You may have seen a 17-foot long, 10-foot-high digital clock ticking its way around town. Don’t worry. It’s not left over from your mother of all New Year’s hangovers.
It’s a nifty timepiece that’s tied to the new millennium as a marketing gimmick. Who’s behind it? The city, First Night organizer Mary Ann Jackson and some savvy bankers.
The portable installation was unveiled at Akron’s latest First Night, where, at the stroke of midnight, it began counting down the days and hours left in the last year of the last decade of the 20th century. It’s meant to mesh with the new millennium theme to promote Akron’s impending First Night/Year 2000 blowout celebration.
The clock is co-funded by the City of Akron and KeyCorp. Jeff Mills, community re-investment manager at KeyBank N.A. in Akron, says Jackson’s idea of designing the clock as a movable marketing piece was ingenious.
“From a marketing standpoint, you’re always looking for the biggest bang for your buck. Since this is something we know will be a year-long event and the clock will be continually moved to various sites and events throughout the city, we’ll be getting our name out all year long. We can also focus some other marketing activities around the clock,” Mills says.
Since the timepiece is a joint venture between KeyBank and the city, what happens when they both want dibs on the clock at the same time?
“I don’t think we’ll fight over it,” Mills says chuckling. <$t0z8f"Compacta">SBN
