MCT | Direct Mail
Client/Project Overview: McClatchy-Tribune (MCT) Information Services is a publishing company. Their MCT Regional News Service division is a content provider for newspapers nationwide. Established news outlets provide their content to MCT in exchange for royalties and access to other MCT content. While the MCT B2B marketing message is two-fold (outgoing sales and incoming content), the stated goal of this direct mail piece is focused on recruiting contributors to the news service.
Initial Challenges: Convincing newspapers to give away something for free, let alone hard-fought reporting, is a tough proposition at first glance. And, direct mail pieces, by their very nature, are always a fun attention-grabbing challenge.
Our Solutions Process: The feel of the ad is: ‘don’t miss out on this opportunity!’ and ‘everyone is doing it, why aren’t you?’ The headline states 600 (importantly a large numeral) contributors and an immediate call to action—can we count you in?. Both these sentiments are echoed in the design, listing names of prominent contributing publications (an important eye-catching detail for a direct mail piece) and an empty colored sphere just waiting (colors matching the ‘can we count you in?’). The front of the piece finishes with two direct benefits.
The back of the card, keeping in mind that this might be the first side our audience sees, spells out exactly what the process looks like. The three ‘MORE…’ bullet points reiterate the benefits listed on the front of the card and continue the ‘part of the club’ feel of the ad. Finally, we finish with a hard sell, emphasizing the win-win of the partnership.
Tribune Media Services | Brochure/Catalog Cover
Client/Project Overview: Tribune Media Services is a syndication company (previously Chicago Tribune Syndicate, now Tribune Content Agency) owned by Tribune Publishing. The agency was doing a full redesign of their print and online catalogs. In language and imaging, the project managers wanted the focus to shift from the newsroom to the customers.
Initial Challenges: While researching previous iterations of the catalog, the focus was on making publishers jobs easier. For this redesign, the audience is still the publisher (this is a B2B business), but the message had to focus on meeting the needs of their customers. This piece is the cover of their print catalog, with plans to repurpose as trade show signage, et cetera.
Our Solutions Process: Per the goals established in the creative brief, the headline section addresses both our primary audience (publishers) and their audience (customers) directly. The idea of ‘innovation’ is furthered in the imaging which depicts three ‘customers’ engaging with content on traditional and digital platforms.
The body of the piece, just two sentences, first describes Tribune Media Service, mentioning the publisher’s audience for the second time. We build on the second person headline with first person language. The second sentence is a call to action with two direct benefits—size of the catalog and ease of access. Finally, we finish with a closing second-headline, again referencing the publisher’s audience.
Saugatuck Douglas Area Business Association | Membership Recruitment Letter
Client/Project Overview: The Saugatuck Douglas Area Business Association (SDABA), the business association for two small vacation towns on the coast of Lake Michigan, is a volunteer non-profit funded entirely by membership and advertising from those members. The membership drive is two-fold. First, a one-by-one, face-to-face reach out from members of the board. And second, this, a letter mailed to all local businesses (current, past and never members).
Initial Challenges: After a few years of waning membership, new leadership within the board wanted unique and challenging messaging. TWO calls to action: primary = membership, secondary = reach out to a board member directly. This is a hard copy, mailed letter, likely to be opened (small town, handwritten envelope), but the copy needs to immediately engage and ensure time spent with the letter.
Our Solutions Process: Unconventionally, we added an immediate announcement of the time necessary to read the letter. The initial call-to-action provides the tangible benefit of a discount and also a call-to-duty suitable for a small town. Finally, we asked for a converse CTA: if they DO NOT want to be a member, to please reach directly out to the board (contact information included).
Redbud Farm Events | Website Copy + Design
Client/Project Overview: Redbud Farm Events is a 3-acre event space in rural western Michigan. For the past few years, the client has rented the space a few times a year for weddings and other large gatherings, and rented the living quarters on AirBnB. With this new marketing website, we hope to establish the space specifically as a wedding venue and streamline the guests’ interactions with the operator.
Initial Challenges: This process was all about taking the next step in establishing this fully renovated event space and grounds as a unique and exciting West Michigan wedding venue. Previously, all bookings were done via direct communication with the owner/operator. The back-and-forth of choosing dates, describing the spaces, setting appointments, and answering various other questions was cumbersome. The previous website also had a single gallery for all photographs. Here, the client asked for a gallery that was space specific. (This was primarily a design concern.)
Our Solutions Process: Our new scrolling home page clearly positioned the client as an affordable DIY wedding venue. We further declared 6 unique selling propositions and gave clear call-to-action buttons for the other sections of the website. We brainstormed and crafted an extensive FAQ section that gave prospective guests a clear idea of what to expect from the venue. Other (mostly) design elements include a new gallery (with headlines and space descriptors), an easy-to-edit calendar, and a contact form. With the help of the new website, the client was booked for the year within three months.
GROW Café + Bistro | Press Release
Client/Project Overview: GROW Café + Bistro, a seasonal restaurant, is reopening for its seventh season with a gratuity-free business model. The release will be sent to regional newspapers and television stations, as well as national restaurant news sites and publications.
Initial Challenges: While GROW isn’t the first to ever do this, they are certainly in the vast minority and even more of an anomaly outside of urban areas. The messaging needs to PRIMARILY show how the guest experience will change (or not change) and SECONDARILY show the impact on the staff.
Our Solutions Process: A news piece like this is ripe for inspiring full written pieces or prominent news segments. So, we purposefully steered press outlets towards three distinct story angles:
The broad idea of a gratuity-free model, using GROW as an example.
The ‘How’ of it. How we raised prices (the forthright language here also intends to garner trust from the readers) and where that money goes, including a human interest angle on livable wages.
The guest ‘experience’. It’s going to be a new dining experience for most people. We want to tell them what to expect.
And finally, we finish with a quote from the owner (written by us at her request specifically for use in this press release) explains succinctly that the cost for the guest remains the same. Everybody wins.
Well Being Nutrition | Website Copy
Client/Project Overview: Well Being Nutrition Specialists is the company name of a solo-practioner/certified nutritional specilaist. This new marketing website is designed as a place to send prospective clients to setup their initial consultation.
Initial Challenges: While nutrition is a certified field in the health care industry, there are substantial differences between medical practices and the practices of nutrition specialists. The website will likely be the first contact that a prosepctive client has. Thus, the website needs to introduce the idea of ‘food as medicine’, demonstrate expertise, and offer a clear path towards the care process.
Our Solutions Process: On the homepage, using congruent language, we addressed the primary concerns of the website—describing nutrition based care, what to expect, and the scientific expertise behind it. In our about page, we briefly described the credentials of the client, but took this opportunity to further delve into the why and how of the process, ironically using the ‘about me’ page to talk ‘about YOU’. Finally, after research and interviews with the client, we crafted a diagnostic intake questionnaire to help prospective clients lay the groundwork for their first visit.