Author: Nicole Ezbiansky, MPW

COVID-19 has affected all aspects of our lives. Brands are finding different ways to stay relevant by directing their messaging towards our new priorities. One musician started a fundraiser that made millions, while a brewery wants to keep celebrating love.

“Come Together Right Now”

Several people are doing their part to help. Neighbors are going to the grocery store, celebrating essential workers, and showing their support. Lady Gaga used her platform by teaming up with Global Citizen to create One World: Together at Home, an 8-hour global broadcast to raise funds for the World Health Organization (WHO).

The livestream featured more than 70 musicians and celebrities in their homes celebrating those who are keeping us safe during COVID-19. 128 million dollars were raised and more than 72 million of that money is being donated to local and regional first responders. Musicians involved included Lizzo, Beyoncé, Elton John, Stevie Wonder.

To watch performances and event highlights, click here.

Something Old, Something New & Some Brews

Engaged couples around the world have looked forward to tying the knot in 2020. Unfortunately, a pandemic wasn’t in their wedding plans and are having to postpone or cancel their big day. Anheuser-Busch wants to give them a little something to still celebrate by gifting them a year’s supply of Busch Light.

The idea for “Busch Weddings” came about when the brand’s corporate team continued to see their beer tagged in wedding photos. To enter the sweepstakes, couples must post a photo of themselves on social media explaining how they plan to celebrate amongst COVID-19 and include #BuschWeddingGift and #Sweepstakes. Entries are due in the beginning of May and 250 winners will be chosen.

Meet a Martin – Barb Martin, Vice President

I joined Martin Communications almost 19 years ago, with the promise from Tom that I would never be bored. Boy, was he right! I started out helping with basic office tasks, moved on to learning the fun and crazy world of media buying, and eventually found my niche in working with clients. Since every day is different, and my day can turn upside down based on one phone call or email, I am never bored!

Outside of work, my passion is my family and cooking. These go well together, as I enjoy hosting both formal and everyday meals to feed them as well as friends. From a fancy holiday get-together to a simple summer barbecue, I enjoy the entire process, from the planning and shopping to the cooking and plating. Then, my terrific family does the clean up!

Sources: CNN, MarketWatch, The Guardian

If you feel like you have been overwhelmed with the 24/7 news cycle, this month’s blog may bring you some joy. Keep calm and read on.

Eat Your Chicken and Wear It, Too

It’s no surprise that advertising has surpassed the typical mediums. Uber cars are driving around town with ads attached to their roof, promotions are seen in music videos, and even flash mobs can market something. If companies can do those, why not pay people to wear an ad?

Wingstop ditched traditional out-of-home advertising to a new anytime, anywhere type of advertising. Thousands of fans and social media influencers will be paid to wear hoodies of Wingstop’s brand in public. Those who participate will choose one of three versions of the hoodie: generic, delivery, or boneless wings.

Sound’s easy, right? Don’t quit your day job just yet. The walking billboards only get paid $10 if they post themselves wearing the hoodie on Instagram, tag Wingstop’s account handle, and include the hashtag #ThisIsAnAdForWingstop. Additional prizes will be awarded if a post is both creative and goes viral.

Olay Embraces Natural Beauty

The beauty and fashion industry are one of the top advertisers in the world today. Their models and celebrity sponsors have perfectly styled hair, skin with no blemishes, and outfits with no creases and wrinkles. Imperfections are invisible. It’s not uncommon for us to ask, “is that natural?”  

Olay, a skincare brand owned by Procter & Gamble, announced they will start the process of not retouching their advertisements to break away from typical beauty standards. “My Olay,” their newest campaign promoting unretouched photos, will feature new celebrity sponsors in the United States and Canada. They even gave a sneak peak of the natural approach in their 2020 Super Bowl commercial photoshoot.

Olay isn’t the first brand to join the natural beauty movement. Dove previously released two campaigns that fought trying to be flawless, while American Eagle (Aerie) became “Photoshop-free.”

Meet a Martin – Tom Martin, President

“The first toy I remember was a 1947 Chevy model. I still have it. Today, the toys are much larger needing garages to stable them with names of Leon, Sally, Sylvia and The Vette with build dates from 1951 to 1993 in various states of restoration. They are four of the 37 cars I’ve owned since age 16. Some were handsome and fast, others not so much. A few were purchased new, one was free. ‘Obsessed’ you say? There’s more.”

“High speed experiences include two, 10 lap, 115 mph drives around Dover Raceway in a NASCAR prepped car, 30 fast laps at Lime Rock Raceway in an open wheel, single fuselage racer (like an Indy car, but smaller), drag racing a Chevelle (sometimes at a drag strip), auto- crossing a sports car, and recently piloting a 700+hp Mustang on a road racing course. Add to that, being chased by police three times. Score: Tom 3, police 0. Sadly, I let my PA State Inspection Mechanic License lapse years ago. ‘Obsessed?’ Well maybe!”

Sources: CNN, AdAge, MediaPost

Welcome to a new year! As we hit the gym, eat healthier, read more, or work to accomplish other resolutions, the creative/marketing industry have goals of their own, too.   

What Can We Expect in the 2020s?

The 2010s brought the world streaming services, several social media channels, and impressionable (and some un-impressionable) trends. With 2020 and a new decade upon us, industry experts are anticipating big changes that we should look for throughout the next 10 years.

• Influencer marketing will only become more popular as generation Z immerses themselves into digital media.
• Marketing and advertising models will change, as more digital media is being used and traditional media is fading into the background.
• Personal data will be integrated through mobile weather details and traffic updates occurring where a user’s current location is.
• Virtual reality and augmented reality will go beyond Snapchat and virtual video games.
• More “voice searching” will become available through devices such as the Amazon Echo and Google Home.
• The presence of chatbots on websites will increase to achieve higher customer experience reviews.
• More companies will use creative agencies to help create strategic marketing and unique advertising.

We cannot expect to see all the above changes to happen overnight. But until we do, let’s sit back and enjoy what the last ten years have brought us!

And the Winner Is…

In last month’s blog I gave a sneak peak of our annual Christmas decorating contest. With an extra vacation day in the new year on the line, the competition was tough. Each participating department had less than three weeks to use their creativity and worked hard to “Wow!” our guest judges. But only one could be crowned the winner for 2019.

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Reindeer Resort and Casino, decorated by Colleen and Emily, took first place with their combined office décor! With slot machines, deer heads, and eggnog to bribe the judges, their hard work won them the extra day off. Our runner’s up are Investigating Christmas Emergencies (I.C.E) decorated by Alex and Kelsey, and Penguin Palace decorated by Lindsay, Nicole, Kat, and Michael.

To see more pictures and videos, visit our Facebook page.

Sources: Fast Company, Learn G2

Sponsored and presented at the Mid-Atlantic Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development’s (MASHSMD) 2019 Annual Conference in Harrisburg.

This event is for healthcare marketing and communications professions in our region. Bryan, CSO, and Colleen, Media Manager, presented “Making the Most of Media Mix.”. They discussed strategies for multi-media campaigns layering traditional and digital media, as well as techniques for getting the most from a non-ideal marketing budget.

Added two “Michaels” to the MC team within a month.

Join us in welcoming our newest Digital Media Specialist and Lead Graphic Designer!

Attended team-building happy hour events after work.

Whether at Issac’s, Dave & Buster’s, or the office’s lawn, we spent time outside of the office with cold drinks and great conversation. 

Celebrated our 26^th anniversary as a business.

It all started in a spare bedroom with a funding of $1,000 and a roll of stamps…

Voted as a finalist for Central Penn Business Journal’s Reader Rankings Award, marketing/advertising category.

CPBJ’s Reader Rankings Awards celebrate and recognize the best businesses in the community with thousands of nominations and voters, and dozens of categories. Congratulations to the winners and our fellow nominees!

Welcomed our media intern, Rachel, who learned the ins and outs of our business.

Home for summer break from WVU, Rachel received hands-on experience working in an agency by assisting in sending media traffic, preparing client orders, and more.   

Cheered on the Harrisburg Senators and Hershey Bears with our clients, friends, and family.

B-E-A-R-S! Bears! Bears! Bears! Woo!

Volunteered at the Food Bank of Central Pennsylvania.

250 packaged and loaded boxes later, we worked together as a team to stack 13 pallets of food boxes that were given to local seniors in the central PA region.

Traveled to New York City for Adweek’s NexTech 2019 Conference.

Colleen, Media Manager, had the opportunity to sit in on industry guest speakers and met over 500 brand, agency, technology, and publishing professionals. Read more about her experience here.

Took swings at the Harrisburg Senator’s annual batting practice.

Why go to the batting cages when you can practice right on FNB Field?

Hosted another successful holiday party for our many vendors and partners.

Every December we express our gratitude by hosting a party for our many vendors and partners who help us create strategic advertising for our clients. Thank you for all that you do!

Began decorating for our annual office Christmas contest.

We take the term “decorating contest” to the extreme. To help us get in the Christmas spirit, each department decorates their office space in hopes of being crowned as the Christmas decorating champion. Stay tuned for next month’s blog to learn who won 2019’s!

While we sit around the table to say what we’re thankful for, we can express our gratitude for new streaming services and being able to shop for the holidays on social media.    

MC’s Thanksgiving Favorites

Winner winner turkey dinner, Thanksgiving time is here! I asked every Martin employee to share their Thanksgiving favorites and traditions. Here is what they said.

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While some Martiner’s traditions are eating dinner with family and taking a food coma nap, others build a “special” Thanksgiving table, pull a wishbone, play Christmas music on the car ride home, go hunting, and meet a long-time friend for breakfast the next morning.

Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving!

A Whole New Streaming World

Back in April, Disney announced their new streaming service, Disney+. Earlier this month, the time had finally arrived and Disney+ was available for downloading and streaming to the public. Anticipating high ratings and positive feedback, they were prepared for many subscribers, but weren’t expecting 10 million subscribers within the first 24 hours of its initial launch.

Though some technical errors occurred due to its popularity, Bob Iger, CEO, called Disney+’s launch day “a historic moment for our company that marks a new era of innovation and creativity.” As the newest streaming service, with a significantly cheaper price than competitors, Disney+ anticipates acquiring up to 90 million subscribers by the end of 2024.

Disney+ offers roughly 500 movies and 7,500 television episodes that include all Disney movies and television shows, as well as PIXAR, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic services.

YouTube is Making Shopping Easier

Just in time for the holiday season, Google announced that YouTube will now display advertisements for shopping and retail purposes when used. The advertisements will be shown on YouTube’s home feed, under videos, and throughout search results. This form of digital and social advertising gives companies and brands a new opportunity to promote their products and services to their digital target audience.

One of the first brands to use the new advertising opportunity is Puma, an athletic apparel company. Shown in the image below, when a YouTube user searches for “Puma” or relative content, their advertisements will appear as a carousel ad, similar to Facebook retail ads.

YouTube isn’t the first social media platform to introduce shopping ads to their users. Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok have started retail advertising to make it more accessible for users to buy products and services. Like it or not, social media is becoming the newest way to shop and for companies to be more visible.

Sources: TechCrunch, MediaPost

While October brought Halloween and pumpkin-flavored treats, it also brought new leadership opportunities for one of our employees and new campaigns in our industry.  

Martiners Go Beyond the Workplace

One of our graphic designers, Kat Flaherty, accepted a volunteer Communications Director position for the Central PA chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA). I had the opportunity to discuss the position, her expectations, and learn more about the organization.

Q: What is AIGA?

A: The American Institute of Graphic Arts [AIGA] is a nation-wide professional association for design. Founded in 1914, it and has grown to 75 chapters across the United States. AIGA fosters community and leadership among designers and design enthusiasts with student groups, a yearly design conference (It’s in Pittsburgh in 2020!), initiatives like ‘Design for Good’, ‘Women Lead’, and ‘Diversity & Inclusion.’ While AIGA does have a national board located in New York City, each chapter also has its own board members that help their local design community thrive.

Q: What region are you a member of?

A: I am a current member of AIGA Central PA since 2016 – which covers mostly Harrisburg and Lancaster, but also York and other surrounding areas. I’m also formerly a member of AIGA Louisville and the AIGA University of Louisville student group since 2012.

Q: What types of topics and activities do you participate in during meetings?

A: Our monthly board meetings (consisting of the executive board members, directors, and chairs) are typical of what you would think; we discuss what we’re working on, what programming is coming up, things we can improve on, and how we can help each other out. During our yearly board retreats, we discuss incoming or outgoing leadership, recruiting for open positions, and what kind of programming we can plan for in the future – all based from past feedback and a yearly survey that’s sent out to the community.

The rest of AIGA is made up of casual networking events like Pens & Pints or Coffee & Critique. The difference is where and when we’re meeting and whether we’re drawing funny pictures or getting feedback on current work. Our local chapter hosts a barrage of other activities like studio tours, workshops from local and infamous designers, a movie night, and event inspirational talks. We try to bring in at least one big-name speaker or workshop every year. My favorite so far was hearing Ron Burrage, the former Sr. Director of Global Design at The Hershey Company, talk about reviving and putting the love back in the Kisses Brand – it also happened to take place during Hershey Park in the Dark.

Q: What are some of your key responsibilities as the Communications Director?

A: My main responsibilities will be updating the AIGA Central PA website and social media with timely information. I’m the funnel [along with my Chairs and volunteers] disseminating information not only about what the Central PA chapter is up to, but also important or interesting things that national or other chapters might be doing. Other responsibilities include attending events, especially ones that I’m helping to facilitate and be a listening ear or a voice for the design community in Central PA.

Q: What do you hope to achieve while in the position?

A: This is a big leadership step for me. I took on this position to better my confidence in leadership and understanding of web and social media. For the chapter itself, my initial goals are small. My first goal is to increase attendance for our remaining events for the year and boost overall engagement.

From Lite to Dark

Miller Lite is another brand jumping on social media issues but creating (no) buzz on their accounts. For two weeks, the Miller Lite brand will advertise “going dark” by being inactive and will reward users who unfollow the account with free beer (in a special, limited edition black can) while encourage Miller Time. To receive the free beer, users must text a screenshot of proof.

“Miller Time” – defined as a time when friends get together and drink beer.

A few friends are better than a few thousand followers. We’re going dark on social media. See you IRL. #ItsMillerTime pic.twitter.com/8gxFGYwlJM

— Miller Lite (@MillerLite) October 22, 2019

A representative of Miller Lite added, “As a brand, Miller Lite has always been about bringing people together, so we felt it was time to make a strong statement about the lack of real connections people have today.” Though it is risky for a brand to ask their following to unfollow, Miller Lite is starting an important conversation that will help them stand out among other beers.

I could use some Miller Time myself. 

Geofencing 101

At MC, we encourage the use of geofencing, a location-based marketing tool that allows advertisers to send ads and other messages to a smartphone, tablet, or desktop within a specific geographic area. Commonly used geofencing ads consist of display ads or push notifications. Geofencing gives us opportunities to strategically place ads in areas that will perform better and allow for more visibility for our clients. When using geofencing, businesses have the option to narrow down what zip codes or radius receives an ad. Doing this condenses who the target audience is, going as far as demographics (ex: Athletes 18-30). These virtual boundaries allow us to be more strategic and creative when campaigning ads to their intended target audience.

Several companies have used geofencing or similar methods to engage audiences. Snapchat created geofilters, a filter option that shows up on a Snap when a user is in a specific location. Because the concept had a high feedback rating, Snapchat now allows businesses, colleges, venues, and more to create their own geofilter. But geofencing goes beyond social media platforms, as it is used for smart appliances, human resources, and even security.

If you are interested in advertising with geofencing, click here.

Sources: Monarch Beverage, Trigger Digital

Boring business doesn’t make news headlines. Touchdown ratings, strategy solutions, and an unlikable social media frenzy help to keep our industry from being dull.  

Anti-Like Instagram

Like other major social media platforms, Instagram allows users to “like” posts on their feed from accounts they follow, advertisers, and more. Recently, the app announced they are preparing to roll out a new version of Instagram that doesn’t have the infamous heart allowing users to “like” posts. Instead, there will be what I like to call it, an anti-like Instagram.

The news came to a shock to many Instagram users, and they didn’t shy away from voicing their opinions. Many social media influencers rely on a specific number of likes and comments to receive sponsorship deals and other collaborative deals. Others believe the idea of having no way of seeing popularity of a post is a good thing, as research has shown negative effects of personal confidence from social media. A source from Instagram shared, “We want your followers to focus on what you share, not how many posts you get”.

Though the anti-like Instagram is a modern-day controversy, removing the ability to see (or obsess) with the number of likes a post receives could be a step in a new, like-less era of social media.

100^th NFL Season Ratings Score High

Football is America’s past time. From Friday Night Lights at local high schools, Big Ten games and tailgates on Saturdays, and the big leagues playing three out of seven days of the week, it’s no surprise that football is a big part of our fall television schedules. This year, the National Football League is celebrating their 100^th season of professional football. And what better way to kick-off the monumental year? Break television ratings.

Television viewers across the country set a new record rating for the first week of the NFL season in over five years. The average number of viewers for week one of the 2018-19 season averaged at 15.8 million per game. This season, roughly 17 million tuned in for the first week; a 5% increase. Topping that, the 2019-20 season opener between Green Bay and Chicago saw a 14% increase in viewers than last year’s opener between Atlanta and Philadelphia.

According to The 42, television ratings are just as, if not, more important than ticket sales because viewers get behind the scenes access and constant play-by-plays. It won’t be surprising if more viewing ratings increase as the season goes on… that is unless more of our favorite players keep getting injured.

The Power of Personas

Every content strategy and campaign have an intended target audience, but sometimes the result doesn’t end up in that audience’s lap. That’s where marketing personas become useful.

Personas help marketers and advertisers develop quality work to their intended target audience. They’re imaginary consumers or audiences created based on a need, in turn, helping you understand their need and goals. Gathering information to create a persona entails reviewing analytics, social media research, audience feedback, and involving non-marketing team members on their perspectives. When complete, a successful persona includes a name, job title, demographics, psychographics, goals, values, and fears.

Popular within the agency realm, utilizing audience personas has become popular in social media marketing and search engine optimization, too. If interested in learning more on implementing personas, Buffer offers step-by-step instructions to develop basic persona templates and other need-to-knows.  

Sources: Buffer, SmartInsights, CNN, The 42

This month, Disney fans were finally able to sing along to one of the most anticipated movies of the decade, while one Martiner traveled to New York City to learn how technology is centered around current media.

MC Takes on NYC

Our media manager, Colleen Jones, had the opportunity to travel to the Big Apple for Adweek’s NexTech 2019 Conference held from July 24 to 25. Though her time there was short, she met over 500 brand, agency, technology, and publishing professionals to explore the future of digital advertising. She also attended sessions of guest speakers such as Peter Naylor, Senior Vice President & Head of Advertising Sales at Hulu; Walker Jacobs, Chief Revenue Officer at Twitch; Linda Boff, Chief Marketing Officer at GE; Fiona Carter, Chief Brand Officer at AT&T; Felicia Gardner, North American Agency Lead at Microsoft; and Jared Smith, President of Ticketmaster. As Colleen returned to the office, she shared key insights and what the near future holds.

• Digital media is new, but it’s the same. Digital does not equal a divorce from creative to strategy, it’s an opportunity to work better together with A/B testing and optimization providing key data that further informs good creative.
• Quality data and its effective use are more valuable than a large quantity of unusable information about users, but it’s a moving target and cannot be “set-it and forget-it”.
• The need to focus on consumers is more important now than ever. Inclusion and user experience are driving engagement and results.
• Privacy regulation (GDPR, CCPA, state regulations) and consumer/brand desire for transparency will turn the industry on its head in the next year or two, changing how we market to audiences and what risks we are willing to take with data.
• In-housing isn’t right for everyone and that’s okay. Brands are not built to be tech companies; even Amazon was built as a platform for other brands. In turn, a better approach is to understand what is important to control and what is the best outsourced. Don’t be afraid of building partnerships with those who challenge you to think differently, who are transparent, and whose ethos and customer-focus matches your brand.

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Lion King Premiere Breaks Records

Disney has been rebooting some of their most popular animated movies into live-action remakes such as Dumbo and Mulan, but one reboot has been the most anticipated; the Lion King. After four years in the making, the highly anticipated Lion King rebooted movie officially hit theaters on Friday, July 19. Movie-goers of all ages pre-ordered tickets and squeezed into theaters to watch the magic unfold. What Disney did not anticipate was the record-breaking global box office sales their new film generated.

The Lion King premiere surpassed 185 million dollars in the first weekend alone, with over one billion dollars to date since the initial release. Additionally, it “earned the biggest domestic launch ever for a PG-rated film and the highest July opening of all time” according to sources at Entertainment Weekly. With a cast consisting of Beyoncé, Seth Rogan, Donald Glover, and more, the Lion King has risen its way to the top as the highest grossing movie opening of the year.

Sources: Entertainment Weekly, Adweek

Having trouble reaching an audience online? Unable to make a trip to the grocery store this week? Wish companies would stop changing their brand? You might not need to look much further.

Influencer Marketing: Is It Worth It?

YouTube and social media influencers are taking over the digital world; creating videos, growing subscribers, collaborating with others in the industry, and representing brands. They have an active presence on all platforms, attend events, and even do collaborative videos with each other. But how do these influencers gain profit, reach audiences, and attend A-list events? That’s where influencer marketing comes into play.

Influencer marketing is an online form of marketing used with testimonial advertising from digital influencers. You may ask, “how do brands get business from influencers”? It’s not as easy as an Instagram post or one-minute mention in a video. Working with an influencer can be pricey, and the more popular they are, the more you’ll be paying. Though companies may be investing a lot in this marketing medium, using an influencer’s voice can bump a brand to the top of a list. 7 out of 10 teens and young adults trust influencer advice. Of those, 49% rely on influencer recommendations, and the influencer industry expects to hit $10 billion by next year.

I’d say it’s worth looking into; by utilizing influencer marketing, you might see positive results.

Grocery Shopping at Walmart Just Got Easier

More stores are offering curb-side pickup and forms of delivery for customers for easy accessibility. Walmart announced they will be entering the game by launching Walmart In-Home, a direct-to-fridge delivery service available when customers are not home.

This might bring up immediate red flags to some, as it sounds a bit risky. No need to hesitate, as Walmart stated that designated employees will go through an extensive training program to prepare for entering customers’ properties, with an emphasis on treating others with respect. Additionally, employees will be taught how to properly organize and stack groceries in a refrigerator so you can come home to a more organized, presentable fridge.

Walmart executives promise all delivery employees will always wear cameras to allow customers to watch a delivery take place live on their phone. Expected to launch in the Fall of this year, Walmart In-Home will be available in Pittsburgh, Kansas City, and Vero Beach.

No One Out Brands the Hut

Branding styles come and go often to be forgotten over the years with different fonts, slogans, and logos. Like many chain restaurants, Pizza Hut updated their brand to a more modern style. Not fond of the current look, Pizza Hut’s marketing team took a risk by diving through their archives to unveil their new but old-school brand.

The original infamous red roof logo has returned for their Cheesy Bites Pizza campaign. Their strategy behind this? Going back to their roots as America’s first national pizza shop chain. Marianne Radley, Pizza Hut’s chief brand officer, expressed how the chain’s tone and direction changed since evolving into a larger corporation, and wasn’t giving a clear understanding of what Pizza Hut stands for to customers. With the help of nostalgia and an extra cheesy crust, Pizza Hut hopes to keep current customers and bring back the old to where it all began.

Sources: Ad Age, The Drum, Digital Marketing Institute