The latest Columbus awareness campaign
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Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios
Columbus has a lot to brag about, and it wants to get better at doing it.
Why it matters: A so-called identity crisis has long contributed to potential visitors' unfamiliarity with our growing city. It's a concern local leaders, media and residents have tried to solve for years, in hopes of boosting public perception and luring more tourists.
Driving the news: The latest attempt to market the city is a new ad campaign, "Yes, Columbus," which embraces our relative obscurity.
Zoom in: The videos list local accolades with tongue-in-cheek awareness that people outside Ohio may be surprised to hear them.
- Examples include "Essence" magazine dubbing us one of the year's top global culinary destinations, and the fact that the concentration of fashion professionals here is topped only by New York and Los Angeles.
- Columbus? "Yes, Columbus."
What they're saying: "I don't think we have an identity crisis, I think we have a 'lack-of-awareness crisis,'" Sarah Townes, chief marketing and innovation officer of Experience Columbus, tells Axios.
- The marketing organization helped launch the $2 million campaign in May with local partners, including Franklin County and city government, paid for mostly with bed taxes.
The intrigue: Columbus' lack of singular brand captured the attention of the New York Times as far back as 2010, with familiar themes throughout the story.
Flashback: "Columbus has not had a bad image," Experience Columbus' director said at the time. "It has just had no image in the national marketplace."
- The Times noted: "At least six earlier branding efforts over the last half-century fizzled out with anodyne slogans like 'Discover Columbus' and 'Surprise, It's Columbus.'"
- One amusing idea from a 2010 brainstorm: "Columbus: We Are So Not Ohio."
Between the lines: Columbus' marketing budget is lower than other comparably sized cities, which is likely a factor, Townes says.
What we're watching: "Yes, Columbus'' ads are airing in a 250-mile radius from Central Ohio, in cities as far as Detroit, Indianapolis and Lexington, Kentucky.
- So far, engagement has been positive, Townes says.
📬 Tell us: Do you think "Yes, Columbus" will help build our city's brand? What slogan would you use to advertise Columbus to outsiders? Email [email protected] with your thoughts.