5 ms·

Ohio ad campaign targets Seattle ‘tech bros’

Spivak 5y ago
My hometown is Columbus no cap it’s arguably SF but better. Like I'm not trying to just dunk on SF just because it's a tech hub. The two cities have really similar feels and energies. Columbus is nothing like Chicago, NY, Boston, or LA but it's darn close to SF. * Similar climate spring through fall. Although winters do exist. * The city isn’t full of literal garbage, grime, homeless people, tent cities, and addicts shooting up in the street. * The food scene is amazing — Huge Somali population, absolute fire Indian food, a million local breweries, pizza that punches well well above the city’s weight class. The north markets and short north are have delicious local food. When I first got to Cali people had hyped me up about the food scene so much and it was honestly about the same except twice as expensive. * Really active farmer’s markets and CSA programs if you want all the fresh produce. * Bars, nightclubs, EDM/rave scene is pretty darn good if you’re into that. * Weed is on track for legalization and because of some legal stupidity de facto legalized. * The Ohio ACLU does gods damn work around here to smack down right wing nut jobs. * The short north is gay as hell. Pride is an actual “shut down all of downtown” size event. Which is pretty surprising for a red state. * The music scene is also amazing (compared to SF) so many great small venues, best crowds I’ve ever been in hands down. The people that own a lot of the "medium size" venues, Promowest Live" do an amazing job getting people here and the momentum has only increased. * Cost of living is insanely cheap. But you probably already knew that. For fun to make my friends mad I’ve sent them housing listings. * Traffic is a literal dream compared to SF, I wouldn’t have called it good until I lived in Cali. * Since we are fairly spread out it’s actually possible and cheap to own a car. City planners actually make sure parking exists. * Columbus Crew, Clippers, Blue Jackets, OSU, are always a good time and I don’t even like sports. * Midwest kindness is a real thing and noticeable. * No tourists thank the gods. * MORPC (the planning commission) does a really good job at parks and trails. Obviously we don’t have the redwood forest or anything but there are still good hiking and biking spots. * Good tech jobs — not FAANG salaries obviously but you will still be comfortably upper middle class and not give two shits. * CMH is a really solid international airport which makes travel super easy. Not at all the crowded maze of larger hubs. * Kinda a weird thing to mention but I'm trying to dispel the "Columbus is a small hick town myth" Ohio Health, Wexner, and OSU collectively make for a great world class hospital system. Cutting edge research in lots of areas and you'll pretty much never need to be flown anywhere to get treatment.
- lotsofpulp 5y ago
  > * Similar climate spring through fall. Although winters do exist. One of the reasons that prevents me from considering leaving the west coast is the increased humidity east of the Rockies.
  - Spivak 5y ago
    Oh see, I hated how dry it was living there. Basically had the humidifier running 24/7.
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]
  - amanaplanacanal 5y ago
    He also left out the fact that it rains year round there. They don’t have the dry summers that California’s Mediterranean climate gives you.
    - Spivak 5y ago
      s/he/she This is a little exaggerated. It rains a little more than average across the US. However, since in SF it rains a little less than average it's a bigger relative swing.
      - amanaplanacanal 5y ago
        Oh! Thanks for the correction. I try not to assume, but sometimes it slips past me ;-)
- silisili 5y ago
  For those that didn't know, Columbus is -the- food test market for places. They get to try new things well before others, as well as things that never make it to market anywhere else. I know this isn't a huge draw, but found it interesting.
npilk 5y ago
There's an Ohio billboard right downtown in Austin, just off the highway, that I think makes fun of you for sitting in traffic and suggests Ohio would be better. It's sort of interesting how this antagonistic approach actually makes me mentally jump to Austin's defense, even though I am interested in moving somewhere less crowded. I wonder if there's any way they try to measure the success of these campaigns? Maybe with voter registration/DMV/post office data? If they can measure accurately, I imagine they could actually do a pretty good job of attribution compared to most display advertising...
- asdff 5y ago
  Hilarious considering you can sit in traffic in Ohio too.
- mud_dauber 5y ago
  I'm leaving Austin as soon as the house sale closes. Not for Ohio but for Appalachia next door. I've seen that billboard & smirked at first. Not anymore.
mchusma 5y ago
Do you feel this is a recent shift? My experience has been different (lots of family all around Ohio) but I haven't been for more than 10 years now, so I'm not up to date. If so, when do you think this change occured?
guidoism 5y ago
I was wondering when something like this ad campaign would happen. I moved back to my childhood state of Indiana (from Seattle and the Bay Area) in part because of I could take the equity in my house in Seattle and my savings never have to worry about needing a job. I could survive comfortably while pursuing crazy ideas in a way that isn’t possible in a tech city unless you are already a billionaire.
- softwarebeware 5y ago
  I mean that’s pretty concerning for Seattle, not because people will leave but because it means that some percentage of the people who are coming to Seattle won’t care about the city since they’re just in town for four years to make half a million from some tech job and then leave for their cheap Midwest hometown again. It means they won’t really vote for or invest in Seattle’s civic health but will prioritize short term goals only.
8bitsrule 5y ago
Oh yeah, Ohio. I've been there. Thats where Kent State happened. Who needs mountains and oceans anyway? The midwest has its charms, and it is warming up so there's that.
- theandrewbailey 5y ago
  > The midwest has its charms, and it is warming up so there's that. Midwest summers get nearly as hot and humid as the south, but less extreme winters would be welcome.
Decabytes 5y ago
Moved to Michigan while keeping my remote Job. Was able to afford a house after a couple years of cheaper rent and living with a roommate. Most of my peers still are stuck paying high rent and aren’t any closer to buying a house. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, the roads are bad, and the public transportation is almost non existent. I’m also farther away from friends and family, but the improved lifestyle was worth it for me. Plus the fishing is great, and the Great Lakes are truly a gem of the U.S.
glonq 5y ago
I've always lived pretty close to the coast. No matter how good the culture is and how cheaper the cost of living is, it would feel weird to be land-locked.

My hometown is Columbus no cap it’s arguably SF but better. Like I'm not trying to just dunk on SF just because it's a tech hub. The two cities have really similar feels and energies. Columbus is nothing like Chicago, NY, Boston, or LA but it's darn close to SF. * Similar climate spring through fall. Although winters do exist. * The city isn’t full of literal garbage, grime, homeless people, tent cities, and addicts shooting up in the street. * The food scene is amazing — Huge Somali population, absolute fire Indian food, a million local breweries, pizza that punches well well above the city’s weight class. The north markets and short north are have delicious local food. When I first got to Cali people had hyped me up about the food scene so much and it was honestly about the same except twice as expensive. * Really active farmer’s markets and CSA programs if you want all the fresh produce. * Bars, nightclubs, EDM/rave scene is pretty darn good if you’re into that. * Weed is on track for legalization and because of some legal stupidity de facto legalized. * The Ohio ACLU does gods damn work around here to smack down right wing nut jobs. * The short north is gay as hell. Pride is an actual “shut down all of downtown” size event. Which is pretty surprising for a red state. * The music scene is also amazing (compared to SF) so many great small venues, best crowds I’ve ever been in hands down. The people that own a lot of the "medium size" venues, Promowest Live" do an amazing job getting people here and the momentum has only increased. * Cost of living is insanely cheap. But you probably already knew that. For fun to make my friends mad I’ve sent them housing listings. * Traffic is a literal dream compared to SF, I wouldn’t have called it good until I lived in Cali. * Since we are fairly spread out it’s actually possible and cheap to own a car. City planners actually make sure parking exists. * Columbus Crew, Clippers, Blue Jackets, OSU, are always a good time and I don’t even like sports. * Midwest kindness is a real thing and noticeable. * No tourists thank the gods. * MORPC (the planning commission) does a really good job at parks and trails. Obviously we don’t have the redwood forest or anything but there are still good hiking and biking spots. * Good tech jobs — not FAANG salaries obviously but you will still be comfortably upper middle class and not give two shits. * CMH is a really solid international airport which makes travel super easy. Not at all the crowded maze of larger hubs. * Kinda a weird thing to mention but I'm trying to dispel the "Columbus is a small hick town myth" Ohio Health, Wexner, and OSU collectively make for a great world class hospital system. Cutting edge research in lots of areas and you'll pretty much never need to be flown anywhere to get treatment.

lotsofpulp 5y ago
> * Similar climate spring through fall. Although winters do exist. One of the reasons that prevents me from considering leaving the west coast is the increased humidity east of the Rockies.
- Spivak 5y ago
  Oh see, I hated how dry it was living there. Basically had the humidifier running 24/7.
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
- amanaplanacanal 5y ago
  He also left out the fact that it rains year round there. They don’t have the dry summers that California’s Mediterranean climate gives you.
  - Spivak 5y ago
    s/he/she This is a little exaggerated. It rains a little more than average across the US. However, since in SF it rains a little less than average it's a bigger relative swing.
    - amanaplanacanal 5y ago
      Oh! Thanks for the correction. I try not to assume, but sometimes it slips past me ;-)
silisili 5y ago
For those that didn't know, Columbus is -the- food test market for places. They get to try new things well before others, as well as things that never make it to market anywhere else. I know this isn't a huge draw, but found it interesting.

npilk 5y ago

There's an Ohio billboard right downtown in Austin, just off the highway, that I think makes fun of you for sitting in traffic and suggests Ohio would be better. It's sort of interesting how this antagonistic approach actually makes me mentally jump to Austin's defense, even though I am interested in moving somewhere less crowded. I wonder if there's any way they try to measure the success of these campaigns? Maybe with voter registration/DMV/post office data? If they can measure accurately, I imagine they could actually do a pretty good job of attribution compared to most display advertising...

asdff 5y ago
Hilarious considering you can sit in traffic in Ohio too.
mud_dauber 5y ago
I'm leaving Austin as soon as the house sale closes. Not for Ohio but for Appalachia next door. I've seen that billboard & smirked at first. Not anymore.

mchusma 5y ago

Do you feel this is a recent shift? My experience has been different (lots of family all around Ohio) but I haven't been for more than 10 years now, so I'm not up to date. If so, when do you think this change occured?

guidoism 5y ago

I was wondering when something like this ad campaign would happen. I moved back to my childhood state of Indiana (from Seattle and the Bay Area) in part because of I could take the equity in my house in Seattle and my savings never have to worry about needing a job. I could survive comfortably while pursuing crazy ideas in a way that isn’t possible in a tech city unless you are already a billionaire.

softwarebeware 5y ago
I mean that’s pretty concerning for Seattle, not because people will leave but because it means that some percentage of the people who are coming to Seattle won’t care about the city since they’re just in town for four years to make half a million from some tech job and then leave for their cheap Midwest hometown again. It means they won’t really vote for or invest in Seattle’s civic health but will prioritize short term goals only.

8bitsrule 5y ago

Oh yeah, Ohio. I've been there. Thats where Kent State happened. Who needs mountains and oceans anyway? The midwest has its charms, and it is warming up so there's that.

theandrewbailey 5y ago
> The midwest has its charms, and it is warming up so there's that. Midwest summers get nearly as hot and humid as the south, but less extreme winters would be welcome.

Decabytes 5y ago

Moved to Michigan while keeping my remote Job. Was able to afford a house after a couple years of cheaper rent and living with a roommate. Most of my peers still are stuck paying high rent and aren’t any closer to buying a house. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, the roads are bad, and the public transportation is almost non existent. I’m also farther away from friends and family, but the improved lifestyle was worth it for me. Plus the fishing is great, and the Great Lakes are truly a gem of the U.S.

glonq 5y ago

I've always lived pretty close to the coast. No matter how good the culture is and how cheaper the cost of living is, it would feel weird to be land-locked.