Your Story Alive: A Live Communications Blog

June 12, 2013 5:25 PM

Your Graphic Voice

Posted byAdam Sweet

Murmur — From sound to light, by talking to walls. from Chevalvert on Vimeo.

In this very cool experience, Murmur, by Chevalvert, 2Roqs, Polygraphik and Splank, a user walks up to a peculiar, glowing, megaphone which is connected to a blank concrete wall via an LED-lit cord.

As you speak, your voice becomes translated into randomized graphics which are projected onto the wall. A few excerpts from a recent article:

“The main idea is to communicate with the wall, trying to turn it from a concrete and cold presence to a living and responsive surface."

The quirky megaphone and bright, blinking, LED cord... "might seem a bit whimsical, but they’re absolutely integral to visualizing an invisible process, and leveraging digital technology to connect a person to the analog world."

“'The installation is based on the popular kid’s game of listening and talking through [cups] linked by a thread.'”

Link to video.

Read more about it on Co.DESIGN too.

Tags: Cool Stuff, Creative Inspirations, Environmental Design, Exhibits, Global Design, Graphic Design, Innovation, Interactives, Media, People, Pop Culture, Museums & Attractions, Technology

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

May 21, 2013 12:54 PM

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

Tags: Brand Stories, Cool Stuff, Consumer Electronics, Global Design, Advertising, Guerrilla Marketing, Innovation, Interactives, Media, People, Pop Culture, Product Launch, Promotions, Pop-Up Retail, Special Events

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

May 13, 2013 2:18 PM

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.

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.
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.
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.”
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.

Tags: Brand Stories, Creative Inspirations, Exhibits, Innovation, Interactives, People, Special Events, Technology

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

April 12, 2013 12:52 PM

Exxopolis – An Escape for Students

Posted byAlisha

In a world of fast paced environments it is difficult to remember how it feels to slow down and think, Architects or Air (AOA) are making it easier for students at Cal State University Long Beach (CSULB) to find a place to decompress from their running schedules of classes, work, friends and the future.

AOA has created a structure called Exxopolis, a giant structure that can hold up to 80 people. Made entirely of PVC plastic panels it boasts multiple sitting pods that dot the walls and places to sit and lay down. The inside of the structure is set up as a kind of maze. The tunnels continue forever, further making the individual lose their bearings and orientation. The color inside the structure is created by natural sunlight streaming through colored panels on the roof and walls furthering the tranquility that is already in place by the warmth of the music playing throughout the structure.

Students at CSULB worked for nine months in order to get the structure to their campus. It has created an environment to involve and immerse fellow students in as a stress reliever, acting as a vacation in the middle of the semester.

Tags: Cool Stuff, Creative Inspirations, People

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

January 10, 2013 5:36 PM

Wild Ideas Through Collaboration

Posted byAllen Bram

The other night I saw a great interview with David Kelly, Founder of IDEO. He worked with Apple & Steve Jobs on the first mouse and some iterations of the first Apple Computers. Some key thoughts I pulled from the segment was solving problems with empathy and that requires being closer to the end user, so get out of your cube and observe! The interview also reinforced one of the most essential foundations I believe in any business, we need to build on each other ideas to succeed.

Tags: Creative Inspirations, People

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

January 10, 2013 3:26 PM

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.

Tags: Healthcare, Innovation, People

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

January 03, 2013 12:23 PM

Make me! Hacking The Human Body: Meet Daito Manabe

Posted byEli

Intruging and creepy. The new human interface.

Tags: Cool Stuff, Creative Inspirations, Interactives, People, Pop Culture

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

December 20, 2012 2:14 PM

Biggest Trends of 2012

Posted byAlisha

                  photo by: govtech.com

As 2012 comes to an end, it is important to take a look back and evaluate what trends
stood out most in the marketing industry. We hunted around and below are top five
trends that experts found had the most impact to the consumer. The one theme that
ruled in 2012? “Tailoring the experience”:

1.   “Less flash and more function”- Never has the need to create the best
campaigns with the most limited resources been so prominently displayed. Whether the
marketing campaign is B2B or B2C, every individual understands the need for cutting
back on the extras. The key to success with this is to create events that are more
tailored to your best clients and focusing your efforts on satisfying a smaller
crowd.

2.   “Be Flexible”- Promoters have moved events that were historically known to be
in the same location for years to a more central destination around their target
audience, making traveling for the event easier and more cost effective.

3.   “Email’s death has been greatly exaggerated”- Email promotions are still the
one of the top ways to promote your B2B company. The trick to keeping this avenue
alive and working is to create new ways to get your promotion noticed and by
tailoring it to the audience you send it to.

4.   “Direct mail makes a comeback”- With the decreased use of direct mail in
recent years, it has now become an open opportunity for companies. This medium is
still best used for micro-segmenting prospects and clients - once again, drawing on
the “tailor the experience” theme that has ruled throughout 2012.

5.   “Tracking ROI with social media”- Social media has been on the forefront of
finding new avenues to promote your company or event. This year, having a solid ROI
when using this medium was essential, whether it be creating leads or increasing
purchases.

2012 has been a year of growing and learning while being very aware of the bottom
line. If 2012 is any indication of what marketers are capable of, then the industry
will continue to create extraordinary displays while being practical.

Tags: Social Media, Media, People

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

December 07, 2012 12:15 PM

Technology is in the Driver's Seat

Posted byAlisha

Image courtesy of dtvusaforum.com

The holidays are upon us, and with that comes the rampant sales and frenzied shopping that is now associated with the season. No two days are more frenzied than Black Friday and its counterpart, Cyber Monday.

This year when the sales numbers were released it was shocking, because 2012 was the first year that Black Friday sales were over one billion dollars. While many people were standing impatiently for the doors to open at their favorite store, many others were waiting patiently online in order to be part of the largest increase in online retail sales ever. Most of these transactions were made on mobile devices or tablets. This brings up the question: How is technology influencing the two most lucrative shopping holidays of the year?

On Black Friday 57 million Americans visited an online retail store, up 18 percent from 2011. The retailers that profited the most from these visits were Amazon, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Target and Apple. The primary reason for this increase was due to the development of mobile and tablet apps that allow consumers to shop online just by touching a few buttons. This also allows the consumer to enjoy being at home with family and friends, avoid the crowds and get the same deals that are available at the store. Purchases made on mobile devices or tablets reached 48.2 percent of the total online purchases on Black Friday.

With the success of Black Friday analysts were expecting Cyber Monday to perform even better. While Cyber Monday set a new record for the biggest online shopping day ever, it paled in comparison to Black Friday’s overall income. On this day it wasn’t consumers using technology to make their purchases that was so outstanding, it was the consumers purchasing technology. According to AdAge, tablets accounted for 7.1 percent of all Cyber Monday purchases with Apple’s iPad line accounting for 90.5 percent of all tablets purchased.

The days of consumers running out at midnight to be first in line at the stores are coming to an end. Retailers are being forced to develop strategies that deliver the same messages as an in-store display without the added benefit of having the face-- to-- face contact with the consumer. A major reason retailers cut prices on Black Friday is to get people into the store in the hopes of them purchasing higher priced items, which are often-times are not on sale. When a consumer purchases an item online it becomes easier for them to avoid the impulse buying the stores are hoping to see. The challenge that retailers are facing is developing the same impact in-store and on their websites. This year shows that a new era of ease and access is inundating the holiday shopping season. With the largest profits ever recorded in history, Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales were driven by technology, whether it is by using it or purchasing it. If Black Friday was any indication of what the retailers have in store for consumers then look forward to more great deals in the future.

Tags: Technology, Promotions, People

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

June 29, 2012 11:05 AM

EWI Worldwide Acquires The TERM Group

Posted byKatie

We're pleased to announce this week that we have signed an agreement to acquire The Trade Event Resource Management (TERM) Group, which specializes in the installation and dismantling of displays for tradeshows and live events. The TERM Group, a premier labor management team in the industry, is best known for executing some of the largest and most detailed labor management calls in the nation.

We're not only excited to be formalizing this opportunity after successfully working with The TERM Group for over 10 years - we're also excited about what this partnership means for our clients. This strategic decision allows us to provide a streamlined process in executing your programs and more importantly, gives us greater control on the show floor.

For more details and information, the full press release announcing the acquisitino can be read here.

Tags: Brand Stories, Exhibits, People

View Comments (0) | Post a Comment | Email This | Share This:

Next >>

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.

Your Story Alive

YSA

EWI Worldwide

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