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Tourism authority introduces new marketing logo [The Mountaineer, Waynesville, N.C.](Mountaineer (Waynesville, NC) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 16--As part of an overall rebranding effort, the Haywood County Tourist Development Council approved a new logo last month that will be used on all marketing material to promote Haywood County tourism. The former logo, "Where the Sun rises on the Smokies," featured an illustration of a sun rising over the mountains and had the names of each Haywood County town around the edges of the logo. But considering many Western North Carolina towns can tout a sunrise in the Smokies, the TDA's new marketing firm, Goss Agency, suggested a new design. "The original sunrise on the Smokies logo was in place for a number of years on advertising and on our letter head... there was a lot to keep in mind when we went to do a new logo," said TDA Chairman Ken Stahl. "We were trying to touch on all the outstanding assets in Haywood County." While not everyone on the board agreed on the final product, several heated and productive discussions final led to a consensus. The new logo shows a dirt road with a barn, waterfall and a mountain vista in the background. The words "Haywood County" are prominently displayed with an elk silhouette wedged in between. Stahl said the TDA marketing committee worked closely with Goss Agency to put together the design, "but there was controversy, as we knew there would be, when we saw the mock ups." The main disagreement was over whether the logo should focus on promoting Haywood County as a whole or whether each municipality should be named on the logo. Stahl said there were good arguments on both sides. Goss wanted a unified marketing strategy to promote Haywood County, but most board members were adamant about having the towns listed. "The board really wanted to hang on to the towns. And the argument was everyone knows where Atlanta is but they don't know what county it's in. Everyone knows where Myrtle Beach is but they don't know the county," he said. But the logo would be too cluttered with five towns listed around the edges of the oval shaped logo. The board compromised and decided to place the names of the towns just below the logo and placed the new slogan within the oval -- "Authentic Appalachian, Pure and Simple." "I can't say whether it will be better or the same but different is what we were looking for -- branding is so important and we are looking forward to implementing this," Stahl said. "We're pure Appalachian -- plain and simple -- if you're looking for an Appalachian mountain experience, we're it so come and see us." Stahl is hopeful that the new logo will be around for a while because consistency in marketing is important. He said the TDA hired Goss Agency as it's new marketing firm because they are the digital marketing experts. "The scope of what we do has changed so much," he said. "Print media is only 20 percent of our advertising and everything is digital." And digital marketing allows the TDA to better measure the performance of advertising or marketing campaign. "Goss knows how to determine who our market is and they know how to adjust as we go. For ears our market was 55 years and older with discretionary income -- that has to be adjusted." In addition to going after the millennial generation more, there are niche markets of cyclists, motorcyclists, hikers and fishing aficionados to go after. The new logo will not replace the Homegrown in Haywood marketing campaign logo, which features a bright red apple, a trout, a bottle and a dulcimer. While it is an attractive logo, many people can't decipher all the components included. "That is a different component of our branding -- at some point we'll determine where that will fit," Stahl said. "People like it but I think there's a better way of telling that story." For more information on the TDA's new marketing strategy, visit www.haywoodcountytourismdevelopment.com. ___ (c)2014 The Mountaineer (Waynesville, N.C.) Visit The Mountaineer (Waynesville, N.C.) at themountaineer.villagesoup.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |