Most brands can’t give everyone in the world free stuff once a year like Santa, but a well thought out promotion can grab people’s attention in a similar way. Promotions trump traditional advertising by getting people involved with a brand – from sweepstakes and event sponsorships, to sampling experiences or cause-related activities. It’s the difference between getting an invitation to a party and actually being at a party.

Remember these four things as you plan your next “party."

1. Stay true to your brand personality

The best promotions seem like natural extensions of a brand. It wouldn’t make sense for Santa to wrap a promotion around MMA fights, but it made perfect sense for Pepto Bismal to partner with Nathan’s July 4th Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest and Major League Eating (MLE).

Even cause-related promotions work better if they relate more directly to what a brand stands for. Loads of Hope is a long-running Tide promotion that neatly connects the product with a bigger mission – helping disaster-ridden families by washing their clothes.

2. Play to your audience

The more you know about your audience, the better “party” you can throw for them. For example, Skinny Cow wrapped their sampling promotion for new single serve cups around the fact that most women wear the wrong bra size. Sampling was combined with a free bra fitting to create a one-of-a-kind experience.

But you don’t have to host an event to get people involved. EA Sports partnered with Doritos to generate interest in Madden NFL 11, months before the game was launched. Part of the promotion involved fans voting for the player to make the cover of the video game.

3. Promote your promotion

Don’t get so focused on the promotion that you forget to tell people about it. You can build it, but they won’t come unless you invite them. Big brands may spend more than a million dollars advertising a single promotion, but even a modest budget can get the word out by getting creative. The History Channel spent less than $250,000 to tout the premiere of Swamp People on Thursday nights with a Taste of the Bayou food truck experience in New York City. And for a fraction of that budget, The Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau supported their Getaway Giveaways promotion with email and social media to drive visitors to their new website.

With a tight budget, the key is using all the touchpoints you already control to support the promotion.

4. Build a deeper connection

Good promotions deliver a lot of measurable data – number of entries, attendance figures, units sampled, microsite traffic – and all of it should lead to goals like increased awareness, qualified lead generation or sales spikes. But great promotions build in long-term measurables, too. Things like becoming a Facebook fan, opting into an email program, or becoming part of a brand advisory group create more permanent connections between people and brands. These connections then create a community of vocal brand advocates, people who write glowing online reviews, post about the brand on social media sites and tell their friends and family about it.

In other words, great promotions create great promoters. And what brand wouldn’t want that?

See more examples of great promotions at Promo.

Graphic by Brian Blankenship

In graphic design, white space is the “nothing” that makes everything work. It’s the negative space in a layout, whether it’s actually white or not. Similarly, personal white space is the down time between tasks that make up your day. Why does personal white space matter? For the same reasons it does in design.

White space helps you focus on what’s important.
Imagine a layout with images, text and logos crammed into every possible inch or pixel. Everything fights for attention – the big headline, the huge logo, the complicated chart, the three pictures, the giant phone number, three calls to action and a QR code. Unfortunately, the old adage is true, all emphasis is no emphasis – so nothing gets the attention it deserves.

Now imagine a day filled with meetings, projects, email, phone calls, Facebook posts, tweets, IMs and texts – each over-lapping the other, sometimes three or four things happening at once. A day without white space robs you of focus. Multi-tasking is necessary at times, but your mind needs uncluttered moments to truly focus on what’s important.

White space helps you go with the flow.
Effective layouts use white space to guide viewers through information. It’s the Zen equivalent of a sheep dog. Wow, look at that picture. Oh, I’m interested in what the headline is telling me. Ah, it’s that brand. I want to know more.

At work, white space is like a boxer sitting in his corner between rounds. It helps you transition from one thing to another with a sense of purpose rather than panic.

White space is not accidental.
Designers spend hours creating the right balance in a layout. They use dozens of techniques, but grouping is one of the most basic. Grouping literally means grouping related elements together. That’s why you see a lot of ads where the logo, phone number and website are all arranged together. Or why most invitations group the time, date and venue. Not only does this create fewer visual elements, it creates natural white space.

Personal white space should be intentional, too. Try to design your day with white space in mind. These tips can help:

• Instead of checking email, phone messages and your social media sites every few minutes, group those tasks together and check them every few hours.
• Group repetitive work separately from more in-depth cognitive work.
• Group tasks you can complete quickly and knock them out in one batch.
• When you’re busiest, come in early one morning to clear up lingering tasks that threaten to sabotage your white space.

Once you carve out some white space, don’t be tempted to fill it up with web surfing or paper shuffling. Get a big glass of cool water or a cup of coffee. Breathe. Look out the window. Walk outside for a minute. Like a boxer who takes full advantage of the minutes between rounds, you’ll pack a lot more power in your professional punches if you can add some white space to your day.

Social media can be a powerful tool for business. With a solid plan, concrete goals, a pipeline full of great content and the right people to pull it off, organizations can get everything from deeper relationships with consumers to more website or store traffic.

But the hidden benefits of social media can be valuable, too. Here are a few of my favorites:

Employee Insights
The first step in any good social media plan is to listen, and listening to your employees who are active on social media can be very revealing. In many ways social media works like a litmus test for people’s professionalism, loyalty and integrity. Best of all, it also highlights your strongest brand advocates – the people who get a kick out of their work and love telling the world about it.

Research
Thanks to social media, consumer insights are only a post or tweet away. By simply asking questions, businesses can get quick, low-cost feedback from their social communities. Of course, every day is like a flash focus group on an active social media site. Comments, Likes and re-tweets can be a gold mine of information for sales, customer service and marketing.

Recruiting
It goes without saying that most hiring managers will review an applicant’s social media activity. The same is true today for job seekers who are researching businesses. A strong social media presence can raise an organization’s profile among top talent and can also help fill open positions more quickly.

These hidden benefits reinforce the fact that social media is all about people, and you can never go wrong by listening and learning from your employees and customers. 

My mother taught me a lot of things growing up. How to pull weeds – always get the root. How to drive a stick shift – I’m pretty sure we rolled backwards down every hill in El Paso. And even how to gut fish, which I think she taught me so that I’d never ask to go fishing again.

Of course, what I appreciate most today are the life lessons she taught me, especially the language she used to convey them.

Momism: That’s no hill for a stepper.
Translation: You can do it.

Momism: I’m going to turn you every way but loose.    
Translation: You’re in trouble, but I still love you.

Momism: If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.
Translation: Stop talking and start doing.

Momism: Put away the pity stick.
Translation: Stop whining.

Along with these pithy sayings, my Mom also liked to slip obscure words into every day conversation. One of her favorites was pulchritude. Whenever she was dressed in her yard clothes or camping cutoffs she would say, “Here I am in all my pulchritude.”

Fast forward to 2006. Akeelah the Bee had just hit theaters and Starbucks was promoting the movie with coasters printed with spelling bee words and definitions. I picked up a coaster and there was my Mom’s word: pulchritude. I looked down at the definition. “Great physical beauty and appeal.” What? That’s not how my Mom used it. And then I smiled. Funny, Mom. I get it. It just took awhile. 

The Rest of the Story (as Paul Harvey would say)
I lost my Mom to cancer when I was in college, so Mother’s Day can be a bittersweet holiday for me. I still remember the first year the holiday rolled around. I was rushing through the TCU bookstore in a finals week frenzy and remembered – just in time – to pick up a Mother’s Day card. I scoured the rack, reading one after another until I found the perfect card. I was halfway to the check out line when I realized I had picked out a card my Mom would never read.

People tell you a lot of things after someone close to you dies, and the one thing I’ve found to be most true is this: You never completely get over the pain of losing someone you love, but every year it gets easier to remember them.

Thanks for all the great memories, Mom. Happy Mother’s Day.

Over the years I’ve presented creative work to hundreds of people. It’s actually one of my favorite things to do as a creative director. But occasionally, in Dickensian fashion, the best of times can become the worst of times. Keep in mind that I’m not talking about healthy discussions or even tweaks to the work – those are normal parts of the process. I’m talking about painfully unproductive experiences that make a root canal seem fun.

What makes the difference between a good critique and a miserable one? Start with these five simple steps: 

Know the back-story.
The backbone of good creative is a solid strategy tied to specific outcomes. If someone doesn’t know what the work is supposed to accomplish, he/she can’t evaluate its worth. Make sure everyone involved in a critique knows the back-story.

Channel the target audience.
Before you lay eyes on any creative work, try to put yourself in the mind of the intended audience. If you’re a male Baby Boomer reviewing a TV concept aimed at teenage girls, you’ve got your work cut out for you. But it’s not impossible. Sometimes it helps to think of someone you know who’s in the demographic. Someone you know fairly well, like a daughter, a niece. It’s not the same as running the concept by someone who actually belongs to the target audience, but at least it puts your critique in a more useful context.

See the big picture.
Before you start pointing out the poor kerning on line three of the body copy, look at the piece in its entirety. Try to experience it without shifting into analysis mode. People don’t analyze logos, ads, websites or TV spots  – they experience them. There will be plenty of time to comb over every detail, but you’ll only get one first impression. Pay attention to it.

Listen to your gut.
Research tells us that consumers act on emotion and validate through reason. That’s why your first reaction to creative work is so important. Did it make you smile? Did it make you curious? Did it make you nervous? Did you cringe or chuckle? It really needs to make you feel something. Otherwise, it’s just going to blend into the other 5,000 marketing messages we are all bombarded with every day.

Give specific feedback.
“It just doesn’t work for me.”
Really? Would you say that to your mechanic?
“The car just isn’t working for me.”
“You mean it’s not running?”
“No, it runs, but it’s just not working for me. I don’t know what it is, but I’ll know it when you find it.”
If you don’t feel good about a piece, dig into what concerns you and give specific feedback.

Critiquing creative can be nerve-wracking -- for people on both sides of the table. Along with the tips above, it also helps to believe in the process. There’s a reason you hired the agency or gave the project to your in-house design team. Trust that they care as much as you do, and as everything comes together, it really will be the best of times. 

In honor of Valentine's Day I'd like to share a few of my favorite Balcom projects over the years. Looking back, I find myself drawn to campaigns for different reasons. Some stand out because they survived against all odds. Others made the most of very modest budgets. Still others introduced us to new ways of working with our clients. Best of all, each of them made us grow in some unexpected way.

Fort Worth Museum of Science & History
We had been working on the museum's re-grand opening campaign for a few weeks and had several good directions working. On the Saturday before the Monday presentation, Holly (aka, the whole enchilada) discovered Simon Oxley's quirky illustrations. They were so perfect for the campaign we couldn't ignore them – after all, we still had 48 hours. The headlines practically wrote themselves (thank goodness). I wish I had a picture of the clients' faces when they saw the farting dinosaur.

Justin Bent Rail Collection Packaging
Trey (aka, design monkey) knew that the folks at Justin wanted to make a big statement with their new Justin Bent Rail packaging. He also knew it had to happen without big-budget bells and whistles. This design is the first one he knocked out. He had pages and pages of sketches, and ultimately worked up several other comps, but he kept coming back to this design, tweaking and polishing. It wasn't my favorite at the time, but he knew it was right – and he was right. Not only did it rock Western wear stores across the country, it also made it into this year's Print Regional Design annual.



 

Justin Bent Rail Player
When our friends at Justin wanted to tie the new Bent Rail Collection to alternative country music, Chip (aka, thunder & lightening) immediately thought of a real-time video player. The Bent Rail Player lets Justin endorsee bands like Randy Rogers, Wade Bowen and Casey Donohue, shoot live video that streams right to the web. Fans can chat live as they watch the videos and even embed the player on their Facebook, MySpace or web pages. Today, more than 10,000 players have been embedded across the Internet, and boot sales have far exceeded projections.

Coincidentally, the Bent Rail project didn't just revolutionize how Justin goes to market, it also redefined how we work with them. The speed of digital and social media required that we collaborate daily. And not just Krystal, our account director, and Louis Russo, Justin's brand manager. Our social media managers became extensions of Lisa Lankes and her corporate communications team. Our web team works hand-in-hand with IT and customer service. We even work more closely with Justin retailers. Technology dictates that more and more of our client relationships work like this today. It's interesting that our 132 year-old-brand was one of the first.



 

All Saints Episcopal School
Nearly five years ago, the leaders of this small private school in Fort Worth asked us to help them define their brand – specifically, what it meant to their students, teachers and families. We interviewed dozens of people, developed their brand architecture and created this campaign. My favorite comment from the presentation: "You know us better than we know ourselves." Mick (aka, vis wiz) brought the campaign to life. The budget was small, but like the people at All Saints, we had faith.

Neeley School of Business at TCU
When Neeley decided to re-brand a few years ago they brought in several agencies to pitch the business. We made it to the second round but instead of doing spec creative, we did some research. Kim (aka, the velvet hammer) spearheaded the exercise and it turned out to be the difference. We won the business. Brian (aka, tenacious b) revamped the school's identity system and art directed the distinctive launch campaign. The new tagline? Well, it actually came from the creative brief. Yes, Kim, the account director, wrote Neeley's new tagline, "It's more than business. It's personal." It's a great line, and she never lets me forget it.

That's my short list. (My long list can be found under Our Work.) What's on your Advertising Love List this year?

1 Find out more about your consumer.
Sounds obvious, but it’s easy to overlook. Why do customers buy from you (and not your competitors)? How do they buy? When do they buy? And perhaps most important, do they encourage their friends to buy, too? If you can afford outside research, do it. If not, consider these cost-effective alternatives:

• Survey front-line employees. Sales people and customer service representatives interact with customers every day, so they can have great insights. Consider a survey provider like Survey Monkey or Zoomerang so you can easily create reports.
• Survey your email database. Reach out to customers who have opted-in to receive emails from your company.
• Mine customer letters and feedback forms. This might take some time, but the information can be worth it.
• Ask questions through Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. If your brand is active on social media, you have a built-in resource to gather real-time information.
• Invest in a social media monitoring service. Services like Radian6 can track conversation about your brand across multiple channels.

2 Set measurable goals and start tracking them.
Think of your marketing as a huge funnel that moves consumers toward an ultimate goal -- typically sales. Be sure to measure different stages in the funnel in addition to the end goal. Here are some possibilities:

• Website traffic. Your website should play an active role in funneling consumers toward a sale. We all know that people go online to research products, vet companies, look for locations and share information. So, measuring traffic is important, but it’s just the beginning.
• Website conversions. A conversion is an action you want people to take on your website. If you sell online, a purchase will be an important conversion. For restaurants, making a reservation can be a conversion. For businesses trying to generate leads, completing a contact us form or signing up for an open house or seminar can be conversions.
• Click-through rates. If you run search ads or ads on Facebook or LinkedIn, click-through rates tell you how many people clicked on your ads.
• Coupons/offers. Everything from classic paper coupons and mail-in rebates to online promo codes should be tracked.
• Social media engagement. Having a large social media community is nice, but the real measure of social media value is engagement. How often do people comment, share your content or click on posted links?

3  Create compelling content.
Today, a Big Idea can’t be a one-trick-pony. Big Ideas need to create or feed into ongoing consumer experiences with brands. Take a look at some inspiring examples:

•    The Man Your Man Could Smell Like from Old Spice
•    Blendtec’s Will It Blend
•    My Starbucks Idea
•    American Express OPEN Forum

All these marketing initiatives share one thing: legs. The legs to engage with consumers far beyond a single TV spot, print ad, contest or static website.

What else is on your must-do marketing list?

How do you recognize great creative? Try this simple test. Step 1: Look at the work. Step 2: Look in the mirror.

Did you:

Smile?
From in-on-the-joke grins to full-out belly laughs, funny stuff grabs attention and sticks with people. The latest Old Spice television spots do the trick for me. http://www.oldspice.com/videos/ Ditto on the Betty White spot for Snickers. http://www.snickers.com/ads/superbowl.html Closer to home, this billboard we created for the Museum of Science and History still makes me smile. http://www.balcomagency.com/our-work/addys/fort-worth-museum-of-science-and-history-6

Furrow your brow?
Intrigue, the unexpected or a little well-conceived misdirection can sneak through the clutter, too. As long as people can connect enough of the dots, it works. The original Mini campaign had lots of ‘Huh?’ power. http://inventorspot.com/articles/mini_cooper_no_small_advertising_6530
See 23 more surprising ads here: http://www.trendhunter.com/slideshow/hidden-surprising-advertising#17

Squinch your eyes shut like a slapped cat?
It’s tough to shock people anymore, but when you do, the fallout can significantly extend the life of a campaign. Are the shock waves worth it? The debate continues. Here’s a PG-13 collection of shockvertising. http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/top-50-shock-controversial-ads

Raise your eyebrows?
Sometimes pure, unadulterated information can be powerful. The Tap Project campaign for Unicef cuts right to the chase. See a video about it here: http://www.tapproject.org/media/

What campaigns are making your face move these days?

Writing related sites from practical and tactical to whimsical and witty – because you never know what will move the muse.

Blue Pencil Editing
http://bluepencilediting.blogspot.com/

Copyblogger
http://www.copyblogger.com/

Magnetic Poetry
http://www.magpo.com/play.asp

RhymeZone
http://www.rhymezone.com/?loc=bar

Six Word Stories
http://www.sixwordstories.net/

The Onion
http://www.theonion.com/

ThinkExist
http://en.thinkexist.com/

VisualThesaurus
http://www.visualthesaurus.com/

WordSpy
http://www.wordspy.com/

Word Swimmer
http://wordswimmer.blogspot.com/

What word-centric sites inpire you?