Update: The Louisville Convention and Visitors Bureau apparently isn't giving up yet on marketing to Indianapolis
residents. This afternoon, LCVB said they still plan to bring their motor coach to Indianapolis on April 14 to try to lure
locals to the Bluegrass state with give-aways, coupoons and the opportunity to win a free trip to the Kentucky Derby. At this
point, they are merely trying to work out an exact time and place. It will not be at Victory Field, as previously announced.
Officials with LCVB's marketing firm, Bandy Carroll Hellige, said they hope to have an announcement later this week, possibly
as early as Thursday.
A deal between the Indianapolis Indians and Louisville Convention and Visitors Bureau has been
scuttled. The cancellation comes less than a week after Louisville officials’ efforts to beam their promotional message on
downtown Indianapolis buildings during the NCAA regional here was stifled. Indianapolis city officials said the promotion
during the NCAA games was halted because Louisville officials failed to secure the proper permits.
The reasons why the Indians promotion was cancelled were less clear. A spokeswoman for the LCVB said she didn’t know why the promotion was halted, and a call to LCVB CEO Jim Wood went unanswered this morning.
Louisville tourism officials planned to bring in a 45-foot motor coach to the April 14 Indians game to spread their message, host a huge tailgate party and give away discounts for numerous Louisville area attractions and other freebies and also registering people to win a pair of tickets to this year’s Kentucky Derby. The theme of the promotional campaign was going to be that Louisville is an ideal location for nearby spring and summer getaways during this challenging economy.
“After considering the promotional opportunity [with the LCVB], we felt our relationship with the [Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association] was more important in the long-run than what this promotion would do in the short-term,” said Cal Burleson, Indians vice president and general manager. “We just didn’t think it was something we should move forward with, especially in light of what happened with the NCAA basketball regional. We want to be a good corporate citizen here in Indianapolis.”
No word on if Louisville tourism folks will make other attempts to reach Indianapolis area residents and businesses with their message, but an April 25 event in Evansville will go on as planned.
A deal between the Indianapolis Indians and Louisville Convention and Visitors Bureau has been
scuttled. The cancellation comes less than a week after Louisville officials’ efforts to beam their promotional message on
downtown Indianapolis buildings during the NCAA regional here was stifled. Indianapolis city officials said the promotion
during the NCAA games was halted because Louisville officials failed to secure the proper permits.
The reasons why the Indians promotion was cancelled were less clear. A spokeswoman for the LCVB said she didn’t know why the promotion was halted, and a call to LCVB CEO Jim Wood went unanswered this morning.
Louisville tourism officials planned to bring in a 45-foot motor coach to the April 14 Indians game to spread their message, host a huge tailgate party and give away discounts for numerous Louisville area attractions and other freebies and also registering people to win a pair of tickets to this year’s Kentucky Derby. The theme of the promotional campaign was going to be that Louisville is an ideal location for nearby spring and summer getaways during this challenging economy.
“After considering the promotional opportunity [with the LCVB], we felt our relationship with the [Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association] was more important in the long-run than what this promotion would do in the short-term,” said Cal Burleson, Indians vice president and general manager. “We just didn’t think it was something we should move forward with, especially in light of what happened with the NCAA basketball regional. We want to be a good corporate citizen here in Indianapolis.”
No word on if Louisville tourism folks will make other attempts to reach Indianapolis area residents and businesses with their message, but an April 25 event in Evansville will go on as planned.
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And I suspect you're not Jim, but someone writing in his name.
A) Louisville is no Hawaii.
B) Louisville is no Indy, lagging years behind in downtown development. Your convention center is located miles from downtown ... love those shuttle buses. You lack the convenience of Indy. Your attractions are far flung. You do not have a facility capable of hosting such mega-events as Final Fours or a Super Bowl. You're still basically a one-event town. Indy has moved far beyond that.
C) There possibly has never been worse execution of a guerilla marketing campaign than last week's misfire in Indy ... failing to get the proper permits, eventually canceling the effort altogether. That wasn't just egg on your face. It was an omelet.
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