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Speaking American
Posted on June 21, 2006 by Kathryn Regina.
Manny Cortez, president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, died Sunday. But the “What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas” campaign he championed will continue on, according to the convention authority.
And it won’t just continue on television. The campaign phrase, launched in 2002, has made its way into the American pop-culture lexicon. From Leno to soccer moms, almost everyone has found a way to make a clever pun out of the what-happens-here stays-here formula.
What gives campaigns like this the “X factor?” Following in the tradition of “been there, done that,” and “got milk?” the Vegas campaign is verbally satisfyingly. All of these marketing phrases employ an economy of language and formulaic balance (notice the use of repetition and syllabic symmetry) that yields an effect of catchiness and humor. While not in the same league as Shakespeare, these campaigns clearly draw on poetic principles. And the result? A campaign slogan so slick that it defines its industry and becomes part of the American vernacular.
tags: What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas | Been There, Done That | Got Milk? | Marketing
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June 21, 2006 | Permalink
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