We’ve all heard the importance of putting a face to a name or in the business sense- personifying a brand. Recently and on more than one occasion Mantaray has taken advantage of this opportunity to promote different products and brands. With RedMoon, we developed a character “Rex the Boston Terrier” (http://www.thedogrex.com, https://www.facebook.com/rexthebostonterrier) who was used to engage with customers on a more personal level. People fell in love with Rex just as much as we did as you can see in our case study. Most recently at an event,  one of our own traded a day at the office for a day at the ski hill, in a bear suit. Handing out swim goggles, the StoneRidge bear had the best job of hanging with the kids all day while all of the adults learned about the beautiful condos in Canmore, Alberta (http://www.stoneridgecanmore.com/investment-property.cfm).

Whether it is animation based or back to the old school mascot ways, putting a face to a name allows customers to get to know you and your brand on a much deeper level. It allows them to remember your brand and to make a physical connection or interaction with it. Contact us to find out how we can create a memorable brand experience and interaction for your audience.

Our Top 5 Mascot and Character Based Marketing Campaigns:

El Tabador,  Spokesperson for Kudo Mobile http://bit.ly/eltabador
Martin the Gecko, Spokesperson for Geico http://bit.ly/GJzgHz
M&M’s http://bit.ly/GFE0B6
Tony the Tiger, Frosted Flakes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0Hx7-0l2mg
Snap, Crackle + Pop, Rice Krispies http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTOiFkxrVPI

Once upon a time, there was a marketing executive who said that half of his advertising was a waste. The problem was, which half? He didn’t know, so he kept on spending the same amount in the same way, year in year out, hoping that his shotgun approach would continue to work. In his mind, some would, and some wouldn’t and continued to believe that half of his efforts were a total waste of time and money.

With today’s tools, it no longer has to be that way. Measuring the success of a marketing strategy is your feedback loop to success. In fact, there’s so much access to data these days that the more important questions to ask are what, when, and how should I measure.

Are you trying to measure perceptions/opinions?

A good way to measure mind shifts is to do some benchmark research and then repeat that exact same research after a given period of time.  Compare the results for your measurement – does the marketplace see you differently than they did when you did the benchmark. (Depending on your size, budget etc. you should probably repeat the research every 2-3 years to get accurate results.)

Are you trying to measure a change in traffic (initial interest) either in your location or online?

Online is easy — track hits and unique visits with a tool like Google Analytics.  Drive them to a specific landing page and simply monitor change/activity.

Offline is a little less scientific.  You can guestimate foot traffic.  Or you can ask people (as they check out or you engage with them) how they heard of your business.

You can also use a unique phone number or e-mail address in your marketing and track the number of inquiries that way as well.

Are you trying to measure inquiries or trials?

Again, this will differ on and offline.  Online, you can track things like e-newsletter sign ups, downloads of coupons or e-books and requests for more information.

Offline, you might monitor phone calls and requests for proposals, bids or initial meetings.  If you’re a retailer, you could also count redeemed coupons or how many samples you give out.

Are you trying to measure sales (new or residual)?

This should be pretty easy — just track sales.  You’ll need some historical data so you have something to measure against.  Be sure you divide up the data so you can track new versus repeat customers.  For our purposes — you don’t need to boil down to the nitty gritty.  That someone came in and spend $42.37 is enough.  You don’t need to record that they bought a hammer, a box of nails and  a garden hose.

Of course… the key to effective measurement in marketing is understanding why you’re doing it in the first place.  Measurement isn’t an afterthought.  It should be built into your marketing plan’s strategy.

Knowing what you are trying to accomplish will tell you what you should measure.  But…it’s a what, not an if.

It inspired Van Gogh in his paintings, pushed Lance Armstrong to pedal hard in the Tour de France, and is used for emergency and caution signs around the world. It encourages communication and activates memory, yet also symbolizes cowardice, quarantine, and the last thing you want to see, if you’re a major sports player, is the yellow card.

We’re talking one color, yellow, with many shades of meaning; some so polar opposite as ‘happiness’ and ‘hazard’ that I sometimes wonder if we’re the ones who’ve gone a little color blind. I mean, its just one color, right? Well yes, and no.

If color theory was simple, not only would I be looking for another career, so would every other designer, painter, artist, and decorator. And decisions to paint the second bedroom sunshine or spring yellow wouldn’t result in a public Sunday afternoon brawl at the local hardware store (admit it, we’ve all been there.)

So while understanding that yellow is the first color to be seen by the human eye, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right color for your brand or next campaign. How it feels, what does it taste like, is there a yellow song, and how it is remembered in the context of its surroundings – these are important questions, not just for yellow but for all colors of the spectrum.

Color theory not only asks how color works, such as additive RGB or subtractive CMYK, it aims to guide the creation of a harmonious color combination. Yet from the early notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci and Isaac Newton’s early color wheels to present day online color tools, considering the color for your logo, brand, or campaign remains a fun part of the creative process.

And its not like we’re about to run out of color combinations anytime soon. The human eye can distinguish over 2.8 million different hues. I’m no math wiz but picking two or three unique colors that work well together, and resonate with your audience, that might just take more than a Sunday afternoon in the paint section.

And to add to the natural and psychological associations that each of us have with color, why not throw in some cultural meanings as well. Did you know in Japan, yellow represents courage? Or that in China, adult movies are known as ‘yellow’. And in warm-hearted Mexico, marigold yellow can be associated with death?

Well for more fascinating reading on the meaning of yellow and color theory, I highly recommend a visit to  http://www.colormatters.com/color-and-design/basic-color-theory

and for more info on the history of the colour wheel please visit http://www.colorlovers.com//blog/2008/05/08/history-of-the-wheel

With Google+ launching itself as “THE” new social media platform, this leaves many companies wondering where they should be marketing their business…Facebook or Google+?
Having done extensive social media campaigns for a variety of clients over the last 2 years loaded with facebook marketing, I was excited to try the much anticipated google+ a few weeks ago.
Although the premise of these two sites might be close to the same, some of the functionalities that they offer are different but could both benefit your company.

Starting with Facebook Pages, which offers a great way to promote your business, connect with potential clients and advertise through targeting. The pages for your brand allows you to customize a landing page or even put your entire website on your facebook page, for example here is how we did it for Century Park . Customizable tabs allow you to add as much customized content as you wish well keeping your fans in one place. You can upload imagery, post polls, contests and videos (as we did on RedMoon)  using facebook as a great way to remain interactive with your fans while keeping them up to date. There are very few limits to what you can do with your Facebook fan page.  Another great example of a well done fan page, and one of my personal favorite is the page for the new Muppet Movie. They offer a great deal of ways for their fans to be part of the hype. I highly recommend checking this page out (especially the tabs on the side) http://www.facebook.com/muppets

One of the features that really impressed me on Google+ is the hangout feature. You can now “hangout” with up to 9 friends in a live chat – basically a little mini online “house gathering”. This feature is accessible on your computer and on your mobile phone. Going back to The Muppet Movie social media campaign, they took advantage of this feature by hosting a “hangout” session with Miss Piggy. Feedback from this was super positive as fans of the iconic character got to hang out with her for almost 30 minutes and ask her questions about the movie and even her fashion. See more of the Muppets Google+ page

Like Facebook, Google+ allows you to share pictures, videos and instant message your friends (or fans). As a business application, you could host meetings, share presentations, images, videos and all the while have live chats with your board for example.

So why use both? While facebook is more established and well known giving you a larger fan base, Google+ offers advancements in SEO and is more geared toward businesses – it also has more applicable communication applications that are not necessarily marketing related. By promoting your brand on both websites you will expand your audience base.

Check out these other great campaigns using both platforms

Pepsi

Facebook Fan Page

Google+ Page

 
Macy’s

Facebook Fan Page

Google+ Page

Good Morning America

Facebook Fan Page

Google+ Page

Now that we know that we should continue to market during a recession and that we can capitalize on building our brand and gaining market share better than ever we need to know What to do? and How to do it?

Here our 5 tips for Marketing in a recession.

With social media being a huge part of any marking campaign today we must look to a wise, well thought-out, cost friendly, dynamic and effective social media marketing campaign. Seem like a lot, it is!

1. Start by making sure that your social media profile stays up to date, relevant and interesting.

No matter what the economic situation a great story always gets heard.

2. Develop a great story around your product or brand and share it with everyone you know. Remember to keep growing your story.

Most Internet usually begins with a search engine connecting people with brands and businesses based on their specific searches.

3.  Make sure that your website is being found by search engine’s like google and their “web spiders” by making it content rich with lots of images, copy and keywords relevant to your business,  brand and product.

With so much happening in the digital world we need to find ways to pack a lot of information into a short and dynamic format that is usually takes under five minutes to review.

4. Make a Video! Video has so many benefits when it comes to getting your message out there.   Make something  great with animation, graphics, and a memorable story and make it go viral (Look for the “how to go viral”  blog coming soon). Get mileage out of your video by cutting a long version and a short version also try cutting your video it into shorter vignettes as it will be easier for your audience to digest a collection of  shorter more specific videos and or commercials.

With the rapid and very exciting advancement of smart phones.

5. All business must now consider some kind of mobile presence. Start by optimizing your site for  Mobile…making it easy for your audience to get to your info on a mobile device.  Mobile marketing campaigns are highly targeted and extremely effective for geographical marketing. Develop an app/game, etc. that gives benefits and offers some kind of reward to you audience.

For businesses and individuals alike it is always important to understand where to best spend your dollars. For most businesses it is very common to do what makes the most sense from a financial and practical standpoint. Successful businesses often understand that we must live and operate within our means. Applying that common principal is key to understand the importance of investing in the future and maintaining a brand presence by keeping an open sign on your front door.

Laying a sustainable marketing foundation that supports future growth and ultimately reminds people that you are there “strong and free” or that you are“just do-ing it” whatever it is that you do, whether it be running shoes http://nikeid.nike.com/nikeid/index.jsp( cool site/store)  or candy http://www.pez.com acknowledging your future today is key to any companies success.
Back in the day a sign, an address and a contact number were big things that showed people who, what and where you are.  Today, showing people “who you are” and “what you are doing there” is a much more complicated process.

To Properly Market ourselves we must always understand our Audience. Start by asking the who-what? the where-when’s? and the why’s

Who is our Audience? and What do they do? Where do they go? When do they go there? and Why do they wake up in the morning? …etc.  This of course leads us to the question how do I get them to know or understand my product or brand?

Today we use it all. Social media, Mobile media, blogging, television, viral video, internet campaigns, mobile campaigns, dynamic content multi-media campaigns, etc. We find what ever way we can to reach out and tap our audience on the shoulder….sometimes in my sleep(bugger off!)
This makes me think that not just for some, but for most of us this new way with Modern technology: Internet, Television, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. could possibly be an easier way to maintain a brand and a presence in comparison to owning a shop paying rent and having a sign and a phone, some 100 years ago.

Who knows though? What if monthly rent on the internet goes up and business on the internet share the same economic dilemma of an era gone by. Will Websites close? Will they put brown paper on our windows(and Macs) Just like the doors on the shops years ago…let’s hope not.

Still you may ask What do I do with my marketing dollars?

We say “hang in there”…”keep with it”.  Just like all industries and maybe even more than some, the marketing industry offers tremendous opportunity for companies to gain market share and to experience growth and prosperity through proper brand management, including brand building and awareness techniques that can help you to be successful and take advantage of a recession.

To see what others are saying about Marketing during a recession check out the links below:
http://www.bsfreemarketing.com/marketing-campaigns-that-relate-to-the-times-marketing-in-a-recession/
http://bx.businessweek.com/recession-marketing/
http://blog.marketo.com/blog/2011/05/strategies-for-b2b-marketing-in-a-recession-part-2.html
http://www.theppcguru.com/six-steps-to-marketing-during-a-recession.html
http://www.imanetwork.org/080911-internet-marketing-thrives-during-tough-economic-times/

And for  reminder of what was being said before the last recession of 2008, check these links:
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5878.html
http://blog.marketo.com/blog/2008/06/7-strategies-fo.html
http://marketing.about.com/od/marketingtipsandadvice/a/mrktrecession.htm
http://www.buzzmaven.com/2008/01/marketing-during-a-recession-get-the-wind-at-your-back.html

Sites like the Government of Canada promote the idea of continuing with your marketing plan…When asked Should you continue to promote your business during a recession? The Government site recommends that in most cases, it is wise to carry on with your marketing plan “History and research shows that businesses that cut back on their marketing during slumps tend to fall short in regaining their customers.”
http://www.canadabusiness.ca/eng/guide/1627/

Well it is that time again… Most Calgarians will have already got their cowboy gear ready… Or at very least they have started thinking about what the hell kind of uncomfortable dress situation they may find themselves in for the next 10 days… Any way none of that matters after your first couple of drinks.  So as it always begins we have a sneak a peek on Thursday giving all of us a chance to warm up our drinking arms and to stretch before attacking the grounds with our colleagues, friends, family and kids.
A lot usually happens in those ten days…the lucky ones usually go away to a beach! But for us who stay, there is always something fun for everyone to do and to eat…from corn dogs to mini doughnuts to beef on a bun, it just doesn’t get any better than traditional Stampede fair.  If you want to go on a pub crawl you better start stretching and remember to bring a cowboy hat with an attachable string… although very uncool it is the only way to ensure you still have your hat for your early morning pancake and sausage breakfast…This is very important as you will need to hide most of your face the next morning. Check this link for more pub crawl info and try it at least once…http://www.calgarystampedepubcrawl.com/calgary-stampede-contact.asp
Looking for something fun for the kids check out this link  http://cs.calgarystampede.com/food-fun/fun-for-kids.html and with musical acts like: New Kids on the Block, Backstreet Boys, Sugarland, Katy Perry and Kenny Chesney there will definitely be fun for the whole family…or at the very least your sister.  Anyway with so much fun to be had and such a positive outlook in the city these days  we can all be sure of one thing it will be one hell of a party and this time we get the shameful pleasure of introducing Royalty to our debauchery…I wonder if Kate and William will get on a mechanical bull? let me know if you see this. Enjoy your Stampede, have fun, be safe and remember to wear your helmets.

I just got back from a full packed 2 day shoot in Edmonton.  It’s been a while since I’ve run a full set and it was great!  I find it such an interesting dynamic being on set.  It’s so structured and militaristic and everybody has a very specific job to do.  It’s tedious, hierarchical and when you are on a bad set the 12 hour days feel like 20 hour days – You just can’t wait to get it done.

As structured as a set is, the process during the shoot is completely organic.
In my experience great footage is usually the outcome of a great shoot.  What’s a great shoot?  A shoot where everyone gels.  There are no bad apples on set. The cast is performing, there are no egos between DP, Director, Art Director and Creative Director and basically everyone is having fun and we all feel lucky to get paid to do this!

The result is a series of images and footage that need to convey a story, and provoke an emotion.  The quality of the final product reflects how well the human interaction and communication took place on set.  If you have a great shoot, it will show on the product. At the end it comes down to this: No matter how organized everyone is on set the fun factor is a “must” to get the best result.

Thanks everyone for such a fun shoot!

Ebay, Kijiji, Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace are just of a few places we go to Buy or Sell new or old furniture, clothes, movies or to find a business or service.
10 years ago the world of online shopping was a new concept. Today I don’t even need to leave my couch when I want to buy something as obscure as a Horse Blanket, or as perfect as a new pair of shoes.

Businesses are taking advantage of this trend everyday. Companies are spending more time making sure they have an online and mobile presence and that potential customers are able to find them easier. Most sites now offer a way to interact with their audience through social media networks, company blogs, mobile apps and even e-commerce.

Many businesses have seen plenty of success from their online buyers and marketing efforts. For example, Victoria’s Secret has one of the best websites for navigating a massive product line. With varieties of colors and sizes to choose from finding what you are looking for (plus somethings your aren’t)can make it all to easy to purchase online. Complimented by their social media campaign Victoria’s Secret has become one of the leading e-commerce sites on the web. Visit Victoria Secret at www.victoriassecret.com or www.facebook.com/victoriassecret

In todays society when you are cleaning out the garage and come across some items you want to sell, the first place you go is kijiji. There is a buyer for everything and with so many platforms to post items you are guaranteed to see a sale!

Whether you are buying or selling for your business or yourself or that special somebody you only need to visit one place…your computer.

Almost everyone I know has a smart phone…except my Dad…Why do we call them smart phones anyway? Maybe thats another blog topic. Anyhow, with most people on the planet owning a mobile device of some sort we can guarantee that a communication revolution is before us. With mobile users now embracing mobile apps over the mobile web it has become clear that users want a customized mobile experience that is all about them.  Marketers must now look seriously and differently at developing relevant content rich apps for products and brands that are intertwined with marketing campaigns the same way they looked differently at website development some 15 years ago. Thank-goodness for all the many apps out there that can help us organize our content and filter the info we want from the info we do not want, but is there an app to organize our mind and to organize our thoughts, and to tell us what or what not to do…Not yet? Today the shift is very clear people are turning to their mobile units for a more customized and personal experience that is refined and all about them.  With the many customization tools out there, we will only continue to be able to enhance our mobile experience to completely filter out the non relevant and filter in the relevant…just like ”turning up the good and turning down the suck”. Perhaps that is why they are called smart phones so that in the future when we only receive relevant content we can simply say…”thats smart” or maybe it is it just me wondering if in the future I will have any choice other than my own, kind of scary…but most likely it is me just blabbering on!…I wonder if there is an app for that?

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/blabber/id348862795?mt=8
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smartphone (fun reminder of how quickly smart phones have evolved here)