What can I say except I’m so excited about the latest advancements in printing and it is now part of the conversation in promotion and marketing strategies with clients. Everybody was talking about how books would disappear and e-books and apps for the kindle fire, iphone and ipad were the way of the future.
In the last few weeks I have seen an amazing book called, Safari by Dan Kainen (Author), Carol Kaufmann (Author) which is a Photicular Book. You have to see it to believe it. Yes we’ve seen pop-up books before and they are always fabulously constructed, but this uses a new technique of strips of film and when you turn a page the image animates like film. Quite astounding!
Then the conversation a week ago was 3D printing and in a meeting with clients this week we discussed how we could use this in producing samples (which would otherwise be perishable in the sun) as well as ideas for window displays.
We also discussed creating an outdoor sign for brand visibility using LED lighting and this is the focus of the convention, Lightfair, in Philadelphia.
So, investigate all these new breakthrough ideas and think about how you can implement them into your own business.
Last night I was watching “Justified,” the TV series with star Timothy Olyphant, like I do most tuesday evenings. Most likely the advertising agency for this program thinks the audience is 99% male and in researching on Mediawiki, I discovered I was right.
From Mediawiki:“FX’s covets men in the 18-49 age range as their target audience. Their promotional techniques and the subject matter in their shows appeal directly to this demographic. FX features a late-night programming block called Fully Baked. It runs Louie, Archer, and other original comedy series. The vulgar humor intertwines pop culture references, drugs and sexual innuendos that appeal to an immature, hip audience. As the title implies, the humor especially suits those who smoke pot. The Fully Baked programming block seems to say, “Up late? High? Why not watch some FX comedy? It’s just what you need when you’re baked.” FX advertises Coors Light, a popular beer for inexperienced and underage drinkers, as well as Call of Duty, an obsession of male youth culture. FX also found airing blockbuster films attracts their desired target audience.”
Now you may be wondering what it is that I like about the show, if it’s supposed to be for men? Well, it’s a combination of a love for the old westerns, which I watched with my brother and dad years ago and more recently was a huge fan of the HBO series Deadwood which also starred Olyphant as a lawman.
So, since I am not in their target audience, I found it interesting to watch the commercials they broadcast. I wasn’t interested in what they were selling at all. Should they have thought about whether or not there were others outside of their target market that they should be selling to. No, you should always stay true to exactly who you are trying to reach.
This brings me to a joint venture I’m working on with Catrice M. Jackson, Master Brand Game Plan. This has been an eye opening adventure. We have created an exclusive playbook and our target market to teach our 6 classes to are men who want to sell to women. We are going to give them the data we have uncovered from asking women what they want, as well as give them our best branding and marketing strategies so they can clearly send the exact right signals to get the results they want.
Learning how to advertise what someone else is specifically looking for is the key to success. This is why those commercials didn’t interest me, but did interest 99% of the other viewers, who most likely buy those products and watch those shows.
Brand Interview: Dylan Glanzer, Parties by Dylan & Company
How long has your company been in business? Please tell us a bit about your company, its mission, goals…
This is my 20th year in business! Since I have pretty much spent my entire life on the stage, making my living as a singer and performer is a dream come true. While pursuing a career in NYC, I got an audition for a job teaching a play program for really young children. It was the most natural thing in the world for me. After being approached by parents to do parties for their little ones, a business opportunity knocked on my door. Now my mission in life is to own the most sought after party entertainment in NJ for children under 5. I am training a team of employees who play guitar, sing and are great with our littlest people. I have two employees so far, and hope to be able to be booking 10 or more performers in my company by the end of next year. I provide quality, age-appropriate parties that engage young children in a positive, interactive, and FUN way! I also help moms plan a flawless event they can feel great about and so they can relax and actually enjoy their child’s special day.
Do you donate to charities? Tell us about that also and why.
I do try to donate as much as I can and plan to do more as my company grows. I believe when we give, we get back so much more. I wish I had to more to give right now, but as I grow, I am looking forward to being able to help organizations that do work to help others, especially children. I also donate about 2 parties a year to help causes or charities that come to my attention.
Tell us about your brand. Parties by Dylan & Company means happy children, life-long memories, and parents who know they chose a reliable company that can deliver what it promises. My logo shows a guitar because having a musician come to lead a children’s party adds a very exciting element. We are all about music as the basic component that ties our party hour together and keeps all the children having fun. I also add the benefit of my years of teaching experience (I have a Masters in Early Childhood Education.) so that my employees and I really know what to do to engage children under 5 and hold their attention in a positive manner.
How did you know what typeface (font) would be right for your company wordmark or logo? If your logo has an illustration, describe why that art was the right thing, animal, place, object, etc…
My logo had to have a guitar and be colorful – mainly purple, which is my signature color. I truly did not even thing about which typeface would be best.
How did you decide on the right color palette to fit your company look and feel?
Purple has to be the predominant color for me because I just feel really connected to it as a powerful and creative color.
How did you decide which type of designer to work with, or did you design your own identity and web presence?
My logo designer was a client and in graphic design. My latest web designer was recommended to me by someone in my group Children’s Music Network.
In what order did you present your company to the world? Did you start with marketing and products, or website, blog and social media?
I began with my service and bought business cards to hand out. It was mostly word of mouth and some ads in parent papers. The internet was not so big in 1992. But I did get a site up pretty quickly in my first years in business. Social media came much later and has been a great resource. I am still looking for more ways to get the word out. Definitely need to work on this! This year, I now have a blog on my site (articles), a mailing list I am always adding to at my parties, and I am looking actively for PR opps with HARO and Savor the Success and pitching out to newspapers as well.
How long after the launch of your company did you start pitching in social media?
19 years!
Did you do research or study any software, take webinars, teleclasses, before approaching any area of your marketing or web presence?
I am currently in Melissa Cassera’s Anonymous to A-List PR course, which is fabulous. I also have a business coach, Melody Stevens. I have taken several webinars and teleclasses too – including one of yours! I love to learn as much as I can!
Do you advertise locally in newspapers and/or nationally in magazines? Are they effective?
I stopped advertising in any papers, as they never worked for me. The only money I spend on ads is online. Fun New Jersey is an amazing site and gets me most of my calls (they have killer seo!), besides my site and word of mouth.
Do you advertise online using Google, Facebook or on other company sites? Are they effective?
I have done Facebook pay per click ads and gotten a few new likes. That is about it. I don’t know yet if I will try again.
Which social media site to spend the most time on and how does it help marketing your business?
Facebook is my main one since I feel I only need to post once or twice a day. I do Twitter Thursdays with Savor the Success. I need to do so much more but I am in a learning phase and plan to make a big plunge into building the company in September for a few reasons.
Do you belong to community sharing websites? Which ones and how effective are they in building your audience? What are the best features that help your business?
I am in Savor the Success and loving every minute of it. It has helped me learn and grow personally and in my company. So many resources and so little time!
When you printed your products, packaging, business cards and other print marketing did you choose an online printer or visit a local vendor?
I recently used Vistaprint for my cards and often use Staples for flyers.
Did you know anything about different types of papers, when you wanted to print your marketing materials?
Staples is pretty good about showing what they have.
Have you ever used “green” technology in printing, using FSC certified papers or recycled paper and if not, how likely are you at trying this on a next project?
I did not know and would seriously consider this!
If you sell products, are they produced in the USA or abroad?
The only products are my CDs and not sure where they are produced. Good question!!
Do you speak at events? If so tell us about that.
No. Not really sure there is a huge audience for my type of service, but you never know.
What is coming up in the year or two we should watch for?
Yup! I have a brand new awesome CD in the works! Expect it to be released in the market by the holidays!!! Also, did a sizzle reel with Michele Lange and I am dying to see how that comes out!
Is there anything you haven’t yet tackled, but will want to do soon?
Yes! The list is so long! I would love to try B-School one day, but can only do one thing at a time and I am going to be in the next 6-figure club for Savor!! Yippee!
To find out more about Dylan Glanzer and Parties by Dylan & Company, visit the links below:
This week is “Internet Week NY.” Monday through thursday there was a daily schedule of interviews, panel discussions and keynote speakers. (There are other events currently through the weekend and then Monday is the Webby Awards.) In addition it was all available via LiveStream, or you could attend with passes at the main headquarters, 82 Mercer Street in NYC. I spent most of the day there on Tuesday and watched some fantastic presentations, such as an interview with David Karr, columnist for the New York Times. On the LiveStream I watched Pete Cashmore, founder of Mashable and Shane Smith, founder and CEO of Vice. There are so many videos and interviews it’s going to keep me watching and learning for the next few weeks!
Internet Week NY - Mercer Street Flags 2012
I had entered the “Make The Stage” panel discussion competition and out of 244 entries, 7 were selected and one was my panel discussion idea, “Brand Recognition vs Killer Content.” The five of us took the stage at 4pm on Thursday, May 17. It was such a great experience and the audience was engaged with this team of experts, Miriam Cohen, Ted Rubin, Kathryn Rose and Bryn Johnson.
Some of my questions to the panel were:
When is brand recognition not enough?
Which should come first; building the brand recognition or focusing on the killer content for reputation?
Does the brand draw great writers and content, or does killer content make a brand great?
We also talked about this and how it pertains to social media:
In building a strong community social network, do people join because of the other members, or because of what it will do for them? Having someone with a strong following and brand following you and sharing your content and does joining give your brand instant clout?
Social media including Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Pinterest have made our lives very visual. We respond to imagery and video more than written content in most cases. How important is branding on social media platforms?
And we also talked blogging:
Search engines give us the ability to find links to our queries. For bloggers, does your brand matter more, or is it that killer title and content going to make someone remember where they read the answer?
Internet Week NY Panel - Miriam Cohen, Ted Rubin, Kathryn Rose, Bryn Johnson and Susan Newman (Organizer and Moderator).
Here is the video from our panel discussion. (You can also watch the presentation “Brand Recognition vs Killer Content“) at Internet Week NY.) Enjoy and please post feedback, we’d love to hear your thoughts.
So what do you think?
Is brand recognition most important? or is Content King?
