The city of Atlanta has recently finished up a big contest for our new theme song. Perhaps I should just say our theme song, since I’m unaware of any previous one, unless you count hillbillies trying to get laid. It is part of a “rebranding” campaign. I guess the “Atlanta: A relative oasis in the middle of a state of ignorant racists that is Georgia” wasn’t cutting it anymore.
This blog will now conduct a scientific test. I have not yet listened to the new song. And yet, I feel confident in stating it will stink. And doubly confident in saying it will never convince one tourist to send one incremental dollar down Atlanta’s way.
Wow. I can’t get it. They are actually charging money for it. This is mind-blowing. Do they expect people money to actually pay for a song that is advertising Atlanta? That’s like paying for a poster of the Jolly Green Giant, but without the kitsch factor. That is, worthless. I am stunned.
I will proceed with my scathing analysis unabated by actual facts. To the best of my knowledge, there is exactly one geographic branding idea that has succeeded. “I love New York”. Huge success. In fact, if memory serves, it was written as “I [heart] New York”, and gave birth to the heart-icon-representing-the-word-love that is all over the place now. So what did it have going for it?
* It’s New York. New York is one of the 4 American cities that are unique and must be visited. (That may be a future post). Let’s just say there was a reason Osama went after New York, and not Bismarck or Macon.
* No one else had done it yet. The market is saturated. Every podunk metropolis has a brand, a logo, and a theme song. You can’t compete anymore.
* Originality. I [heart] New York is clever, when no one else has done it yet.
* A catchy jingle, that is short. Was there a longer version? Don’t know, don’t care.
Guess how many of these Atlanta’s theme song has? You don’t have to listen to it, just guess. I’m going with zero.
Oh, and guess who wrote the theme song? Dallas Austin. Yes, Dallas Austin, there’s a name guaranteed to confuse everyone.
(Thank to Art’s head for the post idea.)
Forget that. The commercials are equal opportunity showing both women and men in relationships acting inappropriately. Or at least alluding to it. Whatever.
Either way, its a vast improvement over the family-funland concept they had before.
I was thinking about Las Vegas. Except for that I’m not sure it has worked. Awareness is up, but it probably drove away as much business as it kept.
As a semi-frequent Vegas patron, I can tell you hard it is to make the sell to the wife. Yeah, honey, I’m going to go the land of sin for a few days with some ATM cards and have fun with the guys. Yeah, we’re going to drink a lot, strippers might be involved, I might need to take out a second mortgage after I bust the 16 vs a 9, why do you ask?
So it’s tough to begin with. Now think about the new campaign. It is essentially saying, “Vegas. We’re everything you dream about. We are every immoral deed you ever dreamed of doing. You have a zero percent chance of going after your wife sees this. Zero. No really. Don’t even bother asking if she’s seen this, she knows the score.”
(This is all stolen from The Sports Guy)
So Vegas is still up in the air to me.
You forgot Las Vegas. They had a very successful campaign too. The whole “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” thing on the commercials now.