City of Fresno using a new viral video to promote the benefits of living in Fresno

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- In today's competitive business environment the city of Fresno is constantly working to separate itself and lure business professionals away from the bay area.

"We have one of the youngest most dynamic populations of any large city in America. Like a 59-percent of the population is under the age of 35. So when I start explaining these things to people they can't believe it," said Ashley Swearengin, Fresno Mayor.

So instead of explaining it the mayor's office decided the best thing to do was to show people. Fresno recently paid a local company, Top Hand Media, $5,000 to produce a three and a half minute video showing the benefits of working and living in Fresno.

In the short film-- Top Hand Creative Director Mathr Deleon plays a guy similar to himself who leaves behind the hustle and bustle of the big city to plant roots in Fresno.

"The market in places like San Diego and San Francisco-- super competitive. There's a lot of very talented people there as well as here," said Deleon. "You have the opportunity to build something from the ground up and so the ceiling is a lot higher."

The video has become an important marketing tool for the city to show Fresno and its surrounding areas in a positive light. And a place where young professionals can thrive.

"We're definitely starting to get good feedback. We're seeing it on twitter, a number of network heads in the bay area, and we've got to keep doing more and more of this because Fresno has so much to offer the rest of the state," said Swearengin.

Offering a better and more affordable way of life in a market that is seeing an uptick is what Mayor Swearengin is hoping businesses see in the video.

"You're living in a community that is really going through a positive change. So taking a moment, recording that story, and making sure other people can see what's happening here is real important for us."

People are taking notice. In just a short amount of time "This is Fresno" has already generated 60,000 views on social media.