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Tell that to the Lake Erie resorts. Or Cedar Point. Or Hocking Hills. Or ...
Ohio is not unlike most states, whose tourist spots are so diverse that they defy branding.
i should have said we don't rely on national tourism. the tourist spots in ohio are mostly a regional draw, i think, wherein the idea of "selling ohio" isn't important.
i should have said we don't rely on national tourism. the tourist spots in ohio are mostly a regional draw, i think, wherein the idea of "selling ohio" isn't important.
We knew what you meant. You just have to be careful when you mention tourism. After being on these boards for a few years, it becomes apparent which posters work for a city/tourism industry.
we aren't a tourist-reliant state so we have not had to brand or market ourselves as aggressively as some other places.
I suppose if i were to make up a marketing campaign it would be something like, 'from small towns to big cities, you'll find it here." we have more universities and small towns than pretty much the entire western half of the country and we also have more major metros than almost any other state, lots of hardwood forests, and tolerable people (these last two being in the category of 'things you don't appreciate until you move away'). But whatever. It's a good place to live.
Is Ohio's problem that it lacks an identity? What do people think of when they hear Ohio? Some even mistakenly think of potatoes (Idaho). It seems to me like many states have a clear identity.
Many places in the country are going through identity issues. I remember an article in Creative Loafing a few years back painting Charlotte, NC as being in a panic over it. Such is life, I guess.
I was discussing this particular issue with my father about two months ago. It was mostly in terms of the economy, but can be fleshed out further. We both were born and raised in an Ohio town which has one foot in the Agricultural business and the other in the industrial sector. I think it's a good threshold to observe the dichotomous nature of the state.
I've concluded that there hasn't been much change the way Ohio perceives itself since the beginning of the 20th century. Manufacturing and farming are still the two main pistons that run the engine of this economy, with only a smattering of white collar companies. That's why this state is faltering right now. The desired jobs are elsewhere; the princess is in another castle.
Ohioans have a very tight grip on this, and I can only guess the reason: it was what got them by for so long. The tried and true. The familiar.
If I were to go into the cultural perception of Ohio, I've noticed a tendency for people in places like New York and New Jersey to think of us as naive or less sophisticated than themselves. Rubes. Naturally, this isn't always the case, but I'll be damned if some haven't given them anecdotal evidence. I'm always reminded of Heather Graham's character (Daisy) in Bowfinger, when she said, "I know what's going on. I may be from Ohio, but I'm not from Ohio."
When someone in the South spoke to me about Ohio, I apparently was supposed to know every single person in this state. I would hear comments like, "Oh, I have an aunt who lives in Greenville," or, "my grandfather lives in Akron." It's a charming attempt at familiarity, but shows that people outside of this state do not understand its size. It isn't THAT small.
Quote:
Originally Posted by czb2004
What do we want to be known for in the future?
I think stability and dependability would be at least something to accomplish. I see many states like Arizona and North Carolina overheating themselves with growth and the promise of a better life. As my old business policy professor used to say, "growth is sexy," and there are very few people in this country that cannot grasp that concept.
Ohio's slow and steady behavior would be perfect as a countercyclical state, acting as a safe haven for investors in down economic times. They would always know Ohio would be there. Ohio would be the rock that cannot be washed away. Ohio would be the state that was built like a brick outhouse. I'd be willing to bet there's good money in that department, especially since Americans play with risk like a child plays in a sandbox.
If I were to go into the cultural perception of Ohio, I've noticed a tendency for people in places like New York and New Jersey to think of us as naive or less sophisticated than themselves. Rubes. Naturally, this isn't always the case, but I'll be damned if some haven't given them anecdotal evidence. I'm always reminded of Heather Graham's character (Daisy) in Bowfinger, when she said, "I know what's going on. I may be from Ohio, but I'm not from Ohio.
Rube would probably be a good word. Ohio is flyover country. Anyone who lives west of Philly and east of California must be a curmudgeon of sorts.
They do the same thing with the south; 'anyone who lives south of this point is a backwards redneck.'
we aren't a tourist-reliant state so we have not had to brand or market ourselves as aggressively as some other places.
I suppose if i were to make up a marketing campaign it would be something like, 'from small towns to big cities, you'll find it here." we have more universities and small towns than pretty much the entire western half of the country and we also have more major metros than almost any other state, lots of hardwood forests, and tolerable people (these last two being in the category of 'things you don't appreciate until you move away'). But whatever. It's a good place to live.
You know, a number of years ago there was a marketing campaign for Ohio which had a really catch song - and though I can't remember all of the lyrics, it pretty much summed up Ohio's image of being the "heart of it all". Something about "you're a gently rolling river and the Great Lake Erie shore. Ohio you're the heart of it all". What more needs to be said? That IS the image of Ohio...the heart of it all. A little bit of this and that. It's a place where you can go to find pretty much anything you would want.
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Here is another take on Ohio's identity.
I consider Ohio to be (for better or worse) sort of the New Jersey of the Midwest. We're where the Midwest meets the industrial Northeast. We're rural, but the entire economy here is almost completely manufacturing and industrial based. The people here reflect that. Almost no one in Ohio has terribly deep ties to farming or rural life. The state is essentially one big suburb masquerading as Indiana.
I realize this every time we take a vacation trip someplace else and then drive back here. For example, we just returned from a trip to West Virginia. Crossing the state line at Parkersburg and then getting back into Ohio it was striking how the traffic picks up pace substantially and the drivers just start being real d**ks with constant lane changes and aggressive maneuvering.
Frankly, coming back into Ohio was really just plain irritating. Even a "small" town like Chillicothe is annoying with tons of traffic and congestion.
This leads to another point. I think part of Ohio's core identity is that we have not worked out whether we are a rural, farm and open space based state or a highly industrial state. I think that makes people here extremely irritable (like me.) They want their feel of open space but they want close conveniences and close neighbors too. Which are mutually incompatible.
Residents here want to believe that they really value "country values" and "honesty" but due to the economy here and the short distances between big cities almost everyone here is a suburban rat who couldn't possible make it in a deep rural region. "Oh noes, where's my wi-fi? Where's the Wal-Mart?"
I said "suburban rat". As in blase', jaded individuals who demand services and convenience and desires the structure and affluence of closeness to cities.
IOW, Ohio's like New Jersey culturally.
For "real country people", people who own and work on farms and who make things with their hands and who rely on tourism, the arts, small scale entrepreneurship on a large scale, etc, you really need to go outside this state.
I don't necessarily think its a bad thing, but Ohio's perceived "lack of identity" might stem from the fact that, unlike states like Illinois, Indiana or Michigan, no one city dominates over the rest of the state. When you hear "Illinois," you might think "Chicago." Ditto "Indiana/Indianapolis" or "Michigan/Detroit." Ohio's big 3 (as well as Toledo, Akron, Youngstown, Dayton, etc) each have their own identities, but no one place can claim dominance over the rest or be considered "stereotypical Ohio."
Speaking of "stereotypical," there's a reason why, if there's any identity at all in Ohio, its that of a stereotypical Midwesterner. Again, this isn't a bad thing, but in many instances, thanks to the mix of industry, agriculture and the numerous cultural and geographical regions within the state's boundaries, it represents almost anything and everything one would think of when they hear the word "Midwest."
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CortlandGirl79
^or to Amish country...........
Right. I thought of the exceptions to the rule after hitting "submit". Amish country, plus a scattering of artisanal small businesses like the trout farm or Rothschild Farms in Urbana, Young's Jersey Dairy in Yellow Springs, and the types of tourism and craft driven businesses in and around Hocking Hills.
But those are exceptions. the overall cultural fabric of the state is suburban. Especially the smaller towns and villages, where you'd think you'd find the most "rural authenticity" - the small towns are usually gutted. Most of them dumped their local groceries and services (rural exuburbanites, unlike bona fide country folks, have no local loyalties ) and the residents drive to the next city over to go to Wal-Mart, where the former shopkeepers work as employees.
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) and the residents drive to the next city over to go to Wal-Mart, where the former shopkeepers work as employees. 
