by Madi Secareanu | Apr 16, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Creative, Interactive, Social Media
There’s no doubt that social media has changed the marketing landscape significantly within the last few years. There’s always something new; a new social networking site this year, a new app tomorrow, a new feature next week, a new enhancement next month…social media is constantly in flux. I think what makes it so successful is not only it’s ability to re-invent itself, but it’s ability to re-invent itself while keeping its core proposition intact – social media, for brands, for marketers, for individuals, helps tell a story.
What is social media storytelling?
The concept of brand storytelling is not a new one; it’s just also been re-invented to social media storytelling. Brands aim to take their consumers on an emotional journey by connecting with them, to create a demand by appealing to a consumer’s wants, needs and desires. That is the essence of social media storytelling. This connection is very important and partly the reason why social media has emerged as the ideal tool to tell the brand story and connect, more personally and more emotionally, with existing and potential customers.
Take a look at the new Facebook Timeline for example; it’s essentially a storyline. A storyline driven by the brand and enhanced by its followers. It’s about generating and amplifying stories, and because of this, timeline helps brands become better storytellers. How does it do this? Well getting people(followers) involved for one, they can help bring their own unique perspective to your brand, and helping facilitate that emotional bond between brand and consumer. But its layout is really what sets its ability to tell a story apart. Timeline speaks to a story about a brand’s history and its present but it’s designed with the future in mind. The bigger emphasis on visuals makes more impact – images often make better stories and the Millstones feature helps highlight important dates and facts that are essential to the brand’s (hi)story.
Pinterest, for example, is based on visuals. It tells a brand story through images, and how far can a brand go if the only images they feature are product images? With Pinterest, brands must show the bigger picture (pun intended). What inspires the brand? What type of lifestyle does the brand fit into? Pinterest is about going beyond the product and about creating a more complete story around a brand, visually.
Let’s not forget Twitter. It’s immediacy has been the reason brands have had such success with it – it helps brands tell quick and interesting stories while connecting with followers on a more personal level. I, for one, love when I tweet about a brand and they immediately acknowledge it by commenting or retweeting – I feel like they care about my story and how it fits into theirs.
Every brand has a story, and social media is here to help tell it in a more engaging way. How do you help contribute to the brand story through social media storytelling?
by Madi Secareanu | Apr 9, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Creative, Interactive, Social Media
On or around March 30th, you may have noticed that Facebook has automatically changed your brand page to Timeline. While some were resistant to the change, let’s remember that if we don’t move forward, we get left behind and for brands on Facebook, hopping on board and getting to know the new Timeline is imperative. The nature of the Facebook brand page has changed so here are some of the pros and cons of the new Timeline for brands: Pros
- Visuals Traditionally social media has focused on words, but as we’ve seen with Pinterest, visuals are starting to have a more significant impact. With Timeline, brands now have more visual space to work with. There is now a large cover photo, a profile photo and larger photo stories. Brands can also pin images to the top of the Timeline. Apps are also now visually represented under your cover photo. This is very valuable for consumer engagement and creating a dynamic page.
- Highlighting and Pinning A great opportunity for brands to showcase important content and engage followers. By pinning a story or an image, it automatically gets priority on your page, remaining at the top of the timeline for up to 5 days. It lets important posts “cut through the clutter” and drives attention to what’s new or what’s important to your brand’s followers.
- About The “About Us” section has been given a facelift. Right below your cover and profile photos you now have a small “About” space where you can write an engaging description about your brand. The “About” link found right below this description takes you to a page where you can share more comprehensive information about your brand.
Cons
- No more default landing tab Currently working on several Facebook campaigns, I’ve realized that the loss of the default landing tab has really changed the way brands can drive people to their Facebook pages and promotions. Facebook has taken away the privilege of putting promotions, welcome pages, or other customized apps as default landing pages. Brands have to get creative – and use the available features to support and promote Facebook campaigns on Timeline.
- Cover Photo Restrictions Putting restrictions over the kinds of images that brands can use in their cover photo can be a good thing if they are limiting offensive and inappropriate content. However, Facebook has restricted the option to encourage new followers to “Like” a brand, show promotional and brand information or use a call to action in a cover photo. Considering that the default landing page option has also been removed, a cover photo without these restrictions could have been a useful area for brands to showcase new and exciting promotions or important information.
At 3H, we’ve embraced the new timeline. But what do you think of the new Facebook Timeline for brands: Like? Or Dislike? Does it give brands more or less opportunities to successfully market themselves on Facebook?
by Miriam Hara | Apr 5, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Creative, Social Media
Is the way we are communicating SAFE? Has the less “physical” interaction that we are now all adopting with so much enthusiasm curtailed our ability to develop original thinking and thought provocative inventions and innovations? Has being faceless allowed us to be impolite, rude and COLD?
Humans have never been more “social” then in the present… and yet, recently, on a discussion I posted on Linkedin, I received one statement that left me quite chilled! My discussion point was very succinct: Is the way we communicate digitally impacting negatively on the way we network in business or not? This discussion topic, based on a post to our company blog Hoopla, written by one of my colleagues about the “social in social media.”
With the onslaught of social media, the ability to communicate has never been easier nor more immediate. But does more mean less? Is the quality of the communication and the connection as important or as necessary as it was in the past, a mere 2 or 3 years ago? Has our ability to be considerate been diminished by the fact that we can be impersonal. That we are one step removed from the person trying to connect with us. No longer is a voice or a face to the conversation reminding us that there is a person at the other end of the communication. We have become fonts and letters.
In my original discussion, there was much conversation over how relevant the Connections were and that having replaced the “personal” in the interaction with a computer screen that communication has become faceless. The one comment that I previously referred to was stated by a fellow group member from the Marketing Executives Group, Caron Hughs , and it is the one I really would like your opinion on. This statement is the reason for this post.
“… There are few left who practice manners in acknowledging a phone call, or an email. It is far easier to ignore someone’s plea for help if you are not looking into their eyes. It is far easier to miss a career changing proposal because you are too busy to read an email or return a phone call. We are becoming a very SAFE society in the way we communicate … and there are no manners, or “outside of the box” thinking in our communications. We choose to respond to what is safe and what is familiar … and from that the great new ideas that could be born to life in a collaborative effort are fading away. Even in entertainment … could there be any more remakes from stories of old or copycat competitions born from the original’s success?”
When I read her comment, it made me realize how much of what she said is accurate. You only have to look to fashion, listen to music, look at design and see how re-inventing the old has become the norm. Where is the trend-setting? What is new and novel? Even Lady Gaga… has taken so much of Madonna… in attitude but also in sound and music. Madonna was the first, Micheal Jackson was a first, the Beatles were a first and so were the Rolling Stones. They were and are original. They made the moves. They struck the cords. They established the trends. Okay, so that is music…. what about fashion? Dare I say sunglasses…. big buggy sunglasses, or how about the new Aviator look? And let’s speak to design… Retro is in!!! Yes indeed… everything new… well, isn’t.
So has social media and the ease of communication lessened our ability to think outside the box because we spend so much time staring into a frame….so to speak?
What are your thoughts on this?
by Miriam Hara | Apr 3, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Creative
Way too often, ads are filled with too much information and lots of copy. How does that happen? Why does it happen? I can almost hear the collective grumble from all my peers saying…. “Clients!” But I believe that laying blame at the doorstep of clients, absolves us, the creative professional of any blame. I believe as Creative Professionals, it is our role to accommodate but also to advise. In my experience, once you explain the reasons why you shouldn’t do something , or even show them what is being compromised, clients really do get it.
Just think back… even recently and consider this:
- Ever watch a TV commercial and say, I don’t get it?…. or worse, what’s the brand? Remember the Head On ad?
- Drive and spot an outdoor billboard and you can’t read the caption because there’s too many words like the one below…. and the type is so small?
- Flip through a magazine ad and miss the total point of the ad? Like this one.
It always amazes me that there are ads that actually get to the marketplace without a clear single focused message. Or the creative is sooo out there, that it doesn’t circle back to the brand or to the product. This is a particular pet peeve of mine, as I just recently wrote an entire blog on this issue! An ad (any kind of ad) shouldn’t be closing the sale…. it should be generating interest… It needs to communicate benefit and to engage consumers enough so that they take action. Ads were never meant to replace sales people! They were meant to increase awareness of a product and service and increase the knowledge of the benefits within that product or service. Ads are meant to get traffic, whether it’s a website or a physical location.
So the next time you face a challenge, think back on what makes you a creative professional. Advertising isn’t about pretty pictures and for it to work there are certain protocols that need to be followed. At times it can be challenging, but that is what our profession is all about. How often are we faced with and given mountains of information to decipher and create a single succinct statement that says is all. Or given so many logos and visual elements to layout into a visual flow that directs the consumer’s eyes and makes sure that the main message is delivered. The minute we let go of this basic standard, then everyone and anyone who owns a computer can “create” an ad. All they need is Indesign or Illustrator knowledge.
by Madi Secareanu | Mar 29, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Social Media
Pinterest is the new and exciting kid on the social media block – and everyone wants to get to know it better. “What is it?” and “how do I use it?” has quickly become “I’m always on Pinterest!” so it’s no surprise that brands should be, and are, starting to pay attention in order to stay ahead of the social media game. Pinterest, for brands, has become the new place to be, so what should brands be aware of before capitalizing on Pinterest?
How Pinterest works….
The social networking site allows users to share, curate, and discover new things by “pinning” images or videos to their own or others’ pinboards. Users use pinboards, which are collections of images or videos, to organize, plan and inspire everything from tonight’s dinner to grand events. Users are encouraged to pin their own content, uploaded or found online, or “repin” and “like” other users’ pins.
Who uses Pinterest…
If your planning a marketing campaign on Pinterest it’s important to know your audience. According to Mashable.com and January 2012 data from Google’s Doubleclick Ad Planner, 87% of users are female and 80% of users are between the ages of 25-54, however Pinterest’s user-base is still growing.
If Pinterest is right for your brand…
- Decide if your brand and Pinterest are a match. Pinterest is very visual; will this approach fit with your brand strategy? According to the their best practices, Pinterest recommends that brands create several pinboards with visuals that cover a broad range of interests and pin from various sites, not just a specific one.
- Think about your followers, their interests and how, through Pinterest, you can create more of an experience around your brand.
- Do some competitive research. See what other brands are doing on Pinterest and what makes their Pinterest campaigns so successful.
What kind of visual content to share Pinterest….
Think about sharing product shots, infographics, brand inspirations, how-to graphics, and maybe even images of your customers engaging with your brand. You can even share eBooks. Recently, 3H launched our “Marketing Understood: 33 Biz-isms you need for success” eBook. Over the next few weeks, we will be sharing visuals from our eBook on our Pinterest profile.
You can also allow followers to pin images to your boards and encourage them to share stories about their experiences with your brand. You could also run fun contests on Pinterest to keep your followers engaged.
Promotion…
Make sure you let people know that your brand is on Pinterest. Add a button to your website and link your Pinterest account to your brand’s Facebook and Twitter as well.
What’s working and what’s not…
When pinning, leverage your traditional analytics tools to identify the content that really gets your followers excited about your brand and drives traffic to your sites. You can also gage interest levels by the amount of “Likes” and “Repins” you’ve received.
What do you think? As more and more brands get on board, will it change the way brands approach their social media marketing campaigns?
Follow 3H on Pinterest!
by Lindsay Sleightholm | Mar 27, 2012 | Branding, Business Success, Creative, Design
It’s been said that nothing is new, and everything old is new again. Never has that been more obvious than in today’s retro-infused consumer market. The trend towards aesthetics of the past are everywhere: fashion, art, music (the amount of remakes out there are enough to make your head spin), home decor, cars, architecture – you get the point.
So what is “retro” anyway?
According to Wikipedia, retro is “a culturally outdated or aged style, trend, mode, or fashion, from the overall postmodern past, that has since that time become functionally or superficially the norm once again.”
Basically, it’s a blast from the past. And we can’t seem to get enough of it. It’s part of human nature to gravitate towards the familiar. Psychologically, going retro gives the impression of standing the test of time. It has merit. Not to mention, it gives us that warm, fuzzy feeling that we so often crave.
Jumping on the Radio Flyer
Nostalgia seems to be something of a “new” commodity these days. Many are jumping onto the retro bandwagon, and not in an entirely elegant way. A lot of it is far too deliberate. There is no subtle throwback to a bygone era; it’s become outright blatant, down to the letter (or typeface if you will). Some may say it’s actually “retro reinvented,” meaning that it’s taken on a modern spin. But when that modern spin is just a whisper against the overall retro message, it can hardly be considered modern.
Okay, I’ll be the first to admit that I have a definite inclination towards thing of the past. But if Cyndi Lauper were to walk up to me today and ask me to design her new identity, it would not look like something from her earlier albums. Why? Because even she has moved forward. She’s not the same flamboyant performer of her past. She has evolved – not just reinvented, but changed.
Has retro design seen its day?
The primary goal of today’s retro revival seems simply to be to mimic a style instead of creating one. Actual art and design movements of the past were born in large part due to a cultural shift. And for the most part, they generally shifted forward. But there’s no shifting forward with retro design; it’s going back, because that’s what retro does.
Maybe we’ve run out of ideas, or we don’t know how to design for this nameless age. Or maybe we really do want to go back in time.
Graphic design will always have a strong link to its roots. That is, to those who came before and blazed a powerful trail to follow – great periods such as Art Nouveau, the Victorian era, the Industrial Revolution and, yes, even the latter half of the 20th century. But when we lean on the ideals of the past too much, we stop ourselves from moving forward.
Instead of going back, perhaps we should take a moment to think about where we’re going to be in the future. Maybe – just maybe – we’ll like it just as much. And if not, in 20 years it’ll become retro again anyway.
So, what do you think? What else have you’ve seen? Share your examples of the good, the bad and the downright embarrassing of retro graphic design…
