Transparency Is What Builds Brands
I’m not a screaming liberal, but even Chris Wallace would have to admit that the transparency we have with the incoming administration means everything to the voting public. Want to know what happened backstage at a cabinet-post announcement? Go to Flickr!
Is your brand this transparent? Why not?
(Happy holidays, everyone!)
Before the holiday, we threw a potluck.
Thinking you can cultivate your own brand story is very “old skool”
In the course of trying to better myself professionally (ok, I was hunting for free iPhone apps) I ran across this article in the sometimes-helpful iMedia Connection blog. It’s worth reading because it provides some insight into how brands can initiate consumer interaction with other consumers, which helps propagate the brand story.
The article references a few ongoing campaigns that promote brands without necessarily flogging products, and it drops some trendy neologisms like “crowdsourcing” and the like. But the article is spot on because it highlights 1.) how brands need to communicate to - and through - the intended audience, and 2.) that if a brand is doing the right stuff, it can trust the crowd to carry it along to new, beneficial places.
(And you thought that crowdsurfing at a punk rock show was a frivolous waste of time!)
They’re not just for the “thrifty” anymore…
Is your brand subject to the changing perspectives of today’s shopper? Are you a “coupon-friendly” brand?
Check out this Chicago Tribune article to see what I mean.
More and more we’re helping brands adapt to today’s consumer environment, in real-time.
Say it with Soy…
Soy ink may be the solution to the environmental health and safety concerns of the printing industry. A new study confirms that soy ink can help to reduce the environmental burden of the printing industry. Soybean oil comes from a renewable source: soybeans. Soybeans beans are widely available at low cost. Soybean agriculture uses only 0.5 percent of the total energy needed to produce soy ink. Almost half of all soybeans produced in America needs no irrigation. As soybeans are growing they temporarily remove damaging carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, from the atmosphere.
Soy ink is naturally low in VOCs (volatile organic compounds, chemical compounds that evaporate and react to sunlight) and its usage can reduce emissions causing air pollution.
Researchers have found that soy ink is removed more effectively from newsprint than petroleum ink during de-inking, resulting in less paper fiber damage and a brighter paper. In addition, the waste is not considered hazardous and can be treated more easily, completely and cost-effectively. Residue waste ink is considered a liquid industrial waste that requires proper disposal. Many newspapers and large commercial printers are recycling their ink by mixing black ink with unused color inks. This process reduces waste and results in a more cost-effective, efficient use of ink.
An easy greener alternative…
Soy ink is available for newspapers, magazines, commercial printing, packaging, business forms and many other uses. Each form of printing requires a different type of ink and manufacturers have made various efforts to meet with the demands of customers. Soy offers vibrant colors and relatively low cost alternatives to start a greener mailer.