London-based architectural illustrators Hayes Davidson have created a canvas to transform the city skyline in any way you see fit. The view from Parliament Hill is your staring point...
Wednesday 24 February 2010
Be Boris for a day
Obviously we don't advise dying your hair blonde and insulting people from Liverpool. But instead trying your hand at creating a skyline for London.
London-based architectural illustrators Hayes Davidson have created a canvas to transform the city skyline in any way you see fit. The view from Parliament Hill is your staring point...
London-based architectural illustrators Hayes Davidson have created a canvas to transform the city skyline in any way you see fit. The view from Parliament Hill is your staring point...
Tuesday 23 February 2010
UPPERSTREET.COM
UPPER STREET
Young women like to feel they have an individual sense of style, that through customisation and accessories they’re experts at creating their own individual look. Customised trainers have been around for years but with the launch of upperstreet.com in March, the trend for personalised footwear moves into designer shoes. It’s a made-to-order label, that lets you create your ultimate footwear. With a specially created and simple shoe design tool, Upper Street allows ladies to to unleash their creative streak or simply create the shoes they’ve always searched for. It’s a great idea, harnessing the desire for customisation and individuality and enabling girls to get creative. With a price point of £180-250 per pair, they’re definitely targeted at women in their 20’s and early 30’s with a high disposable income. But then, young women on The Lounge’s network have told us about sharing the cost and the use of designer clothes, shoes and handbags, so perhaps even students will be group-designing and buying their own customised shoes. We think it’s a great idea, building on the trend and kudos of personal creativity and individuality. Watch this space. | Footwear from the Upperstreet.com collection |
Youth Round-Up
The lounge brings you a round-up of some of the most interesting and informative articles and blogs about youth culture and marketing.
Habbo Hotel offers a useful new teenage marketing analysis tool.
emarketer on the contrast between teen vs. adult levels of paid for home media content
Some great, albeit obvious tips by Mediapost on how to engage Generation y but worth a look
Disney Releases Biggest Ever Study of Tweens in Europe
Content Co-Creation
| CONTENT CO-CREATION
The Lounge’s ethos is about submerging our clients into the worlds of their target audience to gain deeper and more truthful insights into their lives and then working with them to develop engaging and sustainable communications. We employ an iteractive, facilitated process of co-creation, which has the brand’s consumers at it’s heart, to develop the creative platform, messaging and tone of voice. | |||
 ANT blog insight diary | |||
| This is exactly what we did recently for Anthony Nolan Trust who came to us with the challenge of engaging 18-30 year old ethnic minority males to join the national bone marrow register. We delved into their lives through a series of target audience video and blog diaries and then recruited a separate group to work with us in a workshop setting to identify and develop the potential platforms, how these might be communicated and what kind of imagery and messaging would be most likely to get them to take notice and take action. Our team of creatives took away the content from the workshops, and developed 3 creative routes which we tested with The Lounge’s network. Through this process, we also developed the communications strategy looking at not only what should be said and how, but also where and how the message should be delivered. | |||
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GOOGLE BUZZ
| GOOGLE JUMPS INTO THE SOCIAL MEDIA SPACE WITH A BUZZ
You may not yet have heard of it but Google Buzz is the next big thing in social media. It launched on the 9th February and within the first few days it had already received 9 million posts, around 160,000 per hour. So what’s the big deal? Well firstly Google have been very smart and linked the new service with Gmail, their incredibly popular email service. This has created the instant potential for massive numbers of active accounts. |  | ||
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THE BATTLE OF THE MOBILE APPS
| THE BATTLE OF THE MOBILE APPS
Location based services are hip, so hip in fact that not many people actually know what they are yet. But do not fear, The Lounge is here to guide you through the veritable minefield of services on offer. In short, Location-Based Services are information & entertainment applications, accessible on mobiles that can be tracked with GPS. | |||
| First up we have foursquare (which we looked at last time). It is essentially the most popular LBS app around, where users earn points & unlock badges for discovering new things. London has recently become foursquare’s fastest growing city, and having secured brand tie-ups with Debenhams and Dominos they are the app to beat. Gowalla is the new kid on the block – a sort of Apple to foursquare’s PC – a slick app that turns travelling into a game, rewarding players for visiting almost anywhere. And while there isn’t much discernable difference between Gowalla and foursquare, Gowalla has a trump card; availability in 7500 cities worldwide verses foursquare’s 100. Next up is Yelp, a long-established social network now featuring a ‘checking-in’ function. Despite lacking the game-like charm of foursquare and Gowalla, Yelp is pitching itself as the go-to for reviews by ‘real people’. While all of these apps offer marketers a super-targeted, localised marketing channel, one brand is trying its own hand… | |||
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Friday 19 February 2010
War! What is it good for...?
...well, a T-shirt based stop motion video apparently.
Here's another viral racking up some serious YouTube hits. 'T-Shirt War' is a home-made stop-motion video battle between two blokes, using 222 custom t-shirts and a fire extinguisher.
Here's another viral racking up some serious YouTube hits. 'T-Shirt War' is a home-made stop-motion video battle between two blokes, using 222 custom t-shirts and a fire extinguisher.
Wednesday 17 February 2010
A brief history of pretty much everything
This was created by a 17 year-old called Jamie Bell (not the one from Billy Elliot) and posted on his YouTube channel Displeased Eskimo...
"This is the final piece for my AS art course, a flipbook made entirely out of biro pens. It's something like 2100 pages long, and about 50 jotter books. I'd say I worked on and off it for roughly 3 weeks."
Yes he said AS ART COURSE. Mental, he's clearly a talented guy.
"This is the final piece for my AS art course, a flipbook made entirely out of biro pens. It's something like 2100 pages long, and about 50 jotter books. I'd say I worked on and off it for roughly 3 weeks."
Yes he said AS ART COURSE. Mental, he's clearly a talented guy.
The Lounge’s 10 Principles for Marketing to Students
1. Make the business case for students
University offers a unique opportunity for brands to start a relationship with a new audience. Students are entering a stage of genuine independence and many will be making buying decisions for the first time. As one of the only recession proof demographics, they are doubly attractive. With access to money from the recently reinstated grants, student loans, generous bank overdrafts, credit cards, parents and from part time work, they’re accepting of the £10k-£20k debt they will amass during their time at uni, and are happy to spend this money freely on brands they feel deliver quality and value.
2. Focus your spend
Why target students separately? Whilst they might consume some of the same media as broader ‘youth’, their lifestyle and mindset is unique. They label themselves first and foremost as ‘students’; this is their profession. They expect their status and lifestyle to be understood and addressed. Hence the raft of student specific media opportunities that have sprung up to reach them in their ‘walled’ university environments. Never has focussing spend been so easy, if this myriad of media can be sucessfully navigated.
3. Immerse yourself in students’ worlds so you can understand their reality
Most marketeers who’ve been to uni fall into the trap of applying their own experiences to today’s students, even if that experience was 10 or 20 years ago. Today’s students are bombarded with experiences, media, opportunities and marketing messages. They are therefore increasingly discerning about brands and will only start relationships with those who take the time to truly understand them.
4. Target the ‘right’ students for your brand
Students are not a homogenous group. For many, university life presents an opportunity either to reinforce or reinvent their identity. But whilst the drive to be ‘individual’ is great, the desire to fit in, make friends and belong is greater. So, they quickly morph into ‘tribes’ according to their lifestyles, interests and values. Examine which tribes hold most synergy with your brand to create a group of true brand advocates.
5. Beware the culture of expectancy
Students are incredibly expectant, and who can blame them, with readily available discounts and freebies. But while discounts are a great way to attract their attention short term, to create any repeat or lasting behaviours longer term it is all about how you build a relationship by providing ongoing value and benefits.
6. Don’t expect students to ‘do’ too much
Hand in hand with expectancy comes the challenge of how to motivate and mobilise students. Think about how you can enhance their existing routines and experiences without asking them to step outside comfort zones. Don’t expect them to do too much.
7. Shared lifestyles
No other demographic lives, socialises and spends most of their day with the same people. They are literally in each others pockets. This means that if you can attract the influencer in a friendship group you very quickly reach multiple students. This applies in the digital world too.
8. Be the entertainer and the experience provider
Students go to university to gain a degree. Well, that’s the official story. Ask any student and they’ll tell you university is all about the experiences and the lifelong friendships formed. It’s these experiences that give them social currency and bonding moments with their new-found friends. Provide the experience and invaluable word-of-mouth will follow.
9. Don’t jump on the Facebook bandwagon without a strategy
Ok, so nearly half of all students are on Facebook. And it can be a fantastic medium through which to engage them, but only if there’s a point; a reason for them to get involved with your brand. What will they get out of it? What will encourage them to accept your brand into their profiles? How do you become an integral part of and add value to what they’re already doing? In short, Facebook should be the vehicle through which to communicate a valid and interesting message, not an end in itself. Plus for an added tip see point 7.
10. Timing is everything
You might have the best idea, creative and communication strategy but if you don’t understand daily student life or the wider student calendar, both of which can vary by university, it’s likely you’ll end up on an empty campus or trying to engage them when all they can think about is exams. So, do your research on reading weeks, term dates, exam timetables, popular student nights and other local nuances. Then we have the age-old Freshers or not Freshers question, but let’s sit down for a chat about that one.
University offers a unique opportunity for brands to start a relationship with a new audience. Students are entering a stage of genuine independence and many will be making buying decisions for the first time. As one of the only recession proof demographics, they are doubly attractive. With access to money from the recently reinstated grants, student loans, generous bank overdrafts, credit cards, parents and from part time work, they’re accepting of the £10k-£20k debt they will amass during their time at uni, and are happy to spend this money freely on brands they feel deliver quality and value.
2. Focus your spend
Why target students separately? Whilst they might consume some of the same media as broader ‘youth’, their lifestyle and mindset is unique. They label themselves first and foremost as ‘students’; this is their profession. They expect their status and lifestyle to be understood and addressed. Hence the raft of student specific media opportunities that have sprung up to reach them in their ‘walled’ university environments. Never has focussing spend been so easy, if this myriad of media can be sucessfully navigated.
3. Immerse yourself in students’ worlds so you can understand their reality
Most marketeers who’ve been to uni fall into the trap of applying their own experiences to today’s students, even if that experience was 10 or 20 years ago. Today’s students are bombarded with experiences, media, opportunities and marketing messages. They are therefore increasingly discerning about brands and will only start relationships with those who take the time to truly understand them.
4. Target the ‘right’ students for your brand
Students are not a homogenous group. For many, university life presents an opportunity either to reinforce or reinvent their identity. But whilst the drive to be ‘individual’ is great, the desire to fit in, make friends and belong is greater. So, they quickly morph into ‘tribes’ according to their lifestyles, interests and values. Examine which tribes hold most synergy with your brand to create a group of true brand advocates.
5. Beware the culture of expectancy
Students are incredibly expectant, and who can blame them, with readily available discounts and freebies. But while discounts are a great way to attract their attention short term, to create any repeat or lasting behaviours longer term it is all about how you build a relationship by providing ongoing value and benefits.
6. Don’t expect students to ‘do’ too much
Hand in hand with expectancy comes the challenge of how to motivate and mobilise students. Think about how you can enhance their existing routines and experiences without asking them to step outside comfort zones. Don’t expect them to do too much.
7. Shared lifestyles
No other demographic lives, socialises and spends most of their day with the same people. They are literally in each others pockets. This means that if you can attract the influencer in a friendship group you very quickly reach multiple students. This applies in the digital world too.
8. Be the entertainer and the experience provider
Students go to university to gain a degree. Well, that’s the official story. Ask any student and they’ll tell you university is all about the experiences and the lifelong friendships formed. It’s these experiences that give them social currency and bonding moments with their new-found friends. Provide the experience and invaluable word-of-mouth will follow.
9. Don’t jump on the Facebook bandwagon without a strategy
Ok, so nearly half of all students are on Facebook. And it can be a fantastic medium through which to engage them, but only if there’s a point; a reason for them to get involved with your brand. What will they get out of it? What will encourage them to accept your brand into their profiles? How do you become an integral part of and add value to what they’re already doing? In short, Facebook should be the vehicle through which to communicate a valid and interesting message, not an end in itself. Plus for an added tip see point 7.
10. Timing is everything
You might have the best idea, creative and communication strategy but if you don’t understand daily student life or the wider student calendar, both of which can vary by university, it’s likely you’ll end up on an empty campus or trying to engage them when all they can think about is exams. So, do your research on reading weeks, term dates, exam timetables, popular student nights and other local nuances. Then we have the age-old Freshers or not Freshers question, but let’s sit down for a chat about that one.
Monday 15 February 2010
TLG on the lookout for a Social Media Manager
As a communications agency specialising in understanding and connecting with Under 35s, we work with most of our clients to maximise their presence, reach and consumer engagement within social media. To that end we are seeking to formalise, enhance and develop this offering within a separate division of The Lounge and are looking for someone to lead this process.
Ideally, you should have an entrepreneurial, start up mentality and be happy working at both a strategic and implementation level. You will be able to demonstrate a track record of successful social media strategies and campaigns, with impressive results. You will be passionate about the world of social media and make use of it in all aspects of your life, be well networked and constantly in touch with the latest innovations and trends.
If you would like to learn more then drop me a line at sara.gil@theloungegroup.com.
Thursday 11 February 2010
Doppelgänger
Spotted at Bluewater shopping centre, London:
Kevin Pietersen's long-lost twin brother...
There's been a lot of chat in the office about this lad looking like a dead ringer for KP. I'm not convinced. Thoughts please...
The Brylcreem tour has been helping blokes across the country jazz up their barnets since the start of January, only one stop left to go - Milton Keynes here we come you beauty!
Kevin Pietersen's long-lost twin brother...
There's been a lot of chat in the office about this lad looking like a dead ringer for KP. I'm not convinced. Thoughts please...
The Brylcreem tour has been helping blokes across the country jazz up their barnets since the start of January, only one stop left to go - Milton Keynes here we come you beauty!
Wednesday 10 February 2010
Love is in the Air
We were spreading the love in Sheffield last night, warming up a bitterly cold night in the steel city with celebration of football at Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough stadium...
It was all in aid of the Puma hardchorus website launch. Loads of 'ard looking football fans singing slushy love songs, bless 'em!
Footy fans of all ages got the chance to dedicate a song to a loved one, and in doing so bagged themselves at £20 Puma Store discount and a snazzy Puma-branded scarf...
And to top it all off Wednesday managed to put one over on Blackpool 2-0 - so a happy ending to this beautiful story.
It was all in aid of the Puma hardchorus website launch. Loads of 'ard looking football fans singing slushy love songs, bless 'em!
Footy fans of all ages got the chance to dedicate a song to a loved one, and in doing so bagged themselves at £20 Puma Store discount and a snazzy Puma-branded scarf...
And to top it all off Wednesday managed to put one over on Blackpool 2-0 - so a happy ending to this beautiful story.
Monday 1 February 2010
PR Week
We're in this week's PR Week as one of the case studies for 'using research as part of a PR campaign'. We conducted some research for last year's Alliance & Leciester campaign which helped to launch each celebrity mentor.
Check out the article below...
Check out the article below...
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