Columnist Jeff German: Slogan deal bewilders market pro

Friday, July 15, 2005 | 10:46 a.m.

Bill Welter knows what it's like to protect a valuable marketing slogan.

The 59-year old Welter was executive vice president of marketing for Wendy's in the mid-1980s when the hamburger chain ran its popular, "Where's the beef?" advertising campaign. The television commercials made a star out of the late octogenarian Clara Pellar.

Welter, who now runs Southern Nevada's seven Buffalo Wild Wings restaurants, called the other day to add his name to the list of marketing experts who can't believe the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority gave away its valuable advertising slogan for $1.

This week the 14-member public board that oversees the LVCVA approved the hiring of a high-priced international law firm to investigate how the rights to "What happens here, stays here" secretly wound up in the hands of the LVCVA's longtime advertising agency, R&R Partners.

"Either someone fell asleep at the switch or someone cut a sweetheart deal," Welter says. "When I first heard about this whole controversy, I said to myself, 'Where's the money?'

"There's no reason in the world why the LVCVA should be giving up that wonderful asset."

The Wendy's slogan followed a similar path to popularity as "What happens here, stays here." Both phrases became part of the country's vernacular.

The big difference, however, is that Wendy's went about protecting the slogan the right way, Welter says.

It kept the rights to "Where's the beef?" and fought its own legal battles against those looking to infringe on it.

The LVCVA and R&R contend that "What happens here, stays here" was turned over to R&R to bolster the advertising agency's ability to file suit on the LVCVA's behalf against anyone trying to rip off the slogan.

But Welter, who's been around the marketing business for more than 30 years, says that's ridiculous.

"It's a smokescreen to cover up for something that got out publicly that is embarrassing to them," he says. "Trademark protection is the responsibility of the client."

Welter also is amazed that the LVCVA didn't try to make money from merchandising its prized slogan.

"They probably missed the boat," he explains. "There was a tremendous opportunity to put legs behind the advertising campaign. The biggest compliment a brand can receive is when someone wears a brand as a badge."

Welter says Wendy's ended up licensing 26 businesses around the country to manufacture "Where's the beef?" souvenirs. Baseball caps, sunglasses, coffee mugs, T-shirts, belts and even watches all were marketed under the logo.

Wendy's made more than $1 million off the sales and poured it all back into the campaign, he adds.

The LVCVA, he says, easily could have done the same thing with "What happens here, stays here."

What bothers Welter, like many others, is that LVCVA President Rossi Ralenkotter didn't seek board approval for the sale of the slogan.

"That would be like me selling an asset of my company without telling the other shareholders," he says. "I would never make a decision like that without telling my partners."

Welter, meanwhile, says he hopes that the LVCVA will come to the realization that the rights to the slogan belong in its possession.

"R&R should give it back, and the LVCVA should retain it forever," he says. "If that doesn't happen, the people who live in Las Vegas and want to see the city continue to grow and prosper will be the losers."