That would be Leavenworth WASHINGTON.
And, while Leavenworth WA is a pretty big deal in the Pacific Northwest, welcoming roughly 3 million visitors a year, most of the rest of us of think of a place in Kansas.
Not any longer...thanks to a YouTube video that has gone supernova this week, featuring the destination mascot Woody Goomsba, a bevy of dancers and stunning footage of the region.
My friend Meilee Anderson from Seattle Southside hipped me to the video over the weekend, hours after it was quietly posted with no fanfare or promotional push. By Tuesday, it had been viewed over 30,000 times. As I penned this post late last night, it was well on its way to 60,000 views...in just five days.
To be sure, there are some (mostly local) who are objecting to the smokin' hot babes. Some are objecting to the rap song that serves as the soundtrack. And, I'm sure some object to the word nut...as in cracker.
But, to everyone I've shared this with, the response is unanimous. A brilliant marketing play that got a destination noticed continent-wide, showed beautiful images of the Bavarian-themed community...and made people laugh. You can't get much better than that.
For those that don't like the video, answer me this. Would a traditional tourism video get viewed 60,000 times in five days? Most traditional tourism videos don't get viewed 6,000 times in their online lifetimes. I'm sorry...but you just can't buy this kind of buzz.
And this comment, posted on the YouTube page, says it all:
I live in Boston. I watched this...this is how I saw it. First of all, I have personally never heard of Leavenworth. I would LOVE to visit Leavenworth now with my family of 2 kids (4 & 7) along with my wife. When I watch this, in the picture frames, you see "The Real" Leavenworth, which to me, looks beautiful!! I don't think anyone would ever see or think of Leavenworth as skanky at all. Folks online, know this is marketing & done well. I know it's sensitive. Hope to see your state soon! - Dave
Hats off to Nancy Smith, her team at the Leavenworth Chamber and the creative geniuses at Howell at the Moon for a bold play in an insanely competitive arena that has resulted in people saying, "Leavenworth...cool. I gotta go!"
Bill- Thanks for the great post. I'm a real estate agent here in Leavenworth and I think Jamie Howell did an impressive job as well. Having the owner of the Nutcracker Museum on Conan gave us some national attention too, but this really has people buzzing.
Posted by: Geordieromer | December 09, 2010 at 10:13