Any suggestions for my winter vacay Madonna?

In our celebrity obsessed society, it seems many us rely on the endorsement of famous personalities to determine our every move. Celebrities tell us what to read, eat, watch, buy and so it’s not surprising that they tell us where to go. I may sound a little cynical and to be fair I’m typing up this blog on my HP Notebook Jay-Z told me to buy, in sweat pants JLO ‘designed’, while sipping Vitamin Water 50 Cent encouraged me to drink.

New York City and Los Angeles have developed whole tourism marketing campaigns designed to show off which one has the most celebs.. ahhm... I mean.... to encourage tourists to pay them a visit. NY’s ‘Just Ask the Locals’ campaign features Julianne Moore, Robert De Niro, Kevin Bacon, Diddy and Matt Lauer offering their choices of top NY attractions. (NYC.gov, 2008)

Not to be outdone, LA’s new ‘That’s So LA’ campaign includes the likes of Tom Hanks and Kobe Bryant (Daily News Los Angeles, 2009), who I’m very shocked to hear wasn’t approached by Colorado for its promotional activities. I can see LA’s PR team now, crossing their fingers, eyes closed, frantically reciting ‘please don’t do anything stupid Kobe, please don’t do anything stupid.....’

That brings me to my next point, which is to tread cautiously when using celebrities. Houston tourism officials may have gotten overly excited when they convinced chart-topping crooner, Beyonce, to join their ‘My Houston’ campaign to help promote her hometown. (USA Today, 2008) They may not be so happy to know that Mrs. Jay-Z is currently on Bermuda’s tourism site lauding the beauty of the island. (Bermuda Department of Tourism, 2008)

David Beckham is featured in LA’s new campaign and yet it only seems like a few short years ago he was telling me to come to Britain. (Telegraph, 2001)You’re confusing me David: Pepsi or Coke.. which is it???

In the early 90s, the Wales Tourist Board used Sir Anthony Hopkins in a campaign, to promote the UK country: the proud birthplace of the legendary star. The actor would go on to renounce his British citizenship in a bid to get a pretty new American passport. (BBC News, 2000) HHmmm feeling a bit snubbed Wales???

Some celebrities are like overeating at Christmas dinner: fun and exhilarating at first but only cause you misery and pain in the end.

Next post: Bill Gates isn’t the only one with a PC.. take that MAC!!

References

BBC News, (2000). Welsh Star Becomes American. [online] Available from:

<http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/711864.stm> [Accessed 11 January 2009]

Bermuda Department of Tourism, (2008). Beyonce Fell in Love with Paradise: Follow Her First Trip to Bermuda. [online] Available from:

<http://www.bermudatourism.com/index.aspx> [Accessed 11 January 2009]

Daily News Los Angeles, (2009). LA Adopts New Ad Campaign to Lure Tourists. [online] Available from:

<http://www.dailynews.com/politics/ci_11420129> [Accessed 11 January 2009]

NYC.gov, (2008). Mayor Bloomberg and NYC & Company Launch Expansion of Just Ask the Locals Tourist Appreciation Campaign. [online] Available from:

<http://www.nyc.gov/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0/index.jsp?pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2008a%2Fpr154-08.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1> [Accessed 11 January 2009]

Telegraph, (2001). Inside Football: Beckham Acts Over Foot and Mouth [online] Available from:

<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/3010566/Inside-Football-Beckham-acts-over-foot-and-mouth.html> [Accessed 11 January 2009]

USA Today, (2008). Houston Taps Beyonce, Other Local Celebrities for Tourism Pitch [online] Available from: <http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2008-01-14-houston-marketing-campaign_N.htm> [Accessed 11 January 2009]