Nevada Development Authority takes serious tone in new ad blitz

For the last 11 years, the Nevada Development Authority has used often-controversial advertising strategies to lure businesses from Southern California to the Silver State. But this spring, the organization is taking a more serious approach.

In years past, the authority has worked with Shonkwiler Partners to craft sensational ad campaigns that would draw attention to both its message and the method. Cartoon bears, a flash mob and talking orangutans have all been used to convey that California's taxes are too high for businesses to bear.

This time around, the authority decided to get to the heart of the matter. Four business leaders who moved their company's headquarters from Southern California to Southern Nevada appear in the authority's new testimonial ad campaign.

"Every time we've been to Southern California with some of these campaigns, the question from the media always came up: 'Yes, this is really fun and a lot of people are talking about it, but who's moved?' You've asked for it; here they are," Shonkwiler Partners owner Terry Shonkwiler said.

In the new ads, the owners of Amonix, Barbour Well Inc., Cord Blood America and Plus 6 Technologies express their reasons for moving to Nevada. A common thread is Nevada's business-friendly tax climate, which the Nevada Development Authority touts in all of its advertising materials.

"It's just become increasingly difficult to conduct business in California," said Barbour Well owner Joel Barbour.

But Barbour's move is not just about fleeing California. His company specializes in geothermal drilling, and Nevada's energy resources also contributed to his decision to come to Henderson. Barbour said he was scouting for new headquarters when he approached the authority for assistance.

The Nevada Development Authority called Cord Blood America CEO Matthew Schissler just as he was beginning to consider moving his umbilical cord blood collection and preservation company. Schissler said he chose Nevada mainly because Las Vegas is one of the few places he could find inexpensive laboratory space near a major airport.

"One of our biggest costs is shipping," Schissler said. "Every mile you get away from the airport is more money you have to spend on shipping. Logistically, we can get the stem cells in and out very quickly. Our stem cells have a short shelf life: 72 hours."

Schissler was recently named chairman of the authority's new biotech committee, which will create initiatives and programs to attract biotechnology companies to Nevada.

The authority typically has a $1 million advertising budget each fiscal year. Because media buys in Southern California are more expensive than in other markets, the authority usually chooses attention-grabbing ads that will spark media coverage, authority President and CEO Somer Hollingsworth said.

"Because we're only focused on Southern California and because we have such a limited budget, we have to get the biggest bang for our buck," Hollingsworth said. "Now we're going to be a little bit more sophisticated ... The client we're appealing to and the media we're buying goes to the heart of businesspeople. This might be more effective."

These days, most advertisers use humor to attract viewers' attention, said John Naccarato, who teaches marketing and communication classes at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. However, given the economy, serious advertisements may be more appropriate, especially to draw the attention of businesses, he said.

The testimonial ads are appearing in regional business publications for the next 90 days. If the campaign generates interest, which is tracked by spikes in website visits and phone inquiries, Hollingsworth said it could run in the future with a variety of companies giving their testimonials.

The authority won't be retiring its controversial ads anytime soon. The agency recently caused a stir with a billboard near Los Angeles International Airport. "Congratulations Governor Brown! It's déjà vu all over again," the billboard proclaims, with the authority's website address, move2vegas.biz, emblazoned below.

The billboard isn't part of the testimonial campaign, Shonkwiler said. Las Vegas-based Connell Outdoor Advertising offered the authority use of the billboard, which the organization accepted.

"We just thought we would have a little bit of fun, which is pretty normal for us," Hollingsworth said. "It's not as much guerilla marketing as things we've done in the past, but we thought it would be effective. People that lived through Jerry Brown's reign as governor years ago will understand what we mean."

The authority also plans to launch a brief ad blitz in Illinois this month in light of the state's new personal and corporate income-tax increases.

Contact reporter Caitlin McGarry at
cmcgarry@lvbusinesspress.com or 702-387-5273.