Most of us, whether we are accountants, lawyers or creative professionals, need an outlet, which inspires our creativity. For me it has always been writing. For others art, design, gardening, cooking and sewing are popular ways to tap into the right brain. Regardless of who you are or what you do for a living, creativity is paramount to a well-balanced and happy life. Furthermore, lack thereof has been linked to depression and anxiety.

So how do you find yours if you haven’t already? Some of the best resources today are online. Without committing to any one thing in particular, browse different sites and see what tickles your fancy. Then, if you find something that you’ve always wanted to try, take a class! A group environment is a great way to get motivated and stay inspired. Finally, don’t be shy – there’s no limit to how many hobbies you can explore. So try, try again!

Finally, when you do find something you love, share it! It wasn’t until I had the privilege of blogging for Motor that writing became so important to me. It is amazing the amount of gratification a simple post brings.

Share with us, what is your creative outlet?

As marketers, our clients are ALWAYS right…  Or are they?  They tell us who they are, what they do and why they do it better.  We take that message and develop a campaign to strengthen their brand and deliver said message to their target audience.  But what if they don’t buy what we’re selling?  In other words, what happens when you have an amazing creative concept and the client sends it packing?!

First and foremost, don’t lose heart.  As previously discussed, American Beauty is in the eye of the beholder…  Art, like the artists themselves, is created by experience and circumstance.  That is what makes it so unique and why different styles of art appeal to different audiences.  Furthermore, it is our  job to present our clients with options so they have choices.  As consumers we have endless options and our decisions vary as widely as the product choices themselves.  It isn’t to say one is necessarily wrong, perhaps there is simply more than meets the eye.  Typically, as in big corporations, there is also a trickle down effect.  If someone at the top level is disapproving, even the savviest of campaigns won’t stand a chance.

So make sure you’re listening to your client, learning from them and leaving without questions.  As you develop a deeper relationship your visions will align more closely and the creative will soon follow.  Finally, reassess the client’s strategy and ensure everything is copacetic.

What do you think, is the client always right?

With Earth Week upon us and Earth Day just a few days away, green is everywhere! And companies are leveraging their conscience to get your attention. The idea is not new, however, since the release of ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ and the escalating debate over global warming, our green initiative is growing – and green marketing is making it all possible.

So what is green marketing? By definition, it is the marketing of products that are presumed to be environmentally safe. From LED light bulbs to hybrid cars, a campaign exists to promote the features and benefits of these greener gadgets. What sets ecological marketing apart is the added social responsibility component. Buying green is actually benefiting the consumer AND the environment. So what’s the catch? The rules are a little fast and loose when it comes to the regulations on “green” and cost is sometimes a prohibitive factor, but becoming a legitimate, environmentally friendly products or services provider is certainly a win-win strategy for the future.

Things to consider when greening your campaign:

• Target Market – would your consumers find value in a greener product?
• ROI – is going green affordable and/or profitable for your offering?
• Sustainability – is a green campaign sustainable for your company?

Happy Earth Week!

Lady Gaga's Meat Dress

The word ‘different’ has somewhat of a derogatory undertone. By definition, it means, “not the same as another or each other; unlike in nature, form, or quality” and “distinct; separate.” In school, being different meant you stood out and were, therefore, a target of endless mockery and bullying (unfortunately, this seems to be more of a problem today than ever.) But forget what you think you know because in marketing, that IS the whole idea… And it’s called product differentiation.

The concept of differentiation is pointing up what it is about your product or service that sets it apart from the masses. With so much competition in every industry, it is important to figure out why you are unique, OWN it and SELL it. What are you offering that is so special? If you can’t answer this question, you better take a step back and re-examine your offering. Another way to gain valuable insight is by administering a brand perception study, whereby a survey is used to analyze the perception of your product in the marketplace. Here are a few common examples of differentiation points:

• Price
• Quality
• Features/Function
• Availability

And countless others remain. Once you’ve determined your point(s) of differentiation, select the target audience to which that distinction appeals. For example, if cost is your differentiator, target groups who value saving. If it’s quality, seek out a selection with more disposable income that value high-end items. It is important to understand your product delineation first and then target your market, rather than the other way around. If you select the wrong group, you will likely waste valuable time and resources with little to no ROI.

I like to use the example of the “Pop Princesses” Brittany, Christina, Ke$sha, Lady Gaga… And, of course, the Queen herself… Madonna. Industries unto themselves, they’ve had to find something that differentiates them. Whether it’s noticeable to the layman or not, there IS something unique about each one of them … Be it Brittany’s media stunts, Gaga’s meat dress or Madonna’s constant reinvention of herself; they’ve found a way of appealing their brand to a certain audience… all the way to the bank.

What sets YOU apart?

We promised you Traditional Marketing Is NOT Dead; furthermore, the fusion of traditional advertising and social media into one integrated or hybrid marketing campaign, is the key to success.  One company doing just that (and doing it extremely well) according to this NY TImes article, is Chobani Greek Yogurt.  In the booming Greek yogurt business, Chobani is already #1 in sales; in fact, sales are up 225.9 % from the same period a year ago and nearly double that of their closest competitor, Fage.

So how did Chobani get where they are today? By using the consumers they’ve gained via social media in their traditional advertising of course! According to Peter McGuiness, chairman and chief executive of Gotham – the company responsible for the ad campaign, “We did not want a ‘corporate-out’ campaign, we wanted a ‘consumer-up’ campaign, to tap into and extend the ‘Chobani love’ that is rapidly spreading across the country.”  By advertising their tweeps on billboards and TV ads, as well as their website, Chobani makes “spreading the love” easy.

Personally, I love this campaign almost as much as I love Greek yogurt (though, admittedly I was a YoGreek fan until recently;-)  The price tag on this campaign is a hefty $13 million but with Greek culture popping up on grocery shelves across the nation, I have a feeling it’s a small price to pay!

What do you think about Chobani’s blend?

Do you ever wonder why you’re thirsty for a Coke after watching American Idol? Or suddenly have a hankering for an Oreo during a Friends rerun? This is the power of product placement; popular shows which draw thousands of viewers promote goods as part of the plot…  Notice as your favorite characters talk on iPhones, drive Fords or email from HP laptops. Coincidence?! I think not…

Also known as embedded marketing, this tactic became popular in the 1980’s. With the rise of DVRs and demise of commercials, marketers rely now more than ever on product placement as a form of creative advertising. In fact, 90% of people with digital video recorders skip TV ads altogether.  Most commonly placed products are automobiles, consumer electronics, computers, and tobacco. The queen of product placement herself, Ms. Carrie Bradshaw of the HBO series Sex and the City, touted almost every one of these categories and single-handedly increased Jimmy Choo shoe sales for the duration of the series.  Although, the series itself, as well as Apple, are rumored to have not accepted payment for placing certain products.

Its effectiveness is often assumed as the quantification methods used to track brand integrations are variable; however, it stands to reason products placed strategically in popular prime time series are likely exposed directly to their target audience.  So next time you turn on the big game, curl up for movie night or tune in to your favorite sitcom – notice what sports drink the players guzzle, what getaway car the villain drives and what cereal the family has for breakfast.  It may surprise you that they all have a brand name.

What are your thoughts on product placement?

As children, we’re given the freedom to create whatever we want – we can make a box a spaceship or turn a blank piece of paper into a work of art. We didn’t have the boundaries of society, telling us that we need to follow rules or that being unique isn’t okay. “In the past, researchers thought of creativity as the ability to generate lots of new ideas. But in recent years, experts have begun assigning equal importance to learning how to pick the best ideas and solve specific problems, often by working in teams”. (WSJ)

Based on this research, it is clear that if you allow people to be more creative in the office – they will be more productive, create better ideas and come up with better solutions to problems.

Do you allow for creativity? How?

If you’re looking for a war game – from World War II through the modern era, it is hard to beat the graphics or popularity of the Call of Duty franchise. Originally created for PC, it is now offered across almost every platform, including most handhelds.

Call of Duty (COD) Live pits players from all over the world against each other in teams – with the goal being to destroy the players on the other team. When playing, you can hear the voices of your team-mates and see the Live handles of those you’re playing against. Talk to anyone who has played COD Live and the first thing they talk about is the N00b’s, 13 year old boys and middle-aged women that can school them and the fact that sometimes, you just might be playing with someone famous. Live play video games have bridged the gap between demographics in a way that very few things can. Call of Duty obviously understands this – and is capitalizing on it. Their new campaign has taken the voices and turned it visual – placing real people (and a couple famous faces) into the call of duty world to “act out” playing the game. No matter your personal opinion on war games this ad captures the reality of the COD Live game world brilliantly.

*Personally, my favorite moment is the concierge answering the phone while hiding behind a cement wall.

With the fourth season of “Mad Men” wrapping up recently (and having just jumped on the band wagon myself…) I felt compelled to comment on what can only be described as a television phenomenon. One so dramatic in fact – they’re now designing suits to mirror it! Welcome back to the 1960’s, where drinking and smoking in the office were as dignified as the executives themselves. “Mad Men” is not only defining an era but an industry as well. This AMC drama has captured its audience with intensity, and then leveraged it into the marketplace.

The show seems to be spawning a whole new culture in advertising – even the commercials aired during the show are set in the same time period to keep watchers engaged (another phenomenon in advertising altogether…) But no one seems to be making the mark quite like “Mad Men.” A recent shopping trip revealed the “Mad Men Edition,” a moderately priced suit by Brooks Brothers. The ensemble boasts a sharkskin fabric, 2-button jacket with narrow lapels, hacking pockets and side vents.

With retro hair and make-up making a comeback as well, I can only presume “Mad Men” had something (if not everything) to do with this throwback trend; creating a cult-like following, which marketers have quickly caught on and leveraged to their benefit.

Where else have you seen “Mad Men’s” influence? What other television shows have impacted the marketplace in such a way?

Multitaskers rejoice! You can email, facebook, tweet, text, and blog all while talking on the phone and driving… OK, so hopefully by now you don’t ACTUALLY drive while doing any of those things (let’s not forget the fate of Heidi Montag’s plastic surgeon…) but in this digital age, there’s nothing you CAN’T do – unless you choose not to. Which is the topic of a recent LA Times article about a book called “Super Sad True Love Story” by Gary Shteyngart. It poses this question:  Is the creative stream of consciousness being adversely affected by our affinity for technology?

The author purchased an iPhone in order to research this novel and quickly became addicted (or perhaps you’re more familiar with the ‘crackberry’….) He actually had to set “quiet time” aside so as not to be distracted from his thoughts. As any smart phone user will tell you, it becomes like an appendage – Who’s on Facebook? What’s the score of the Chargers game? Where is “The Social Network” playing? – And all at the touch of a button. But is this REALLY a good thing? Or have we taken technology too far?

Personally, I’m all for it. Tweet, text, blog – whatever grinds your gears but there’s a time and a place, not to mention a limit to the amount of bytes and bits our brains can and should process. In our all-tech, all-the-time society, we need to remember the creative process requires our undivided attention. Having distractions is a good way to break up the monotony but when you become so distracted you can’t focus on the task at hand – it might be time to set up the sleep-timer on your computer. So grab a friend and enjoy a meal (phone-free.) Yes you, you can do it!! Put down the Droid and step away from the Mac – but bbm me later!

Digital distractions… Friend or foe?