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Posts Tagged ‘Force 5’
A Force 5 Client in the News – Tobacco Free St. Joseph County
Tuesday, January 11th, 2011 by Force 5
Recently in the local news WNDU reported how the “Freedom from Smoking” program started last week. The report was based off of the Tobacco free program in St. Joseph County which is involved in helping the public stop smoking.
Tobacco Free of St. Joseph County has been a client of Force 5’s for over a year now. Force 5 recently produced a website for Tobacco Free to help communicate its mission for a smoke free lifestyle.
To learn more about the Tobacco Free program please visit KickTobacco.org.
Source: WNDU
Two examples of great local Brand Ambassadors!
Monday, September 13th, 2010 by Deb DeFreeuwAs a Certified Brand Strategist here at Force 5, I am always on the look out for brand done well and brand that needs help. Both are easy to spot. I have found two examples of wonderful brand ambassadors locally and want to share them with you.
The first example of a great brand ambassador is one of my favorite people, Andrew Snyder, Vice President, Community Development and Marketing at Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center. You can’t help but notice that Andrew is always impeccably dressed and has a quick wit. That alone does not make a brand ambassador. It goes deeper than that. While meeting with Andrew, we traveled from the lobby through the hospital to get to a conference room. Andrew said hello to EVERY person he passed along the way. Not a polite hello, but a genuine “hello, how are you?” We passed a lot of people on our way and every time it was the same. It is a small thing, but just adds to his personal brand, and the brand of the hospital. That brand is “caring.”
Most times it is the small things that bring your brand up a notch from good to great. It is how people in your organization present themselves and reflect the company brand.
The second example I have of brand done well can be found at one of my favorite places, somewhere I have visited since I was a little girl, the South Bend Farmers Market. There is a booth there called “A Dedicated Life” owned by Cara Matheis. Cara’s booth specializes in organic, vegan and gluten free foods. The booth is attractive and easy to browse, but that does not make it exceptional. What makes it exceptional is Cara herself. I stopped by her booth and talked to her about her raw bars. She was very knowledgeable and friendly. The other thing that I have always noticed about Cara is how she presents herself. There were times in August when it was very hot and there is Cara with a stylish dress, headband and big smile. Not what you would necessarily expect of a vendor at a farmers market. Always put together and looking stylish – as well as approachable. It’s these qualities that make her brand exceptional.
It’s a good reminder on how everything, from how you answer the phone to the presentation of your product on the shelf, represents your brand. Both of these stories are great examples of internal branding. The takeaway here is that your brand must be internalized before any external branding is undertaken. We have all had bad customer service encounters where the experience didn’t match the brand. Whatever your brand, make sure its internalized first—making your employees are ambassadors of your brand will always be your first step to success.
If you’d like to find ways to get your brand on track, Force 5 can help!
Reversing the Childhood Obesity Trend (is a Big Idea!)
Thursday, June 24th, 2010 by Force 5As a marketer I’m always looking for inspiration, and I’m certain most of us who work in the industry would like nothing more than to conceptually develop and execute the next big idea. Some of you might wonder what I mean – big idea seems slightly vague I assume. In this instance I liken a big idea to something that is life changing, or big enough perhaps to become a movement.
For inspiration I need not look further than my own flesh and blood – enter my 3 (“I’m almost 4 dad, then I’ll be 5”) year old son. Fortunately for my wife and I, our son is an extremely active (perhaps hyperactive) kid who likes to play outside every minute of the day. Reality dictates that he eventually head indoors to take a bath, then our greatest challenge is getting him to unwind before bed time. One tactic we execute sparingly is to reward him with 30 minutes of “cartoon time” if he comes inside with little resistance, and takes a bath and brushes his teeth in a timely matter. That’s when I began to personally experience the power of marketing and advertising, and its effectiveness when geared towards children.
My son already easily identifies with brands such as McDonald’s, Chips Ahoy and Apple Jacks. And when he sees the ads he utters the words “I want that” almost every time. As a parent, I simply laugh (at least I did at first) and within 60 seconds or less we’ve moved on to something else. It’s what transpires next – outside of the home – that was most startling. Now on any given day, when we drive by a McDonald’s, the following exchange usually occurs: [1] “Daddy I want Chicken Nuggets,” [2] Dad (most often) says “No” and [3] for the next several minutes my son’s world comes crashing down around him. This same event will also transpire in the grocery store, with the cereal and cookie aisles being most dreadful.
I understand the power of connecting with your target market emotionally. But as a marketer I’m also wondering if our industry is truly to blame (at least partially) for the prevalent childhood obesity epidemic that has emerged in communities all around our country. From what I’m hearing and reading (and there’s a lot to read), many people seem to agree.
As recent as 24 months ago the Federal Trade Commission reported that “food and beverage marketers are spending $8.4 billion less to target children as initially thought.” The FTC report went on to say “food, fast food and beverage makers spent $1.6 billion marketing to children under 17 in 2006.” Many still think this number is too high.
So – what does all of this have to do with a big idea? For starters, how do we really begin to reverse the childhood obesity trend? From what I’ve read – and I agree – one perspective gaining momentum is that the paradigm shift must start at the local level. It’s easier to affect change in neighborhoods, towns and cities, than it is in states, regions or nations. In this case, the blue print to begin the reversal of fortune for the future of our children starts with individuals in our own communities. Having said that, who in South Bend (Indiana) and/or the surrounding areas is ready to step up?
In future posts (as it’s evident I have a lot to say about this topic), I will look at barriers (the most common being cost and time), popular channels or mediums being used to affect change (like Refresh Everything or Members Project) and potential advocates (local organizations, groups or leaders) who could help lead the charge.
Have a perspective or idea relevant to this topic? If so, hit me up at jeremy@discoverforce5.com or visit discoverforce5.com to learn more about the agency I represent, and how we build communities one brand Soul at a time.
Is Your Website Customer-Centric?
Friday, May 21st, 2010 by Force 5In case you haven’t noticed the web is changing. There is a huge movement underway toward clean, simple, user friendly websites that promote productivity and, consumer interaction. The average consumer doesn’t care how creative a design team you have or, how technically advanced your development team is. They want information. Honest, peer driven information.
Whether a potential customer is at your site to buy a product, comment on your organization, read reviews, download a podcast or, read your latest blog entry, it’s your job to keep them interested and coming back. This is what customer-centric website design is all about.
So what is a customer-centric website?
Simple. A customer-centric website focuses on your customers and what they want. Today’s online consumer is not interested in your company, products or services – they are interested in themselves. A customer-centric websites is structured so the customer can easily find what they want or get answers to their questions. By focusing your website on customer benefits and, ensuring a unique user experience, you will not only increase loyalty you’ll generate the much coveted word-of-mouth advertising; both key drivers of online sales.
There are a few basic steps you can take to get started on the road to a customer-centric website
• Clearly define your product or service and how customers will benefit from it
• Make sure your contact information is never more than a click away
• Clearly organized and easily navigable site content
• Place links in consistent locations and include them on every page
• Review your content for spelling and grammar mistakes
• Allow customer feedback on products, services and the site
• Make it easy for customers to get what they want
• Ask customers for a bare minimum of information to register or sign up
• Include in-depth, well written FAQ’s
• Make it easy for a customer to get supportA successful customer-centric website is created by meeting customers’ needs better than anyone else. If you focus every aspect of your website on meeting your customers’ needs you’re much more likely to remain a preferred provider. Remember, your customer is your best source of advertising. Give them what they want and they will tell the world.
Don’t get left behind. Take the next step toward a true customer-centric website. Contact Force 5 today at 574-234-2060 or info@discoverforce5.com.
Extreme Database Makeover
Wednesday, April 28th, 2010 by Force 5Move…That…Database
Situation: Upgraded servers, so we needed to move database tables, views and stored procedures from a SQL Server 2005 machine to a SQL Server 2008 machine. We wanted to go through each table, view and stored procedure one by one in order to only move objects that are still in use. We needed a way to do that as accurately and quickly as possible.
Solution: We made use of the SQL Server Script Wizard. The Script Wizard generated the CREATE scripts for each object. We were able to either cut/paste and run the scripts we needed on the new server, or delete the scripts if we didn’t need them. This made the process seamless and straight-forward.
Details:
Accessing the Script Wizard
In SQL Server Management Studio right-click on a database. Go to Tasks > Generate Scripts… This will open up a wizard dialog box.
Using the Script Wizard
The first screen allows you to select the database you want to use. On this screen you can also fast-track to the finish by checking “Script all objects in the selected database”. This will create scripts for all Roles, Users, Schemas, Tables, Views and Stored Procedures. We won’t check that in this article, but that useful option is there if that is what you are trying to accomplish.
Choose Script Options
After you select your database and click Next you will come to an Options screen. We were able to use the default settings here. But there are some useful options to note.
- Generate scripts for dependent objects(Default: False) – Use this to ensure dependent objects are also scripted for the objects that you select
- Script Create(Default: True) - Cornerstone of this wizard. This enables creation of scripts for the objects you select.
- Script Logins(Default: False) – Generates logins for the selected database
- Script Object-Level Permissions(Default: False) – ***This is an important option*** Set this to True in order to generate the permission scripts (GRANT EXECUTE ON) if you are generating stored procedure scripts.
- Script Data(Default: False) – Set to True if you want to script out INSERT statements for all data in selected tables.
- Script Foreign Keys(Default: True) – Scripts foreign keys for tables selected
- Script Primary Keys(Default: True) – Scripts primary keys for tables selected
- Script Triggers(Default: False) – Scripts any triggers that are related to tables selected
Choose Object Types
This is where you select what object types you want to generate scripts for (Database roles, Schema, Stored procedures, Tables, Users, Views).
Following this you will be taken through screens for each object type you selected. Here is where you select the specific objects whose scripts will be generated.
Output Option
Here you can either Script to a file, Script to Clipboard or Script to a New Query Window. We scripted to a query window and that worked great.
Finished
Go to Finish and the wizard will generate the scripts that you selected.
Notes
The constraints and permission assignments are all located in the last section of the generated scripts. This is to ensure that the objects have been created before trying to assign permissions to them.
MSDN Article: How to: Generate a Script
In Conclusion
This wizard is a powerful, yet simple tool that makes data migration more manageable. Trying to do this task object by object would be very cumbersome and impractical.
If you are in need of any advice or have a data migration project that you need help with please feel free to contact us here at Force 5.
Its Springtime! – Time to dust off that Brand.
Thursday, April 22nd, 2010 by David MorganWith spring time comes spring cleaning. Dusting off the shelves, cleaning out the garage (still need to do that!…), and just a general wash down and clean up – it’s work, but it really feels good when you are all done!
Spring is a great time of year. Finally, FINALLY, the color green returns, flowers sprout, and everyone has a little more spring in their step as the sun gradually warms up the world.
So how about spring cleaning your brand? In the winter of 09, (actually all last year) many companies “hunkered down” just to make it through the recession. Amidst the layoffs and reduced sales, marketing and promotional activities also took a hit. Even though studies have shown that those who kept up their marketing activities in bad times come out of recessionary periods earlier and faster than those who didn’t –many companies just couldn’t do what they needed to do in regards to Brand building and marketing.
Now’s the time to get started.
Your brand is you life blood, it’s who you are—the soul of your company. EVERY marketing tactic, whether it’s a web site, a business card, or how you answer the phone is part of your brand.
Dusting off your Brand-
Let’s look at some basics to get you started this spring. We ask the question of our clients—Who are you, What do you do, and Why does it matter? These questions seem simple enough—but sometimes hard to answer—especially that last one.
You’ve heard the phrase “elevator speech”. That’s when someone says “Tell me about your company” when at a party, a trade show, or at lunch—or yeah, on the elevator. Do you have a concise statement that can answer all three questions? Do some work this spring on your elevator speech. The process of thinking through this is invaluable. After the elevator speech, you might be asked—“Wow, tell me more…” That’s when you might want to tell your back story…Back Story-
I really like this concept. Every Brand should have a Back Story. Basically, the premise is that every brand has a story—a story of how they got started, why they do what they do…. Brands don’t start at launch, they’ve been around awhile, and they have a story. And though a brand’s franchise is an important statement that tells us who the brand is, it doesn’t tell how the brand was born, or why it came to be. That’s why every brand needs a back story. Or else, why should anyone trust that brand? After analyzing a few brands’ websites and history, it was easy to see the ingredients in a great brand story: information delivered straight from the source and authentic. With authenticity comes transparency and credibility. The voice of the back story – whether that’s the company president or the employees also lends itself to credibility.
Look at these Stories:
One of my favorite companies is Kashi. Great marketing. Their story is told from both their marketing team and their product developers, inviting consumers to “meet us” on their website. Did you know they only have 70 employees?
Another one is Ocean Spray. Their story is told by a collective of three cranberry growers, citing their history as well as the history of cranberries and grapefruit.And the back story isn’t just a timeline and history of when Grandpa started the company, it’s the story of why.
What our brand samples are doing is a key example of a brand connecting with consumers on their level—a personal level. They’re not talking down to consumers – they’re talking with consumers. And with that approach, it opens up dialogue between the brand and the consumer.So, as part of your spring cleaning, do you have a concise elevator speech and brand back story? Sit out on the porch, watch the season come alive, and dust off your brand. Happy Spring from Force 5!
Generating creative ideas for your brand or company
Monday, April 5th, 2010 by Force 5Lately, we’ve been busy – busy ideating that is.
Ideating – which is a fancier term for brainstorming – is a core necessity or foundational step within an advertising and marketing agency’s process of generating creative ideas.
In almost every case, these creative ideas deliver a need or provide a solution to a client problem. However, good ideas don’t have to be limited to only serving clients (although being paid for good ideas is crucially important). Reinventing the company website, modifying new business collateral materials or working on a pro-bono campaign can be extremely empowering and beneficial in boosting morale. Simply put, creative ideation is an enjoyable way to get lots of fresh ideas out on the table and get everyone thinking and pulling together!
Where do you start? What are best practices? Sounds like a perfect opportunity for another Force 5 – Top 5 list. Without further ado, the following rules serve as our guiding light to productive ideating:
- Come prepared to participate
- The meeting requester should provide a pre-reading assignment (like an initial creative brief or client contact report) so everyone knows the key objective(s) in advance
- Do some preliminary research. Consider the basics like the brand or the company and their competition– but dig deeper
- Independently ideate and bring at least one, well thought-out idea to the meeting
- The moderator is the captain
- Arrange for 75-90 minutes of discussion. I find that one hour is often not enough, but participant’s schedules may dictate the desired duration
- Have a plan! Think about what you must take away from the meeting by scripting key questions in advance
- Keep it moving. Don’t interrupt or cutoff a speaker, but after a specific idea or topic has been exhausted transition to the next discussion point
- All ideas are good ideas
- Withhold criticism. Someone else’s idea may spark a separate idea later in the process – so don’t automatically discard an idea because you don’t think it has merit
- Specifically avoid saying “no” and “we can’t” – these words can derail the session because the people being told no will often shut down and stop contributing to the discussion
- Instead, build on the idea by implementing the “yes, but…” scenario – “Yes (I hear what you’re saying, even though I might not agree) but perhaps we could consider…”
- Capture as many ideas as possible
- Use large post-it notes or a white board to capture all of the ideas in writing, so everyone can see what is being encapsulated and can build on the ideas later in the process
- Try to organize ideas by category but remember the most important thing is to capture as much info as possible – if you can’t easily categorize simply jot-down in chronological order
- If need be, politely stop the person speaking and ask them to succinctly restate their idea to make certain you’ve accurately depicted all of their key points
- You’re done, now what? (post-ideation)
- Immediately following, write up all of the ideas and distribute to everyone who participated. Ask them again to confirm that you’ve accurately captured all of their ideas
- Time permitting, leave the ideas up on the wall – this allows people to come back and build on all of the ideas afterwards (because sometimes it’s good to step away, then come back)
- Determine if another ideation meeting should be scheduled. Perhaps you didn’t’ get as far as you would have liked, or maybe you’d like to drill down even further
Need help generating creative ideas for your brand or company? Let Force 5 play a role in assisting you and your organization in meeting and exceeding your marketing objectives. We’ve love to ideate a solution for you!