, the red speech balloon is nevertheless a well-rounded feature.