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Only a month ago, incumbent Livingston + Keye, Venice, Calif., broke a new campaign for the state, which Governor Pete Wilson will unveil this week.
The deadline for issuing the RFP – required by the state at least every three years – happened to coincide with a temporary jump in the tourism ad budget from $3.5 to $7.5 million, which allowed L + K to put together the new campaign, explained John Polmiroo, director of the California Office of Tourism. The review doesn’t indicate any dissatisfaction with L + K, Polmiroo said, though California tourism is down, in part because of visitors’ fears of earthquakes and crime.
L + K’s new campaign, themed ‘California. What Are You Doing?’ contrasts the excitement travelers find in California with the ‘mundane’ things they do at home.
Agencies pitching the business will be asked to present a campaign based on a new theme the state’s considering: CA IS U! The office hopes CA IS U! implies the variety of activities the state has to offer.
A bidder’s conference will take place in Sacramento on March 29. The new contract is effective July 1.
L + K, through its predecessor keye/donna/pearlstein, has handled the account since the mid-’80s.
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