When it’s summertime in Florida, the outdoor activities are endless, the smiles contagious and the weather picture-perfect! Which is exactly what inspired our new summer campaign for Bealls Department Stores.

“In the past, our shoots have been about creating scenarios. But this time, we wanted to capture memories with a more intimate feel, like a home video,” said Pat McKinney, Dalton Agency partner, EVP and Chief Creative Director.

Using smaller hand-held cameras, we were able to jump in the water and run around with the actors – giving the shots more depth and personality. Not to mention, action! Check it out!

As Manheim prepared for the 2010 NADA Convention, they faced predictions of low dealer traffic and booth interaction. This campaign changed that.

Situation
As Manheim prepared for the 2010 NADA Convention, they faced predictions of low dealer traffic:

The venue was Orlando, traditionally less appealing than locations like Las Vegas.
2009 had been one of the roughest years the automotive industry had ever seen.
It was Valentine’s weekend.
Traditional trinkets would not be enough; Manheim needed to create intrigue and excitement that drove booth traffic and facilitated richer, business-oriented conversations.

Insight
Design a booth that blended entertainment and information, creating a low-pressure environment where dealers would feel comfortable hanging out and be receptive to deeper conversations with Manheim representatives.

Application

• The booth was designed as a Sports Lounge featuring a live radio remote of the Car & Drive show, live broadcast of the Daytona 500, NASCAR celebrity autograph sessions, trivia games and, of course, beer and wine.
• Pre-event mailers and e-mails promoted the Manheim Sports Lounge as a must-visit attraction, asked dealers to complete a survey ranking the topics of greatest interest to them, and pre-scheduled one-on-one meetings during the show.
• A brand blitz at Pointe Orlando, where attendees dined and shopped after hours, reinforced Manheim’s message.

Results

• E-mail open rate beat the industry average by 16%.
• More than 800 “unique” visits to the booth.
• 51% of booth visitors requested further contact from Manheim, with 14% requesting an immediate sales call.

Client Feedback
“Boy, did this work! Dealers spent more time talking to our
sales staff and executive team than ever before.”

Lynn Morgan
VP of Marketing & Communications
Manheim

by Devon Suter, VP, Executive Creative Director, Dalton Agency

So, it turns out, making the sausage isn’t that interesting to regular folks. Maybe not literally, but statistically speaking, no one is watching The Pitch.

AMC’s “reality” show about ad agencies battling it out for business was obviously supposed to capitalize on the popularity of Mad Men, but it seems what people like about Mad Men isn’t the advertising. To watch it live and follow the Twitter feed for The Pitch, you’d think that it must be the most compelling thing ever – until you realize virtually everyone Tweeting is some kind of marketing professional.

Compartmentalizing myself as TV fan instead of an ad guy, I’d say it’s pretty good TV. Some episodes are more nailbiting than others.  After airing the “Sneak Preview” starring WDCW and McKinney, I suspect some focus groups demanded we get more intimate looks at the downtime and personal lives of these modern day Don Drapers and Roger Sterlings. Which was a huge mistake. What’s more interesting – seeing how the germination of an idea can flower into a cultural touchpoint, or watching someone make stir fry with their boyfriend? Bad call, suits.

Analytics Programs
For more than 10 years we’ve used formal measurement systems to evaluate the efficacy of all our client marketing programs. These analytics include:

• Online promotional campaign analysis – display, search, e-mail.
• Clickstream site analytics – visitor profiling, content analysis, page tagging and scripting.
• Qualitative research, including intercept surveys, usability studies, focus groups.
• Advanced analytics, including A/B splits, multivariate testing, media mix analysis.
• Social monitoring – earned media analysis, conversation volumes, sentiment, and influencer impact.
• Weighted scorecards and dashboards.

ROI Scorecards
Our measurement systems are not limited simply to web analytics. As part of the initial ROI program, we identify key stakeholders, establish measureable marketing goals, audit the metrics environment and then establish comprehensive, weighted scorecards.

Scorecards are used with all our clients and cover a variety of metrics from soft brand measures, such as tracking studies and Net Promoter Scores, to hard measures, such as lead data and financial metrics. Specific measurable goals are established as scorecard benchmarks, and progress toward them is tracked as marketing programs run.

Skin in the Game
To show our commitment to measurable advertising programs, we often tie the scorecard results to our compensation. If mutually agreed upon goals are exceeded, we earn additional compensation. If they fall short, we rebate money to you. We recognize you are not hiring us to create clever ideas: you hire us to produce marketing results.

Check out our latest reel to see all the amazing video, motion graphics and animation that we’re able to cook up in-house. We’ve got some mighty talented people working in our post department and they’d love to work their magic on your next project. Just contact us at 904-881-6353 or info@daltonagency.com

As many of my coworkers can assume from my colorful desk, I am obsessed with television shows and movies.  I have memorabilia from current shows such as True Blood and Project Runway as well as from classics such as I Love Lucy displayed proudly.  So when one of my coworkers suggested GetGlue as a new form of social media, I gave it a shot.

GetGlue is very similar to Foursquare with Check-Ins; however, the user checks in to different television shows as they watch them.  The user then has the opportunity to comment on the happenings of the show with other users.  While I am getting used to another form of social media in my life, I have to say that from a marketing standpoint, GetGlue is pretty genius.

It has been a bit tricky getting into the mindset of checking in to shows as I watch them, but it’s actually getting me into the habit of watching the shows live.  And this is a great opportunity for television networks and advertisers. Currently with DVR, online streaming, and mobile, fewer television shows are watched in real time. GetGlue provides an outlet for viewers to engage themselves with other fans of the show.  Not only will users want to watch the show, they feel a sense of community even though they may just be in their homes watching the television.

GetGlue is definitely attracting fans.  In 2011, there were 100 million check-ins, and the site has grown to have more than 2 million users.   A majority of these users fall into the 18-34 demographic, which is coveted by advertisers.  And many television networks are taking notice.  GetGlue has partnered with many different broadcasters to promote the shows.

Another fun element of GetGlue that fuels engagement is the GetGlue stickers.  When a user checks in to a particular show, they receive a virtual sticker on their profile page that they can share on their Facebook or Twitter pages.  Once a month, users can get actual stickers mailed to them.   My coworker who talked me into GetGlue actually gave me one of her stickers, and that sticker prompted me to check the site out.

Not only that, but now the stickers can carry monetary benefits.  Due to GetGlue’s partnerships with different companies, the stickers can sometimes act as coupons or discounts.  For example, a few months ago Gap offered a 40% discount to be used at Gap stores for GetGlue users that unlocked certain stickers.

GetGlue has become both a built-in promotional platform for television shows, and also a tool for users to recommend shows and engage with other fans.   How can you generate engagement for your brand?

The successful execution of any ad campaign depends on the dedicated effort of your team and the strength of your vendor partnerships.  It takes time to form trusted relationships that you can rely on when crunch time approaches. You don’t want to rely on someone who is just taking an order.  You need someone who is willing to be vested in your success. I’ve worked on both sides of the fence, and here are five things that I found that can help change your vendor relationship into a true partnership:

1)      Planning – Get your partners involved early. Their expertise can be valuable when you are trying to come up with schedules, and they can help you to avoid production pitfalls.  No one likes surprises.

2)      Communication – Keep them informed on a daily basis if your project requires it. You can never give them too much information. Always keep them up to date on any schedule delays – a good vendor partner plans for the potential snags.

3)      Be Flexible – Things will happen that can potentially derail your plan.  If you stay solution-minded as opposed to concentrating on blame, you’ll be able to find a way to fix it quickly.   This can be when a partnership is solidified, so take advantage of the situation and make it a positive experience. Most importantly, try to keep your sense of humor.

4)      Follow Up with Feedback – Once the project is complete, make sure you pass on   the customer feedback you receive, which should include both the good and the bad.  Sit down and review what went right and what needs to be improved upon.

5)      Say Thanks – This should go without saying, but you’d be surprised how many people don’t take the time to do this. Send an e-mail thanking everyone for the effort.  This simple thing can go a long way in strengthening the partnership

The photo above is of ABC’s popular Dancing with the Stars partners, Maria Menounos and Derek Hough. Photo: ABC.

I’ve been working in the ad business now for over 24 years. I’ve witnessed some pretty big changes in the world of advertising. The majority of the changes I’ve seen over the years have been process-related. The tools changed, the media channels expanded, but the core of what we did and how we did it stayed the same, until the last several years.

Before then, we worked with our clients to develop insights that inspired creative ideas that could be developed into campaign executions. Ideas that we could pay to broadcast to consumers using TV, radio, print, direct mail or some other established medium. I took a lot of PR classes thanks to Dr. Joseph Nolan, my favorite college professor, so I’m very aware of the earned media side of the business. But even that was still driven by relationships with reporters at great metropolitan media outlets. For the most part, you had to be someone important to have your ideas heard, but that started changing.

New tools. Familiar tasks.
It was a big change for most ad agencies when computers first came along, even though we used it to do what we basically had always done.

In the mid 1980’s, an art director/production artist at an agency had to cut up and paste together what we called “mechanical boards.” All the words of a print ad had to be created and set by a professional typesetter, who did not work in most agencies’ office and was paid an expensive rate. When the type arrived at the agency, after at least 24 hours unless you paid the incredible RUSH fees, the “galley’s of type” had to be cut apart, the back covered in hot wax, and then placed in lines, by hand, according to the desired layout. It was tedious work and I don’t know anyone who could honestly claim to miss it.

Computers, like the Mac Classic, allowed words to be set “in-house” before they were sent out for photo-static printing. At first, art directors basically just set the galleys themselves, but eventually, using programs like PageMaker, words were be placed in the layouts on the screen, turning every art director into a typesetter. At the time it seemed revolutionary. They still had to be printed-out and mounted on boards. Then you added overlays on the boards with instructions on where the colors, halftones and very expensive color separations had to be stripped in. Actual scans of photos that could be added to the layout took a few years due to the computing power required. So basically, the computer made the work easier and took fewer people to get to the end product, much to the chagrin of professional typesetters, color separators, film strippers, stat makers, etchers, people who hand touched photos, etc. As futuristic as it seemed at times, (we even started bypassing the paper and sent the entire ad to “film”) looking back it didn’t have much impact on how we approached the final product, except I noticed deadlines began to creep up faster. As they still do today.

Every department inside an ad agency began using these new digital tools to get more done with less effort, media charts could be made faster, press releases could be distributed faster, research could be crunched faster, eventually, even TV spots editing and special effects could be done faster, and cheaper with computers. It still took time to come up with the insight and the idea, but computers were causing the production process to become streamlined and overhauled.

I can remember a lot of conversations about how the uses of the computer would be limited. “No one can replace professional typesetters.” I heard proclaimed. “It’s okay for creating type for mass-mailed newsletters, but never for my Wall Street Journal ad.” Even “Non-linear editing is just a toy, it’ll never replace tape-to-tape editing.” (Although, as I remember, pretty much everyone was wowed and blown away by Photoshop.) And so on and so on, all predictions delivered by people’s comfort level at the time with how they did their job, and proven to be false over time.

However, even though the process was affected and the technology was new, we were still just doing what we used to do with new tools. Everyone in the industry still understood the underlying logic of what we did, we broadcast ideas on behalf of our clients. Print. TV. Radio. Direct Mail. Brochures. Press Releases. They all worked fine, the tools hadn’t changed how our audience received our message.

New media channels for familiar tasks.
The second big shift was to use the Internet as a broadcast medium. I remember the first websites, and then later, digital ads. There was an audience now with computers to talk to and now we could use the internet to do so. For the most part, we would adapt the print ads to become banner ads, small photos and small type. It would be years before we could upload TV spots to stream over the web. In the days of the original AOL with the typical dial-up modem, it was almost unthinkable.

Digital, as it began to be called, was thought of as another extension of the traditional. While some forward thinking ad men started to embrace it and see the potential, most just seemed to tolerate it. So we recycled ideas and concepts to this new medium. Brochures became informative websites, which once you posted them, pretty much stayed the same until the next overhaul, or “reprint.” People started visiting corporate sites for basic information, “clicking” on ads to get information and things were looking pretty good.

People begin to broadcast too.
Then something changed. Google was born. People started realizing that they could just search for what they wanted. They could start find their own path to information, not just travel the paths we laid out for them. And more importantly, people began broadcasting without any help from corporations or agencies. Digital technology started shifting the balance of power from the corporations to the individual. Eventually, almost everyone had the power to launch ideas online and anyone who was willing to search could listen.

It was a subtle change at first. People started posting on message boards, then small personal websites, then blogs, and then early social media networks like Friendster. They didn’t have a huge media budget, or a huge reach, But they did have ideas, opinions, and most importantly, options.

Clients and agencies didn’t really react much at first. So a few people are talking online. People had ham radios once too, and that had never gotten get out of hand. But then technology began placing more broadcasting tools into the hands, and now with new smart phones, the pockets of our clients and consumers. And then social media was born. Facebook, Twitter and YouTube was invented. Suddenly, everyone had the potential to broadcast to more and more people. And with more people broadcasting, there were more options on what the public could chose to consume.

People now consume more information, more media.
People had access to 800 channels on their cable dial, millions of websites they could search instantly, millions of songs they could download, and hundreds of friends they could chat with. People began spending more and more time online. More and more information was, or expected to be, at their fingertips.

So consumers started building their own media bubbles. They controlled what messaging, info and entertainment got in. And, just as importantly , what got out. Consumers began using their power to amplify what they shared, talked about and embraced. And what they rejected. And their peers listened. And so did lots of ad guys.

The rules for advertising have changed.
By this time ad agencies, especially the smart ones were catching on. But unlike when computers first appeared on agency desks, it wasn’t just the tools that had changed, but the rules. We began to see that this new consumer empowerment was impacting not only how we got their attention, but also how we held it. And how we could feed it. New questions began to arise in strategy sessions and creative brainstorming meetings: “How do you go from scoring impressions to building engagement? How do you begin a conversation? How do you tap deeper into their passions and interests? What do they want more information around? How do you broadcast to people who don’t want to be sold to, but want to be spoken with? How do you connect with people who have more filters in place than ever before, but also consume more media, information, and entertainment than ever before? How can we convert social media activity into sales?”

People want more and more interesting content.
One of the most important takeaways is that people do not want to be sold to in the old booming announcer way. They want to be talked to with respect––respect for their time, their business and their intelligence. They want interesting, useful information that will inform their decisions. And they want this delivered in entertaining ways. They want something in return for their attention. They want to do business with companies that share, or help create, their worldview. I believe creating great content on an ongoing basis is going to become more and more important in the future.

Brands are more important than ever.
You would think the shift of power and the availability of unprecedented information would make the advertising and the influence of brands fade. But the opposite is happening. Because there is so much information, people are looking for assistance in making purchase decisions, and for help in what product or service to choose. Brands are becoming more transformative and valuable for businesses than ever. Because remember, brands exist in the mind of the consumers. Their perception, and how they act on that perception, is what drives value to a brand. Clients and agencies still help code and form their perceptions with our ideas and actions, just in broader, more integrated ways.

Ideas are more important than ever.
One thing that isn’t changing is the importance of creative ideas, especially ideas that can be communicated throughout every part of a client’s business. It is no longer enough to say it, a client has to live it: In all media and in all their dealings with the public. Social media is a part of the equation, but not in a vacuum. Digital is part of the equation, but not the complete answer. Now we must look for integrated solutions. The rules have changed for your entire marketing plan. And not just the digital one.

Traditional media isn’t going away, but it is transforming.
And despite all the prophecies, traditional media isn’t going away. It is just being consumed differently. News is flowing online, TV ratings are being boosted by hashtags, and twitter conversations. Everything media-related is transformed by the new paradigm shifts that are coming from people beginning to understand the power their digital tools give them.

Success for marketing communication these days requires smart strategy based on a realistic worldview and integration among all your tactics, both traditional and digital, creative and media. Digital can’t be a Band-Aid and traditional media can’t be ignored, but they must be updated. Both must work together to achieve the most results.

All of these reasons are why I think that it’s an exciting time to be in advertising. And, I’ll admit, a little scary for people who are not learning about or adapting to what’s going on around them. I believe everyone needs to embrace the change.

Besides, if I’ve learned anything about the ad business, it’s that it constantly keeps reinventing itself. Sometimes in big steps, like when new media transform it (Television didn’t hit until the 50’s) or small ways like when new tools come along (Thank you, Mac Classic). And every so often, all the rules change, like now. We’re always learning, we have no choice if we want to be relevant. Who would have thought running one :30 TV spot in the Super Bowl could have such a big impact on a company until Apple’s famous “1984” spot? And what could they have done with the huge ripple effect that social media would have given that spot today? The only constant in change.

Our commitment to change is one reason why I believe so strongly in the Dalton Agency.
Jim has built an agency that’s driven to embrace the future because we know we have to keep evolving if we want to continue to help our clients win. We understand that we have to adapt to changes in our industry. That’s why we’ve been working and growing our online skills for more than 13 years; why we broadened our definition of PR to PR+, why we brought broadcast production in-house over seven years ago; why we started a social media practice in 2008; why we’re looking at new processes and strategies every day. We know the day we stop looking for new ways to do what we do is the day we die, like so many other agencies before us.

One of my favorite quotes is from Walt Disney: “Keep moving forward.”

I’m curious what the next 24 plus years will bring.

You can follow Kevyn on twitter at @KevynF or email him here.

The Timucuan Trail Parks Foundation in Jacksonville, Florida was looking for a new video to help promote the good work they do to keep our parks sustainable. The Dalton Agency agreed to write, edit and produce this video from the Foundation‘s existing footage at no cost to them. This video will be used online and during presentations to showcase the beauty and splender that exists in the Timucuan Parks System. It will hopefully inspire engagement and contributions that the parks need to keep thriving for generations to come.

“We feel it’s very important to give back to our community,” said Michael Munz, Dalton Agency partner and EVP/Director of Public Relations +. “And protecting the natural beauty around us is very important cause to all of us. We’re glad we could help.”

Here’s more information about the Timucuan Trail Parks Foundation:

The Timucuan Trail Parks System’s history began nearly 50 years ago, when a congressman from North Florida introduced legislation that would secure two of our national treasures: Ft. Caroline National Memorial and the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve – The Honorable Charles E. Bennett (1910-2003).

Congressman Bennett’s special reverence for North Florida left a treasure trove of land, written history and historic landmarks. Ft. Caroline and the Timucuan Preserve were his special gifts to not only Florida, but to our nation as well.

Through his passion and talent for research, writing and storytelling, knowledge of our area has been enriched and preserved. He was the consummate historian, scholar and philanthropist. With each his publications, profits were given to the National Park Service or other organizations in need.

In 1999, Mayor John Delaney announced “The Preservation Project Jacksonville.” His mission was to preserve environmentally sensitive lands that would ultimately create the largest urban park system in the nation. The primary goal of this initiative was to acquire and permanently protect North Florida’s most vulnerable lands. These lands created the ‘Timucuan trail’ of public parks so everyone could enjoy these special places.

The City of Jacksonville partnered with agencies such as the Florida State Parks, the National Park Service, the Florida Communities Trust, St. Johns River Water Management District and Office of Greenways and Trails; environmental non-profit organizations such as The Nature Conservancy, the Trust for Public Land and the North Florida Land Trust; as well as private citizens and organizations. Through these partnerships, Jacksonville’s urban park system grew from approximately 30,000 acres of parklands to more than 80,000 acres – the largest urban park system in the United States.

In 1999, the Preservation Project Jacksonville Inc. became a private 501(c)3 non-profit to assist with acquiring lands. In 2003, when Delaney left office, the non-profit changed its name to “Preservation North Florida.” Preservation North Florida continued to assist the city in acquiring $39 million in environmentally sensitive lands.

In 2010, the Preservation North Florida’s board revised the organization’s mission, vision and goals. They decided it was time to move from “acquisition” to “activation” of our parks and to connect our community to these wonderful natural resources. We changed our name to the “Timucuan Trail Parks Foundation” and underwent an intense strategic planning session in the fall of 2010.

Today, the Timucuan Trail Parks Foundation is now focused on telling the historical and cultural stories of North Florida and connecting the community to their parks.

Pinterest launched in 2010 and has been the fastest growing social media site to date. With more than 11 million visits each week, now businesses are trying to figure out how to be a part of the whirlwind.

Pinterest is a site where users can save, upload, sort, and manage images and video. Content can be found almost anywhere, from uploading your own personal photos or video to bookmarking an image from anywhere on the Web. The idea of the company was to “connect everyone in the world through the ‘things’ they find interesting.”

For businesses it’s important to connect the dots between a physical location or website and your Pinterest account, but avoid self-promotion. This can be tricky, but can be done by getting creative with the visual content. The goal is to gain brand recognition, drive traffic back to your website, and convert new visits to leads, or potential customers.

B2B companies can lack content due to the fact that they sell products or services that are difficult to represent visually. Then what’s the best way around that? You can create content that speaks to the company’s culture. Incorporate visuals from company events or blog articles that point back to that article. Also, you can add infographics or visual industry data. You can also request that customers pin images that showcase the lifestyle they enjoy because of your brand.

Here are nine ways to boost your business with Pinterest.

Is Pinterest right for my business?

Here is a great visual example to help you decide if your business should get an account.

Infographic: Should your business be on Pinterest?

If Pinterest is right for your business, how do you get started? How do you reach your audience and make sure your account is helping to convert those viewers and followers into clients?

Here are a few easy steps.

Create visual content that you think your prospects will find interesting. Choose things that speak to the culture of your business. Just like any social networking site, gaining followers is the key to building sustainability. Building reach can be done a few different ways:

1) Promote your Pinterest page using other social media sites.
2) Add a “Pin It” button to your website
3) Create unique boards on specific topics to reach those who are passionate about that certain topic. You can use keywords you already use in your SEO strategy, which can help your reach.

As with any marketing activity, you need to track and analyze your participation. Sites are popping up to allow a company to add analytics to their Pinterest site to measure the impact of it. Below are a few examples of those companies:

PinReach—Helps you understand activity, measure impact, and gauge your success.

Pinstamatic—Allows you to add calendar dates, Twitter profile links, sticky notes and websites to your boards.

Pinerly—Enables you to add a comprehensive analytic dashboard to your account. It graphically measures click-throughs, likes, and repins for campaigns created through the service, which makes Pinterest for business a good idea for brands.