Laughlin Rebrands to Reattract
Lisa Plummer -- Tradeshow Week, 9/25/2008 5:57:00 PM
Laughlin’s image needed freshening up, according to the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority and Laughlin Visitors Bureau. Maybe a $2.1 million rebranding campaign will do the trick.
The new tagline – “Laughlin. It’s Like You Own the Place” – is the LVCVA’s latest effort to revitalize the brand and attract visitors to the casino and resort destination 90 miles south of Las Vegas.
The campaign will make its advertising debut this week in the form of television, radio, print and online advertising geared toward both the leisure and business markets. According to Meg McDaniel, senior manager of regional sales at the LVB, the new branding effort is meant to emphasize the VIP status anyone can experience in Laughlin, while enjoying affordability, convenience and a friendly atmosphere.
Twelve months of research went into the campaign, McDaniel said, including 600 interviews and focus groups conducted in Laughlin’s closest drive-in markets such as Phoenix, Las Vegas and Riverside, Calif.
“When we talked to customers … similar adjectives kept coming up,” she said, “(such as) ‘comfortable, relaxed, friendly, you can be yourself.’ All those descriptions led us to the tagline.”
The new brand couldn’t come at a better time. Laughlin saw a drop in visitation this year, especially with the drive-in, motor coach and day-trip markets, McDaniel said. According to the LVCVA’s 2008 Laughlin Year-To-Date Executive Summary, visitor volume is down 6.5 percent with room occupancy down 2.3 percent. Convention attendance is down 11.3 percent.
According to Sean Hammond, president of the Laughlin Tourism Committee and vice president of player development at the Aquarius Casino and Resort, the rebranding campaign is a win-win for the area.
“We’re very excited,” Hammond said. “We think it’s long overdue. We look at it to bring new eyes on Laughlin, to bring back visitors that haven’t been here for several years (as well as) new visitation to the area.”
Also in perfect step with the campaign is the expansion and remodeling of the Laughlin/Bullhead City Intl. Airport, which is now able to accommodate commercial planes thanks to a 1,500-foot runway extension. A $500,000 federal grant was recently awarded to Laughlin to pursue commercial air service, McDaniel said, which could begin early next year. Although chartered air services have been successful for the town, a larger airport with greater flight capacity could be significant.
“We needed to reach out to refill the pipeline with new visitors, but also remind our loyal visitors that Laughlin has a lot of great amenities,” she said. “Laughlin is different …; it’s not what it was 15 years ago.
