Your Story Alive

YSA

EWI Worldwide

Coca Cola Happiness Without Borders

Posted byAdam Sweet

This is a really beautiful experience; helping to unite two groups of people who may not interact at all, yet are similar on so many levels. 


Interestingly, it has almost nothing to do with the brand or product, and everything to do with the user and lifestyle. 

 

Enjoy this soulful video. More information: http://www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/happiness-without-borders

 

 
 

Key Trends: Event Marketing Summit 2013

Posted byKatie
Waiting for class to start at EMS 2013.

The annual Event Marketing Summit is known for big ideas and big campaigns - and this year did not disappoint. Here are the top findings from our attendance this year - with the caveat that try as we might, we couldn’t attend every session that we wanted to.  

  1. Employees are gaining more market share and attention. Several brands talked about the importance of communicating internally – and not just to the sales force. One presenter from Textron, the maker of the Bell Helicopter – shared concerns  about keeping new product details under wraps, even from employees. An information leak happened despite their best efforts, and when they realized that the leaked information wasn’t factual, they decided to embrace it instead, and go for full transparency. The resulting campaign was a mix of surprise and delight, starting with tactics as simple as window and floor decals in employee lunchrooms. The campaign that started with employees also served as the foundation for an incredible product reveal. They may not be responsible for sales directly, but employees certainly bring something to the table when it comes to brand integrity, reputation and buzz.
  2. Long product cycles and sustained outreach. This year, we saw a bit more focus on those brands that face long product cycles. Whether its helicopters or cars, it seems that brands are shifting away from campaign or program-focused execution, and instead looking for the long game. What are the implications for the brand identity? What kind of messaging are we putting in the marketplace? By being considerate of the flow of information and cadence, some are finding a way to refocus on the sequence of live events – not just a few nights a year.
  3. The brand ambassador is changing.  Forget booth babes and the traditional product specialists! We kid. But seriously, for many of the events and case studies we saw, the idea of the brand ambassador is going through a fundamental shift, and not just for tradeshow programs. Take Genlivet’s campaign, The Guardian. This membership club brings together highly curated content, events and recommendations, anchored by the venerable, agency-created, Jonathan Dram. (Who, by the way, comes complete with his own Pinterest account: http://pinterest.com/jonathandram/pins/). Another presenter that we saw talked about how one automaker worked with an architect for a recent event and even asked him to open his home and car collection to journalists. And, Audi shared their efforts as they identified a niche audience representation, skiers, led by a former US team member, as they delivered experiences for one of their most niche products, the Audi allroad. While these representatives are implicitly talented and cool – they also safely guard their own creative content and presence, so good luck telling them what to do and say, exactly. In the words of the Glenlivet representative, properly vetting this group is a “fine art.”
  4. The power of the personal story. We believe this goes hand in hand with the trend in brand ambassadors. While a corporate brand is cool, personal stories are better. The Textron marketer talked about how their sales meetings kicked off with a look at what makes their speakers unique – and those interests helped drive better connection during those meetings. Likewise, Paul Blurton of inVNT found that people who had the same personal aspects as those the brand was working to emulate (creative, adventurous, discerning, etc.) helped create touchpoints that prospects and customers could relate to. Interesting people, they are finding, drive more interesting conversation and more effective communications. While it means less control, better relationships are the tradeoff.

Sending a huge thank you!
Last but not least, thanks to everyone who joined us at our UX track session, “Big Footprints, Bigger Impressions: Making the Most of Large Real Estate.” Great questions were asked. If you want a copy of the presentation, leave a comment or contact us at media ‘at’ ewiworldwide.com.



 
 

ICare

Posted byAlisha

A couple weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending an event for the Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society’s Michigan Chapter. The da Vinci Awards is an annual event that showcases the most innovative new technologies that help promote individuals overcoming physical limitations caused by having MS. There were 15 finalists, all of them equally brilliant enough to take the top nod.

The Madonna ICARE by Sports Art was nominated in the area of “Recreation and Leisure.” It is a machine that re-trains an individual’s brain after losing the ability to walk due to illness. For the first time people are able to afford this care within the comfort of their own home. Watch the video above to learn more about this innovative and inspiring new machine.

 
 

Sanofi: Root and Branch Reinvention

Posted bySusan Hough

























As most of us in the business world have experienced, there are wins and losses. When this happens, change is inevitable. The creative ‘road less traveled’ can be a very risky path for responsible corporations to take when faced with lost sales.

Healthcare giant, Sanofi, experienced significant losses at the start of 2012 when three of its pharmaceuticals’ went off-patent, losing US exclusivity and facing generic competition, resulting in over $5 billion in sales lost. Instead of battening down the hatches, Sanofi chose the creative path to implement new digital media programs, groundbreaking gadget design and visionary contests aimed at techies, scientists and non-profits.

At the end of 2012, Sanofi out performed earnings forecasts through ‘root and branch reinvention,” excellence in digital efforts and the importance of collaboration.

 
 

It's All About Perspective

Posted byAlisha
Check out this video from TED speaker Sue Austin. When a disabling disease forced her to live life in a power chair, she found the strength to change her life.  It’s a great lesson for all of us when it comes to the power of storytelling, perspective and understanding.
 
 

An interactive storyteller blends the best in storytelling with technology.

Posted byEli
 A poetic experience. "A deep and captivating interactive short film that takes you on a journey into another world. The experimental and progressive nature of this project shows us how storytelling can be combined with the next generation in technology to deliver a mind opening adventure." - ROB FORD, FWA FOUNDER

Be sure to check out the project with Google Chrome.
 
 

Human-Centered Design

Posted byKatie












Check out this article from Wired magazine, Empowering Patients Through Design, on why permanent installations need to begin with the end-user in mind. One of our favorite excerpts:

"The projects are part of a growing movement called human-centered design, which aims to redefine how people experience health care by focusing on their specific needs. Because the rehab center Graves used served mostly people in wheelchairs, it should have had electrical outlets higher on the wall and mirrors lower. But, he said, it didn’t have either of those things.

Frustrated, he asked his doctor to sit in a wheelchair and try to brush his teeth or shave. Of course, the doctor couldn’t do either of those things. Graves suggested he hire smarter architects and build a model room to make facilities better suited to the people they were meant to serve. It didn’t happen."

Whether a permanent installation, a temporary exhibit or the interior of a building - as the article says, it's an often overlooked but absolutely critical need. When it comes to looking at your guests, also appeal to all ages, abilities and the way that they will be interacting. For example, children interact with museum exhibits drastically different than adults do; or, doctors visiting your booth may interact differently than entrepreneurs, marketing or business developers would.

Linked here (and photo above) is an example of a program that we developed for the University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's hospital that shows one example of creating multiple experiences that speak to different interactivity levels, all in one space.
 
 

Data visualization and generative art

Posted byKatie
Every day we're bombarded with a ton of information.

Artists, software programmers and designers have come up with an elegant solution to this information overload. We see it in infographics, in the scenario recreations we read every day in the paper, and now - when combined with generative art, we have something that makes sense and can actually grow as the data multiplies.

Check out this video by PBS Off Book (brought to you by Brain Pickings via our own VP of creative and innovations Eli B'sheart) for some Friday inspiration.
 
 

MIT shows us the possibilities of UI

Posted byEli
Check out this article and video from Fast Co. Design on MIT Lab's solution, "MaKey MaKey," for making personalized UIs out of "any material that can conduct at least a tiny bit of electricity."

Even bananas.

Full article: http://www.fastcodesign.com/1670096/create-uis-out-of-anything-with-this-kit-from-mit#1
 
 

Event Marketing Summit: Embracing the Revolution

Posted byKatie
Next week, we'll be joining hundreds of industry peers at the Event Marketing Summit in Chicago.

We're excited about this event for a number of reasons - to learn about the latest in the industry, talk about trends, benchmarking in the industry and more - and one of the topics we're most interested in is how technology is changing the industry and the way that we approach live events.

We hope you can join us at the Tuesday 8 a.m. keynote, "Disruption at the door: Change is on the way." Scott Schenker, VP-Global Events from SAP will be presenting how digital and social media are causing a fundamental shift in events - and though it hasn't affected the industry full-force, the change is in motion.

We'd love to hear your thoughts on this POV - and will blog about what was shared after the keynote. We'll also be live-Tweeting throughout the summit, so please follow us at www.twitter.com/yourstoryalive.

 
 
 Next >>
About YSA

A place where creative folks and clients, account people and strategists gather to discuss Live Communications and its singular ability to create deeper, more meaningful relationships between

customers and brands. 

 

So pull up your keyboard and raise a few questions, share some ideas, provide a little inspiration.  Oh, yeah... and get comfortable.  After all, it's your place.

 

Developed by the creatives of EWI Worldwide, www.ewiworldwide.com.


Brands
Sign in