November 20, 2003
Branding Oregon
While we're on the subject of state matters, it seems there's all sorts of buzz around the concept of creating a so-called "Brand Oregon."
Earlier this month, The Oregonian asked six Oregonians to offer a "pithy new slogan" for the state, in advance of an expected December unveiling by Dan Wieden (of Wieden + Kennedy) of such an Oregon branding.
This was followed a week later by a counter-commentary of sorts:
The Oregonian's call for a "pithy new slogan" to help Dan Wieden with his Dec. 1 unveiling of the "Brand Oregon" campaign ... sadly suggests The Oregonian, Wieden and the state tourism agency funding Wieden's effort don't understand what's ailing us and tarnishing our reputation.
"Marketing," the writer comments, "can distract from or hide the blemishes, but it cannot fix a faulty product."
Meanwhile, yesterday's Willamette Week issues their own call for "a few ideas about how best to capture the nation's attention."
All of this hubbub springs from such things as the Brand and Market Oregon More Aggressively initiative to "build a new multi-purpose state brand" pitched in the so-called Oregon Business Plan, and an April 15 speech by Governor Ted Kulongoski.
Of course, that speech dealt strictly with attracting tourism, rather than the broader necessity of pitching Oregon's strengths in any number of areas, including attracting and retaining sustainable business, for example.
What's irksome to me (and this is, in all honesty, a purely personal, subjective, and egotistic thing) is that I have a complete and, frankly, sublime concept for a "Brand Oregon" campaign which could be tailored to attract people to Oregon to live, work, and/or play. But it's so perfect, and in some ways so simple -- in other words, such a killer concept -- that if I mention it to anyone, someone would probably steal it, and end up making a bunch of money off of it.