You can’t take anything for granted in this industry.

After 10 digital postcards that all encouraged you good readers to go to our blog, we lapsed. Last week, there was no encouragement, hint or solicitation to visit our blog. We thought we no longer needed to direct you to the thinking going on here.

Apparently we were wrong; that void was felt.

So we responded instantly with an awareness tactic. Our copy platform simply said ‘This week’s homework: Click anywhere to visit Ignite’s blog.’ This isn’t new. All of our digital postcards are programmed to take the reader to the corresponding blog entry. We just needed to reinforce that message.

Because what we do with this blog (and the sample creatives that accompany it) is what we do professionally. This is our training camp for simulating real world tactics. We use this online presence to publicize our strengths and, in this case, answer an oversight.

We can hypothesize and experiment all we want on our own time, so long as it guarantees we jump straight to the results for our clients.

Some experts believe a consumer can be exposed to more than 30,000 messages per day. You have seen stats like this several times, but does it really stick with you? Merely stating this fact again isn’t likely to make you remember why it’s important to make your message take root and stand tall in what is likely a very crowded forest.

Perhaps its more important to consider the way we’re saying it.

Perhaps the message is said in a way that challenges consumers to consider it differently. For instance, how many stick puns does it take to make this post memorable? (Keep count). You know the longer your message is actively considered in the mind, the broader the idea branches out.

Perhaps it’s relayed in an unexpected way or place, causing your target to uproot themselves from our busy, can’t-see-the-forest-through-the-trees daily lives. There’s a lot of competition for attention out there – so differentiation and acknowledgement makes your idea grow above the rest. Yeah, you might expect marketing insights on an agency blog like this, but what if the point was made from a flash mob in Grand Central Station?  Pretty sure you’d remember that.

Perhaps it’s the consistency of the message that seeds the idea for the long haul. There’s a reason I write ’tissue’ and you think ‘Kleenex’. Focus and repetition are key to make any message blossom and bear fruit. Being different for different’s sake will cause confusion unless this action points back to the common trunk which supports your compelling marketing message.

With that in mind, we are prepared to make our service and your message stickier than maple syrup.

In almost every circumstance, when you hear that someone is getting creative with money, it is a very bad thing. The books are getting cooked. The cash cow is full of bull. Sure, there’s skin in the game, but it’s mostly dandruff.

At Ignite, we think of that phrase completely differently. Getting creative with money is what we do with every budget we look at. Maximize outcome and minimize risk. This requires a full-team perspective.  Our motto: It’s not the size of the budget, but the size of the impact.

How have our members handled a similar-sized project in the past? What have we gotten excited about in the marketing world recently, whether we were working on it or not? Is this idea when created going to bolster returns on awareness? On market share? On revenue?

Money gets a bad rep. It changes hands like an amateur draw poker player. It’s filthy. It’s the root of all evil. Do any of us really believe this? Money buys dreams. Because whether you want to take a trip to low-space orbit or a trip to your in-laws, money’s the only thing that’s going to get you there.

Remember all through the 2000′s, when you’d get those souvenir glasses where the zeroes formed the eyeholes? It’s been two years now since those were an option. Sigh. Sure at first, they seemed gimmicky and obvious. Yet, now they can never come back into our design vocabulary. That’s a bit sad.

Nostalgia…that longing for a time we can never return to.

As we stand on the platform of 2011, waiting for 2012 to roll into the station, let’s take a moment to observe all the great things that happened to us this year. Then, turn our focus to the future. Because, we don’t need gimmicky glasses.

Cheers. Let’s raise new glasses to 2012, and to us.

No one goes into competition—be it beauty pageants, sports or business—expecting to be a loser. Pessimism flies in the face of the competitor. We want accolades, trophies, rings, satin sashes, title belts, plum parking spots, bonuses, corner offices.

Still, we are, one way or another, all in the point-counting game. Offense moves yardage. Accountants move digits. Developers move innovations. Retailers move units. And, agencies move impressions.

At the end of the day/quarter/campaign, you know when you’ve won. We know too. Sometimes the competition is too tough and too big. It feels like every element you were up against had a one-of-a-kind coordinator talking into its earpiece.

As the Cowboys bring a very shaky lead back to Arlington on Christmas Eve for the last home game of the season, we here at Ignite Partnership ponder the homestand.

That symbiotic tour-de-force where brand meets fan base head-on amid cheers and great expectations. This is where the win really matters, where the uprights can get uprooted.

We have all seen this happen. It’s exhilarating. I recently saw Charlie Daniels bring his audience to fist-pumpin’ hoots that silenced his band when he changed the lyrics of “Folsom Prison Blues” to “I shot a man in Dallas/Just to watch him die. He was an Arizona Cardinal.”

As you’re watching the game this weekend, take stock of how excited you feel. If you want your brand to experience that same level of commitment, give us a challenge. We’ll be your coach/coordinator/cheerleader.

DISCLAIMER: If the Dallas Cowboys aren’t really your thing, we understand. Tell us what you are into and we’ll make your brand feel like that.

Hope you enjoy our little inspiration to what warms our hearts this holiday season, from all the hands here at Ignite Partnership.  What a year it’s been!  Best wishes to our clients, friends and marketing peers whose support continues to inspire us.  Thank you all very much.

This time of year can often morph into a full focus on the new, glitzy and shiny, whether you are talking gifts or finding customers. You can get distracted from those loyal followers who have been with you throughout this year and many others. Yes, we’re still talking about customers here.

Perhaps it’s time to recapture the magic with current customers and show them your brand still cares. Like with loved ones, it’s not the size of the engagement that matters, but the thought itself that goes a long way to building continuity for annual plans to come. This thought deserves diligence and planning, from a surprise-and-delight value offer to a Facebook-only message of appreciation. Then, the gesture can go beyond thoughtful and into lucrative.

And guess what? Current customers still like the new, glitzy and shiny news you have to offer. And, they are more likely to convert their engagement into sales over new customers. These loyalists are the gift that keeps on giving.

We’re ready to show you how to reach the full variety of your stakeholders—the new and new-to-us.  Contact jolly ol’ Karl – klangston@ignitepartnership.com

It’s the meat of the message that demands consistency.

The gravy and stuffing and cranberries distract us all. It’s natural. We want to take sides, micromanage—fall in love with fonts and lens flares and color palettes. But, the reason we sit down in the first place is for that one-of-a-kind bird right in front of us.

At Ignite Partnership, messaging is not a turkey; it’s an entrée. A point of entry with no departure or deviation.

In the event, you haven’t doctored up any excess bird with your family’s traditional leftover recipe, we offer this simple and yummy way to re-ignite America’s tastiest holiday, courtesy of one of our staff members.

Ingredients

•   6 eggs

•   6 cups cooked turkey meat

•   1 (16 ounce) jar sweet pickles, chopped

•   1 1/2 (10 ounce) jars mustard-mayonnaise blend

•   3/4 cup mayonnaise

•   finely chopped celery and apples for extra bite

Directions

1.Place eggs in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from hot water, cool, peel and chop.

2. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix the eggs, turkey, pickles, prepared sandwich and salad sauce and mayonnaise. Add chopped celery and apples, as suited. Chill in the refrigerator approximately 3 hours before serving.

For more successful recipes, contact Karl Langston at 469-394-3647. We’re ready to serve.

In any industry context, ROI is most commonly referred to as Return on Investment. Then it is usually followed by a generic graphic and buzzword…like this one.

Well, we’d rather talk about something painfully atypical in approaching marketing investments.

In undertaking any initiative, discussing the RETURN is important before INVESTING in the undertaking.  It’s all about the desired action coming from a combination of soft values, hard results, many who’s and many more what’s. The bottom line is this: You likely don’t have all the investment resources you’d like, so it’s important to prioritize the best means against the right stakeholders to inspire action.  And in all cases, you should be asking for more from each means you are invested in. 

That doesn’t mean this move is one-size-fits-all, but integration should be at the core of any and all marketing developments.  Sure, a sales promotion is usually counted on to deliver short-term sales results.  It’s a measurable event for a quick hit in the sales sheet.  Why stop there?  If created ownably and brand-first, we can count on this tactic to continue building a longer-term investment too: brand equity.

And why settle for broader awareness building, typical with traditional advertising? Heck, timing a launch with retail activity and inclusion of promotional messages can help that tactic go further.  Why not create a sizzle reel thinking about more than YouTube hits and Facebook Likes?  Could these assets be the base for a sales tool or in-store education, too?

Return on Integration is a return to thinking about what more we should be asking from our investments. Then the ROI will take care of itself.  We’d love the chance to discuss how you can inspire more action with your marketing investment.  Give Karl Langston a ring at 469-394-3647.