Updated Wednesday, 3:15 p.m.
Kansas City Mayor Sly James announced Wednesday a new online campaign to attract Amazon's $5 billion second headquarters project to KC. His plan? Reviewing products on Amazon with Kansas City twists.
Earlier in the day, James teased the announcement on Twitter, which led some on social media to speculate that there would be a big reveal regarding the HQ2 development. Around the same time, KCUR discovered that an Amazon profile by the name of "Mayor Sly James" that had reviewed products bought from Amazon that tied into facts or stories about the city.
Turns out that those reviews are the announcement.
“It’s no secret we believe Amazon is a great fit for Kansas City,” James said in a news release. “So the idea was easy - make Kansas City the most-well reviewed city on Amazon.”
What's the best way to get Amazon excited about a new KC HQ? Amazon product reviews. Tell Amazon why you love KC with #KC5stars. pic.twitter.com/kD9lPnwywb
— Sly James (@MayorSlyJames) October 11, 2017
The idea is to get Kansas Citians who are excited about Amazon's HQ2 bid to promote the city through these 5-star reviews.
Also, according to the news release, the mayor recently purchased 1,000 items from Amazon to be donated to local charities across Kansas City. As of this writing, only 10 reviews have been written using the mayor's account.
The original post continues below:
Kansas City Mayor Sly James teased an announcement involving online retailer giant Amazon on Twitter Wednesday morning, and further investigation has uncovered 10 Amazon reviews (at the time of publication) penned by an account named "Mayor Sly James."
I've been busy online shopping. Find out why at 3 pm. pic.twitter.com/4tpKRqLBFi
— Sly James (@MayorSlyJames) October 11, 2017
Amazon, based in Seattle, Washington, announced last month that it would look for a North American city to build its second headquarters, or HQ2, in. Amazon estimates that the $5 billion development would bring as many as 50,000 jobs to whatever city is chosen.
Kansas City officials have signaled that they will court Amazon to bring HQ2 here. The company has set an Oct. 19 deadline for proposals and is expected to make a decision next year.
And, perhaps in an effort to lure the company's eye, Mayor Sly James has seemingly submitted 10 Amazon reviews loosely related to Kansas City since Oct. 8.
One review for Fiber One Cereal (Honey Clusters, of course) from James uses the name to make a punny joke about Kansas City's fiber internet infrastructure.
"We have a saying in my hometown that 'you can never have too much Fiber.'" James writes. "That’s how we keep things moving here in Kansas City, home to some of the fastest internet connections on the planet thanks to more fiber per capita than anywhere else in the US. Except for maybe inside this box of Fiber One, which also really keeps me moving."
You can read more of Mayor James' reviews here. KCUR will be following the mayor's announcement later this afternoon as well.
Cody Newill is the digital editor for KCUR 89.3. Follow him on Twitter @CodyNewill.
