Now I Know When Indiana Turns 200

Car tags (or plates) in the State of Alabama used to be so uniform that it was easy to spot cars from another state. In fact, it was almost like a nice surprise to see a different car tag every so often. But these days, drivers in the State of Alabama have so many options from which to choose that the normal, standard-issue tag is the new oddity.

I spotted a tag a few weeks ago while driving in Birmingham that I've never seen. It was an Indiana tag that acknowledged the Hoosier State’s upcoming bicentennial. For me, it's perfectly feasible to think of car tags as an extension of a school or cause's marketing campaign. I give the folks behind the promotion of the bicentennial celebration an "A+". Here’s why:

IT PROMPTED ME TO TAKE AN ACTION

The Indiana bicentennial tag features a lovely color scheme and “200” in a font so large it prompted me to go online and learn more about Indiana's founding and more about their bicentennial celebration. This is the core goal of any marketing effort.

NEXT-LEVEL CAMPAIGN PLANNING

I spotted this tag in the year 2013. Indiana’s bicentennial won't occur until 2016. Given that car tag designs usually change every four years, the marketers of the bicentennial had to act fast. And because there’s only so much working room on a car tag, I image that these marketers had plot the base concept and finalize the logo at an even faster pace. Planning marketing campaigns of any length is difficult but this is next-level planning!

THEY GOT THE BALL ROLLING

Politicians also change every four years (well, some do). When the concept of this bicentennial campaign kicked off in December of 2011, it was one of the last acts of the then-Governor of Indiana. There’s always a chance that the current Governor and other officials may not be in office during the bicentennial year of 2016. But even though the Indiana Bicentennial Commission’s website is not yet filled with information about upcoming events, the marketers behind this campaign have already done enough that no politician would dare scrap the program. In the world of marketing, sometimes creating job security is half the job!

Kudos to the Hoosier State and the people doing such a great job promoting the bicentennial! I’ll be sure to check in often to learn about what’s new with the campaign.

BONUS: It seems like they know a thing or two about design in Indiana.