The advertising space is loud and crowded. Everyone has something to say and customers and clients are on the receiving end of it all. This can lead to messaging fatigue and an overall “over it” attitude for your audience. But you still have to get your message out there! So what do you do?
At Marbury, we love a good challenge, especially when it allows the team to flex their creative muscles. Each client’s project needs are unique, but they all follow a common theme: find a way to stand out! We’ve compiled some of our favorite unique advertising ideas which we’ve implemented with many of our clients. If you’re planning for 2019 and looking for inspiration, take a peek at the list below!
Create a Mascot or Character
For some industries, due to the nature of their fields, their messages are highly technical and not exactly eye-catching to those on the outside. Instead of trying to force-feed your message to your audience, inject something a little different into your approach. Creating a mascot or character for your company could be an easy way to communicate with both your clients or employees in an engaging way.
We worked with BrandBank to launch an internal initiative to their employees that focused on cyber security. They wanted to ensure that their employees were cautious with suspicious emails, so they worked with us to create “Hover the Mouse,” a helpful ninja-like character that reinforced the practice of hovering over an email or attachment before opening it.
We also worked with Square 1 Art, a fundraising company for schools, to figure out an interesting way to talk with teachers and students at schools. “Arty” the Sketchpad was born and became Square 1 Art’s third voice — not the company, and not a kid, he allowed for more playful interaction with the audience, a connection that wouldn’t have been as easy to foster if it had just been the company speaking with its voice.
Once a mascot or character is created, we can easily turn them into an animated video!
Sketch Videos
Speaking of videos, a sketch (or scribe) video can be a great way to take something complex or technical and condense it down into something that is easily absorbed. It removes the barriers of explaining conceptual ideas through “real life video.” We have used sketch videos to launch a new brand, train employees, promote a company, explain a process or philosophy, or tackle a sensitive or more complex topic. We have created tons of these over years, and they never get old.
Illustrated Books
Illustrated books are a unique way to share an idea and KEEP IT SIMPLE! An obvious use is to explain a tough topic to kids, since they tend to be more engaging. We’ve done them for a hospital client to explain how babies are born which were given to kids of an expectant mother. But it works for any age to tell your company’s story or talk to new employees about your culture.
Kids Tell it Better
Kids are always a great way to add a little humor to a topic or take a light-hearted approach. We have a very defined process for how to cast, shoot and edit to get those “chuckles,” it’s no easy feat, but the payoff is big time. We worked with Swedish American Hospital to launch a “Kids Tell it Better” ” campaign to talk about their services and keep them #1 in the market. If you are looking to do something different and bring a new perspective to your services, talk to us about “Kids Tell it Better!”
Milestone Marketing
Hitting milestones with your company is something that should be celebrated! You may think your company’s history isn’t exciting, but we believe it’s an amazing testament to your company’s ability to thrive and evolve with the ever-changing landscape of your industry. This resiliency is something that shows clients and employees that you’re a solid fixture in your space and a company that is proven and reliable.
One popular way we have helped clients celebrate milestones is by creating a legacy book. These books are an opportunity to compile photos, interviews, and interesting facts from your company’s past into a visual celebration. Once completed, these books can be distributed to your employees and clients as a way of thanking them for being a part of your journey, and are also a great piece to hand potential clients to show them just how far your company has come — and share a little about where you are going as well! .
In addition, we have also created “museums” for conferences or trade shows where people can walk through the history of the company with graphics and “relics” from decades gone by. As an example, we created a 5-station “museum” for our client, Cherry Bekaert, with phones, desks, adding machines, and old ledgers to represent various decades of history.
Advertising doesn’t have to be cookie-cutter. Don’t be afraid to think BIG and think FUN! Any industry can benefit from unique approaches to marketing. If you’re ready to reinvent the wheel with your company’s marketing plan in 2019, we’d love to be your strategic marketing engineers! Contact the Marbury team today at group@marburycreativegroup.com to get started.
