We led a comprehensive rebranding initiative for Eastern Connecticut State University (ECSU), revamping their logo, website, and entire visual identity to authentically represent their unique position in the educational landscape. Working closely with ECSU’s team, we crafted a refreshed brand that captures the university’s distinctive character and vibrant community.

At the core of ECSU’s new identity is its mascot, the Warrior, symbolizing strength and resilience. We integrated the Warrior’s shield into updated visual elements, establishing a cohesive emblem that reflects school pride across both digital and physical platforms.

To further this concept on campus, we designed and fabricated a series of Warrior Shield cutouts. These installations—some freestanding and others handheld—encourage student engagement, offering interactive opportunities for students to showcase their ECSU pride. This approach has added a dynamic, memorable layer to the rebranding, reinforcing a connection with the Warrior identity.

This project was a collaborative effort that merged creativity with strategic vision, and we’re proud to see ECSU’s community embracing their refreshed visual identity. You can view some of our educational institutions’ creative works here.

Are you ready to elevate your institution’s look and feel? Reach out to Mason Interactive to learn how we can bring your vision to life with a rebranding strategy that resonates!

2021’s Spring iOS 14 update (that we discussed last year) disrupted the Facebook advertising ecosystem, and put the need for Platform Diversity into greater relief.

iOS 14 prompts users to opt-out of tracking; this affects the efficacy of certain (but not all) targeting options. Bottom line: the FB/IG advertising platform is degraded (we can disagree about how degraded) and brands need to diversify their portfolio by trying new platforms, even if there’s risk there. Because the alternative, continuing to reply on FB/IG, is even riskier.

Audiences vs Reporting

There’s an open debate about whether the audiences available to brands have changed more than the in-platform reporting on those audiences. Adrian Padron, V.P of Operations here at Mason, says “Facebook’s inconsistent data has caused dilution of trust. Our clients don’t trust FB’s data. There’s always been a gap between what Facebook reports and the client sees in their CRM, but this gap was usually A) explicable and B) consistent. Now, it’s neither.”

iOS 14 update “reduced the efficacy of Facebook advertising and forced people into different platforms.” With audience data now skewed in Facebook, brands move to different platforms to better reach their target audience. Though, a challenge that we see is customers don’t want to change because they like the ROI and if they try new things and don’t see the same ROI they want to pull the plug.

Most brands are hesitant when it comes to diversifying platforms when they are so used to Facebook, especially when it comes to the ROI they are used to. As Padron adds, “Budgets are a main contributor to clients not wanting to diversify. To get the results you want, you need big budgets per platform. Most clients have a small budget, that if they were split amongst different platforms, would yield no results.”

If clients do not have enough budget to spread, they should re-allocate to SEO. For example, if you have a large social media following try posting about your product or sale. Posts can go a long way for sales. Brands should also have different content per platform. What works on one platform will not yield the same results on another, be empathic to your audience, know what makes them tick, and be specific with your content. SEO will go a long way when it comes to targeting the right people.

When it comes to changing or trying new platforms brands should try it for at least 90 days before they start seeing results. Then try remarketing ads on the same platform. A new platform may be twice the cost but it could yield twice the return. Being patient with new platforms will be key in being successful with them and obtaining the results you want. Another thing to keep in mind is the importance of creative. In the past, AI took poor creative and optimized it to the best it could be. Now brands need creative that cuts through the clutter, resonates, and motivates the consumer to make a purchase with a CTA. Padron adds, “Consumers are used to going on instagram and seeing products they would buy. Which means finding creative outlets to reach people is important. Some outlets people don’t talk about is OTT and OOH.” Find the user in the midst of where they are. Some great examples of brands that have disruptive, creative ads are: Squatty potty, Lume deodorant and Poo-Pourri.

The platform Mason has seen the most success with amongst their clients has been with video advertising such as on YouTube and Tik Tok. As Padron notes, “We started pushing people to Google to diversify, as well as TV impressions and TikTok. We thought the most success we have seen thus far has been with video based advertising platforms. YouTube is the number two search engine with Google being the first. Video ads receive more views, more click-through-rates, and more engagement than other ads. Though not any video will obtain high ROI. Video ads must be tagged, well titled, have good SEO, and that are structured well.

Conclusion

Folks in the office often hear me say that we can’t choose which platforms our customers are on. To survive, you have to get creative and invest in exploring new places to find your customers.

You do not have to be alone when it comes to planning and strategizing for new platforms. Let us help diversify your marketing efforts to increase your sales, reach new audiences and expand your brand awareness. We are here for you!

When the first lockdowns of Covid-19 hit early in 2020, we began to see a paradigm shift of the entire world, and the U.S. was no exception. Commerce was reduced to essential services, and people were either restricted from or outright prohibited from interacting in larger groups or anyone outside their household or highly limited circles.

The restaurant and bar industries were hit especially hard. Even with many of the restrictions lifted in 2021 many are still wary of going out for dinner or drinks and socializing with friends and family over a beer or glass of wine. But consumers didn’t quit drinking. Many state governors included liquor stores among essential services that were allowed to stay open even as many other businesses closed their doors or limited their hours.

Marketing Alcohol Direct to Consumers (DTC) Gets a Surge

The increase in direct-to-consumer sales means that alcohol brands need to be mindful of the guidelines and regulations that promote responsible drinking whether a person chooses to drink beer or similar beverages, wine, or spirits. Regulations state that marketers cannot suggest in their advertising that people who consume alcoholic beverages violate the law or act irresponsible when they are consuming these beverages.

Regardless of the type of alcohol sold, all brands need to follow rules and regulatory codes set forth by the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, the Beer Institute, and the Wine Institute. Many states have loosened restrictions in 2020 and 2021, but these should be checked before marketing in a specific area.

With beer and similar beverages, such as hard ciders and seltzers, the brewing industry needs to continue following long-held policies to appeal to adults of legal drinking age:

There should be no direct or indirect suggestion that applicable sales not be completely followed
The themes suggested in advertising should be in good taste and present the brand as one that is responsible and is opposed to excessive or inappropriate consumption of the beverages.
Wineries and distilleries should follow similar guidelines in order to help assure that alcoholic beverages are consumed safely as much as possible.

Creating a Responsible Marketing Plan For the New Normal

Every aspect of our lives looks different from what it did a little before 2020. Even with some bars and restaurants opening, many have become accustomed to social distancing and virtual gatherings. Long before the pandemic alcohol marketing has paid close attention to the stories behind the brand. Many breweries, distilleries, and wineries are family businesses and marketing for alcohol brands often focuses on the bonding experience of both creating the beverages as well as consuming them.

In many ways, enjoying alcoholic beverages has long been associated with finding and holding on to connections that we have with family and friends. As this became more of a challenge, alcohol marketing professionals began to think outside the box in order to help that connection stay strong even with social distancing. This resulted in online happy hours on Facebook Live and similar venues. Professional bartenders providing drink mixing instruction and promoting brands that reflect varying values and reinforce the idea that we need to find safe ways to stay connected.

Promoting Brand Loyalty and Image While Marketing For Alcohol Brands

The image behind a brand of alcoholic beverage can vary considerably depending on many factors. Sometimes smaller companies struggle to compete with larger brands that have become large household names. They need to develop a more specific niche for their brand and the type of image they want to reflect. By choosing a specific target market with the help of marketing consultants, or even by using software to help with the sales process, it becomes easier even for smaller producers to find their core market and begin the process of expanding on it.

Before the pandemic, there were many smaller wineries, distilleries, and brewers that hosted tastings on site where they would aim to make consumers feel like part of the process. By taking advantage of CPG, smaller quantities of beverages can be marketed to consumers directly along with whatever values the company may have. Some companies show a sense of social consciousness by supporting certain types of charities, or they may emphasize their commitment to sustainability or positive environmental or health practices.It is important for companies to display a clear picture of who they are and who they aim to be, and continually look for stories that support that image. The less that people are able to connect in person, the more important it becomes that they are able to stay connected through consistent and entertaining sales and marketing practices through their own website as well as various social media channels, e-commerce sites, and email marketing campaigns. In the end the connections and relationships remain important for any brand, and this is especially true when it comes to developing the right campaign for alcohol marketing.

Let us help you develop a robust marketing strategy!

Your marketing strategy is integral to the success of your marketing efforts, especially with the holidays coming up, it’s more critical than ever.

Are you ready to make it big and give your company the edge it needs to succeed during this new normal and beyond? Contact us today to schedule a consultation with our digital marketing experts.

When it comes to marketing, video content reigns supreme. While there’s always a place for text and images, humans are naturally drawn to moving pictures, which is why video marketing is so effective. In fact, users retain 95% of a video’s message, meaning that they’re much more likely to pay attention.

But, while video marketing is helpful, not everyone knows how to create compelling content within this medium. Fortunately, we’ve compiled a list of seven tips to improve your video marketing strategy. Here’s what you need to know.

1. Start Strong

Did you know that the average person’s attention span is only eight seconds? So, if you don’t capture that attention within eight seconds, a user is more likely to skip your video and go onto the next one.

But, how can you make an impact in such a short time frame? The best option is to tell the viewer what the video is about and what they can expect from watching it. Don’t worry about spoiling your content – being upfront and honest is much better than burying the lead. This way, the viewer can decide right away if they want to continue watching or not.

2. Keep it Short

For the most part, viewers won’t want to sit and watch a 10 or 15-minute video. That said, if your content is compelling enough to hold one’s attention for that long, feel free to go the distance.

Overall, what matters is the type of video content you’re producing. There is no “right answer” when it comes to length, but make sure that your videos don’t feel like they’re dragging on. Even if you hook your viewers immediately, the trick is holding that attention for the length of your piece.

One strategy to consider is cutting different versions of your video for various platforms. For example, if you post to TikTok or Snapchat, you want your content to be a minute or two. However, posting to Facebook or YouTube means that you can upload longer segments. Having different edits allows you to maximize your marketing potential for each video.

Keep branded videos short, sweet and to the point.

3. Personalize Your Content

One crucial component of any marketing strategy is to focus your attention on a single customer rather than a broad demographic. Buyer personas are highly valuable because they allow you to connect with your users much more easily. If your videos are generic and bland, no one will pay attention. However, if they address specific needs, they’ll get much more traction online.

Before shooting any footage, you’ll need to ask, “what’s the purpose of this content?” Some answers can include:

Brand Awareness
Product Promotion
Informational Content

Once you determine the goal of your piece, you can align everything to meet it. In many cases, companies will produce videos without any objective in mind, making them far less captivating or valuable.

4. Don’t Forget About Branding

Regardless of the purpose of your piece, you should make sure that it’s branded effectively. Technically speaking, anything you promote can help with brand awareness, ensuring that you can build a bigger and more loyal audience.

That said, you don’t want to go too far with your branding, either. Showing your logo at the beginning and end of the video reminds viewers who you are so that they’re more likely to pay attention to what you have to offer. Also, make it easy for users to visit your website or landing page by embedding links whenever possible.

Speaking of links, don’t forget about search engine optimization. Keywords are crucial if you want your content to get discovered organically, so utilize them effectively when uploading and promoting your piece.

5. Tell a Story

One significant mistake that many companies make is creating videos that are too “salesy.” While your goal might be to sell a specific product, you need to make the content much more engaging. It’s not enough to promote the features and benefits of your items – you need to show why your products are valuable.

An easy way to incorporate storytelling into your video content is to focus on a specific problem and how your product can solve it. This way, viewers can visualize themselves in that situation, making them far more likely to buy. Did you know that 84% of users said they’d purchased a product because of a branded video?

When crafting a story, don’t forget the core components of storytelling. There should be a beginning, middle, and end. Don’t worry about complex narrative devices or act structures – you’re not producing a Hollywood blockbuster. Instead, keep it simple and deliver a satisfying conclusion.

6. Optimize for Mobile

These days, far more people are consuming content on mobile devices than ever before. Up to 62% of users in the U.S. say that they watch videos on their phones, so you have to adapt accordingly.

But, what does mobile optimization mean for video marketing? Here are some tips:

Closed Captioning – Most people won’t have their volume at full blast, so you have to make it easier for them to follow along. Closed captioning software makes it easier for viewers to retain information.
Visuals Over Sound – Up to 92% of users watch videos with the sound off, so you have to rely on visual communication. If your video is just someone talking, it’s harder to capture attention.
Simple Graphics – Smaller screens mean that viewers won’t be able to see too many details. Don’t overload your video with background elements.

7. Include a CTA

Finally, if your video marketing is designed to achieve a specific goal, don’t forget to tell your viewers what it is. A call to action is crucial because you want to spur your audience to do something with that information. Examples of CTAs can include:

Sign up for an email list
Click a link to a landing page
Buy a specific product

Remind viewers of the call-to-action within the video and post it in the description. Overall, the easier it is for someone to follow through, the more likely they’ll do it.

Get Better Video Advertising With Us!

Video marketing is challenging to get right, even if you know what to do. Fortunately, you don’t have to do everything by yourself – let us help! Contact us today to see what we can do for your brand.

Compelling, eye-catching, and scroll-stopping content is the best way to stand out from the sea of holiday promotions. Creative strategy, including brand identity, tone of voice, and visual assets, is a critical element of a well-executed holiday marketing plan.

Outperform your competition this holiday season with these creative best practices for holiday marketing!

1. Be inclusive of diverse groups

While Christmas is a major holiday in the United States and beyond, remember that there are many other holidays to celebrate this time of year as well. In fact, the holiday season is full of varied celebrations for many groups of people around the globe.

You can include these groups in your holiday creative strategy by keeping your messages general and neutral. Instead of wishing folks a “Merry Christmas,” a simple “Happy Holidays” works well. You can also focus your message on common values like peace, faith, family, giving, and community.

When you approach your holiday creative strategy with inclusivity in mind, you remind your audience that your brand supports and celebrates human beings of all religions, geographic locations, sexual orientations, and backgrounds.

ThirdLove’s “Love is Love” commercial celebrates Pride Month 2020.

2. Speak to your customers on a human level

In other words, be relatable.

Up until recent years, most brands were guilty of speaking to their audiences as if they were a monolith (and very gullible). Commercials were canned and contrived. It was easy to look at the actors and actresses in them and wonder who the ads could be targeting — because it definitely wasn’t you.

Today, we’re seeing more creators and influencers producing content that is relatable and down-to-earth. It’s important that your message says to your audience: “We understand you. And we can help”. You need to meet people where they are.

In the end, consumers are more likely to stop scrolling when they see a real person talking about a product than they are when they see a traditional advertisement. Perhaps this is why influencer marketing is expected to grow to a value of $13.8 billion in 2021.

https://youtu.be/gQdLD6kk960

Amazon’s “The show must go on” campaign represents the challenges of 2020. It’s a holiday campaign that doesn’t need to scream holiday.

3. Always design your ads for mobile viewing first

You may be sick of hearing it by now, but we still see many brands producing advertisements that are not designed for mobile first — and that’s not a good thing.

More than ever before, people consume their content on-the-go, and this means via mobile devices. Pew Research Center estimates that approximately 85% of Americans own a smartphone whereas only 77% own a desktop or laptop computer. Furthermore, desktops and laptops rarely travel alongside people. Rather, they’re usually left at home or at the office. By contrast, smartphones go with people everywhere — from meetings and first dates to the bathroom and the bedside.

To target mobile users, brands need to create quick, digestible content that utilizes as much vertical space on the screen as possible. Follow creative best practices and design any videos for sound off, and get to the point as quickly as possible. Your audience is only one thumb-swipe away from not getting your message.

4. Provide value to your audience

This may seem like a given, but your audience wants to know: “What’s in it for me?”

While providing benefits and value propositions of your products or services is key here, it’s also important to dig a bit deeper. For example, post videos of how to use or clean your products. Create detailed gift guides that include a few of your products. Gift guides for different types of people are particularly helpful (moms, dads, grandmas, grandpas, kids, bosses, etc.).

You might also provide a BOGO deal so that customers can gift a friend. Look for ways to offer free shipping and general discounts. Around the holidays, your customers want to shop. Don’t give them any reason not to shop at your establishment.

Uncommon Goods’ holiday marketing email details different types of gift guides making the shopping experience easier.

5. Start planning ASAP

Simply put: Don’t wait until November to start planning your holiday campaign. The sooner you begin, the more time you’ll have to do the research and planning necessary to be successful.

On average, it can take two to three months to contrive a strong holiday campaign. You need time to research your audience, develop your products and services, and angle your campaign for the widest reception and success. Even for small brands, we recommend starting as early as July.

Let us help you develop a robust creative strategy this holiday season!

Your creative strategy is always integral to the success of your marketing efforts, but during the holidays, it’s more critical than ever.

To give your company an edge this season, use these creative best practices for holiday marketing or contact us to discuss with our experts. We’ll help you up your game when it comes to your holiday ad campaigns and take your business to the next level as the new year rolls around.

Are you looking to take your D2C marketing to the next level of awesome? We asked Mason’s Director of Creative, Shannon Gallaher to share her best tips for emerging direct-to-consumer brands. She spoke about the importance of brand identity and meeting your customers where they are with your brand.

TIPS FOR SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

#1 Tip for Emerging Brands: Develop Brand Identity

“It’s so important to build a strong brand identity early on, and stick to it. Be strict about it. There’s a common misconception that branding and creative is only about designing ‘pretty’ graphics and a professional logo. In reality, there’s a much deeper strategy behind it all, Shannon says, “Your brand identity goes beyond your color palette and font families— consider your tone of voice; the way you speak to your audience, your values as a company and what you stand for, the look and feel of your product and lifestyle photography, and really get to know your audience personas.”

When you build the identity for your D2C brand, ask yourself questions like: What words describe the look and feel of my brand? What important social issues does my brand confront? Is my creative inclusive? What type of content speaks to my audiences?

How do you create a recognizable direct-to-consumer brand identity?

“There’s an ongoing list of building blocks that make up a strong brand, but you can start with the visuals. Once you have a professionally designed logo, chances are you’ve chosen a color or two for your brand. Make sure you’ve thoughtfully selected a distinct color palette, made up of 2 dominant and 3-4 accent colors.

It’s also important to select your brand fonts. To start, you’ll want a primary font and secondary font. At least one of these should be the font in your logo” Shannon shares, “Having a well packaged brand means that people recognize your brand without realizing the brand name. For example, if I was driving on the highway and saw a Dunkin Donuts billboard, I’d recognize the brand just from seeing the colors from the corner of my eye. I wouldn’t need to stop to read it. And just like that, I’m craving an iced coffee!”

Get to Know Your Audience

Let’s take a deeper look at the audience personas. Shannon recommends identifying 2-3 key audiences and creating a persona around each. From there, you can work to determine what type of creative resonates with each persona.

For example, say you’re selling organic soup. Your first target audience is “parents of young children.” If it’s available, use analytics from your social media accounts to gather more information about this target audience, or just brainstorm what that audience’s interests and behaviors look like. Maybe this audience is interested in nutrient rich foods for their children and tends to shop at natural grocers. Maybe your Persona B is a yogi student interested in clean living and sustainability.

These two personas will be attracted to different types of creative. What resonates with audience A doesn’t necessarily resonate with audience B. A parent of young children will be drawn to creative that talks about natural ingredients, nutrients and benefits for children. Your yogi, however, wants to see facts about sustainability and how you’re doing good for the earth.

An example of a top of the funnel acquisition video for a client, 80 Acres Farms. We thought of several reasons why a broad audience would be motivated to purchase this product, and spoke to several of those motivators in a single video:

For remarketing, or lower in the funnel, we are showing the same audience a review GIF to get them “over the fence” with some social proof:

Always Think About the Customer Journey

A robust creative strategy goes deeper than audience personas. It’s centered around the customer journey. Always ask yourself ”Is this creative going to resonate with this audience while they’re at this stage of the journey with my brand?” Shannon recommends refreshing and customizing your creative as the customer moves down the funnel. “You’ll want to educate customers about your brand and products when they’re at the top of the funnel. This helps you hook them to your brand and builds ethos. For customers at the bottom of the funnel, promotion-driven creative will perform better”, she says.

What’s Trending in Creative this Summer?

TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts have changed the way we respond to content. Majority of the content we consume today is created by real people, and gets to the point quicker than ever. When we see ads on social feeds, we tend to skip them. Shannon challenges brands to create ads that don’t look like ads. This way, people will view your ad before they realize it’s an ad. “While having professional, high quality video that supports your brand is important, that’s not always what will perform best. Try recording yourself or someone from your team talking about your products, add captions, and publish! Your users want to buy products that are used by people like them, not by perfect, scripted models. That’s why TikTok style video ads work so well”, she states.

Most importantly, have fun with your brand! “It’s great to see brands get creative with social media real estate. I’m seeing brands use carousels on Instagram and Facebook to educate their audience. It’s like a “mini pitch deck” that provides information without the audience having to click to a landing page,” Shannon shares her last tip for emerging direct to consumer brands.

Are you ready to put these tips into action? We recommend working with a creative professional to develop your brand identity. Contact us today to talk with our experts.