The Memphis Convention & Visitors Bureau has rebranded as Memphis Tourism and launched a refreshed music-inspired logo and tagline.
“Authenticity is at the heart of everything we do, staying true to who we are as a city and destination will aid us in fostering continued growth for the Memphis economy,” said Kevin Kane, president and CEO, Memphis Tourism. “The development of this new identity builds value for Memphis as an iconic destination, in addition to raising the profile of our tourism and hospitality industry on the local level, showcasing the value it has as an economic development engine and job creator for our community.”
Earlier this year, work started on a $175 million USD renovation and expansion of the The Memphis Cook Convention Center in the city’s downtown. The project is slated to be completed in Q4 2019.
Guided by feedback and intensive audience research that included a competitive set analysis, the goal of the logo redesign was to embrace the brand equity of the previous logo introduced in 1995. The refresh features a bold and whimsical script font with a guitar sweeping across the entirety of the Memphis text.
Long known as the “Home of the Blues, Birthplace of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” the new tagline for the destination embraces soul music that came out of STAX and Royal recording studios. “Home of Blues, Soul & Rock ‘n’ Roll” widens the appeal and awareness for the distinctive Memphis sound that continues to be the number one travel motivator for visitors to the city.
“The most important part of the process in developing a new identity for our organization, that also works to effectively draw visitors to our destination, was to listen to the people around us,” said Regena Bearden, chief marketing officer, Memphis Tourism. “This was a strategic approach driven by research that conveys to the visitor what our brand promise is as a music capital that celebrates three genres of music and the impact our music makers have had on our destination.”
The new logo and “Home of Blues, Soul & Rock ‘n’ Roll” tagline will be featured in multi-platform consumer and trade marketing campaigns that will work to attract an increasing number of leisure and meetings & convention visitors to the area.
Earlier this year, work started on a $175 million USD renovation and expansion of the The Memphis Cook Convention Center in the city’s downtown. The project, which is slated to be completed in Q4 2019, includes the construction of an exterior, pre-function concourse overlooking the Mississippi River; a new sky bridge across Main Street, connecting the convention centre to the 600-room Sheraton Memphis Downtown Hotel; redesign of the loading docks; and more.
In 2017, Memphis welcomed 11.7 million visitors, nearly a half million increase from the previous year. The local tourism industry generates $3.3 billion in direct visitor spending and over $260 million annually in state and local taxes.
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