… or a nice little interview from FOX29

After two separate tendon tears a number of years ago, I’ve learned that my Achilles Heel is, in fact, my Achilles Heel. As vulnerable as that makes the sufferer, it made me think that a business can be just as vulnerable. I have spent hours looking at my own business, trying to decide if it too has an Achilles Heel. Knowledge of software or process management, focus on details, or creative problem solving can all be a challenge for a creative business. But, in my case, it seems to be self-promotion. It’s a classic example of the shoemaker’s shoeless kids.

I enjoy the creative process and developing graphic marketing for our clients. It’s the one-on-one dialog that occurs when our two businesses work together. It’s seeing the result, and feeling the pride of a well conceived and well crafted promotion. Funny, I just don’t get the same satisfaction out of blowing my own horn. Sure, it’s necessary and, yes, I do send out periodic newsletters and attend the occasional networking event. But as a creative person, I feel the most fulfilled by… creating.

So, I particularly enjoyed receiving a phone call from FOX29 News asking to interview me about the logo I created for the World Meeting of Families (something I wrote about in a previous issue of Note from the Point). In fact, the Fox News crew will be here in a few hours to do that interview. It’s even inspired me to straighten up the office a little. Because it’s not every day this shoemaker gets to do his self-promotion on television, I think it’s shaping up to be a pretty good day.

The interview was aired as part of a larger story on September 20th 2014, and is available on their web site.

It’s always a challenge to deliver content on a web site. If it requires too many clicks, the viewer many get tired and give up. But since people have different interests, different needs, and different amounts of available time, it’s important to let them travel through the content at their own speed and direction.

The Axis Visual web site has been designed and built to allow viewers to follow their own interests at their own pace. But, for those of our viewers with only a few minutes for your coffee break, we’ve added a Overview feature to our web site. Just click and sit back – we’ll do the rest.

By the way, for the techno-geeks among us, our Quick View was built in html 5. It has some Adobe Flash qualities, but since the Apple iPhone and iPad don’t run Flash, it’s been quickly taking a back seat to html 5. Another little fun animation we recently created can be found on the web site (and logo) we designed for Doylestown Marketing Group. Crazy Fish Design in Doylestown built the site.

As a business owner I assume that everyone knows everything we offer. Of course, everyone knows that we do great advertising and distinctive corporate identity, and that we develop cool (and effective) web sites and design captivating presentations. Or do they? This is the mistake most businesses make. They assume that their audience knows as much about their business as they do. So on that topic, let me throw out a few interesting tidbits that might be worth keeping in the back of your mind. Aside from all the more common marketing (tactics and strategy) that we do, here are some that many people might easily forget about when they think about getting a message out to their target audience.

Hardbound Books – You don’t need to produce a high quantity anymore. Books can now be economically produced on demand, even one at a time. A single book can be given as a commemorative gift or printed in a low quantity for a small group of VIPs.

Prezi Presentations – It’s a little like PowerPoint, but with an attitude. With Prezi the viewer moves all around graphics and zooms in and out, making it a unique and intriguing way to deliver information (on the Prezi web site, as a separate file or, imbedded in your own site). Take a look.

HTML 5 Animations – Not quite as robust as Adobe’s Flash but catching on quickly to deliver a more animated web experience. These can be dropped into an existing web page and, best of all, they can be viewed on Apple’s iDevices (unlike Flash). Here’s a little sample of one of ours.

Direct Mail – There are sure to be a few snickers out there at the mention of direct mail – “Oh, that is sooo ‘90s!” But with the explosion of SPAM, people are developing a shorter and shorter attention span with email marketing. Personally, I still think email marketing has a lot of value. Never underestimate the power of a piece of well-designed mail. You don’t need a computer screen to read it and you can actually hold it in your hand. How’s that for interactive? We recently saw this from IKEA. Take a look

Lenticular Holograms – As kids, we used to call them “wiggle pictures.” You know, those plastic ribbed images that change when you look at them from different angles? Usually on the expensive side, this attention-grabbing medium has dropped in price considerably over the past few years to the point where it’s now quite affordable to make these fun lenticular holograms. They offer a changing view or multiple messages on a single surface.

QR Codes – These odd Lego-looking squares of black-and-white camouflage are printed on just about everything these days. Your smartphone reads them and then connects you to a specific website – often, a custom page. When you use a QR code, it can instantly connect a viewer to specific content linked to that code. The QR code can appear on an ad, a package, even a vehicle or a sign. Integrated with a good concept and message, a QR code can be a big benefit to a host of promotional content.

Variable Printing – Although this “personalized” approach has been available for a while, you might not think of it right away. Everything from specific names, copy and images can be custom-fit and personalized to a single recipient on your mailing list. And when combined with a QR code or personalized URL (purl) visual marketing can happen one-to-one.

Creativity – We saved the best for last. Sometimes it’s easy to focus on the tactic rather than the strategy in marketing communications. After all, tactics are more tangible. But the medium really isn’t the message. It’s just a tool. The real – and oftentimes unsung – hero of a successful marketing campaign is the creative strategy. A solid concept and distinctive design drives every effective marketing communications tactic. And that’s what we’re here for.