Legendary Branding

Let the day begin. #BeLegendary

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 07:24:08 -0800

Black Sheep Mattress Company - Website (A bit late but meh)

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:23:00 -0800

Back in the summer (or was it late fall?) of last year we launched a super sexy website for Black Sheep Mattress Company.

Designer/Developer: Chris Pecora
Strategy and PM: David Wald
Copy Writing: Christian Schmidt, Chris Bayer, David Wald
Development: The site utilizes a Wordpress backend, single-page design and Tumblr-integrated blog platform. Neat hey? Check it out:

See the full gallery on Posterous

View the site: http://blacksheepmattress.com/

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UEnd:Poverty Pop Up Gift Shops

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:17:00 -0800

UEnd:Poverty is a great organization making it ridiculously simple for people to give a gift that ends poverty. Because Christmas is one of their busiest seasons, we wanted to make it ever more simple for people to give; especially those on the go.

UEnd partnered with eight Calgary coffee shops from December 1st - 23rd, and set up a small "gift shop" attended by a cheery volunteer who could give information about the org, sell $5 and $20 physical gifts cards as well as sell digital ecards via laptop. UEnd received great exposure and was able to engage with hundreds of customers. Best of all, it was a refreshing take on public interaction that was non-intrusive and inviting.

UEnd built up the campaign via email blasts and social media. They shared random Pop up Gift Shop locations on their blog, Facebook and via Twitter. Retail partners were happy to share on their social media channels. Ample signage out front invited passersby to come inside for a warm cup of Joe and an opportunity to "gift different."

Overall, the response was extraordinary. Awareness about UEnd skyrocketed and total gift card sales went up over previous years. UEnd received coverage in Metro newspaper and were the talk of the non-profit "town".

See the full gallery on Posterous

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Bucars Magazine

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:12:00 -0800

In past years Bucars RV Centre published a pretty standard brochure. This year, we switched it up a bit by publishing a magazine with some brochure elements in it.

Bucars 2012 Magazine
8.5 x 11 landscape (finished size)
Cougar 100 lb cover + 100 lb text
Saddle stitched
Designer: Chris Pecora
Writers: David Wald, Joel Klettke
Printer: McAra Printing
Agency: Legendary Branding

See the full gallery on Posterous

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Words we should all remember

Wed, 05 Oct 2011 18:38:00 -0700

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

- Steve Jobs

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Blockbuster Canada says "The End," Netflix raises prices, Youtube offers video rentals in Canada

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 13:21:00 -0700

Blockbuster calls it quits for their remaining stores in Canada, Netflix increases it's rental rates in the US from $9.99 to $15.98 (wowzers), but remains the same $7.99 in Canada, and Youtube makes streaming video rental available in Canada for about $4.99 per rental.

Wow. How did they orchestrate THAT! Don't see alignment of the stars like that very often. So how are brands to capitalize on these big changes in the video rental industry? Here are a few things you can do:

1) If you run a blog or social feed, post something about it and how it affects your business or customers. Maybe you install home theatre systems, this would be a perfect up-sell. Computer shops should be pushing new computer sales to better stream these vids on. Make sense?

2) Get into bed with Netflix for its low cost (in Canada), and offer a promo for your customers. Dealerships! Say so long to "free gas" promos. Let's do "Free movie" promos instead.

3) If you're brand isn't already on YouTube, you might want to consider it. Youtube is the third largest search engine behind Google and Yahoo. (a bit unrelated to movies, but whatevs)

4) Brands need to be looking into advertising on streaming video. Know a good way to imbed geo-located ads? Brilliant. Are we going to see intelligent ads that know where we've browsed, bought, or "liked"? I sure hope so. If you're a brand and the movie crowd is your thing, better get on this.

5) Smaller market retailers can get in on the Blockbuster bust by buying all their old DVD's at sick-low prices. My parents owned a little store in an RV Resort and these rented like hotcakes. People still rent, just on a smaller scale.

Anything else? Care to share?

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#FoodTrucks killing it in #yyc. Huge crowds. Long lines. Great buzz.

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 13:06:31 -0700

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1.3 million photos per day...

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 06:24:21 -0700

According to this article anyway (http://techcrunch.com/2011/08/03/instagram-150-million/). That's a lot. And while most of the over 5 million users are individuals, I don't see a reason why brands can't get in on this too. In fact, I've already seen a few brands jumping on the Instagram bandwagon and it's paying off. Why? Well, it's just another way customers see your brand in a more personal light. It's another touch point. So how can brands leverage Instagram to help strengthen their brand experience? A few ways:

1) Use the iPhone app to take photos of your customers, products and retail space. Maybe it's for a special, promo or just an every day occasion.
2) Use your account to follow like-minded users that you can comment on and like their photos.
3) Use the cool filter options to edit your pics before using them on other social sites like Facebook and Twitter or even in campaigns
4) Take pics of things you're not selling, like your dog or things around your city. Why not!

Cheers,
David

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Legendary

Sun, 10 Jul 2011 15:36:09 -0700

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Writing a great blog post

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 12:45:00 -0700

There are 552 million results for writing a great blog post. But a few resources that I adore, and working on a current project, led me to write this one on how I like to see blog posts written. I'm by far not a professional writer, but I have been blogging for a while and have observed a few things that seem to work well. Best part of all this, a great blog post is dead simple.

1) A great headline is a must. Think like a journalist.

2) Length is key. I've always found reading 50 - 250 word posts to be enjoyable. 250 - 500 to be more work but worth it if written really well. If you post pithy oneliners, your posts will be one line. If you are into social genetics of the male gorilla species, they might be a bit longer.

3) Bullet points always work well. Or lists.

4) Photos are sexy. I try to include one photo in every post. It makes it look good in Facebook and most blog templates look better with photos.

5) Imbed links. For instance, if you're talking about an inspiring daddy blog that you know of, who has a super cute kid, imbed a link to it.

6) If you're talking about someon in the post, link to them.

7) For businesses, include an action item with a link. A question that people can answer in the comments area works great too.

8) Try ending with a salutaion. It's friendly.

Do you have any other tips for a great blog post? Add them here.

Cheers!

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Canada's Bold, Leafy Rebranding Of Its Olympic Team | Co.Design

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 08:00:00 -0700

via fastcodesign.com

Looking good!

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Dedication to craft creates legendary brands

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 06:53:00 -0700

A dedication to ones craft, preciseness, accuracy, consistency, never swaying from the true roots of your brand... all contribute to creating legendary brands.

CH Video: Plymouth Gin from Cool Hunting on Vimeo.

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Think legendary. Act legendary. entranceway to @MoMa, NYC

Mon, 23 May 2011 19:40:52 -0700

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Acting fast

Mon, 09 May 2011 12:42:00 -0700

"Who has the luxury of long-term planning when technology is leapfrogging, conventional marketing tactics are tanking and the only thing consumers seem to be confident about is Twitter, Foursquare and Facebook?"
- Bob Lord, CEO Razorfish – 2010 Outlook Report (May 24, 2010)

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Meet Yelp... the Tripadvisor for, well, everything else

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 19:25:00 -0700

I was lucky enough to attend a meet up last night called Third Tuesday where Yelp Calgary's Community Manager, Wendy Peters, spoke about a day in the live of a Community Manager. While it was a fine talk and we learned much about what goes on behind the scenes in organizing events for foodies, chatting with Yelpers, and helping restaurants work the crowd, by the end I was more interested in why Yelp hadn't (or hasn't) caught on sooner.

What can arguably be called the Tripadvisor for everything not travel related, Yelp is our single go-to source for customer reviews of more than just restaurants – one has the ability to review other business types including retail, spas, pets services, auto services, real estate, media and, well, even travel services. It really covers the full gamut of nearly every business type available to be talked about.

So why is it that, as brand managers, Yelp isn't more prevalently included in our Community Management plans? Think about that. What's the top three things on nearly every brand's social media list? I can name them: Facebook, Twitter and Youtube. But why not Yelp? I mean, here is a place with over 50 million visitors, 17 million reviews (83% of reviews are 3 star or more), a great resource for where to get your laptop fixed, and a place to debate about... bacon? Yes. Bacon. The weekly newsletters are brilliant. The site is fun and super simple to use. And it provides a place, like Twitter, for businesses to make amends with bad reviews (as they should).

Yelp, aside from Facebook, is the ultimate community for businesses. Really, it's like, on Yelp, we're all hanging out at the pub on a Thursday evening. Customers chatting with their friends about their favourite eats, best place to go for a tune up or hair cut, and why (referrals). All this with the ability for a business owner to chime in at any time and and offer their two cents, on the whole thing (engagement). Seems pretty "Community" to me.

So how can businesses take advantage of Yelp? Five ways:

1) As Wendy mentioned last night, businesses should set up their corporate account (you can do that here for Canada and here for the US), and place a "we're on Yelp" button on their website to encourage reviews.

2) Yelpers can create UYE (Unofficial Yelp Events) to promote their events and activities. This is perfect for people volunteering for organizations or causes or who just want to meet really cool people.

3) Businesses can hold Yelp Elite Squad events where Yelp Community Managers and you throw huge parties at your establishment, which is essentially like a free "remote" (are radio stations even doing these still?), but are way more social. Consult with your local Yelp Community Manager for details.

4) Like Facebook and Twitter, Yelp allows businesses to connect with reviewers either on a private or public level. (And if the Redwater Rustic Grille was at all receptive of this, they would have responded to my very blunt review of an experience I had there a little while back. Too late.)

5) Yelp is yet another media to add to your Community Management mix, giving you and your business an even deeper connection with the people who are talking about your products, service or, even better, your bacon.

Happy Yelping.

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Is it me, or does every new app site have an intro video on their homepage?

Fri, 15 Apr 2011 07:23:28 -0700

Just sayin.

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Thursday sharesies | Wicked Bikes, Tweet like a Pro & PlayBook Review

Thu, 14 Apr 2011 08:02:00 -0700

Bertelli Biciclette - Minimalist bikes for the urban warrior

The PR pro's Guide to Twitter via Mashable.com

Review of the Blackberry PlayBook via Wired.com (poor Blackberry)

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Great packaging idea from East 9th Brewing Co.

Wed, 13 Apr 2011 07:22:00 -0700

A great packaging idea is often all you need to get noticed. Now that's not to say you don't need a great product offering – they're both important. But great packaging certainly helps. So when I came across the packaging idea by East 9th Brewing Company in NYC, I thought it was a brilliant idea. They've wrapped their individual bottles of beer in brown paper, replicating the often stigmatized look of a squatter and their bottle of whatever it is they've chosen that day.

I think this is clever in a few ways: 1) It definitely helps the product stand out in a cluttered marketplace 2) It's a great play on a social stigma without being insensitive 3) It's a great buzz builder and PR tool that's going to create some noise and, probably, win an award or two.

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TEDxYYC

Thu, 07 Apr 2011 19:43:00 -0700

Went to this. It was awesome. More to come...

Photo credit: TEDxStalman

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How to Put Together an Effective Startup Press Kit

Thu, 07 Apr 2011 08:29:00 -0700

Press kits are SO simple to do and yet SO many start ups push it aside as not important. Sure, your product is very important and getting it perfect is key. But ensuring you have the proper tools at the ready could make your start up really shine when the time comes.

Here is a quick low-down of a super simple start up PR kit I found and reposted from Techvibes.com...

The following is a guest post from Erin Bury and it was published earlier today on her blog.

Last week my friend Alyssa Richard stopped by the Sprouter office to drop off a press kit for her new startup, RateHub.ca, a mortgage rate comparison website. I knew a lot about RateHub already since she had presented the company at a Sprout Up event and we’d gone for coffee several times before, but my knowledge barely scratched the surface of what the press kit detailed. It reminded me that a great press kit is so integral for a startup at launch - it can make or break whether media, key people in your industry and your consumers get the full story about what you do.

Based on my experiences building a media kit for Sprouter, and from the many times I’ve researched startup press pages, here is my advice for building a press kit for your small business.

What it accomplishes

Gives journalists/bloggers material to use when they’re writing about you

Makes people more likely to talk about your startup because they’re informed

Makes it more likely that a journalist will include multimedia (photos/video) in their coverage

Gives people an easy, central place to pull information from instead of having to constantly e-mail your marketing person

What it should include

Online

Everyone should have a press kit they can e-mail out to journalists, bloggers or conference organizers at the drop of a hat. But having it on your hard drive isn’t enough - make it accessible on your press or about us page, and allow people to download a .zip file. Here’s what your press kit should include:

Company logos in different formats (.jpg, .eps, etc)

A demo video (if you have one - or if the file is too large a link to the video in your fact sheet)

Screenshots of your site

Team bios

Your about us/how it works section, including contact information

A release/one-pager about the launch (if you’re launching or debuting new features)

A “Startup 101” fact sheet - who you are, FAQ, where you’re based, and any other pertinent information. You can combine this with your about us/how it works if you want

Headshots for any company executives/spokespeople

Optional/nice-to-have: key features descriptions and customer testomonials

Hard Copy

Alyssa went above and beyond just having a press kit on her website, and instead dropped off a version of her kit in person. But she didn’t just drop off a few pages of information - she had a colour-coded folder with screenshots, fact sheets and her business card, as well as hand-crafted mini house with the Sprouter logo on it, and a tag with my name on it. It’s clear that Alyssa went to a ton of effort to make sure people knew she cares about them individually, and they’re not just a name on an influencer list. If you’re planning to drop off media kits in person here’s my advice:

Make sure you have an existing relationship with the person or ask them if it’s okay if you drop by. No one likes uninvited visitors, especially ones they don’t know

Package it all together. It’s easy to have an online media kit because it’s all in one folder - the same idea applies for hard copy media kits. Keep all the paper info in a folder, and include any business cards or additional material. This makes it easier for people to keep track of your information instead of sending it all to the recycle bin

Find a way to stand out. Journalists get pitched every minute of every day, and bloggers are increasingly receiving numerous pitches from startups and PR agencies. Do what Alyssa did - colour-code your kit, and find a way to be unique - in her case it was a hand-crafted Sprouter house that reflects what the company does, and now stands on display on my desk

Personalize. Don’t write “To whom it may concern” on your intro letter, or have a generic press kit that goes to everybody. Find a way to personalize the pitch - include their name on all documents and include a nametag on any items. Make sure the recipient knows why you think they’re important and should be receiving it.

Hopefully this helps you build an effective press kit for your startup. Remember - journalists and bloggers can’t write about you if they can’t find the information. Make it accessible, and have fun with it. Alyssa did, and it paid off - I spent an hour on her site that evening going through the features, and will be using it when I buy my first home.

via techvibes.com

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