BEDC Mayor's Lunch Poster designed by Clover Road.

If you are interested in finding out more about this great event, click here to go to BEDC's website.

Your Branding, Design and Marketing

If you have a need for branding, graphic design or marketing, let's connect. I understand that you want a creative agency that takes the time to listen to you and provide you with creative solutions that help you stand out from competitors and stand out to prospects.

If you enjoy…

• Peace of mind knowing that you can relax and not feel like you have to provide all the solutions to get the job done right
• Standing out from the crowd, having comfort in knowing that your specific industries' concerns will be addressed
• The ability to budget accurately and concisely, knowing that the price quoted is the price you are paying

Then we need to talk. Thank you.

Ciao,
Robert Scozzari RGD

This new partnership is exciting as Clover Road has the opportunity to contribute to the economic development of Burlington Ontario.

Ciao,
Robert Scozzari RGD

First of all, I'll say that this is a great commercial. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy and makes me take notice. Some of the comments are quite touching.

WOW...how beautiful!! I would have given anything to have shared just one more birthday with my mother in law who passed away to cancer...please support the American Cancer Society. – 4miamigrl

and

This commercial actually made my cry. – theshankenstein

and

I am a 3 year Cancer survivor, I saw this the first time the other night and it made me teary. Thank you for such a beautiful commercial, I just celebrated mine 3 weeks ago and I tell everyone they really should appreciate every birthday. :))) – TriviaGeek463

Very powerful, but I'm going to put aside all the heartwarming stories and talk about what they did to come up with such a powerful spot. There are two key points I want to mention that the ad agency did here that every business owner and marketer should learn.

Features tell. Benefits sell

The first thing is that the ad agency applied an ancient rule of advertising and marketing. The rule is this, "Features tell. Benefits sell".

Now, it takes a very creative mind to realize what the true benefit really is. Some would argue, and beleive that the main benefit of what the American Cancer Society does is helf fund research for cancer cures and treatments. Well, that's actually a feature.

Some may also think that what the American Cancer Society does is save lives. Well, that's a wonderful thing that they do, but it's also a feature.

The ad agency discovered what the real benefit is, more birthdays. Wow.

Tell a Story

The second thing that the ad agency did, which is an essential part of great marketing and advertising, they told a story. That's right, they actually told many stories. They told stories about the people who's lives were saved by what the American Cancer Society has done.

When you tell a story, what they did was include the viewers and made them part of the advertisement. They told a story that all people can relate to and understand. When you do that the viewer becomes a part of that story. They inadvertently become a cast member in the screen play that has just played out. Not directly, but in their minds. In their minds, the viewer is not seeing the actors on screen, but they are seeing themselves, their mothers, fathers or other relatives who have suffered from cancer.

Discover the true benefit and tell a story that your viewers can relate to. Do those two things, and you have a powerful advertising campaign.

Ciao,

Robert Scozzari RGD

The first in my series revolves around making the target of your marketing / advertising campaign feel like they are a part of the solution.

Clover Road's Marketing Tip #1:

Involve the Audience

When trying to engage an audience, make sure to involve that audience. When involving the audience, the sheer fact of having them participate in your marketing is an excellent way of guaranteeing full attention and buy in. When you involve the audience, no longer do they have the option of zoning out and missing your message. Instead, they become an active participant in your marketing message and therefore, you have highly increased the probability of successfully winning them over.

Way's to involve the audience are:

• Ask Questions: By asking questions, the audience needs to think. They need to pay close attention to you your words and think of an answer. This is much more engaging than if you tell them the answers. By telling them the answers, you have given them no reason to consider what you have just told them.
• Make it Personal: Relate the marketing or advertising campaign to them. Find out something personal about your audience and use it in your campaign. By making it personal, the audience has a better understanding of the product or service you are offering. A company that sells orthopedic footwear may want to consider incorporating messages of the discomfort and pain experienced without their footwear.
• Tell Stories: Stories are excellent ways of involving the audience. When you hear a story, the natural reaction in your brain is to relate that story to yourself. Stories about anyone's childhood evoke memories of your own. Stories about anyone's grade school experiences evokes memories of your your. It's a natural emotional reaction.
• Don't complete the story: This is an excellent strategy as well to involve the audience. By not completing the story, again, the audience must complete it themselves. This makes them think about what you said and makes them relate it to themselves.

If you successfully involve the audience, they are no longer merely a recipient of your marketing or advertising campaign, they are an active participant in it. And when you make the audience an active participant, your message is absorbed and retained.

Ciao,

Robert Scozzari | www.CloverRoad.ca

The Pomegranate Phone

Last year I came across this viral marketing campaign and was blown away. I'm going to spoil it a bit and tell you it's a clever disguise for something that isn't a telephone. It's very clever and fun to watch. Try to figure it out for yourself. I will tell you though, it's very handy to have a telephone that brews coffee.

www.pomegranatephone.com

I think it's fantastic. And here is why.

Using some Google tools, I have found that there are 227 websites that link directly to the homepage of this website. Search for yourself by typing into a Google search window, link:www.pomegranatephone.com

This is a great example of viral marketing.

Now the question is, does this translate to the desired outcome? That depends on what the desired outcome is. If the outcome is an increased awareness and a higher brand profile, then I think it will be successful.

Ciao,

Robert Scozzari | www.CloverRoad.ca