Tourism is down in New York, and the state has been attempting to leverage marketing to lure tourists back to the Empire State in general and the Big Apple in particular.
Timing is everything
In July of 2021, I wrote about the city's $30 million campaign, “It’s Time for New York City.” As it turned out, the summer of 2021 was not really the best time to return to the city, as many COVID restrictions were still in place, and some attractions were not even open at the time or even in the fall that followed.
But tourism plays a huge role in NY's economy, and so the it has to continue to look for marketing ideas to make it appealing. So it goes back to the drawing board and looks for inspiration.
The iconic model
It makes sense that what worked well in the past would be considered. That's the iconic "I love NY" slogan that made my list of most memorable brand slogans.
Graphic artist Milton Glaser created this slogan with the heart in place of the word love (way before emojis became standard) campaign to boost tourism to New York State (not just NYC) in 1977. In 2009 it became the the official state slogan and Steve Karmen's song with that title was adopted as the official state song.
Like New Coke
Anyone here old enough to remember 1985 when Coke introduced a new formula for its soda? Here's a refresher for you from Coke itself. The company did its market research and was convinced the new formula would win over more customers, though it threatened to lose them their solid base of loyal fans.
Now NYC is doing the same kind of thing with by transforming the iconic New York State slogan into one for the city alone with these tweaks: a change in font, replacing the "I" with "We" and swapping the heart out for different images in the video. The result that was unveiled in March 2023 is this:
The video description proudly declares:
"We❤️NYC” is a 21st Century version of the 70’s “I❤️NY” campaign. Once again, New Yorkers are coming together to mobilize civic action and community engagement as the catalyst for a renaissance of the city and its neighborhoods. In many ways, the challenges facing the city today are more complex than in the past. Together, “WE” can tackle these challenges and demonstrate, once again, that this is the greatest city in the world."
What I love is that one of the first comments notes how tampering the Glaser's work is a mistake:
While some object to the change in look due to the font switch, I'm responding more to the change in wording. I'd say that they're missing the point in transforming the "I" to "We."
The brilliance of "I" is that it is absolutely inclusive because there is no dependence on another to feel the same way you do. In other words, "I" encompasses "we," while "we" doesn't include every "I."
Instead of recognizing that, the campaign is referencing a platitude from the pandemic about being "in this together" that ignores the very different experiences people of different classes had at the time.
One class was stuck with no school open for their kids while they had to work, while another just took their laptop to the Hamptons or wherever they felt safer and were able to pay for private school if their public schools stayed closed like the onesin NYC.
Also the examples offered are kind of lame when you have to say something like you love $1 a slice pizza, though now it's $1.50. Inflation is really not a cause for loving NYC.
While this campaign shares the same flaws behind the New Coke fiasco, the people behind it will not have to admit their mistake the way Coke did when it had to bring the old formula back. NYC is still there and accessible to those who want to visit even if they hate the campaign.
P.S. After I posted this, I see that there are many others who really don't love the new NYC slogan.
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