Michelle Begnoche, a spokesperson for Pure Michigan, said in an email the game will feature the Pure Michigan logo displayed around the stadium, along with a broadcast of several Pure Michigan television ads.

Associate Athletic Director Paul Schager said the scheduling of the game on a Friday allows attendees a full weekend to travel around the state, rather than planning around the game.

The university won’t receive any financial gain from the partnership, but Schager said the university would profit in another way.

“We benefit by people realizing that MSU has a commitment to the people of the state of Michigan,” he said. “When it benefits the state of Michigan, it benefits Michigan State.”
So far, the campaign has benefited the state of Michigan greatly, Begnoche said.

“In 2010, out-of-state leisure visitor spending in Michigan grew 21 percent,” she said. “And for the first time, nonresident visitors outspent in-state travelers in Michigan.”

According to statistics provided by Begnoche, out-of-state visitors spent about $6.37 billion on leisure in 2010, making up 50.4 percent of leisure spending in the state.

A study done by Longwoods International in 2009 concluded that of participants questioned, those who had seen Pure Michigan advertisements rated the state higher on several image factors, including the perceived excitement the state had to offer and its popularity.

Julie Pingston, senior vice president for Greater Lansing Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the organization is working with the Pure Michigan campaign to further travel to the Lansing area. Pingston said one radio ad in particular ­— which promotes Lansing as a home away from home — captures the essence of the area’s attraction.

“We hear a lot of the reason people come here is that they are visiting family and visiting friends,” Pingston said. “It’s almost like a home to them.”

Pingston said some of the more popular attractions in the Lansing area are the state Capitol, Impression 5 Science Center and Potter Park Zoo, but the location of MSU plays a major role in the area’s tourism field.

The campaign mostly is targeted toward states just outside of the Michigan border, with advertisements placed in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin. However, the advertisements also play on national television channels.

“Folks that may have never thought about Michigan as a vacation destination are talking about the Pure Michigan ads they are seeing on the television,” Begnoche said.