Anthony Edwards 'Bring ya ass' remark inspires website redirect, boosts Explore Minnesota traffic
Comedian creates bringyaass.com, boosts Explore MN traffic
Anthony Edwards telling Charles Barkley to "Bring ya ass" to Minnesota after the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 to advance to the Western Conference Finals has inspired a line of merchandise and even a new website that's helped drive traffic to Minnesota's tourism website.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Anthony Edwards telling Charles Barkley to "Bring ya ass" to Minnesota after the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 to advance to the Western Conference Finals has inspired a line of merchandise and even a new website that's helped drive traffic to Minnesota's tourism website.
READ MORE: Anthony Edwards tells Charles Barkley to 'bring ya ass' to Minneapolis
Jon Savitt, a comedian and Timberwolves fan, says he bought the domain bringyaass.com and redirected it to exploreminnesota.com. It quickly took off thanks to social media.
Explore Minnesota, the state's tourism website, saw web traffic spike.
Chris Morgan, the communications and media relations manager for Explore Minnesota, told FOX 9 that from Sunday to Monday, Explore Minnesota saw an increase of about 135.5% of web users compared to a typical day (106,000 users Sunday-Monday, up from the typical 45,000 users). Monday's users alone totaled 81,000 visits, which was up 211% compared to Sunday's visits, Morgan said.
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Not only that, but Explore Minnesota gained thousands of followers on Instagram, and other social media accounts, including the Minnesota Orchestra, the Minnesota State Fair and local restaurants jumped on the "Bring ya ass" trend, encouraging Barkley and others to visit Minnesota.
FOX 9's Hannah Flood interviewed Savitt. The interview will air on FOX 9 Good Day on Wednesday in the 9 a.m. hour.