North Dakota is the least visited of the 50 states. Its number one attraction is hard to pinpoint, and not in a good way. This poses quite the challenge for advertisers trying to sell the “peace garden state” to tourists.
The latest of North Dakota Tourism’s “legendary” ads were released last week. One ad in particular has, as is the goal of advertising, received a lot of buzz- but it may not be the kind of attention the state wants.
Most of the $1.8 million campaign’s legends point to the outdoor adventures North Dakota offers much like the word "legendary" intends. The ad getting all of the attention appears to take what I call the “Barney Stinson approach” to the word legendary.
 |
| Image from ibtimes.com |
The ad, shown left, captures the nightlife of Fargo with the text “Drinks, dinner, decisions. Arrive a guest. Leave a legend.” A day after being released, it was pulled from Facebook for lacking what people labeled “decency and class” and triggering derogatory comments towards both its concept and models pictured.
Created by Odney, a local agency, the ad was targeted towards Canadian tourists and largely to be placed within Canadian magazines according to an AP news article. Sarah Otte Coleman, the director of North Dakota’s tourism division, explained in an article for the Grand Forks Herald her first reaction to the negative response. “Wow! Some people have too much time on their hands and watch a little too much Jersey Shore,” said Coleman.
Jersey Shore viewers or not, the "legendary" ad has caught the attention of everyone from the Huffington Post and ABC news to small travel blogging sites. While many of these postings carry the same tone of shock and imply failure, it is still up for debate as to if it is a complete failure.
 |
| 2010 Legendary Campaign takes a subtler approach to ND nightlife. Image from Travel North Dakota Facebook page. |
After living in North Dakota for over 3 years, I think that advertising anything that doesn’t show snow or flooding is a step in the right direction. So I’ll give one point to them there. Another point for getting North Dakota and tourism out there to a national audience in the same sentence.
That is about where my awarding of points ends, so only a 98% failure. Maybe the intentions were good, showcasing the vibrant nightlife of Fargo, ND (something many people still most likely believes does not exist even after this ad) but the truth is no matter what the intentions, the message that read to the majority of viewers was “come to Fargo and hook up.”
That is about where my awarding of points ends, so only a 98% failure. Maybe the intentions were good, showcasing the vibrant nightlife of Fargo, ND (something many people still most likely believes does not exist even after this ad) but the truth is no matter what the intentions, the message that read to the majority of viewers was “come to Fargo and hook up.”
Coleman has since apologized to anyone who was offended for the ad and assures that the “Legendary” campaign has overall been successful. The Tourism board says that in 2010 a total of $176.9 million was earned through visitor spending.
The ad will remain in the printed copies of North Dakota's 2012 tourism guide, but has been pulled from electronic versions. There are plans of replacing the ad, which will most likely stir up another round of debates. Let’s hope it’s legen- wait for it –dary.
No comments:
Post a Comment