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Give me wine, a little music…

Friday, November 2nd, 2012

Hundreds of Canadians banded together - ok we couldn’t help ourselves with “banded” – to create a digital musical mosaic that is not only fun to play with, it actually helped Canadian musicians keep on playing.

‘Play’ is a great word to add to the brand persona of the client we did this for – [yellow tail] wine leaves the snobbery to others and instead has chosen the path of being the accessible beverage for the spontaneous good times of your life. The disruption that has created a whole new space for [yellow tail] is in recognizing that really, most of us just want to enjoy a good glass of wine and to share it with our friends. Wine culture makes a lot of us edgy, and takes some of the fun out it – so [yellow tail] focused on that unpretentious side and is the easygoing, social brand that you can enjoy on your terms, your way.

It’s a great persona to work with – so we came up with an idea that would hit all the notes (sorry!) that say “[yellow tail]”: Our idea was social; fun; share-able as a great bottle of wine; and a bit silly yet also exactly the kind of thing we do when we’re happy.

We created the [yellow tail] Wine Orchestra. We called on Canadians to upload on to wineorchestra.com a webcam video of themselves clinking, dinging, tapping and rubbing their wine glasses and [yellow tail] bottles to create a rhythm, a sound, a bit of music all their own. Each entry within the Orchestra is added as a tile on a virtual wall of sound – no mean feat technically, but loads of fun to play with – and then we made sure that by highlighting the tiles and moving them around you can blend sounds and beats to create a sort of a symphony. You can take a break in your otherwise hectic and tune-free day to become an ubercool DJ, or conductor, or creator of your own special sound track.

We were inspired by the music of the street, when you see a guy start to drum on a couple of buckets and suddenly a crowd appears spontaneously, all caught in the unavoidable impulse to stop and enjoy the moment. That celebration is exactly what [yellow tail] is all about.

We took the Wine Orchestra a step further. We gave all that sound to composer Kutiman to use as raw material, and he has created an orchestral piece entitled The Wine Orchestra Players — where he sampled from those hundreds of video uploads of Canadians having fun with their favourite [yellow tail] bottle or wine glass as instruments.

For anyone who doesn’t know him, Kutiman is the Israel-born musician is known for his innovative 2009 release ThruYOU, an online music video project mixed from samples of YouTube videos. ThruYOU received more than 10 million views in the first weeks of launch and was named one of the best inventions of the year by TIME magazine.

The Kutiman-created holiday composition and video will be released on wineorchestra.com this week, supported by a multi-media campaign including outdoor boards, rich media online banners, print advertising and point of sale material.

Kutiman’s piece is a great gift from [yellow tail] to you, just in time for the holiday season.

The generosity runs a little deeper, too. For each submission from the May launch until September 30, [yellow tail] donated $1 to the Unison Benevolent Fund which helps musicians keep playing by offering financial assistance to anyone in the industry facing hard times.  Great Big Sea front man Alan Doyle joined the campaign to help support other Canadian musicians through Unison, and his own video is included among those created by [yellow tail] fans. Both Doyle and [yellow tail] were united in the desire to help musicians continue to colour our lives.

So go colour yours! Check out wineorchestra.com and put some ‘play’ in your day.

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Texting in Canada

Tuesday, October 30th, 2012

Sitting next to her wood burning stove on a cool fall evening, Jennifer carefully dipped her plume into the inkwell, gently blotting out the excess ink. She pondered her feelings before applying the ink to the page. After completing her message, she blew the ink dry and then tucked the paper into an envelope and addressed it, ensuring she had all the correct details. The next morning she would hurry to the post office and post the letter to her good friend, Amanda.

Weeks later, while tending to the washing, Amanda saw the postman coming up the drive. She hurried to meet him and was excited to find that he had a letter for her. The return address showed that it had come from her very best friend, Jennifer. She opened it carefully as she walked back up the drive, excited to hear the news from Jennifer. Unfolding the paper, she examined the beautifully written words:

“Hey! How’s life? We tots gotta hang soon! luv J ;) ”

The history of messages between friends has a long and storied past. And while the above exchange probably never actually happened, you can imagine just how difficult – and pointless – it would have been in days of yore to take the time to send but 140 characters in a correspondence.

Fast-forward to 2012, and see how much easier it is for Jennifer and Amanda to make plans!

What does this mean for marketing? There are two things to keep in mind: 1) SMS offers the largest possible reach in mobile marketing, and 2) SMS is extremely personal. There is, of course, a glaring contradiction in these two statements. And that is that mass communications and niche communications rarely if ever play nicely together. In this case, though, there is an important intersection.

Because SMS is available to such a huge segment of the Canadian population, the chances of your target being accessible by SMS is very good. So, the key to them being accepting of a text message from you is a strong bond with your brand. Essentially, they need to love you. If not, they may sign up for a contest, but then remove themselves as soon as the promotion ends. For an ongoing conversation, they need to see you as a friend. If you have this status as a brand, then a text message now and then will be welcomed by your audience.

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The 21st-Century Dad

Friday, October 26th, 2012

Client: We’ve got a hot, new product that’s going to change life for families all across Canada by transforming housework from a chore to a joy!

Agency: Sounds exciting! Who are we targeting?

Client: We want to shout this far and wide, but make sure we focus specifically on our target: Dads.

Agency: Oh, you mean Moms.

When was the last time you briefed, or were briefed, on a product targeted at Dads? (Of course, we’ll need to omit to male mainstays of booze, cars and sports.)

Even in this age of modern-families and extreme-equality, we still follow the traditional marketing laws of women as caregiving, shopping, household managers and men as bread-winning, TV-watching, groundskeepers. While there’s no question that these stereotypes still exist, the rise of the modern woman and mother has also opened the door to the modern dad.

Who They Are

There are two key groups within this new set of dads: the Modern Married Dad, and the State-of-the-Art Single Dad, and each will force marketers to re-visit their communications strategies.

1) The Modern Married Dad: This group of dads is one that has evolved over time. As the role of women has shifted over time, these dads have adjusted their roles to take on more child-rearing and household responsibilities.

Typically younger (30-39), and urban, they are University educated and tend to work in management positions. These dads were raised by working mothers and expect that from their wives. That expectation is coupled with their acceptance of their role of a partner in the raising of their children and of household duties. More than any other group of Canadian men, these dads share the shopping responsibilities with their partners. They may still defer to mom in certain household decisions, but as the primary end-user of key products, they now have stronger opinions and influence over buying decisions.

2) The State-of-the-Art Single Dad: If the Modern Married Dad is an evolution in fatherhood, then this new single dad is a revolution. This dad is on his own and is the primary decision maker in the household. And the number of them continues to increase. From 2001 to 2006, there was a 14% increase in the number of single father households in Canada, up to 280,000. That number increased by 16.4% in 2011, bringing the number to 305,000.

Single dads are typically between the ages of 40-49 and have one child. He is likely to hold a trade certificate or diploma and work in a trade. They were very likely to be Modern Married Dads while still in their marriages, and they carry over those traits into single-fatherhood. But now, as the sole caregiver, they are responsible for all product research and shopping.

Where They Are

Acknowledging the existence of these two types of dads is a great first step, but now we must determine where they are and how best to communicate with them. While there are some similarities between the two groups, their relationship status creates some key differences that need to be recognized.

1) The Modern Married Dad: Like most young, urban men, these dads are constantly plugged in. They have multiple devices (PC, tablet, smartphone) and one, or more, is never far from reach. Like their partners, they are active social media users. There are 3.6 million Canadian men, between the ages of 30-39 on Facebook, over 394,000 of them are fathers and in a relationship. Unlike their partners, though, they use social media to observe. They will follow brands that they truly love, but are not the type to engage in contests or promotions.

2) The State-of-the-Art Single Dad: Slightly older than the Modern Married Dads, these dads also have a very different set of responsibilities. They have less time than the other group of dads, so spend less time online and on social for personal reasons, but still use multiple devices for news, shopping, information and business. They are also heavy TV watchers, and favour sports and news.

Regardless of who, or where, they are, a key similarity between these two types of dads is their growing resentment of mom-centric marketing. This was evidenced by the response to two recent ad campaigns by two CPG giants. The first, from Procter & Gamble, was entitled “Thank You, Mom”. It was developed for the 2012 Olympics and focused on all the hard work that moms put in to help raise Olympic athletes. Because of the campaign’s positive tone, it was successful, but that didn’t stop dads from around the world flooding message boards and comment sections with their disappointment of being portrayed as second-class. The second, from Huggies, took a far more negative tone in presenting the “Dad Test”, which left dads alone for five days while mom went off to be pampered. The premise was to see just how poorly the dads would fair when left to their own resources. A tidal wave of online petitions, Facebook comments and Twitter Posts forced Huggies to pull the campaign and issue an apology to dads everywhere.

The message is clear: these new dads exist and they are ready to be recognized. This may require some changes to your communications strategy, but faster you bring them into the fold, the larger the lead you’ll have on your competition.

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The Perfect Pitch: The Top 5 Elevator Pitch Must-Haves

Monday, June 25th, 2012

It might be over and done in sixty seconds, but it’s one of the most important speeches you’ll ever give.

It can mean the difference between huge success and being an also-ran.

It’s your elevator pitch, the short and punchy summarization of why your business is important, why customers really need it, and why someone should invest time or money with you.

“The key thing is in two or three sentences tell me what is the one thing I need to know about you, and give me the main reason why I should spend more time with you,” says Rick Nathan, managing director of investment firm Kensington Capital Partners, who has heard hundreds of pitches in the course of his career.

The purpose of the pitch, then, is not to have someone like Nathan write you a cheque on the spot but to get the next meeting, so you can explain in more luxurious detail all the nuances and intelligence within your business plan.

So if the elevator pitch is that important, how do you craft one?

We turned to the experts, including those who hear a lot of pitches, for some clues. Here are their top five tips:

Tip 1: Answer “why should I care?”

Despite the fact the job is to wow your audience and impress them, remember “It’s not about you,” says Diana Bishop, who trains entrepreneurs in the art of the pitch. Instead, focus on how you can solve a problem, achieve a goal, reach a lot of otherwise underserved customers or why your product or service is not only unique but necessary. In other words, answer “why should I care?” and “what benefit can you bring me?”

Tip 2: Make your pitch as visual and tangible as you can. Drawing analogies and backing up your points with tantalizing numbers such as customers, revenues or other investment, is a huge help in ensuring your audience is listening and wants to hear more.

“I like to be able to visualize without ambiguity exactly what your company does,” says Michael Hollend of the private equity firm TorQuest Partners. He suggests you avoid broad terms like “big” or “leading” and instead give evidence of how big you are, or whether you are first in a competitive field. If you produce a product that is something small and tangible, carry it with you so you can show it to people.

“If people can visualize and understand what you do, then anyone you meet can become an ambassador for your company,” says Hollend. “People can’t be advocates for what they don’t understand.”

Tip 3: Establish your own credibility. What have you accomplished so far, what’s your track record, or where is your company in terms of growth? “At the end of the day every successful investment comes down to the quality of the team,” says Nathan of Kensington Capital Partners.

Tip 4: Don’t be just a little different. Be a LOT different. Says presentation trainer Bishop: “With so many people out there doing similar things, you have to be creative to stand out. Be bold.”

Tip 5: Leave them wanting more. “Leave people curious,” says Bishop. “Remember the objective of your elevator pitch is not to sell anything but to get the next meeting.”

The irony is, though it is probably the shortest presentation you’ll ever make, it can take a long time and some hard work to fashion a great elevator pitch. Anna-Maria Mountfort, who started the mimiTENS mitten company in 2007 and was last year’s Visa Canada Elevator Pitch Contest winner, took about a week to hone her message. She researched her audience carefully and identified what parts of her message would resonate with each member, found evidence within her business to meet all the stated criteria, and then actually timed her message to ensure she got the story across in under a minute. Her effort won $10,000 for her business, and since then business has doubled in sales.

The elevator pitch is the headline of your business story, that one simple message that you want to communicate to your prospects. It establishes quickly and memorably why your customers should find value in you.

“People have different frames of reference and you want to make sure you’re being as clear as possible,” says Nathan, of Kensington. “Sometimes you need to reduce it to the real basics. If an intelligent five-year old can understand it, you probably have a good elevator pitch.”

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Visa shares your playoff pain.

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Visa and TBWA want hockey lovers to know that even if your favourite NHL team is teeing off on the golf green instead of lacing up on the hockey rink this playoff season, Visa is there for you.

That is why the credit card co has launched the second year of its playoff hockey campaign aimed at hockey lovers whose favourite teams are no longer in contention for the Stanley Cup. The month-long TV campaign kicked off on April 2 with a spot set to Nazareth’s “Love Hurts” and featuring a forlorn hockey lover shaving his playoff beard in the shower (to hide the tears) and burying his foam finger.

The campaign, with media by OMD and creative from TBWA, will run for four weeks, and is accompanied by a month-long contest which automatically enters Visa cardholders to win a trip for 10 to the first game of the NHL playoff finals, Gallant Law, head of sponsorship marketing and brand management, Visa, tells MiC.

“We don’t usually give people the opportunity to bring this many people with them on a trip like this,” he says. “But we know hockey fans like to watch the game with more than one person, so choosing just one friend would be difficult. Why not just bring a big group and let everyone celebrate together?”

The TV spot and contest is also joined by a Facebook app which allows users to pick the 10 friends they would take with them, should they win the top prize, says Law.

Check out the spot here http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=X7QMdpmfvVs

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7 Essential Books on Optimism

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Every once in a while, we all get burned out. Sometimes, charred. And while a healthy dose of cynicism and skepticism may help us get by, it’s in those times that we need nothing more than to embrace life’s promise of positivity with open arms. Here are seven wonderful books that help do just that with an arsenal ranging from the light visceral stimulation of optimistic design to the serious neuroscience findings about our proclivity for the positive.

1. The Little Prince

Published in 1943, translated into 180 languages since and adapted to just about every medium, Exupéry’s famous novella is one of the best-selling books of all time. More importantly, it’s one of the most important handbooks to being a thoughtful, introspective and, yes, hopeful human being.

2. Learned Optimism

From a fascinating background on the study and psychology of optimism to hands-on tests you (and your child) can do at home to tangible metrics for your progress, the book is a powerful blueprint for reforming your deepest pessimistic tendencies, whether you consider them mild, moderate or profoundly severe.

3. Everything is going to be ok

In a world brimming with cynicism, it’s a rare and wonderful occasion to find an oasis of sincerity and optimism. That’s exactly what you’ll find in Everything is going to be ok— a delightful pocket-sized anthology of positive artwork from a diverse lineup of independent and emerging artists, designers and illustrators

4. The Optimism Bias

The reason pessimism is easily escapable, as Martin Seligman posits, might just be that its opposite is our natural pre-wired inclination. At least that’s the argument British neuroscientist Tali Sharot makes in The Optimism Bias — a fascinating yet accessible exploration of how and why our brains construct a positive outlook on life even in the direst of circumstances.

5. An Optimists Tour of the Future

After life threw comedian Mark Stevenson a curveball that made him face his own mortality, he spent a year traveling 60,000 miles across four continents and talked to scientists, philosophers, inventors, politicians and other thought leaders around the world, looking for an antidote to the dystopian visions for the technology-driven future of humanity so pervasive in today’s culture. He synthesized these fascinating insights in An Optimist’s Tour of the Future — an illuminating and refreshingly hopeful guide to our shared tomorrow.

6. Live Now

When illustrator  Eric Smith was diagnosed with three different types of cancer, he decided to start a collaborative art project inviting people to live in the moment through beautiful, poetic, earnest artwork that celebrates life. This season, the project was published as a book, the candidly titled Live Now: Artful Messages of Hope, Happiness & Healing — an absolute treasure of Carpe Diem gold, also part of our 2011 Summer Reading List, full of stunning illustration and design reminding us of the simple joys available to us, should we choose to turn a deaf ear to our chronic cynicism.

7. The Tao of Pooh

More than a universally beloved children’s classic, Winnie-the-Pooh is also of the most essential children’s books brimming with wisdom for adults. In 1982, Benjamin Hoff  synthesized that wisdom with a spin, drawing an allegorical parallel between A. A. Milne’s classic and the Eastern philosophy of Taoism. The Tao of Pooh uses Pooh and his friends to explain the basic principles of Taoism: compassion, moderation and humility. Simple, delightful and wonderfully written, it remains a timeless invitation to a life of quiet happiness, even amidst the relentlessly demanding reality and superficial preoccupations of Western culture.

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Eco Trends 2012

Monday, April 2nd, 2012

We recently had the pleasure of diving deep into the world of eco-friendly and sustainability with one of our partners. In doing so we had the opportunity to complete immerse ourselves in the key trends and traits of all things ‘green’. We wanted to share a few tidbits as food for thought when approaching sustainability platforms and eco-friendly strategies for your brands.

ECO -ESSENTIAL

While eco-concerns will remain a lifestyle choice for many in the ‘West’ (often driven by eco-status), in the rest of the world (especially in rapidly developing urban environments), eco-demands are often driven by the desire for tangible benefits, and for products that can alleviate less-than perfect, if not downright dirty, conditions.

ECO -SUPERIOR

One option for brands attempting to move beyond the ECO -FOR -GRANTED mindset will be to take aim right at the heart of traditional alternatives, and deliver products or services with superior quality and design, increased durability and/or lower running costs, in order to appeal to even the most eco-skeptic, self-centered or financially-challenged consumer.

ECO -ICONIC

But don’t forget the many millions of consumers who, recession or no recession, still want to flaunt their eco-credentials. Indeed, with many mainstream consumers seemingly abandoning their green

intentions, those who stick to their eco-principles will want to signal their identities with even more iconic and desirable eco-products and services.

ECO 84

ECO + 2012 will also see ECO + products: those that don’t only seek to minimize their impact, but actually benefit the environment or their surroundings.

ECO -FOR -GRANTED

Financial fear means that, for many Western consumers, going green will take a backseat in

2012. However, don’t think as a brand you can let up, because consumers will still expect you to do the right thing in order to assuage their conscience. Indeed, for many consumers, their personal lack of action will only increase their desire for brands to clean up their act – because while individuals might not always feel they can go green themselves (too expensive, not enough time, too much hassle), they sure as hell expect big corporations to lead the way.

ECO -URBAN

As the planet becomes ever more urban, consumers will embrace creative solutions that are tailored to city life, if not improve it.

ECO -CYCOLOGY

In 2012, growing numbers of consumers will become increasingly aware of not only the financial value of their old ‘stuff’, but its material and ecological value too. This will create opportunities for brands that can collect and recycle all old purchases, especially if they can do something constructive with them.

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WestJet puts out the welcome mat

Monday, April 2nd, 2012

TBWA and WestJet have launched a campaign introducing a new way to think about airline travel. The campaign, which spans print, outdoor, radio and digital, extends a warm welcome to guests, reassuring them within the current world of airline chaos.

Inspiration for the campaign came from the fact that WestJet truly believes it needs to earn the trust and confidence of travellers one flight at a time and one simple demonstration of this is that the airline has a welcome mat at the door of every aircraft. In working closely with the WestJet team, we know that it’s not just a greeting to them. It is an expression of their deep commitment to a different way of doing things and so the campaign platform of ‘It’s not business as usual’ was born.
“Not business as usual” demonstrates the core of the WestJet service philosophy. It’s not business as usual for an airline to be owned by more than 80 per cent of its eligible employees. It’s not business as usual to call your customers guests, or reward your guests with real dollars they can actually use in a rewards program they can actually understand.

A great campaign, and a great airline putting people first. Now that’s something to be proud of.

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Women of the world

Monday, April 2nd, 2012

On March 8 women around the world celebrated International Women’s Day. In some countries it was an opportunity to simply show respect and appreciation of women, in others the focus was on women’s economic, political or social achievements, and in yet more the conversation centered around the continuing struggle for gender equality.

To recognize the day, we found a few articles that we thought were especially noteworthy:

• A “peek at today’s women and the marketers that understand them” is provided in the article “How to talk to Women.” Read more
• There’s a discussion of the role of woman as advertising provocateur in “Blonde Ambition.” Read more
• There are profiles of three female consumer segments being actively chased by brands…

The Alpha Goddess
The Indie Woman
The Mom Achiever

For the series, click here

Separately, in a brief post in their recently launched Trends and Tonic blog, global consultancy The Futures Company asks the question “Women’s employment: necessity, choice or luxury?” Women’s attitudes and ability to work are influenced by social and financial currents and the piece argues that we need to rethink how we market to them.” Read more

Meanwhile, consulting firm McKinsey & Company has released their latest Women Matter research, looking at women in the global workplace. Their research continues to argue for increasing the number of women in senior management roles. In fact, McKinsey has shown there is a link between corporate performance and the proportion of women on executive committees. This year’s report Making the Breakthrough (03/12, 32 pages, pdf, 492k) looks at the diversity practices of over 200 European companies.

• Find the report here
• Check out some of the previous Women Matter content here

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Nissan Virtual Showroom

Thursday, December 22nd, 2011

Just in time for the holidays we are so proud to showcase our new Nissan Virtual Showroom!

This interactive site lets you explore various Nissan products, and learn about our innovative technologies and sophisticated designs. The showroom not only let’s you learn about our Nissan products, but is also entertaining and fun to watch.

Please click on the link below to explore!

http://www.youtube.com/user/nissancanada

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