Take a Break from all that Glitz and Glamour Advertising

Las Vegas Touts Its Affordability
The Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123371001940445955.html

Las Vegas has been struggling due to the current economic situation and is now trying to fight back with a new advertising campaign, "Vegas Bound". The campaign tells Americans that they have been working hard and deserve a break. Thus, they can return from their Vegas vacation rejuvenated and fresh. Las Vegas is trying to change its image from a city of over-indulgence and irresponsibility to that of a get-away and vacation area due to the economy and lack of discretionary income. To accomplish this, marketers used a group of 100 individuals from Cranfills Gap, Texas. While the article states that several small towns were considered, marketers felt "The Gap" embodied working-class America, their target market.

While reading this article, I couldn't help but think of the brand that Las Vegas has built up over several years. It has been known as the city of spending, drinking, partying, and gambling. All these things seem like a bad idea in a bad economy. So Vegas decides to change this brand, after all the time and work its put in to building it up. I understand the reasoning. I just don't think it's reasonable. Is it reasonable to expect that consumers might think of something completely different than they've been trained to for the past how many years when they hear the words "Las Vegas"? I think Las Vegas has done such a great job selling its brand and city image that it will be difficult to change now. Is the attempt at re-branding worth it? Will the recession be over by the time marketers can put a dent in Vegas's reputation? I sure hope so.