In December I\u00a0wrote about my recent visit to Niagara’s Winter Festival of Lights, and said\u00a0that I would follow up on a comment I made about the marketing of the event. \u00a0Well, here it is.<\/p>\n
My mom and dad brought us to Niagara when we were kids, before the Festival of Lights was a “thing”. \u00a0Then it became a “thing” and we enjoyed the displays of the saluting mounties, and kids building an igloo…. rams butting heads and ice skaters. \u00a0And Noah’s Ark, of course. \u00a0We were\u00a0KIDS, mind you.<\/p>\n
Then Disney came along and we watched it grow, and grow, and GROW. \u00a0We were adults by then, and, despite the fact that\u00a0they were ads for the\u00a0entertainment giant, we loved the displays. \u00a0They obviously had an appeal for kids. \u00a0We would park and walk through the field and admire them up close.<\/p>\n
Which brings us to 2014. \u00a0While the multitude of Christmas Trees was lovely, we had no incentive to park and wander any closer. \u00a0To me – that’s lost revenue for Niagara Parks! \u00a0No parking fee and no sales at the gift shops (that were a great place to warm up). \u00a0Maybe maintaining the often-muddy field was an issue, and they only want to offer a “drive by” experience from now on. \u00a0Many Light Festivals are just that, anyway.<\/p>\n
Now,\u00a0my second thought…\u00a0what appeal is there for kids in a giant Buffalo or\u00a0Moose or\u00a0Deer? \u00a0The animated Goose was pretty cool….but what about the\u00a0giant banana (as my niece called it)?<\/p>\n
As I stated in a prior post – I’m a graphic designer, so I get and admire\u00a0what went into those displays. \u00a0They are beautiful. \u00a0But from a marketing angle, I’m confused. \u00a0To me, light displays have to have something that interests\u00a0kids. \u00a0Do the more sophisticated\u00a0gold displays have more of an appeal to\u00a0the people that the Casino draws?<\/p>\n
Maybe I’m being unfair… the folks taking donations at the end of Dufferin\u00a0said it’s a 5-year work in progress. \u00a0I’m just not sure where they are headed, or the demographic they are trying to draw.<\/p>\n
How do you feel about the new direction of the Winter Festival of Lights?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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