The Marketing Innovation Blog

You will almost certainly recognize the songs from this best selling musical act, but what’s most notable is their consistency. 50 albums released in the last 15 years, 9 of them certified gold (with one platinum), 15 debuting in the Billboard top ten…

I am talking, of course, about Kidz Bop.

This overwhelmingly popular series was started by a couple of marketing geniuses, Craig Balsam and Cliff Chenfeld. They saw that most current pop music was not suited for their young kids, and there was an opportunity to repackage the more appropriate hits and tailor them to a specific audience. Their listening audience was young kids and “tweens,” but their real target market was the parents who want their kids to be able listen to fun, age-appropriate tunes.

Many musical artists have found ways to turn their own personalities and music into viable brands, but the Kidz Bop team has been an innovator by aggregating the best of pop music and repackaging it into something that is marketable to an entirely different audience.

They also created more than music – they created a viable brand that is largely independent from the original songs.

Their ‘Kidz Star USA’ Talent search became a successful ongoing web series. They have also formed a variety of other partnerships with companies like McDonald’s, Six Flags, RCA Records, and Spotify. Their social network, launched in 2008 (!) has 1.4 million registered members and features tons of user-generated content, content from a collaboration with HarperCollins (cross promoting books, using subscriptions and author Q&A’s) as well as branded content from advertisers like Macy’s and ConAgra.

The Kidz Bop crew should be an inspiration to marketers everywhere, with their commitment to collaboration, ambitious adoption of new technology and the relentless pursuit of relevance. Have you found inspiration in any unexpected places?

Nathaniel Grimes is the Business Development Manager at GY&K. Connect with him on Twitter: @Nathaniel_g

It started with a tweet.

Earlier this year, NBATV aired the Lakers/Raptors game from January 22, 2006 (Kobe Bryant’s infamous 81 point game). New to Twitter, Kobe Bryant humbly live tweeted throughout the broadcast. And, that’s when this happened:

Of course, Kobe was referring to my brother, Matt Bonner, as the Red Mamba.

Additionally, the “Red Mamba tweet” occurred amidst a #letbonnershoot social media campaign to get Matt into the NBA Three-Point Contest during All-Star Weekend:

Prior to the #letbonnershoot campaign, New Hampshire based t-shirt company, The Mountain had been exploring ways to collaborate with the Rock On Foundation, a 501c3 nonprofit organization I founded with my brother and Travis York (GY&K president).

As the #letbonnershoot campaign gained momentum, The Mountain preemptively designed a special t-shirt to celebrate Matt’s participation in the Three-Point Contest, should he be selected. Known for their epic animal t-shirts, Kobe’s Red Mamba tweet provided the perfect inspiration for The Mountain.

Matt ended up getting selected as a Three-Point Contest participant, and The Mountain acted quickly to create the commemorative Red Mamba t-shirts. They also chose to donate proceeds from Red Mamba t-shirt sales to the Rock On Foundation.

The Mountain armed me with a box full of the shirts to bring down to Houston for All-Star Weeekend, and they were a hit. Several players requested their own Red Mamba t-shirt. We gave shirts to people like Drake, Diddy, Joakim Noah, etc. (EDITORS NOTE: Diddy said “Thanks.”) TNT even had Matt talk about the Rock On Foundation and display the shirt live on air prior to the start of the Three-Point Contest.

The nickname has lived on, and it’s now become common place for television commentators to refer to Matt as the “Red Mamba.” And, Kobe Bryant still loves the nickname:

Since the creation of the Red Mamba t-shirts, the Rock On Foundation has received over $16,000 in donations from The Mountain to support community artistic and athletic programs. Additionally, Matt’s playoff productivity has been higher than in years past, and I like to think this is a direct result of his new Red Mamba mentality.

So, as the Spurs await the start of their championship series against the Miami Heat, I’d like to encourage Spurs fans to get their own Red Mamba shirts. Imagine an entire arena filled with these shirts? Talk about a home court advantage.

Get your own Red Mamba t-shirt for the NBA Finals HERE.

What’s your favorite athlete nickname?

Luke Bonner is the Marketing Coordinator at GY&K

Like many people here at GY&K, I find music to be a great passion. I used to be in bands as a kid and have been an “uber-fan” of many bands and artists over the years, going to shows, collecting and absorbing everything related to their music. In fact I think my brain contains far more wasted knowledge of music than it should. Being an artist (and all around creative person), I have definitely appreciated the many visual offerings bands created to accompany their music. Album covers before the era of digital music, were the main artifact fans owned relating to a band, and they created a ubiquitous language and expression that everyone shared when referring to a band.

So, without further ado, here are ten album covers that I’ve come to appreciate over the years:

#1 Radiohead “Kid A”

This album cover was created during the age of the Compact Disc, but they maximized the visceral experience by including a very elaborate multi-folding inner jacket. It contained a collage of hand created imagery that blended with digital patterns and with the use of translucent pages, blurred the linear tradition of going through the booklet, and turned it into more of an emotional journey. I get so lost in it, I can’t even remember if there were any words in it.

#2 The Police “Ghost In The Machine”

Most Police albums were photo centric, they had a couple good covers. This one came in the heart of the early 80s and couldn’t be more graphic and simple. It wasn’t until decades later that I realized the digital LED patterns were actually their faces.

#3 TOOL “10,000 Days”

From a creative perspective, I love everything about Tool, their music is deep, their shows are mesmerizing, and they package themselves very skillfully. When this CD originally came out, it contained cardboard Stereoscopic glasses to view the inside cover and jacket, creating a sense of depth and perspective.

#4 Yes “Relayer”

This list wouldn’t be complete without some mention of Roger Dean, considering all he has done for Yes over the years. This album has an amazing painting by Roger, creating dreamlike fantasy worlds that helped Yes project the progressive rock persona that was in their music. This is an example of a perfect visual pairing with their musical style. I can’t even listen to Yes without seeing these visuals in my mind.

#5 The Cult “Love”

As a band from the mid 80s, they managed to escape without the cheesy tainting of MTV and all things icky about that decade. This album showcased a Lexicon of symbols that contributed to their mysterious image. I first saw this kind of stuff used by Led Zeppelin back in the 70s, when they used symbols and mystical lyrics. As a typography enthusiast, I loved the runes and tribal imagery, and I really thought this dark and difficult to interpret cover was a great contrast to the title “LOVE”.

#6 Jason Mraz “Love is a four letter word”

This album cover is the opposite of the one in #5. Here, Love is simple, approachable, vulnerable. I love simplicity in design. Not only is this cover graphically minimalistic, but the idea is too. The use of simple shapes and colors to clearly communicate a word is refreshing. But the way that technique transfers to the concept of the album is great too. “Love” doesn’t need to be complicated. It’s THAT easy.

#7 Led Zeppelin “In through the out door”

When this album first came out, it was in a brown bag, stamped with a label like a bootleg or secret package. Inside, the jacket was plain, until wiped with water, then it magically turned permanently colored to reveal the image on the cover and backside. That pretty much blew everyone’s mind. But wait, theres more… There were half a dozen versions of this album. Each having a different photo on the cover. All taken in the same bar scene, but each from a different angle as seen from different people within the photo. Now, who wouldn’t want to own all of them? Genius!

#8 The Hold Steady “Stay Positive”

I am fascinated by bands that are able to create a mark that represented them. Led Zeppelin had the “swan song” guy, Grateful Dead had the “steal your face”, Rush had the “Star man”, and The Stones with “the lips.” I’m not sure bands can even achieve this anymore. Maybe we’re too saturate, maybe fan bases aren’t united enough? Even though this is a mark for an album title and not a band name, the “stay positive” mark is pretty cool, and it stands for an anthem that could use a mark.

#9 Animal Collective “Merriweather Post Pavillion”

Clearly, Indie music created a whole new “indie artwork” movement. Cheap, homemade, iconic, unexpected, clever… Anything goes when packaging Indie music and the “hipster” culture. This album used an example of illusury motion, a type of optical illusion. I like it because although it’s a bit gimmicky, its definitely memorable, and in the cluttered landscape of indie bands and hipster band names, this album has become a standout on the iPod coverflow. Knowing that the 12” album is long gone and the digital age only allows for small displays and thumbnails, this is a very ingenious way to identify the record.

#10 Weezer “Hurley”

This is a perfect example of how immediate our culture is now. I don’t think we care anymore about whether what we say or do will mean anything tomorrow, in a year, or in ten years. Naming their album Hurley and using an image of Hurley, who was a lovable character on the TV show LOST, almost seems like a tragic mistake made during a forgotten night at a sake bar. But, whether it was calculated or not, it places this band’s album in a time and place that includes some context to popular culture. I mean, who doesn’t associate a song or album with a time in their life? Perhaps they were cashing in on the hype around that show at the time.

What’s your favorite album cover?

Jeff Topping is the VP, Associate Creative Director at GY&K Marketing.

Late one Friday afternoon our Art Director and I were laughing as he photographed me hitting a Wiffle ball off of a stack of Moxie cans.  As a nod to baseball season for our Moxie ‘Can Do’ series, we were once again doing what it takes to create original content.

In the midst of this, we both had the same thought at the same time: I love and hate the work we do.

The love part is obvious, I mean, how often do you get to crank Wiffle balls off of soda cans in your office? But the hate…well, maybe ‘hate’ is a strong word.  Let me explain.

Social media is fast-paced, often times calling for brand’s to be nimble and reactive in the moment with fresh content and responses to the world around us. Combine that fast pace with the need to have a steady stream of quality content and the restrictions of time and budget and you’ve got quite a challenge on your hands.

In an ideal world, we’d have the time to spend days if not weeks on every project. But take the need for 20-30 pieces of content a month per client, and you just don’t have that luxury.

But in the end, with all the factors involved, content still needs to be top-quality.

Lucky for us, our social media department operates like an agency within an agency, utilizing dedicated design, development, copy and strategy resources. But it’s not just the proper structure. Maintaining quality requires crafty thinking, resourcefulness and a lot of “get it done” mentality. Experience doesn’t hurt either…just sayin’.

Social media content creation is a string of micro-projects tied within an ever-evolving campaign. The world surely isn’t going to wait for us, and we must be timely to maintain relevance to the social conversation.

With that said, here are some of my favorite pieces of original content that we’ve created with our client partners:

Moxie, Health Dialog and Wagamama

Sweet Baby Ray’s and PF Flyers

Luke Garro is the EVP/Director of Social & Experiential at GY&K Antler

Need a little marketing inspiration? We’ve rounded up the best digital campaigns and experiential stunts from April to give you the creative firepower you’ll need to spark the next big idea.

Kit Kat “No Wifi” Zone

Kit Kat turned a popular trend on its head by taking their tagline of “have a break, have a Kit Kat” to the next level. Rather than offering Free WIFI, an omnipresent feature in our lives, Kit Kat created Free “No-WiFi Zones” in various spots around Amsterdam.

They set up stations with large signs that featured small WIFI jammers, blocking all signals within a five-meter radius. The point? To encourage people to enjoy a life free of the Internet in order to read a newspaper, enjoy a good book or simply have a genuine conversation with a friend. This genius campaign garnered PR buzz across top publications, created a memorable experience for passerby’s and seamlessly tied a trend and a product message together into marketing campaign for the ages.

Evan’s Cycle & Chris Hoy Golden Bike Competition

Willy Wonka inspired “Golden Ticket” campaigns are popping up everywhere, and we’re big fans of UK bike shop, Evans Cycle’s, social & experiential take. The shop is partnering with record-holding British Olympic cyclist Sir Chris Hoy for ‘Hoy’s Golden Bikes’. The popular Olympian is hiding three golden bicycles around the UK, giving fans the chance to find them and trade the golden wheels in for a shiny new bike. Fans can access a microsite with clues to the bikes location, or hop over to Twitter for hints from the official @chrishoy account via the hashtag #hoyshiddenbikes.

This offline campaign is 100% supported by digital, allowing those who can’t play along, to follow along, while also adding a layer of unique buzz by partnering with a relevant celebrity.

Volkswagen “Polowers” Twitter Campaign

No one was talking about the Volkswagen Polo, and Volkswagen decided to change that. They launched a Twitter competition like no other—creating the first Twitter race to get people talking. They asked fans to tweet using the #Polowers hashtag to land their name on a virtual racetrack –featured on a microsite that showed your position on the track using your Twitter profile photo. Whoever’s tweet happened to be first when the Polo car stopped, won a brand new Polo.

The campaign landed #Polowers at the #1 trending spot, received over 150,000 tweets, and finally started a conversation—a big one–around the Polo on Twitter.

Urban Outfitters & Converse Vine Contest

Urban Outfitters and Converse are capitalizing on the buzz around Vine with their “Where do your Chuck’s go?” Vine contest. It’s simple: fans have to submit a 6-second video of “A day in the life of your Converse” for the chance to win gift cards, cross country trips and more.

This is a great example of utilizing a strategic brand alliance to amplify a social media campaign and reach a targeted group of consumers. Plus, they’ll likely get great user-generated content to use for the future.

Melanie Cohn is a Social Media & Digital Marketing Manager at GY&K Antler

Brands are constantly thinking up over the top ways to generate buzz and results for their social media pages, without breaking the bank. One international beer brand did just that, for less than $100 BRL.

Heineken – 1 Like = 1 Balão from Casebook Videocases on Vimeo.

Heineken Brazil created an effective campaign both in terms of cost and results. In 2012 the Heineken Brazil Facebook page was hovering on Likes and decided to do something quick and quirky to generate more buzz about their brand. They pledged to blow up a green balloon in their office for every Like they received. The campaign was simply titled “Um Like Um Balao” which in Portuguese translates to “One Like One Balloon”. The campaign was completed in one day, generating thousands of new likes. They made a clever YouTube video, and the campaign was picked up by bloggers and media outlets both in Brazil and America.

Is there anything more fun than an office full of balloons and thousands of new Likes?

Corinna DaCruz is the Social Media Coordinator at GY&K Marketing

We all have personal agendas and do our best not to push them onto others. But, on this occasion of Earth Day 2013, here’s my “Andy Rooney” on a subject near and dear to me. You’ll probably guess what it is when I tell you that I’m the one who hoards plastic food containers after a company party to take to a friend who bakes for charity; or sneaks an empty copy paper box under a new staff person’s desk in hopes it is used for post-consumer waste.

So it’s fitting that I remind everyone of these three simple words:  reduce, reuse, and recycle.

I’m proud to work at a company that embraced the idea to recycle “paper” about 15 years ago. Our recycling efforts have grown considerably since those days of hauling three huge bins from the 20^th floor of our former location and maneuvering them to a back dock in the basement.  Now, we salvage plastic, cans, cardboard, and anything else my small band of recycling recruits manage to pick out of the trash.

And while that’s certainly progress, the reality is, as a society, too many of us aren’t conscientious of what we’re disposing of on a daily basis. Given our busy lives, our mind frame is “convenience” instead of “respect.”

Our focus this year is to further “reduce” our volume of plastic bottles and disposable coffee cups.  In an effort to recruit converts, company president Travis York purchased GY&K water bottles from our friends at National Geographic to use at our filtered taps (yes, city water…imagine that!).  Plus, we’ve got a slew of ceramic coffee mugs with an amusing array of past/current client and media station logos – so no excuse there.

So here’s hoping we all take a step toward reducing, reusing and recycling starting TODAY – not just out of fear you’ll wake up someday and see our White Mountains replaced by plastic mountains – but out of simple respect for our dear Mother Earth.

Gloria Proulx is the VP/Production Manager for GY&K

HP – Photoball (ENG) from AlmapBBDO Internet on Vimeo.

Nowadays, having a Facebook page and Twitter profile is standard practice for most brands (not to mention YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram and the like). That being said, it’s becoming more of a challenge to rise above the clutter and keep moving forward. One great way to stand out from the crowd is to pull social media into the real world and vice versa.

HP recently activated a campaign that shows how a brand can be successful tying social media to a more traditional tactic like event marketing. In the video above, you can see how they’ve managed to take an object older than the floppy disk – your average beach ball – and made it new, tech-savvy, and socially connected. Not only that, but it’s integrated well into the concert venue as already familiar, becoming a center point of the event and an experience people want to interact with. AND it promotes HP’s services (great photo printing) and new positioning (“making memories last”).

Could a brand ask for more?

Lindsay DeVellis is the Social Media Marketing Manager for GY&K Antler

This year, Adidas unveiled new Zubaz print uniforms for several of its elite college basketball teams. These uniforms created quite a stir (as intended). They disrupted the status quo of what we’ve come to know as acceptable basketball uniforms. Not only did Adidas resurrect this gaudy print from one of sport fashion’s more regrettable time periods, but they also added short sleeves and infrared coloring to the jerseys. The college basketball world hasn’t been subjected to short sleeve jerseys since Evansville University retired their conservative uniforms more than a decade ago.

The social media world exploded upon the release of these short sleeved, fluorescent, Zubaz print uniforms. Basketball fan or not, images of these uniforms demanded your attention.

Upon first sight, I assumed these uniforms were some sort of novelty stint by Adidas.

Zubaz? How cute?

However, when innocent fans (such as myself) fell victim to these uniforms during the Big East Championship game between Notre Dame and Louisville (the final Big East championship game in the history of this storied conference, mind you), I was forced to take my first baby step past denial and started to inch my way toward acceptance. But still, my eyes refused to accept what I was seeing as reality.

The uniforms were undeniably hideous, in my opinion.

Curiously enough, the presence of these uniforms in high profile games over a short period of time quickly lent an odd amount of credibility to the style.

Earlier this week, Louisville took center stage once again. They faced Michigan in the national championship game. This game took place merely weeks after the Big East Championship. And, somehow, in that amount of time, I had been desensitized by the whacky Adidas uniforms. I didn’t even bat an eyelash as the Louisville players cut down the nets wearing their Zubaz print uniforms. Adidas managed to weasel Zubaz back into mainstream America, and now this style will forever have a place in Louisville’s national championship.

Michigan (also an Adidas school) took a different approach. They elected to leave their Zubaz print at home, and instead wore their more traditional (neon) yellow uniforms. I’m assuming they did so because this game was for a national championship, and winning a championship is a timeless accomplishment. They probably didn’t want to risk having that achievement overshadowed in the future by the presence of a short-lived fad.

So, here lies the question, could Louisville’s championship lend enough credibility to this style of uniform that it will transcend its “fad” status and secure its presence in the basketball world as the norm? Or, will we look back on this championship team with a tinge of embarrassment and ironically scoff at their ridiculous uniforms?

Luke Bonner is the Marketing Coordinator at GY&K Marketing

I’m staring at my computer screen and there are no amazing ideas coming to me.

Oh nice, Moosejaw is having an end of season sale – I love a deal. I should check my email. Actually I need a soda. brb.

I’m back. Staring at my screen again. Surfing the web for inspiration and trolling stock photo sites. I’ve still got nothing. Daily deals, email, instant messenger, YouTube… Computers are too distracting for us creative types.

Wait a minute, remember the hours spent so intimately with the rapidograph pens freshman year?

No?

I do.

It’s time to pick up a pen and really do some thinking.

Sharpies have now replaced my rapidograph set, but a mouse has yet to replace my Sharpie. After all these years, sometimes I still forget that the ideas flow better with ink. It’s not like I’m drawing anything amazing —mostly stick people, boxes, scribbles and random thoughts. But I always arrive at better ideas when I start with pen and paper.

My advice. Turn of your monitor and pick up a Sharpie (I’m not above stealing them from co-workers). Let the ideas flow. This is when we should be teaming up with our clients, letting them in on our creative process and developing amazing ideas together.

Nichole Collins is the Senior Art Director at GY&K Marketing