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It’s Almost Thanksgiving. Get Ready for Black Friday.

November 21, 2016November 21, 2016 Elizabeth McKenna Branding, Marketing Campaigns, User Experience Black Friday, shopping, Thanksgiving, user experience

One of our most-favorite ads this holiday season is for DSW and proudly proclaims they will NOT be open on Thanksgiving Day. We applaud them and wish other retailers would follow suit. In the quickly evolving, instant black-friday-mdg gratification that technology has afforded us, we’ve lost track of the simplicity of doing nothing. Thanksgiving should be a day when you get to choose what you want to do: eat turkey, watch football, hang with family and friends. But the train moves forward…next stop Black Friday.

Black Friday is that awe-inspiring day so many look forward to: getting up early (or not even going to sleep) in a quest to get the most sought after, desired toys-tools-electronics-equipment at the most rock-bottom price.

How did Black Friday come to be?

The ‘official’ history and meaning of Black Friday supports the accounting practice of being in the red (deficient) and in the black (turning a profit). The idea goes that the day after Thanksgiving, hordes of people rush to stores with gobs of cash and retailers finally get out of the red and into the black. There are also some other more sinister stories regarding Black Friday dating back to the mid-nineteenth century. However, the profit-driven story that celebrates the retailer’s success is the one that stays.

Whether you’re ramping up for a bargain shopping jamboree, or you’re carefully curating a day of football and time with friends and family, one thing is for certain: Black Friday isn’t for Turkeys.

Forget Wheaties, Enjoy Deep-Fried Goodness

November 5, 2016November 5, 2016 Elizabeth McKenna Branding, Marketing Campaigns, Strategy, User Experience Branding, Hyatt Orlando, Naming, NAR meeting, National Doughnut Day, perfect finger food

triple-donuts — Doughnuts – the perfect finger food

November 5th is National Doughnut Day. This is one of our favorite holidays – when our nation comes together to enjoy fried goodness.

How was the doughnut created? Who first invented it? Was it intentional or by chance? Amazing how fried dough can stretch a smile a mile wide.

It’s said that the doughnut came to us via Holland and was originally called olykoeks–“oily cakes.” Should the name “olykoeks” persisted, this fried pastry might not have survived and National Doughnut Day wouldn’t be the same as it is today.

Attendees at the National Association of Realtor® donut_day2 annual meeting were greeted with unexpected in the lobby of the Orlando Hyatt. What better way to start the morning than with a doughnut and a cup of coffee from the team at Hyatt Orlando.

The best brands do what’s expected extremely well: a smooth check-in process, a clean room that meets the needs of the business traveler, helpful and friendly staff. An extraordinary brand does the unexpected. What better way to surprise and delight conference attendees and hotel guests than with doughnuts with a side of coffee.

In recent years doughnuts have come to enjoy couture status – everything from maple glazed doughnuts topped with pepper-spiced bacon to literary-inspired (or cereal embraced?) Captain My Captain doughnuts from Voo Doo Doughnuts (Portland, Oregon’s favorite doughnutiere). Buying doughnuts from Voo Doo is a great customer experience. Especially when doughnuts are lined in a coffin. One thing is sure: no matter how you roll there’s a doughnut for you.

National Doughnut Day is worth a visit to the Windy City’a best donuts Firecake Donuts. Firecakes is where your grandmother’s kitchen meets designer flavors. Enjoy old fashioned favorites including a scrumptious buttermilk donut or reach for the islands and gobble up a coconut cream.

An apple a day might keep the doctor away, but a doughnut today is good medicine too.

#InaHyattWorld #NationalDoughtnutDay

National Color Day – Red

November 4, 2016October 26, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Design, Integrated Marketing, Strategy, Video Branding, Color, Marketing campaigns, Red, Video storytelling

In the red forest that blanketed the earth like a sea of roses, when time sang with the voice of the earth mother, when the tides of time, in rising, swelled, full of like, when milky breasts flowed endlessly, and it was the beginning, and life reflected the blood-red day, and I was new, and I came into love…

-Chantal Chawaf (1943-)

About Red:

More than any other color, red symbolizes strength.
Red is seen best by the human eye because, of all the rays in the light spectrum, this color refracts most rapidly on the retina.
The Onge of the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal cover themselves everyday from birth with a mixture containing red ocher to guard against illness and scorpion bites.

Famous Logos Using Red:

red-logos — Coca-Cola, Netflix and Target Corporation

Thank you to Anne Varichon’s Book – Colors, What They Mean and How to Make Them, for supplying content and inspiration.

What was the last campaign you remember? Was it “I’m lovin’ it” or maybe a campaign centered on a sporting event? The most powerful campaigns pull at our heartstrings and spur us to action. At McKenna Design Group we tell a broad range of stories. Check out one of our favorites.

National Color Day – Black

November 3, 2016October 25, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Integrated Marketing, Technology, User Experience advocacy, Black, brand building, Branding, Color, loyalty, technology, user experience

“Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black.”

–Henry Ford

About Black:

The Hausa in Nigeria, a black heart characterizes an angry man, a cheat, and an enemy, while a “black belly” represents a sad man.
The people of Uruk in present day Iraq use the term “black” to signify both very ripe fruit and arable land.
The earliest examples of papyruses composed with lampblack-based inks date back to 2600 B.C.

Famous Logos Using Black:

American Broadcasting Company, Nike, Inc. and Adidas

Thank you to Anne Varichon’s Book – Colors, What They Mean and How to Make Them, for supplying content and inspiration.

Technology can be black or white. Either it works or it doesn’t. We prefer when it does. And so do our clients. And their customers. Integrated marketing delivers a consistent branded experience at each step of the user experience. We all want brand loyalists. And advocates. What’s keeping you from attracting yours? See how McKenna Design Group builds brand.

National Color Day – Yellow

November 2, 2016November 2, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Design, Strategy, User Experience advocacy, Brand Loyalty, Branding, Color, user experience, Yellow

I was pleased with myself when I discovered that sunlight, for example, could not be reproduced, but that I had to represent it by some other means… by color.

-Paul Cezanne (1839-1906)

About Yellow:

The first pigments of yellow are traced back to the first cave painting more than fifty thousand years ago in a cave found in the northern part of Australia.
In India, the color yellow is connected to marriage (as indicated by the expression “to yellow the hands”) and conjugal happiness, and the pigment extracted from turmeric plays and essential role in this context.
In the Fiji Islands, when a daughter of a Lau noble reaches 16, she is forbidden from the sun, remains in at home for a period of time covered in a blend of turmeric and old so her skin becomes more dazzling.

Famous Logos Using Yellow:

Post-it, McDonald’s and Best Buy

Thank you to Anne Varichon’s Book – Colors, What They Mean and How to Make Them, for supplying content and inspiration.

No one wants to be disappointed, to have a bad experience. Everyone wants to be delighted, happily surprised. It’s the little things that add a smile in the every day journey we as customers experience. Every. Single. Day.

We expect more from brands. We want to be heard and be part of the story. The user experience is central to a brand-led experience. Brand loyalty must be earned. Create that branded user experience so fantastic that it knocks the socks of your customer. Gain momentum by empowering your customers to tell their friends, family, co-workers, teachers, baristas, Uber driver just how awesome the experience was. And then do it again.

National Color Day – Gray

November 1, 2016October 25, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Design, Technology Branding, Color, Gray, technology

gray-photo

“The fundamental gray which differentiates the masters, expresses them and is the soul of all color.”

–Odilon Redon

About Gray:

The New York Times was nicknamed “Gray Lady” because gray represents non-involvement, giving it formal authority.
The human eye can distinguish about 500 shades of gray.
Gray is achromatic, meaning it’s a color without color.

Famous Logos Using Gray:

gray-logos — Nissan Motor Company, Ltd., Apple, Inc and Wikipedia

Gray is an effective color to pair with brighter, energetic hues. It provides the eye a moment of pause, as if taking a breath. It’s a default color for many applications which is especially helpfully for e-commerce solutions. Your product should stand out. Not the technology driving it.

National Color Day – Orange

October 31, 2016October 25, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Design, Strategy, User Experience Branding, Color, Integrated Marketing, Orange, user experience

orange-photo — Orange you glad I didn’t say banana?

“Orange is red brought nearer to humanity by yellow”

–Wassily Kandinsky

About Orange:

Orange is the only color whose name was taken from an object.
Nobility were the only ones during the Elizabethan Era would were allowed to wear orange.
Originally, carrots weren’t orange. The most common color was purple until 17th century Dutch growers crossbred white rooted mutated yellow and wild carrots.

Famous Logos Using Orange:

orange-logos — The Home Depot, University of Illinois and Nickelodeon

Whether attempting a home remodeling or getting a degree, the process is perfect. Process is something we think about when designing a user experience for our clients. Building a 360 degree user experience and affecting how your customers experience your brand – orange or not – is what we do best. Own the experience. Get ideas how.

National Color Day – Brown

October 28, 2016October 26, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Design, Integrated Marketing, Marketing Campaigns, Strategy Brand Loyalty, Branding, Brown, Color, Marketing campaigns, Preference

“I cannot pretend to feel impartial about colors. I rejoice with the brilliant ones and am genuinely sorry for the poor browns.”

–Winston Churchill

About Brown:

The Japanese do not have a specific word for brown. Rather, they use more descriptive names such as “tea-color,” “fox-color,” and “fallen-leaf.”
Brown is the color of security, protection and wealth.
If you dream of the color brown, it means you will be lucky with money.

Famous Logos Using Brown:

A&W Root Beer, United Parcel Service, Inc and M&M’s

How do you break through – in awareness, messaging and engagement? UPS provides a great example of how a brand can literally own a category. Capitalizing on the strength and omnipresence of brown through their trucks, uniform, branded packaging UPS’ 2002 campaign “What can brown do for us?” upped the ante from just a service delivery to all of the steps in the process.

“At UPS, brown is more than a color — it’s a tangible asset that people associate with all the things that are good about our brand.”

said Dale Hayes, vice president for brand management and customer communications, in a news release. “This campaign extends that association to the scope of new, and perhaps lesser known, capabilities we offer the marketplace.”

Does your organization ‘own’ a color? See how color can build preference and loyalty.

National Color Day – White

October 27, 2016October 26, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Design, Strategy Branding, Color, White

white-photo

“The white canvas-it’s like a layer of dust that covers up the real painting. It’s just a matter of cleaning it. I have a little brush to clear away the blue, another for the red, and another brush for the green. And when I’ve finished cleaning, the picture is all there.”

-George Braque (1882-1963)

About White:

In 1669, Isacc Newton demonstrated that the color white results from the synthesis of the six colored rays that compost the spectrum.
Many cultures have many perceived variations on white. For example the Inuit have 7 variations of white, Japanese use 6 distinct terms to evoke whiteness and in India Sanskirt texts describe whiteness by object (example: whiteness of a tooth, whiteness of a pearl or whiteness of an autumnal moon).
The whiteness of milk and it’s symbolism is important in many cultures, for example in Muslim Egypt, they refer to milk to describe a beautiful day.

Famous Logos Using White:

white-logos — Metallica, Cartoon Network and Uber Technologies, Inc.

Thank you to Anne Varichon’s Book – Colors, What They Mean and How to Make Them, for supplying content and inspiration.

National Color Day – Purple

October 26, 2016October 26, 2016 heather Branding, Color, Design, Strategy Branding, Color, Purple, Social Media Plan, Strategic Road Map, Strategy

“I see the red flag outside me window: the shadow, in fact, appears violet and dusky to me: it has an orangish glow, but why isn’t there any green? First of all because red needs to have hints of green, but also because of the presence of orange and violet, two tones that introduce yellow and blue, which make green.

-Eugene Delecriox (1798-1863)

About Purple:

Purple is among the most complex dyes to extract and, there, the most expensive, and was reserved for the clothing of nobles.
Kalasha women and young girls in Afghanistan make themselves up for the Feast of Flowers by drawing thick violet circles around their eyes. Before cosmetics, they would have used powder make of ground partridge leg.
Pope Paul II (1417-1471) decreed that cardinals would wear purple, and in the Roman Catholic Church, purple is still reserved for cardinals.

Famous Logos Using Purple:

purple-logos — Hallmark Cards, The Willy Wonka Candy Company and Yahoo, Inc.

Thank you to Anne Varichon’s Book – Colors, What They Mean and How to Make Them, for supplying content and inspiration.

Strategy Leads the Way

You know where you want to go but don’t know the way. Luckily, most women will stop for directions. Men: get a roadmap. Strategy projects provide the foundation of understanding for everything. Determining your organization’s position in the marketplace or how to get the most from your social media plan and channels. You need a plan.

At McKenna Design Group we believe that above else Strategy should precede tactics. A home builder or remodeler depends on blue prints. They define the project and provide cues as to the order in which the project will be done. Starting without a plan is no different that driving in circles. Don’t be lost: Get a Strategic Roadmap.