Reno Tahoe

That’s right, we have settled on a new marketing campaign slogan for the destination: Reno Tahoe USA … Far from expected

Far from expected conveys the almost universal reaction that new or recent visitors have after experiencing our region.

Take a second and count up the number of times your friends or family have said “I didn’t know….” that your town:

• … has a river running through town and a kayak park
• … hosts an annual, month-long arts festival
• … recently opened the world’s largest all-sports store
• … races planes upside down
• … is just 45 minutes from the shores of Lake Tahoe
• … has a brand new Triple A baseball team and stadium
• … is a must-stop on the way to Burning Man
• … runs live cattle through town during the rodeo
• … has some of the best hotels and restaurants on the West coast
• … is just a 45-minute hop by plane from the Bay Area

And so on …

I am glad to report it is a significant milestone that will power an entirely new and differentiated marketing program to hit the airwaves very soon.

It is important to note that the RSCVA is targeting a new market for visitors; one with the potential to bring millions of dollars of tourist revenue to the region over the next few years.  You can learn more about the project here.

The work by the RSCVA over the last year has been an effort to effectively reposition the destination to this new target audience to grow overall visitation. The goal of this effort is to turn around many consecutive years of declining visitation to Washoe County. This decline in visitation means a huge economic loss of revenue for hotels, restaurants, bars, retail shops and local governments.

While we are replacing the “America’s Adventure Place” slogan, we are not suggesting that the entire destination adopt the new campaign tagline as its individual identity. Reno will always be “The Biggest Little City”, Sparks will be “It’s happening here” and North Lake Tahoe will remain “Go Tahoe North.”

Though it is hard to comprehend for many, campaign taglines are not destination slogans.

We are also not retiring the America’s Adventure Place campaign just to “change.” Research showed America’s Adventure Place was not motivational to potential new visitors.  The new destination identity is going to be Reno Tahoe USA.  There is a new destination logo and a new campaign that is currently in the process of rolling out both in the region and nationally.  While the tagline always gets all the attention it is truly not the focal point of the campaign. Taglines also almost never work by themselves and have to be taken into context with the entire marketing campaign.

Now the hard work really begins. The RSCVA is in the midst of organizing an extensive co-op marketing strategy with our stakeholders in the destination. These stakeholders are being asked to fund along with the RSCVA the advertising campaign that will target these new visitors. That group has provided extensive input and guidance on developing the plan.

The most difficult thing to accomplish in destination marketing is forcing  yourself to think like a “visitor” and not like a “resident.” This new campaign strategy is built on what thousands of consumers told us they liked or what appealed to them most about our region. With that said, it will be imperative that “residents” embrace this effort. Helping visitors uncover what is unique, special and different is a job all of us should take seriously. This economic engine powered by tourism is needed now more than ever to continue the momentum of significant improvements in the region.

You remember those words as a kid right? The excitement of Saturday morning cartoons and the inevitable ad for a new TV show or movie that got you all worked up? The RSCVA Marketing Department realizes that many in the community are interested in what the next steps are in the new tourism marketing campaign developed by the organization and our community stakeholders.

Yes, we are working on a revised tagline for a new marketing campaign.  The RSCVA Board adopted the new strategic marketing direction on Sept. 24, 2009 and asked staff to rework the proposed campaign tagline. Unfortunately, it is hard to communicate that the tagline is just one component of the overall vision, and as a consequence much debate has arisen regarding the tagline.

The goal of this effort is to turn around 11 years of declining visitation to Washoe County.  Please let that one sink in.  Every year for 11 years fewer people have been coming to the destination than during the previous year.  It’s a losing streak we must stop and turn the other direction.  This decline in visitation means a huge economic loss of revenue for hotels, restaurants, bars, retail shops, and local governments.   This economic tourism engine is needed now more than ever to continue the momentum of significant improvements in the region.

Since the Board meeting in September we have continued to present the findings of the research behind the campaign to a number of community groups and stakeholders.  We are seeking their feedback and listening to their thoughts.  The general feedback has been very positive when the entire campaign is put in context and the full strategy explained.  The subtleties of an issue this complex are difficult to convey through the media.  Those outlets rarely can provide such an in-depth review  of the strategy and background that accompanies a new marketing plan.

Since the extensive media coverage about the tagline several people have popped in unannounced to my office to tell me their ideas for a slogan.  People have offered dozens of ideas and suggestions.  It is clear that many people love this region and they are passionate about telling us why.  The challenge is this campaign is not about getting more people to live in Reno, Sparks and Lake Tahoe.  That’s an important cause, but different than the RSCVA mission to attract tourists.  Trust us there is stiff competition for Reno Tahoe from destinations both in our own back yard and around the world to attract these visitors.

The RSCVA did not start out this process to develop a new marketing direction because of a desire to “change”.  Instead we carried out extensive research in both our drive and fly-markets.  In all we have listened to more than 11,000 people.  This required phone research, internet based panels, consumer intercepts, and dozens of focus groups. What that research told us is to grow visitation from a new group of potential customers the marketing for the destination needs to be more distinctive and should push new messages than in the past. Hence the recommendations that have been developed by both the RSCVA staff and our marketing firm Mortar.

We are hard at work developing a campaign that will both motivate new visitors and channel all the passion of the community to support all of us in the hospitality industry better sell Reno Tahoe USA.  So please stay tuned …

On Thursday, the RSCVA Board approved a new logo, look and campaign for marketing the Reno Tahoe region.

The decision was unanimous that the RSCVA should proceed with marketing the region under the brand platform of “refreshingly offbeat” and move ahead quickly with our program to make the region stand out better as a tourist destination.

Some in the community have debated at great length in the past few days the proposed tagline for the new Reno Tahoe campaign. In an attempt to set the record straight here are few things to consider:

• It appears to us that many people are over thinking this very small aspect of a much larger marketing strategy
• The tagline is not the marketing campaign
• The campaign is moving forward and will continue to evolve over the next few months
• “A Little West of Center” was a proposed marketing campaign tagline.  It was not a slogan meant to speak to why we as locals live in the region; rather it is targeted toward visitors who need to be motivated to come to Reno, Sparks and North Lake Tahoe.  Research showed that Reno in not top of mind on the list of places to visit for most consumers.
  Research also shows that the region has to stand out in its marketing and fight through many ill-informed negative perceptions

Everyone who is now suggesting new taglines both seriously and in jest probably have not been looking at the research findings gleaned from more than 11,000 consumers over the past nine months. That information has guided the decision process to date and has to be utilized to find an effective marketing message.

Since so many have guessed what “A Little West of Center” was all about, here it is: This region offers a real and authentic experience that is a departure from the norm.  The line was designed to remind visitors that a trip to Reno Tahoe offers a lot that’s different and exciting (Camel Races, Air Races, Gambling, World-Class Spas, Elvis’ gun collection, etc.).

The “Little” echoes Reno’s world-famous tagline “The Biggest Little City in the World.” (We couldn’t use that line because we are marketing Reno, Sparks AND Tahoe together. Visitors LOVE the idea of enjoying all the attractions of North Lake as well as the cool stuff here in Reno and Sparks. The fact is our research shows the metropolitan area has a lot to gain from reminding people how close it is to the lake; and that visitors to the lake can be persuaded to extend their stay with a trip to Reno).

Were we trying to get people to think? Yes.

Hope they would ask questions about what it meant? Yes.

Start a conversation? Yes.

So we are going back to the drawing board to develop new ideas to support the campaign.

What’s been lost in the cacophony following the introduction of the logo is that yesterday the RSCVA Board approved a bold new marketing direction for the region that embraces the distinctive attributes and real personality of Reno, Sparks and North Lake Tahoe.  Hundreds of local people over the course of the last year have helped the RSCVA and our creative agency Mortar arrive at this new campaign.

We’re glad to see the community has a passionate interest in our work and we are keen to retain your support for our drive to reinvigorate tourism.  So keep those comments and ideas coming.  The hope is by uniting all of our stakeholders (hotel-casinos, special event organizers, ski-resorts, golf courses, etc.) behind a common idea that is authentic and real, the region can turn around 11 years of declining visitation.  This is a challenge we do not take lightly.

• To read about the Reno Tahoe’s market potential research, check out Branding Reno Tahoe: Research is Key.
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