Updated 5:25 p.m. with video and comment from the CVB.
Today the Columbia Visitors Bureau unveiled its new branding campaign for the city. The tagline? "Columbia, MO: What you unexpect."
Megan McConachie, Web and Communications Manager for the CVB said: "I think what the old logo represented is that Columbia's kind of a something for everyone destination. We really wanted to focus on what the destination meant rather than what people were looking for."
Here's the old logo:
You can read a little more about the new campaign on its official blog. The CVB says:
We like to think of Columbia as the cool neighborhood in a big city, with a young vibe, an active buzz and an engaged community. We’re also a friendly and welcoming community, with a thriving downtown and abundance of cultural opportunities.
Early reaction to the campaign can only described as "surprised" (surprise being unexpect's older, more grammatical, brother):
What does that even mean? RT @KBIA: What you unexpect? #Como RT @JSesh: New brand for Columbia, MO #como http://t.co/A8OB018Rse
— Scott Charton (@ScottCharton) April 4, 2013
If you're left wondering whether "unexpect" is, in fact, a word, you're not alone. KBIA has gone and done a little digging for you. Here's what Merriam-Webster has to say:
Google, however, had a little more to offer:
So there you have it. When asked if she was bothered by the seeming lack of grammatical sense in the word "unexpect" McConachie said "That was not anything that entered into the conversation. For us, it's a play on words that's clever and crafty without being something that you can't understand."
The new campaign, launched at the Blue Note earlier this afternoon, came with this spiffy commercial. Megan McConachie told me the video was made by Woodruff Sweitzer, the same advertising firm that created the facebook page for Mizzou football. The commercial will air in Kansas City and St. Louis, a first for the bureau.
What do you think about Columbia's new slogan? Let us know in the comments or tweet us @KBIA.