(518) 489-9019

ourBlog

June 20, 2011

QR Codes Can Make Anything More Fun

Category: Creativity, Marketing, Print — Tags: , , , , — dave @ 11:32 am

QR code covered cow statueLet’s pretend you’re the big boss of a company. (Unless you already are the big boss of a company, in which case, just continue being you.) And let’s also say you have to hire someone. You’re looking for someone creative with some fresh ideas to spice things up in your office.

And let’s say you receive this resume

This dude’s hired, right?

This brilliant idea superstar came up with a really cool way to use a QR code to make a boring piece of paper like a resume come alive.

Get Their Phones Dancing

Since a QR code can bring someone’s phone just about anywhere, there are a ton of ways you can use them in marketing. And something like this guy did is fantastic because it uses creativity to take the hipness of QR codes to new levels.

If you want your marketing collateral to stand out as much as Victor Petit’s resume, we’d be happy to show you other ways to use QR codes to make it happen. We went over a few ideas in a previous entry, but to be honest, the sky’s the limit. If you want to use a QR code and a YouTube video turn your printed postcard into a movie, we can make that happen. If you want to bring each recipient of your direct mail to a PURL, we’re on it. If you want a coupon to pop up on your targets’ phones when they scan a QR code, no problem.Or if you want something totally out of left field, you got it.

But please imPress Printing know if you want to give your marketing materials a QR code makeover.

After all, if QR codes can make a resume fun, they can bring the fiesta to just about anything.

Comments (0)

May 2, 2011

Can Creativity Be Taught?

Category: Creativity — Tags: , , , — Sarah @ 11:48 am

Every day, pretty much everyone everywhere is creative. As they plan their days, craft their Facebook status updates, combine ingredients in the kitchen, and chat with their buddies, people are using creativity to come up with ideas and move forward with the best ones.

Still, there are some people who seem especially creative, aren’t there? Like that Martha Stewart-esque aunt of yours or that artsy girl at work. How do they come up with so many darn good ideas? And could they teach other people to be creative?

Toning and Honing

We came across a neat-o discussion on quora.com the other day about whether creativity can be taught. Our take on it? Creativity is one of the elements that makes humans what they are, and since everyone already uses some creativity, anybody can learn to improve their creative thinking skills and maximize their creative potentials.

Besides creativity, there are lots of skills out there that most humans develop naturally, but that education can improve. Take speech, for instance. Most people develop a functional use of speech pretty early on without any particular instruction. And the average Joe can get by in life with not much more than those basic language skills he picked up early in the game. But if Joe feels like taking some lessons and practicing, he can improve upon those basic language skills and become an especially articulate person. And with a lot of lessons and practicing, he could acquire even more complicated language skills – like, say, becoming trilingual.

Just like the average Joe can learn to build on his speaking skills, he can also learn to build on his creativity. Since Joe’s days in the sandbox, he’s been using creativity to play and invent and navigate through life, so his creativity muscles are there. If he wants to get them toned, there’s plenty he can do. He can open his mind to new ways of thinking by networking with particularly creative people who may have different backgrounds and experiences. He’ll learn a lot by finding out about the creative processes and inspirations of these creative minds.

While learning directly from people with strong creativity skills will help, Joe’s own creativity workout plan will help more. He can practice coming up with solutions to different problems and different solutions to the same problem. The more he flexes his creativity muscles, the easier it will be for him to come up with interesting ideas and solutions in the future.

Learning by Doing

So yeah. Creativity can be taught. But since creativity is all about coming up with unique ideas, what people are taught won’t go too far without plenty of practice.

After all, the most creative people you know aren’t spending their lives learning about creativity – they’re out there creating things.

Comments (0)

April 25, 2011

Nissan Cube’s Direct Mail Surprise

Category: Creativity, Marketing, Print — Tags: , — Sarah @ 12:59 pm

We’re a little bit direct mail obsessed, so we pay pretty close attention to the direct mail that is sent to our office. We like to check out the layout and graphics and color choices and think about what we love and what we might have done differently. You know…it’s like a little creativity exercise to keep us on our game.

But the other day we received a mailer from Nissan that was so unique we would have had to pay attention, even if we weren’t the direct mail junkies we are. Check it out – this thing rocks.

A mailer like this gets people talking. Here we are right now talking about it and giving Nissan some free advertising at the same time. Spring-loaded cardboard cubes don’t usually explode out of direct mail, and when they do, people pay attention.

We love that direct mail can do things like this. E-mail, social media, and web marketing are terrific in their own ways, but they just can’t capture someone’s attention like a flying object can.

Comments (0)

October 19, 2010

Building Relationships Through Stories

Category: Creativity, Marketing — Tags: , , — Sarah @ 5:36 am

We’ve talked before about how including a story in your direct mail pieces can be a sweet way to hook readers in. But stories can do more than just catch a target’s interest.

Be Their Soulmate

Well, maybe not quite their soulmate, but at least their soul cousin or something like that. The truth is, in the course of telling stories, your thoughts and beliefs and values have a way of showing themselves. And when you reveal those thoughts and beliefs and values, and your reader identifies with them, you’ve suddenly established a bond with that reader.

Let’s say your company sells those cell phones designed for the elderly. You send out a letter in which you paint a nice little picture about how somebody’s Nana has regained tons of independence since she’s had this phone clipped to her belt. You mention how much you love Nana, how much you know Nana values her ability to live on her own, but how scary it can be wondering if Nana’s going to be able to reach her land-line phone in an emergency. As your target reads this letter, he or she is likely to connect with the thoughts you are expressing in your story. The letter reader might think, Whoa. I love my Nana, too, and I’ve been worrying about her.  I wonder if this phone would make her feel more secure… The story is confirming some thoughts that are on your targets’ minds, which helps them form a connection with you.

And Be Their Buddy

Even if your business doesn’t lend itself well to stories that will stir up deep emotions in your readers, stories can still help you establish a rapport with your audience. A well-told funny story can get your readers thinking, Hey, these guys are a riot or I totally get these people. If you phrase your story in a way that appeals to your targets’ senses of humor, a story can give them a good feeling about your company.

So on top of hooking your audience in and entertaining them, stories are also a great way to get tight with your targets. Whether you confirm their beliefs, tug on their heartstrings, or make them laugh, stories can do a lot to turn targets into clients.

Comments (0)

September 7, 2010

Creativity Comes from the Sandbox

Category: Creativity — Tags: , , , — Sarah @ 11:42 am

We are often asked where we get our creative ideas. And it usually looks like the askers are hoping we’re going to respond, “Creative ideas? Actually, you can pick up a half gallon of them at Stewart’s for $1.39!”

But it’s not that easy. It’s easier. Our ideas come from our imaginations, which are open 24:7, and everything in our imaginations is available at the bargain price of…free.

Of course, keeping our imaginations well stocked with unique thought bubbles does require a little work. We have to read a lot, view art a lot, play a lot, dream a lot, sing a lot, and occasionally do our best to remember what life was like when we were three years old.

Three Years Old?

Of course.

Next time you’re in a creative rut of any sort, watch toddlers. Toddlers’ imaginations are bursting at the seams with ideas. Give a toddler a spoon, and he’s got a microphone, a missile, a catapult, a drumstick, a toothbrush, a phone, a key, a chew toy, and a doll. Then, he’ll lick it, throw it, bite it, balance it on his thumb, and look at it from every possible angle to come up with more fun games. Why? He’s not limited by what’s been done before with that spoon – he just looks at the possibilities. What could I do with this? What could this be used for? And he’s not afraid to try out his ideas and see if they work.

Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, each of us gets scolded for using a spoon the “wrong” way, and little by little we lose the capacity to turn any object into a brainstorm of fun, new ideas.

But since we were all toddlers once, we’ve all got the potential to see all those possibilities again. So at imPress, to keep ideas plentiful in our imaginations, we try to look at things from the perspective of little guys and girls sometimes. When it’s time to put together a project, we try not to think about what everyone else does or what we’ve done before. We think, What could be done? What would this look like from a different angle? What does this brochure taste like?

And before we know it, creative ideas are abundant in our imaginations, and all because our inner toddlers reminded us about the world of possibilities.

Comments (0)

« Newer Posts — Older Posts »

other Pages

stay Connected

site map | blog | contact us
© 2011
Graphic Design - imPress Printing Albany NY
Think. Create. Deliver. Partnered with IntelliSites Web Design Albany Marketing - Burst Marketing