About the Kansas Brand Image

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think about Kansas? Is it a positive image? A negative one? Perhaps you live in another state, in which case you probably have an unclear idea of what Kansas is all about. Maybe you’ve bought into the stereotype that Kansas is flat, tornado-whipped farmland and nothing else. Or perhaps you just haven’t thought about Kansas at all.

Here’s the thing. Kansas has an awesome story to tell. And when told properly, that story shatters misconceptions and highlights the things that make Kansas a great place to live, work and play. In 2005, a group of proud and creative Kansans decided to take control of their state’s image – both internally and externally – by launching the Kansas Brand Image Campaign. Since its inception, the campaign has targeted various audiences with a clear and simple message that Kansas has offers a quality of life you won’t find anywhere else. The ultimate goal is to create an enduring state image that helps us achieve a healthier, more prosperous Kansas. Specifically, a strong state image is the foundation of our efforts to:

Recruit new business, new jobs and new capital investment.
Attract out-of-state tourists and encourage in-state residents to explore attractions that are right in their own backyard.
Foster pride among Kansans, particularly our children and young adults, which gives them a reason to stay here.
Encourage out-of-state residents to consider relocating to Kansas.

History of the Brand Image Campaign

The Brand Image was developed from recommendations made at the 2003 Kansas Prosperity Summits, when community leaders from across the state met to identify opportunities for economic growth in Kansas. Key priorities for growth were identified at these Summits, the most consistent being the need for a strong state image to help market the state and attract businesses, workers and tourists.

From that group, the Kansas Brand Image Task Force was developed and comprised community, business development and tourism leaders from throughout the state. Extensive research was key to the Kansas Brand Image development process. Research conducted with in-state residents, select Kansas legislators, key business location consultants, travel writers and out-of-state travelers identified core values, attitudes and perceptions about the state.

What are we branding?

In Kansas, our wide open spaces allow people to dream and make big things happen. That positioning statement is at the core of the Kansas Brand Image and is echoed in every television, radio and print ad we do. The campaign encourages audiences to look at our wide open spaces as opportunities for innovation and highlights our proudest Kansas-grown Big Thinkers –– innovators like President Dwight Eisenhower, aviation legend Amelia Earhart and country music superstar Martina McBride. The campaign also shows how the state’s history and pioneer legacy laid the foundation for a state of rugged, creative, outside-the-box innovators. In Kansas, big thinking is in our nature. It’s part of our DNA. People are more free to think and create here than they are in other places. And that’s why there’s no place like Kansas.

An unprecedented effort

The launch of the Brand Image Campaign in 2005 marked Kansas’ first-ever integrated state campaign. Previously, Kansas had done separate tourism and business development campaigns but had never melded the two areas in a statewide campaign that speaks to the essence of Kansas as a whole.

The Brand Image Campaign is different from previous campaigns in a variety of ways:

This campaign was conceived by business and industry leaders from across the state, not a government agency or elected official. Once initiated, the campaign was developed by business recruitment and tourism professionals from across the state with support from the Kansas Department of Commerce.
This campaign is designed by both business/economic development and tourism needs. It merges the previously separate image concepts and taglines used by business and tourism officials.
This campaign is data-driven, not anecdotal. Business and travel customers were surveyed, and extensive quantitative and qualitative research was conducted in order to insure that creative, conceptual and strategic elements of the campaign reflect what Kansas really offers those markets and what distinguishes Kansas in those markets.