Quick Tip

 

The other day I was coming to work on the el and saw these ads. It’s an interesting idea for an advertising campaign. On the surface, it seems like an obvious hint. Kind of like your mom telling you to zip your coat on those wintery cold days as a child. But the creative graphics make this simple message more eye-catching. I know there are lots of people who don’t like the look of CFLs, but I was browsing the aisle of my neighborhood home improvement store and was surprised to see CFLs that have a bulb around them so you can’t see the curly-cue. I picked up a couple of these for my dining room table overhead light. I also have been using them in other rooms for about 2 years, and have yet to replace one. Meanwhile, my remaining incandescent bulbs keep burning out.  And, my Christmas tree is filled with LEDs for the first time ever. While the colors have improved, they still aren’t as warm as incandescent lights, but I feel like it’s a worthwhile swap since I’m saving on my electric bill, and helping the future of the planet!

For more energy saving tips, take a look at ComEd's Energy Saving Tips.

Augmented Reality

A few weeks ago I attended the national Direct Marketing Association’s annual convention at McCormick place here in Chicago with some colleagues.  In all my years of direct marketing, this was the first time of attending and I was curious to see how good old fashioned direct marketing was being represented in the new digital era.  My own work with clients has changed drastically over the last decade, and I wanted to see if the DMA had kept pace with that change.

I attended several fascinating sessions, but the one that was most intriguing was a session about the latest mobile technologies, including augmented reality trends.  Augmented reality is a view of the real-world in real time that has been “augmented” or enhanced by computer-generated sensory input.  More specifically, augmented reality uses the camera on your smart phone to overlay information on your field of view that you see through your smart phone.

IKEA uses augmented technology with its catalog and a smart phone to let customers see what specific pieces of will look like in your own room at home.  Way better than taping a catalog picture of a table to the wall in your dining room to see if it looks good!!

Check out this IKEA video.

Even more practical, and useful, is what Audi has done in Germany using augmented reality to create a new version of an owner’s manual.  I recently got a new car, and it’s a different brand from my old car.  The other day, a strange light appeared on the dashboard.  I flipped through the owner’s manual to no avail.  Then, I took a picture of it and texted it to my husband, who told me I needed to fill my tire immediately!  Audi’s new owner’s manual eliminates the need for a handy husband (at least when it comes to cars).

Audi's Augmented Reality.

Of course, my mind went wild thinking of applications for our clients, and in my everyday life.   How about an app showing how your home would look with new energy efficient lighting, or new energy efficient appliances, along with an estimate of how much you could save based on how many lights you have in the room?  How about scanning an item from the grocery store, and getting some recipe ideas or even better, seeing the cooked item on a dish at your kitchen counter?  For now, I’ll settle for looking at my living room through my smart phone and seeing it cleaned up, instead of looking like this:

Amazing how much chaos a two-year-old can get accomplish in a very short amount of time…

Tradition

The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays. Not because I’m such a big patriot (although I certainly appreciate the benefits of being an American), but because it’s a chance for me to participate in some long-standing family traditions and catch up with family members – many of whom I don’t see the rest of the year.

I am blessed to come from a large extended family. With over 25 first cousins, almost all of whom have children (and grandchildren) of their own, family get-togethers can quickly become overwhelming. But every year around the 4th of July, we have a family reunion at the lake where my grandfather bought land and built a cabin over 60 years ago. The 4th of July reunion began 40 years ago and has continued with only a few alterations, to this day.  The day starts with games – musical chairs, cherry spitting, watermelon eating. Prizes are awarded for winners (this year the prizes were strings of brightly colored beads which I saw on kids the rest of the week!). A potluck dinner follows, which always includes the same standards: roast beef, twice baked cheesy potatoes, green salad, and fruit salad with cookies and brownies for dessert. The day of the celebrations, the kitchen in every house is busy chopping, sautéing, baking, mixing to prepare their portion of the meal.

Finally, there is the talent show. It’s usually about an hour long, not because we have so much talent in the family; but rather, because we “think” we have so much talent! There are toddlers shaking rattles, young boys swinging swords along to music, singing (usually the truly talented), playing of musical instruments, and even some tumbling and gymnastics. We’ve had magic shows, made up songs, and skits. It’s a lot of fun and one of the best parts of the day. My favorite act this year was a 2 ½ year old boy singing “This Land is Your Land” and strumming a full size guitar along to the beat.

The best part of the tradition, for me, is the comfort that comes with knowing exactly what to expect – the same games, same meal, even same songs at the talent show. Yet each year I also delight in the new things, like seeing my niece play musical chairs and almost win. Or having my son in the talent show for the first time ever. And throughout the entire weekend, I get the opportunity for conversations with some of the most amazing and interesting people I know. One of my cousins told me about work she’s involved in to bring basic medical care to remote villages throughout Africa. Another one spoke about her decision to maintain a gluten-free diet and how it’s positively impacting her health. With yet another relative, I talked about the state of the economy and the world of marketing agencies.

Coming back from this trip each year, I feel relaxed, refreshed, and ready to tackle my work and get back to the real world with a new perspective. I can’t wait for next year.

If at first you don’t succeed…

My 10-month old son is learning how to do many things these days. He’s crawling like crazy, and now learning how to pull himself up to standing by holding on to a chair leg, the couch, a table, my leg. He’s listening hard to noises we make, and learning how to say them himself (they’re not complicated noises obviously… consonant noises like da-da and ga-ga and the ever-popular raspberry noise!). One day a couple weeks ago I watched him attempt to stand using the dining room table and chair. He worked on this for about 20 minutes before he got tired or distracted.  For every time he successfully stood up, he attempted and fell at least twice. The next day, he was at it again. Now, he’s a pro and can pull himself up using only one hand.

As I have been watching him, I’m amazed by his perseverance. Where does a tiny child get the urge and desire to try and try again? Of course, he gets frustrated. Of course, he falls and hits his head, or knee, or fingers. But after he cries for a minute, he usually gets right up and tries it again.

As adults, we tend to not be as resilient as children. While we’ve all heard the adage, “If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again”, how many of us have really done this lately? We tend to get complacent, expecting that things will go our way without much effort. If I run a meeting that doesn’t go well, present a plan that falls flat, or pitch our services to a new business prospect who chooses someone else, I’m disheartened and disappointed, and sometimes feel like I will never succeed.

Mostly, though, I’m thinking about the failure from every angle. What should I have done instead to achieve success?  Should I have prepared differently? Been more creative in my approach to the problem? Talked to others to get more information before beginning? How can I change my work so it’s better the next time?

And then, I pick myself up, dust myself off, and get ready to do it all over again the next time, learning from my son in the process.

Multicultural Marketing

Multicultural marketing is becoming more, well, multicultural!! Most of my clients have become more interested in diversity over the years as multicultural marketing becomes status quo in marketing, rather than just a late, extra addition to a plan. Last week I was in a meeting where we were discussing nuances among distinct ethnic groups especially in Chicago. Here are some interesting facts I learned:

• The digital divide with African Americans is shrinking – not because more African Americans are getting home computers, but rather due to the growing popularity of smart phones.  
• Also due in part to smart phones, social media has become a major factor in how African Americans communicate and expect to receive information.  
• Latinos typically have more family members living in their home, which means they consume products differently – for example, they may have multiple refrigerators in their home.  
• Often Latino households have someone up all hours of the day and night due to alternate work schedules (shift work, etc.) so they consume more electricity than the typical household. 

But there is more to multi-cultural marketing than Latino and African American audiences. You may have seen, like I did recently, this interesting fact on Taxi TV. Chicago has the largest Polish-speaking community outside of Warsaw.  The Polish community also has its own characteristics. Because electricity is so costly in Eastern Europe, many Polish immigrants are already used to reducing their energy use, such as turning off the lights (and heat) in unused rooms or running the dishwasher or vacuum cleaner at night.

These are just a couple examples of cultural nuances seen within the diverse communities in Chicago. We are in an age where micro-marketing campaigns and localized, one-to-one communications have become standard components of any consumer marketing plan. Consumers have come to expect messages that are not tailored to their particular needs.  Not considering these variations may have an impact on the success of your consumer marketing initiatives.

Inspirational Energy!

Recently, I attended two conferences that inspired me and got me thinking differently about the work I do every day here at Eire.

The first was ComEd’s Energy Efficiency Expo in early September. The purpose of the Expo was to educate businesses in the ComEd service territory about energy efficiency and incentive programs available for businesses that implement energy efficiency measures. This year the Expo was also sponsored by Nicor Gas, People’s Gas and North Shore Gas. It was inspiring to get a chance to talk to some of the businesses that are taking advantage of the incentive programs available – overwhelmingly, they seem excited about the programs and interested in learning how to better take advantage of the incentives available. The keynote speaker was fascinating. David Goldstein with the Natural Resources Defense Council spoke about how energy efficiency can be used to address the current economic troubles. He gave several examples of how the current recession could have been avoided or could be resolved by implementing energy efficiency measures. It was hopeful, and provided suggestions of things that could be done today to improve the economy. His ideas were a ray of sunlight in what seems to be daily gloomy economic news.

The second conference I attended was the Entrepreneurial Women’s Conference, sponsored by the Women’s Business Development Center. It’s the 25th anniversary of the center’s founding, and several of the speakers told stories about challenges they experienced when they first started their women-owned business, including being told they were working in a “man’s world” and they should go back to where they belong, taking notes and making coffee. The keynote speaker was new Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. He talked about his three big initiatives for the City of Chicago: better schools, safer streets, and an environment where businesses can thrive. He applauded all the women in the audience who were working on growing their businesses in Chicago.

What do these two events have in common? At both events, I was surrounded by people who are enthusiastic about their work and motivated to succeed. They chose to spend their day at an event to help them improve their business, or just provide encouragement to continue on the path they are going. I left both events feeling rejuvenated and excited to continue working with clients, developing strategies, and building on successes in my daily work.