Packaging Cities

American Demographics, Jan 1, 2002

"Why would these bright, young people want to move to a community that doesn't have the restaurants, coffee shops and music venues that they enjoy?" says Higdon. "We don't have the mountains like Denver or the ocean like some coastal cities, so we need to make our product as cool as we can to get them here." One of his other pet projects is to woo pro basketball to town, which he says will give the city a more youthful image.

To get the word out about what a fun spot the city is becoming, GLI has dedicated about $1 million per year for its branding efforts. So far, it has collected 40,000 e-mail addresses of Louisville expatriates and has been sending them monthly e-Postcards about the great things going on in their old town. In addition, GLI hosted a cocktail party last April for former residents living in Atlanta, where they collected 150 resumes from one-time locals interested in returning. They plan to host a similar party in northern California in March. Other initiatives include the establishment of a networking club called the Young Professionals of Louisville and "Bulldogs in the Bluegrass," an all-expenses-paid internship program which finds summer jobs for about 40 Yale University students with no prior connections to Louisville. Last year, six students were obviously impressed: after graduation, they moved on down.

- R.G.

ASSESSING THE DAMAGE

Large, tourist-driven metro areas were hardest hit economically by the events of Sept. 11, according to Economy.com. In fact, seven out of the top 10 most affected metros have populations over 500,000, while not one of the top 10 least affected areas has a population over 350,000. For example, prior to Sept. 11, Economy.com projected Las Vegas' gross domestic product (GDP) would grow at a rate of 5.09 percent through the second quarter of 2002. Post-Sept. 11, Economy.com lowered its projections by 5.56 percentage points. Green Bay, Wis., on the other hand, was expected to grow at a rate of 2.24 percent through the second quarter of 2002. After Sept. 11, its GDP is still projected to grow, albeit slower (1.16 percent), a loss of just 1.08 percentage points.

MARKETING CHALLENGE: EXPANDING AN OLD BRAND TO A NEW MARKET

BRAND: Philadelphia and surrounding region

POPULATION: 4 million

THE CLAIM: The Place That Loves You Back

PRIMARY DEMOGRAPHIC TARGET: Weekend travelers, specifically East Coast residents and Baby Boomers

Many cities today already have a "brand" in the sense that they conjure up an image in the consumer's mind. But often, that brand is one that has been sewn together by popular culture, professional sports teams and famous monuments. It's like the old Bill Cosby joke, says Meryl Levitz, president and CEO of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC), "A couple has a baby and friends ask what its name is. The couple replies: 'We're just going to let him grow up and see what the other kids call him.' That's exactly what Philadelphia has done. We've let other people define our brand image, instead of managing it ourselves."