I am still reeling from the experience I had with the new book series, 39 Clues. It is series of books, published by Scholastic and has a very innovative spin that is taking 8 to 12 year olds by storm! 39 Clues is an innovative learning experience which utilizes all the forms of media for learning and provides strong creative incentives to continue learning. “Read the Books.Play The Game. Win The Prizes.”

Each book contains 6 cards which the book owner uses to uncover clues to a great mystery. There are 39 clues in total and 19 have been released to date. Not only is the marketing and visual creative design very appealing and relevant to the target book reader audience, there is a web platform which takes the series and reading experience to a new level entirely.

The website is very well designed, has an incredible animated mission/ game area (Arena 39) and offers rich interactive features for the 39 Clues book /game community. The real clincher is that the series offers over $100,000 in prizes to the clue hunters who succeed.

I am half way through the first book, The Maze of Bones with my children and we have succeeded Missions #1, 2, 3 and 4. My kids now know about the Bermuda Triangle, the Titanic, Amelia Earhart, Budapest, the Pyramids and more!

My son is eager to attempt Mission 5 and is anxious for the mission to be unlocked in September (they do not say which day to keep you checking the site).

Various authors contribute to the 39Clues series and there are also additional cards you can purchase to assist you in getting your clues.

In my opinion,  39 Clues is a complete success of marketing, education and merchandising. Well done Scholastic!!!!

As I drive away from the very friendly cashier at the local Tim Hortons, I am reminded of how much Tim’s plays a role in my family.

Seems there is always a trip to Tim’s for a treat timbit box for the kids after an exciting experience, or a drive through for Mommy’s coffee on the way to school drop off, an afternoon treat with a iced cap, essential coffee stop on a roadtrip or one Sunday afternoon donut pick at the window for the kids. Funny thing, I’m not talking just about my kids, I am also relishing my memories as a kid.

Tim Hortons started as a family brand in its’ infancy with a value proposition (enrich your day with your family or daily routines with Tim’s), character of it’s unique founder and the casual, no pretense environment it evokes for its customers.

Some days I am seriously pleased as punch to go to Tim’s and grab a coffee. I FEEL their brand, loud and clear. I can wear my best leisure suit, be half asleep, mumble out an easy to give coffee order, with real sizing measures (not italian cup sizes) and be greeted with a smile and EVEN a dog biscuit for Modem.

It is a warm familiar place, like family.

The company’s marketing and advertising has never strayed from their committment to Canada and the family experiences and I am proud to support Tim Hortons. Tim Horton was an incredible man and he has made a difference to so many, with a well deserved coffee or extreme generosity in the community. I just wanted to take a minute, reflect and show gratitude today for awesome marketing, full of integrity, and a great cup of coffee. Cheers.

Seems everywhere you look online and offline these days, there is a discounted service or product available. I know the market stinks these days as we are reminded constantly by all media outlets of the impending doom of our economy. It’s just downright silly out there though, and I am seeing the direct impact on businesses’ brand and marketings plans.

The larger sized clients are cutting their budgets, but still expect the same level of service and the smaller clients are wanting more value for their dollars. Now I am all for sensible spending, however it is disheartening to see value bump up the list above quality in any brand or marketing project.

I actually know business owners who are getting their corporate identities (the cornerstone of their brands) redesigned by creative people in India for $50 and then asking small freelance companies to design and develop their site or emarketing initiative to save $. The trouble is, these decisions affect their brand and dilute the brand messaging because they are likely not working with strategy, merely execution. How do you know these “cheaper” projects will be successful? What metrics or goals were developed at the beginning of the project to determine the projected success?

These days I keep finding myself drifting back to the elementary principle and constraints of a successful project and successful project management, also know as “The Triangle”.

As defined by Wikipedia…
“This first project triangle reflects the fact that the three properties of a project are interrelated, and it is not possible to optimise all three - one will always suffer. In other words you have three options:

• Design something quickly and to a high standard, but then it will not be cheap.
• Design something quickly and cheaply, but it will not be of high quality.
• Design something with high quality and cheaply, but it will take a long time.”

Also defined by Wikipedia…
“Each side of the Project Management Triangle represents a constraint. One side of the triangle cannot be changed without affecting the others. A further refinement of the constraints separates product “quality” or “performance” from scope, and turns quality into a fourth constraint.

The time constraint refers to the amount of time available to complete a project. The cost constraint refers to the budgeted amount available for the project. The scope constraint refers to what must be done to produce the project’s end result. These three constraints are often competing constraints: increased scope typically means increased time and increased cost, a tight time constraint could mean increased costs and reduced scope, and a tight budget could mean increased time and reduced scope.”

So, in a nutshell…..The cost constraint is becoming a priority for businesses today and the remaining constraints compete therefore the project size (scope) is being reduced. As business owners in the service industry, we need to be aware of this constraint shift and present options for our clients/customers that fit within their new project requirements. Stay tuned for our new offering for clients today who have a cost constraint (no, it is not a sale)!

I had the pleasure this afternoon to interview Kye Grace, a local Vancouver Realtor……
truth be told Kye was gracious enough to be my guinea pig as I delved into the dimension of podcasting!

I hadn’t yet met Kye in person, as we’d established a two dimensional relationship through the filter of TWITTER, so as you can imagine I was curious to see how his effective online brand and personality translated in person…….is it aligned and is it authentic? By the completion of our interview I can tell you a confident YES.

The reason I asked him to join me as our first guest was because online he is a standout, a relevant voice, backed up with real action and dimension in an industry, I consider to be, filled with cardboard cutouts cut from the same old traditional marketing mold and methodology. At first glance Kye is the guy next door, with an unsuspecting, warm smile, but then you get him talking about his industry and the passion that drives him and he gets this bright, keen glint in his eyes. It’s very quickly clear that he has created his brand very deliberately, and has plans to continue be on the bleeding edge of brand marketing in this tired industry.

If you want to learn a few things about standing out with your marketing and developing a “remarkable” brand have a listen to what this local Vancouver Realtor, who is generating recognition world wide in just his first year in the business, has to say……

Podcast : Karley Cunningham, 3 Degrees West Podcast with Kye Grace a Vancouver Realtor >>

Flipping through the journal I took with me to Nicaragua last night and came across a segment I had written about my experience with brand advertising in Nicaragua. **you’re thinking, hmm, sounds interesting**

“I’m on the bus to Leon, driving through Masaya, taking in everything as we progress outside the city and I am struck by the reactions of my team members to the visual imagery they are encountering. Some people are amazed by the transit uniquenesses of the country (motorcycles with multi-passengers, rickshaw “taxis”, oxen pulled wagons, troupes of people standing in back of pickup trucks, etc.). Others are drawn to the people, stoic and calm, almost timeless in their duties. Me, on the other hand, I am completely focused on the advertising and brand marketing presence in Nicaragua. (hey, it’s who I am)

Among the stable of brands being marketed redundantly (and I mean redundantly, with stacked billboards) were Coca-Cola, Del Monte, Esso, Eskimo, Victoria and Tona (beer brands I personally tasted and highly support) and Colgate. These brands utilized marketing mediums standard to the North American market and in some weird way provided me with some comfort and familiarity in Nicaragua.

Two brand marketing campaigns completely stood out for me, one for the use of colour and one for their communication tone…

(For those of you living under a rock, Kotex is a feminine protection product). In a country so heavily riddled with alcoholism, poverty and single mothers, it was not surprising that a necessity brand for women was so highly advertised. After viewing many of the Kotex billboards and poster signage placements, the entire team started doing a “Kotex Alert”, everytime they saw the colour pink. BRIGHT pink usage in all of the Kotex advertising was overstated (to say the least) yet very effective in idenifying and remembering the brand. I don’t know if the Kotex product packaging in Nicaragua or North America is pink, (will be checking next time I am in the aisle) but let’s hope so for their sake.

(Internet and phone service provider) You don’t even need to know spanish to be affected by this brand. It is EVERYWHERE and each message is visual and effective. The logo alone is a fantastic icon to express their ability to connect people and their marketing is friendly.

Their taglines used frequently are “Que tienes ma”(slang term said, when people understand you) and “La navidaden la palma de tu mano” (the world is in the palm of your hand). They have an approachability in their brand that draws the consumer to their products, a memorable and friendly corporate identity and a credibility in their offers as the marketing placement is vast.

The two above brand marketing examples are excellent at showcasing successful colour usage and communication tone in your marketing. I look forward to seeing new players in this arena, next year when I go back to build another home for a family.

Word of mouth marketing (or W.O.M.M.) is not the “new black” it IS THE black! At 3 DEGREES WEST, W.O.M.M. has been the driver of 95% of our business, not only in Vancouver, but across the Globe!

For those of you who haven’t discovered “THE black” yet, Wikipedia defines W.O.M.M.by the following:

“Word-of-mouth marketing, which encompasses a variety of subcategories, including buzz, blog, viral, grassroots, cause influencers and social media marketing, as well as ambassador programs, work with consumer-generated media and more, can be highly valued by product marketers. Because of the personal nature of the communications between individuals, it is believed that product information communicated in this way has an added layer of credibility. Research points to individuals being more inclined to believe WOMM than more formal forms of promotion methods; the receiver of word-of-mouth referrals tends to believe that the communicator is speaking honestly and is unlikely to have an ulterior motive” more >

And today I am going to do a bit of my own W.O.M.M, and rave about the new movie “Slumdog Millionaire”. It wasn’t 5 minutes before I was in the door from the movie and infront of my laptop to write this post, that’s just how good it was. Oddly enough I don’t go the cinema often, but I have seen 3 movies in the past week (”The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” & “Seven Pounds”) and this was by far the breakout winner, and I would rate it * * * * * stars. Yep! Count’em five!

For the first time in a long time the trailer does what I feel it should do……lure you in, but not give you all the best parts and or tell you the ending.

From start to finish you are engaged, waiting for the next part of the story, right up until the end, and still left guessing as to how it will play out. The camera work is fantastic, and the colours of India are awe-inspiring. And because I am a graphic geek at heart, my favourite part, and you’ll understand when you stick in your seat to see it, was the credits that rolled at the end. What a fantastic creative spin, incorporating, music, video and graphics, you stick in your seat until the black and white credits roll - SO AWESOME!!

Slumdog Millionaire is a must see in the theatre! (and there you have a perfect example of how W.O.M.M. works!)

In an effort to provide images for an upcoming “Brilliant (sub) Branding - Starbucks” post I encountered an interesting situation in brand protection.

I popped into a Starbucks that I don’t frequent often, with camera in hand and asked an employee if it would be okay if I took a few shots of their Christmas campaign so I could write a blog article on the greatness of this year’s campaign. I was quite startled by the response that I received, “Um………..” long pause, “You’ll have to talk to our store manager.”

Over he came after the employee explained why I was there. I knew this was going to be more difficult than I ever thought, as he walked towards me with the puffed chest of command and ownership……..

I again explained that I was a local branding expert and I wanted to promote what a great job they had done with their campaign this year. From my perspective, it would be a no brainer to allow someone a few photos so they could offer you FREE publicity, and I’d already stated that it was a positive spin. But apparently I had crossed an invisible line that alarmed the troops and was threatening a security breach of their brand!

The manager’s response, “Oh, well, I can’t allow you take any photos. You have to call our marketing department, AND our PR department and get permission.” I just stared back at him in surprise, my brain thinking, “But I’m offering you FREE advertising…….FREE.” The manager proceeded, “Wait here, I will get the numbers for you.” Into the back of the store he ran, and out with a binder twice the size of the Oxford dictionary. It took him what seemed like forever to find the number of the new PR agency, and he wrote all the numbers I had to call if I wanted to write my blog post. And my only response was a silent, “Are you kidding me?!”

Now I completely support developing a policy on how your brand is presented, how it is managed, who is allowed to manage it, etc. However when someone offers you FREE advertising, especially when they tell you they’re a fan of your brand, product, etc, you’ll want to seriously consider just how tight the reins are on your brand!! If you make it too hard for someone to promote you or your brand, if the red tape is too thick then they may just offer up the opportunity to your competition.

We all know it’s that time of year where we seek to make as much of a difference as we can. One of our clients has come up with a unique spin on how they will be spending their advertising dollars this holiday season to benefit those who need it most.

Precision Athletics is running a fitness contest for any and all media folk who wish to participate and make a donation to their favourite charity:

Do you wish you could afford to make a sizable donation to your favorite charity?

It seems during the holiday season more than any other time of year, we want to donate to charity but for various reasons don’t feel we’re doing all we can. We at Precision Athletics feel the exact same way and we’ve found a way to do it.

Instead of spending our advertising and promotion budget for January we’re running a contest for anyone in the local media who’s interested in improving their fitness level. The individual who improves the most over the 12 week course of the contest, gets to pick the charity we donate the $500 to. It’s just that simple.

All participants will recieve a detailed fitness assessment at the start, a 1 hour consultation with our nutrition and lifestyle coach, a choice of any one of our 12 week group fitness programs and a detailed fitness assessment at the end to measure your improvement.

If you’re interested, please reply by December 24th. All we ask from you is to spread the word about the programs Precision Athletics offers in any way you can.

To learn more about this offer or to register, please contact:
Craig Boyd
Director of Trainers
Precision Athletics
604.723.4317
craig[@]precisionathletics.ca

About Precision Athletics

Located in downtown Vancouver, Precision Athletics provides personal, group and corporate fitness training. Our personal trainers specialize in detailed fitness assessment and program design for all levels of fitness.? Using innovative training techniques and by incorporating progressive overload with incremental increases each session, clients see progress every workout. These small gains from workout to workout total up to amazing results!

Founded in 2001, Precision Athletics Fitness Consultants is owned and operated by Pepe Picco and Craig Boyd, who collectively have over 25 years experience in the fitness industry. Their diverse fitness expertise has been derived over the years through collaboration with many different fitness organizations and health professionals.

* * * *

Good Luck to all those that enter the challenge!

And my question to you is:

How are you / can you spin your marketing for the greater good of your company and others? Let us know.

How often do you celebrate (and by celebrate, I mean share) your company successes?

Admittedly it is something that Sandy and I didn’t used to do all that well. A lot of the time we were so production focussed on the “what’s the next task” that we would forget to stop when something BIG happened (ie. we launched a new site or brand; we won an award; we got a kick a** testimonial from a client) and congratulate one another AND announce it to those around us. We’re definitely now leaps and bounds ahead of where we were at a few years ago and committed to getting better!

So what does celebrating success have to do with your brand and giving it a boost?

Simple: PEOPLE LOVE TO SHARE IN YOUR SUCCESS, THEY WANT TO HEAR ABOUT GOOD NEWS!

Think about it, there is so much negative news driven at us through the media, especially right now, that you WANT to hear something positive, right? Whether it be from your family, your friends, your network, your suppliers, even your competition (or co-opetition - which I would like to see more of - but that’s a tangent I won’t jump on right now) you want to know there is good going on around you. This is all because like attracts like, progress breeds progress, and success encourages success.

So………by sharing your successes (by blog post, TWITTER post, Facebook post, LinkedIn post, eNewsletters, handwritten cards, emails, etc. [*hint* did you get that those are all FREE or LOW COST ways of marketing] ) positioned in an appropriate manner (ie. stay away from the ego “it’s all about me!). You are:

• saying that we are proud of what we do
• building the credibility of yourself, your brand, your company
• (by congratulating others on their wins and efforts) encouraging good sportsmanship and community
• staying top of mind to your network with your announcement
• showing gratitude and thanks for the opportunities you are given
• story telling and building on your brand story
• sharing your happiness/positivity with others
• positioning yourself as an expert in your field

And all of this is a part of building and boosting your brand.