Does Your Social Media Smell Like This Man?
On July 13, 2010, the Internet marketing game changed. Some might say that’s hyperbole, but Old Spice stepped up their game and created a brilliant melding of video, social media, and media relations. Most of us have seen and enjoyed the commercials where buff actor Isaiah Mustafa told us what our men could be like, if only they smelled like Old Spice (He can turn things into diamonds! He can bake you a cake in the kitchen he built with his own two hands!). It was a fun campaign, a great way to revamp the tired Old Spice brand, but nothing revolutionary.
Then came one small tweet from @oldspice : “Today could be just like the other 364 days you log into twitter. Or maybe the Old Spice man shows up.”
People were puzzled, but the meaning soon became clear. The actual Old Spice man did show up, answering actual tweets, Facebook messages, postings from bloggers–all in video form. The Old Spice production crew was spontaneously creating short videos (ranging from about 20 seconds to 1 minute in length) in realtime, all in the same irreverent, cocky style which characterized the original commercials.
Old Spice smartly targeted social media influencers like Digg, reddit,and Ellen Degeneres. They even sent roses to Alyssa Milano! But they didn’t focus their attention purely on the famous: people tweeted questions about their boyfriends, what college Old Spice man went to (Success University, with a minor in bazooka shooting), and every other thing under the sun. Not every video explicitly mentioned Old Spice, but they all served to support the new, young brand identity–and to seriously put Old Spice on the map.
While not every company can afford to do this, it’s still an important reminder to constantly up your game. It’s not enough to just be on social media, and to follow every “10 tips for social media awesomeness” we see. It is about challenging ideas, pushing boundaries, and doing the ridiculous. Old Spice man proves it works.
I’m on a horse.
Last call for business cards!
As you know, we’ve spent the last two months on a personal crusade to put an end to ugly business cards. We’ve had a great time collecting aesthetically challenged cards and making over one lucky card each month, but this is the last call.
If you’ve been holding onto your ugly business card, afraid to turn it in, this is your last chance. Check out the work that we’ve done for our past winners, and enter your own card for its own Extreme Makeover: Business Card Edition.
We Have a Winner!
Humans are very receptive to color. For instance, red makes us think of heat, fire, and passion. But it can also make us think of danger and blood. Blue is a calming color, associated with wisdom and trustworthiness. It’s also strongly connected with masculinity and is highly favored by men.
So take a look at your logo and your business card. Are you using the right colors to attract the audience that you want? For instance, if you’re an accountant who uses purple in your logo, you’ve chosen a color that’s most attractive to children, who may not be in the market for book keeping services. Instead, you may want to choose a deep green, which subconsciously makes people think of money.
Taylor’s redesign of Andrew Carson’s card for our June Makeover makes great use of color theory. He moved from Andrew’s monochromatic and slightly dull design to a gunmetal blue. This color pays homage to Andrew’s military background, but also ties in with his etiquette consulting business: blue is trustworthy, peacefully, and appeals to the mind rather than emotions.
We’ll be continuing our Business Card Makeover for one more month, so there’s still time to breathe some new life into your card. Just fill out the form below, and you could be a winner.
Pick the Winner for the June Business Card Makeover
As we continue our crusade to rid the world of ugly business cards–one card at a time, we are ready to pick and June winner. As you are considering which oneto vote for, let’s talk about professionalism. Your business card is a selling tool. Is it projecting an accurate image of who you are and what you do?
Take a minute and view your card through the eyes of a prospective client or more importantly a referral partner. Are they going to be comfortable passing on your card to their best client?
If you’re a lawyer, for instance, your card should probably not be using Comic Sans MS font (Actually, no one should be using it). But conversely, if you’re a wedding planner, you might want to shy away from the traditional, and extremely common Times New Roman.
Your branding is more than just the font selection. All the elements of your card including the colors, images ( please avoid any of the clip art available from Microsoft), the size and shape of the card, and the weight of the paper all contribute to the image your brand conveys.
Here’s the latest batch of cards vying for your votes. Pick the one you believe deserves this month’s free business card makeover!
Carpenters Rule and Door Step Deliveries
Over the last few months, we have had several great projects helping new business owners name their companies and the create graphics to support the brands.
Part of what made the projects so much fun was our experiments with crowd sourcing as we asked for input on the names and the designs.
With your help we have named two companies, a grocery delivery service for seniors: Doorstep Deliveries and a carpentry business: Carpenters Rule.
We even solicited a bit of input on the logos, so we thought you would enjoy seeing the final versions.
Revenge of the Little Blue Bird
By now most of you have heard something about an oil spill in the Gulf Coast. The spill, one belonging to British Petroleum, has been a PR disaster for the company. A few days ago, Lorraine wrote a post displaying some of the “redone” BP logos angry folks had designed, spurred on by Greenpeace.
While that is certainly a creative way to lambaste BP, I found another outlet one dissatisfied opponent of BP’s crisis 
management has decided to utilize: Twitter.
Fans of PR news will be familiar with BPGlobalPR, a fake Twitter account that has been set up to mock BP’s response to the oil spill. As one article on Time Magazine’s website states:
BPGlobalPR, a fake Twitter account that apparently went live a week ago today, is now being regularly updated with messages that mock BP’s response to the ongoing oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Poking fun at everything from the firm’s corporate profits to its ongoing struggles in shutting off the oil stream, BPGlobalPR has already attracted more than 25,000 followers. And the number keeps ticking upwards.
Tweets from the account range from poignant to hilarious, for instance:
- I’ve gotta say, at night the gulf really doesn’t look that bad.
- A bird just stole my sandwich! You deserve everything you get, nature!!!
- Feeling down? Why not take a long drive and blow off some steam?
- Lots of people blaming this on Bush or Obama. Pph, we wish.
- The truth is Presidents don’t have any control over what we do.
What do you think about they way social media is being used to criticize BP? Is this a sign of things to come? Will other companies face the same fate if they disappoint their customers and the general public?
And what, if any response should BP take?
May Business Card Makeover – Winner!
Business cards take a lot of abuse. They are shoved into pockets, purses, and business card cases, crumpled in sweaty palms, and otherwise mutilated. So ask yourself: is your card up to the abuse? Is it too big to fit in a standard card case? Or is it so small that it’ll easily got lost in the shuffle?
And I am making a desperate plea to everyone: Please, please, please do not use regular printer paper for your card. It makes us all a little embarrassed for you. Please pay the few dollars to get a sheet printed on cardstock at Kinkos. You’ll thank us in the long run.
We think the business card is so important, we created a Monthly Business Card Makeover Contest to build awareness of the differences between good and bad design. Here is the winner of the May Business Card Makeover.
I think Taylor has done a terrific job with the redesign. The final cards are being printed on 14 PT Cover Stock, with a UV Coating to make the color side pop. They will be strong enough to handle the abuse, attractive enough to be memorable, and functional, because you can write a note on the white side when Christian gives you one at a Rainmaker event.
Did you miss the May contest? Do you have an ugly business card or know someone who does? We will be running the contest again in June and July, so it is not too late to apply now. Simply fill out the form below and send us a copy of your business card!
Best of Brand
Since my days in grad school, branding has always interested me. While I loved all aspects of marketing, I was immediately drawn to the concepts advanced by Reis and Trout more than 30 years ago. They believed that your Brand and your Position exist only in the mind of your customer. Essentially, it doesn’t matter what you think about your brand, only what your customers believe. We try to keep this in mind as we work with companies to develop, expand and communicate their brand.
You can see some of this feeling come through some of my favorite blog posts on the topic of branding.
- Logo from Sketch Pad to 3D - In this post Taylor talks about the process of transferring a concept from sketch to logo and ultimately to sign, created by my husband @aballstudio as a unique piece of artwork. Through it all the clients goal to have a rustic, “outdoor” feel to his brand was a guiding principal in our work.
- Branding is about emotion – In the post I Love Logos I feature the Nike logo as an example of a logo which doesn’t tell you what they do, but creates a “feeling” of movement
- An important element of branding is the name you choose – In A Rose by Any Other Name we put our visitors to work, soliciting input on names for a carpentry business we were helping to brand. (By the way, the final name is Carpenter’s Rule.
Bottom line: Branding is about the emotional reaction you create in others. Your name and logo set the tone, but your brand is about much more. It is about how you make customers feel when they think of you.
Great Logos Transcend Language
I love great logos. I admire the work of creative designers from around the world as they create strong visuals which speak for a brand. Great design, when supported over time by strong campaigns builds a brand which is instantly recognizable.
One of my favorite examples is Coca Cola. As they move around the world, they adjust their logo, but always remain recognizable.
While most of the small business clients we work with will probably never become international companies,as a marketing professional I find it interesting to look at how companies handle the translations around the world.
Doing some research for a client I stumbled upon a cool site: Brand New, where students showcase some of their branding work. The designs are amazing, and a great source of inspiration. A recent project challenged students to create Hebrew transliterations for a number of very recognizable logos. These were some of my favorites.
Take a look at your logo. Would it stand up across boarders?
Another important consideration as you evaluate your logo is how it will look on promotional items? Will it resize well, and look good on everything from a pen to billboard?
One More Round of Names
We have narrowed down the list for our Grocery Delivery Service client. Will you take a minute and complete the short survey?
