LVCVA OKs new marketing, ads

Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2004 | 10:46 a.m.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority on Tuesday unveiled a five-year marketing plan officials hope will deliver 39 million tourists -- a 10.4 percent increase over last year's total -- by the end of 2008.

The LVCVA already anticipates that a record 36 million people will visit Las Vegas this year, a 1.4 percent increase over 2003's 35.5 million people.

In a report to the LVCVA's board of directors, staff members identified eight market segments Las Vegas will pursue to boost tourism. In addition, board members got their first look at the newest batch of "Vegas Stories" ads that debut nationally today and received a report from a research firm that said the controversial ad campaign has been warmly received by the viewing public.

Board members praised the staff and said they were pleased with the new batch of ads, six spots that will air through June at a cost of $13.5 million. Las Vegas-based R&R Partners, the LVCVA's advertising consultant, produced the 30-second spots, which will air on network television in early-morning and late-night time slots, and on national cable networks Bravo, Comedy Central, E!, ESPN, ESPN2, Fine Living, Food Network, Fox News, MSNBC, Style, TBS, Travel Channel and VH-1.

R&R boasted that the "Vegas Stories" catch phrase, "What happens here, stays here," has become a part of the American cultural scene, showing a compilation of television clips, from situation comedies to Jay Leno monologues using the phrase or variations of it.

Wirthlin Worldwide, a Reston, Va., research company, concluded in a survey that the original "Vegas Stories" ads, which have been criticized by some as too tawdry for the city, have been effective.

"Not only does the campaign generate a favorable impression from those who can recall it, but it also generates interest for going to Las Vegas," said Mike Dabadie of Wirthlin's South Jordan, Utah, office.

Dabadie also said the campaign has not had a polarizing impact on any one group over another, a charge critics of the campaign have made.

R&R Partners Chief Executive Billy Vassiliadis also said USA Today's Ad Track survey found the "Vegas Stories" campaign to be the seventh most likable ad campaign of 2003 as well as the most effective of the year.

Board members previewed four of the six new ads, which were described as carrying the same theme as the previous campaign, but tamer.

The themes of the four ads previewed by the board:

Terry Jicinsky, senior vice president of marketing for the LVCVA, said the ads and other marketing techniques would be used to increase the number of tourists who visit the city.

Jicinsky said target markets identified by the LVCVA include corporate meetings; convention business; online personalization and loyalty markets, including Internet campaigns; international marketing, including efforts in Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, Japan, Germany, Australia, France, South Korea and South America; ethnic marketing, including Asian, Hispanic and African-American markets; gay and lesbian markets; the "contemporization" audience of young adults between the ages of 25 and 34; and special events markets, bringing higher profile national events to Las Vegas.

In other business at Tuesday's LVCVA board meeting, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman reiterated his efforts to initiate action to combat tactics the National Football League has taken to prevent Las Vegas from advertising during the Super Bowl football game and actions that led to the cancellation of several Super Bowl parties in Las Vegas.

The board also approved a 4 percent raise for LVCVA chief executive Manny Cortez as well as a 10 percent cash bonus. Cortez will receive a bonus of $23,400 and his salary will increase from $234,000 a year to $243,360.