TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) - Arizona is getting a makeover, and we’re not talking about roadwork.
With the goal of bringing tourism and business to the state – the Arizona Office of Tourism and Gov. Katie Hobbs unveiled a new brand.
The new campaign is called “Vibrant Arizona” and it also came with a new logo for the state.
It’s meant to highlight the state’s diverse geography and also represents six defining pillars of the Arizona experience.
Majestic beauty, vibrant arts culture and experiences, abundant diversity, welcoming warmth, strong connections, and trailblazing ingenuity.
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The rebranding was made possible through a partnership between the tourism office, Heart and Soul Marketing, Welcome Strategies, and Hopi and Isleta Pueblo artist Kevin Coochwytewa.
“When tourism folks do their jobs, people come to these events, they have a great experience, and they come back again and again, and that grows our economy,” Hobbs said.
The rebrand is the result of a year-long campaign that took the tourism office and its partners all across Arizona.
Visiting 57 cities, and engaging with more than 2,000 Arizonans, all to learn from the diverse communities on what they think makes Arizona so special.
The outreach to Arizonans is something Ed Ackerley, professor at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management’s marketing department, deems an essential step in the state’s rebrand.
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“Branding in and of itself is an important function of marketing because, when a customer or a potential visitor sees the brand image, it connotates something in their mind and they understand the bundle of values that is coming their way,” Ackerley said.
The new logo will be used by all state-level agencies.
Having the same identity across the board is something Felipe Garcia, president and CEO of Visit Tucson, is extremely excited about.
Saying that it will help out-of-state visitors see Arizona as one cohesive being, thus helping tourism, which he said is critical for southern Arizona.
“Tourism is huge for us in Tucson. It’s huge in southern Arizona,” Garcia said. “So we’re very excited that this is another step, another tool, but still we have to go and tell our story.”
13 News spoke with the Arizona Office of Tourism after the event and they said they spent about $700,000 on their year-long outreach.
But not a cent came from Arizona tax dollars, as all of the funds came from federal grants.
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