With ‘Lenoxology,’ town aims to create buzz

Lenox officials hope that a catchword created by a marketing firm can help broaden the town’s appeal to visitors.

“Lenoxology,” the term approved by the Select Board on May 4 by a 4-1 vote, was one of four potential slogans that the New York marketing firm Bodden Hamilton developed at the town’s request. According to Selectman Ken Fowler, the alternative slogans emphasized the town’s natural beauty and cultural attractions.

“All that is great, but it was time to think outside of the box and put on a new hat,” said Fowler, who is also a member of the board of the Lenox Chamber of Commerce.

“Some people liked the idea of being different, and some people felt [Lenoxology] was a little too different,” Fowler added.

Bodden Hamilton defines the term as a “unique healing treatment for vacationers … [that] works fast to relieve pressure from the head, chest and lower back, often in as little as a weekend.”

A $58,000 contract was awarded to Bodden Hamilton at the recommendation of the town’s Economic Action Plan Steering Committee. Town Manager Greg Federspiel said the funding comes from the town’s lodging tax, which generates roughly $1.5 million a year in revenue.

“Lenoxology” will soon have its own website and will be promoted through social media such as Facebook, according to Federspiel. He said the term should be seen as a starting point, rather than as an end in itself.

“It’s a concept for developing promotional materials,” Federspiel said. “We still have to develop a strategy and we still have to develop a tagline.”