"The New Midwest" (Kansas City, Washington: promotional, neighborhoods, place to live)

[MarketStEl]

A dear friend of mine - a Kentucky native who worked for most of the time I've known him as a reporter in Washington, employed by The Kansas City Star's parent company and thus familiar with the city from several visits there on business* - just sent me a very lively video that Kansas City's tourism-promotion people have just produced.

The theme of the campaign is "The New Midwest," and the campaign is a very assertive one. "It's time the center of the country became the center of attention," the promo says. It takes note of the city's lively entertainment districts, its growing culinary sophistication (beyond barbecue), and the character of the city's neighborhoods.

This isn't that bland, whitebread part of the country people fly over, is the implicit message. And when it comes to making this claim that the Midwest isn't what the people on the coasts think it is, it asks, "Who better than us?" Because, it says, "It wasn't a thing until we made it."

This expat agrees with the sentiment while noting that at a deeper level, it continues one trait I remember from my youth in Kansas City: a general feeling that "we don't get no respect" from the coastal folk or the bigger-city denizens. But there is a difference in how it's expressed: Back when I was growing up, the claim took on a defensive tone, an almost Stuart Smalley-ish affirmation: "We're big enough, we're good enough, and doggone it, people like us!"

This time it looks, feels and sounds different: "We made this place into something you never imagined existed in the Heartland. It's time you came out here and discovered for yourself."

Here's the promotional video. What do you think of this approach? "We should be like this more often"? "Wait, that's too East Coast"?

https://youtu.be/gDzJyJgWkHo

[James Bond 007]

[kcmo]

Having lived on the east coast now for a decade, I have learned one thing. There is not a thing KC marketing people can do to change the image of KC or even make people give the city a second thought. People just do not care about all of the midwest. Not just KC. Even Chicago is barely thought about. When people travel, they go to other east coast cities, the beaches, the west coast and international. The midwest more than ever with the whole Trump movement is considered backwords, hick, religious extremists, gun loving, boring and basically everything the opposite of what people like. I'm just being honest here. Other than a really good NFL quarterback being there right now, KC is just never going to register as a nice place to live in most people's minds and no amount of convincing will change that.

Now, I don't agree with this image of KC, but the city has been trying forever to change its national image and is has gotten nowhere even though the city is actually quite nice and offers a lot. Not to say they could get through to some convention planners etc, but KC is so far off people's radar, it may as well be mars. And I think relocation stats prove this. KC gets nearly all of its in migration from the surrounding rural states. Very few people move to KC from other large metros, let alone the coasts.

[lovekcmo]

Originally Posted by kcmo

Having lived on the east coast now for a decade, I have learned one thing. There is not a thing KC marketing people can do to change the image of KC or even make people give the city a second thought. People just do not care about all of the midwest. Not just KC. Even Chicago is barely thought about. When people travel, they go to other east coast cities, the beaches, the west coast and international. The midwest more than ever with the whole Trump movement is considered backwords, hick, religious extremists, gun loving, boring and basically everything the opposite of what people like. I'm just being honest here. Other than a really good NFL quarterback being there right now, KC is just never going to register as a nice place to live in most people's minds and no amount of convincing will change that.

Now, I don't agree with this image of KC, but the city has been trying forever to change its national image and is has gotten nowhere even though the city is actually quite nice and offers a lot. Not to say they could get through to some convention planners etc, but KC is so far off people's radar, it may as well be mars. And I think relocation stats prove this. KC gets nearly all of its in migration from the surrounding rural states. Very few people move to KC from other large metros, let alone the coasts.

What you say is very true. I travel 4+ times a year to DC for work (govt) and I find this true about east coast people. To me, it show's how unenlightened, uneducated and uncurious people are in these so called more enlightened and progressive parts of the country.

[CaseyMO]

Originally Posted by kcmo

Having lived on the east coast now for a decade, I have learned one thing. There is not a thing KC marketing people can do to change the image of KC or even make people give the city a second thought. People just do not care about all of the midwest. Not just KC. Even Chicago is barely thought about. When people travel, they go to other east coast cities, the beaches, the west coast and international. The midwest more than ever with the whole Trump movement is considered backwords, hick, religious extremists, gun loving, boring and basically everything the opposite of what people like. I'm just being honest here. Other than a really good NFL quarterback being there right now, KC is just never going to register as a nice place to live in most people's minds and no amount of convincing will change that.

Now, I don't agree with this image of KC, but the city has been trying forever to change its national image and is has gotten nowhere even though the city is actually quite nice and offers a lot. Not to say they could get through to some convention planners etc, but KC is so far off people's radar, it may as well be mars. And I think relocation stats prove this. KC gets nearly all of its in migration from the surrounding rural states. Very few people move to KC from other large metros, let alone the coasts.

We continue to hope that people from East or West coasts just stay there. We are happy as we are and we really don't give a rat's rear about what people on the coasts think.

[MarketStEl]

Originally Posted by lovekcmo

What you say is very true. I travel 4+ times a year to DC for work (govt) and I find this true about east coast people. To me, it show's how unenlightened, uneducated and uncurious people are in these so called more enlightened and progressive parts of the country.

I can't really quibble with either you or kcmo, though I am also an evangelist for my hometown hereabouts.

At least those who know me know something about it now. And some of them have told me they've visited the place and like it a lot. (One of those came with me on a trip Back Home; it was his first journey outside the Northeast. He'd like to go back again.) Since I'm fairly well known in local media circles, my efforts may not be completely futile.

[MarketStEl]

Originally Posted by CaseyMO

We continue to hope that people from East or West coasts just stay there. We are happy as we are and we really don't give a rat's rear about what people on the coasts think.

On the other hand, I don't think this is a universal sentiment. Certainly the marketing campaign communicates a message opposite to this one.

And when I was growing up in Kansas City, I do recall a tone of defensiveness to local talk whenever the East Coast came up. (I don't think it was as bad when it came to California, for it seemed to me that a lot of Californians had relatives back here - I remember seeing California license plates swell in number on the streets of the city in the summer.)

But if this attitude has grown since then, fine. We can remain in the middle of the urban hierarchy - the Big City to those in the hinterlands around us and the place some of our best and brightest leave for brighter lights and bigger cities. Sure that's a good thing all around?

[luzianne]

I think the video comes across as trying too hard to convince people to like KC. And I don’t think the target audience will even bother to watch it. Can’t Kansas City just be Kansas City without acting desperate to be considered a cool place? Kansas City is Kansas City because it’s NOT like other cities.

Kansas City has long been a thing, just not the kind of thing people are trying to make it.

[RadioSilence]

That "New Midwest" video is a couple of years old now. Coincidentally, we just received new tourism numbers yesterday. Overall visits are flat compared to 2016. Spending has slightly increased.

[Jimrob1]

Originally Posted by CaseyMO

We continue to hope that people from East or West coasts just stay there. We are happy as we are and we really don't give a rat's rear about what people on the coasts think.

Yes I noticed that also in dealings with Missouri.