Chris Cummiskey, the head of Georgia's economic development arm, says the state does not have a great brand. He added that the state's image hurts its efforts to attract high-paying research jobs from Silicon Valley or the Research Triangle.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Georgia's marketing budget lags behind those of many other states. Figures from the U.S. Travel Association show the state spent about $2.5 million in fiscal 2011-2012 to promote tourism, among the lowest amounts in the region. Georgia's spending on marketing the state also ranks among the lowest in the region in per-capita spending.







