Effective creative strategies and campaigns for business owners or marketers
Whether it's on the Web, in a book, or live in-person, the most effective solutions are
those that unexpectedly grab our attention. David Langton and Anita Campbell identify
eye-catching and thought-provoking marketing and PR tips, ideas, and creative
"stunts." This compendium of winning ideas will inspire small business leaders,
creative professionals, and students. Award-winning visual communication designer David
Langton has worked for a range of businesses from Fortune 500 leaders to small businesses.
Anita Campbell, an internationally known small business expert, reaches over 2 million
small business owners and stakeholders annually.
Through case studies, photos, and illustrations, Visual Marketing displays
creative marketing campaigns that brought attention to small businesses in unique,
compelling, and unexpected ways.
- Online visual marketing solutions may include apps, interactive games tools and
modules; infographics; HTML emails / e-newsletters; widgets; YouTube videos; flash
animation; social networking campaigns; websites, weblets, mini-sites; blogs; podcasts /
MP3s; projected signage; PowerPoint / keynote presentations
- In print solutions may include brochures, flyers; annual reports; books; direct
mail, post cards; newsletters; invitations; letters; press releases; infographics
- On-site, giveaways, exhibit, and tradeshow solutions may include live events and
performances; signs; billboards; exhibits; banners; tent cards; posters; plasmas screens;
kiosks; giveaways: tchotchkes, t-shirts, tote bags, etc.; floor graphics/vinyl graphic
wraps
With Visual Marketing, you'll discover 99 powerful strategies for
capturing the attention of your potential customers.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements.
Introduction.
Chapter 1: Much More than Just a Website: How Online Games, Cartoons, Apps,
Infographics and More Can Boost Your Business.
1. The Color Of Money – A Small Bank Makes A Large Impression With A Colorful
Campaign.
2. A Website Showcases a Sense of Touch — Strong Navigation and Ease-of-use for an
Online Showroom.
3. Augmenting the Reality of Mobile Advertising – Sharing Brand Information Visually
over Mobile Devices Through Apps.
4. Celebrating creativity with a killer smile – Creating a viral marketing effect
with an online game.
5. Putting The “self'; In Self Portrait – Finding The Right Photo To Express A
Personal Brand.
6. Luxury Property shown in many different lights – Focusing on stunning imagery to
sell luxury.
7. How many ways can you destroy your printer? – Going viral with a YouTube video
contest that Plays Upon Customer Frustrations.
8. Making a Legal Case for Insider Jokes – Using Cartoons to Market to Your Target
Audience.
9. Changing the script on scriptwriting -- Organizing a virtual community around an
event to maximize participation.
10. When is a Cup of Tea More Than Just Another Cup? – Stunning Photography on a
Website Differentiates a Product.
11. Just the facts ma’m -- Creating an interactive online quiz attracts a target
audience with a deeper level of engagement than standard content.
12. Getting a Leg Up on the Competition – Gaining media visibility for an arcane
industry online, through puns and fun on your website.
13. Building an Appealing Design – Presenting Your Process in Your Website Showcases
a Competitive Advantage for an Architectural Firm.
14. A Visual Marketing Firm Uses Optical Illusions To See Things Differently –
Showing Prospects What You Are Capable Of In Multimedia.
15. Breaking Through the Grey Noise – Using a Flash-based presentation to generate
leads, that also serves as a leave-behind piece.
16. Delivering a Unique Marketing Campaign – Combining staged marketing events with
video and social media.
17. Finding Your Identity -- Standing out from the crowd with a website that lets your
personality show through.
18. A Renaissance for Today -- Creating a forward-looking logo that reflects the past.
19. Good service is earned – Making a brand statement and creating viral content
through infographics.
20. Design to Put Your Best Foot Forward – Using sharp detailed close-up photography
to demonstrate business capabilities on the Web.
21. A Reflection of Style – Incorporating Your Business Style Into Your Logo.
22. The Right Way to Start a Charity Today—Using Facebook and blogs to build a
community around a good cause.
23. Education Can Be Creative – Formatting the Standard “10 Tips” Article to
convey professionalism and authority.
24. Dressing Down for Success – Appealing to Consumers with a Personal Video
Demystifies a Confusing Subject, Builds Trust.
25. A Legal Holiday – Using electronic greeting cards to Position a Firm in a Serious
Industry as Friendly.
26. A Picture Speaks a Thousand Words – Creating a Visual Interpretation of What You
Do in an Industry Known for Facts and Figures.
27. Taking the Chill Out of A Ski Website – Creating an Interactive Feature to
Differentiate Your Site.
28. Traversing from Print to Mobile – Creating a mobile app version of print, for
those with a foot in the mobile world.
29. Promoting logos with a guess-that-logo contest – Tying in a contest with email
marketing to increase client engagement.
30. Marketing to Parents - Tailoring a website's look to reinforce your target niche.
31. Leading by Example – Using Stock Images in a Downloadable Tips Sheet to
Demonstrate That Marketing Can Be Easy and Inexpensive.
32. Blogger Outreach in the Cloud – Using a Visually-Inspired Word Cloud to Start a
Conversation with a Blogger.
33. An illustrator draws up timely reminders for prospects – Using remarkable email
marketing to keep your pipeline full.
34. Bringing the Topic of Skin Care to a Head – Supporting a Skincare Message to
Teens with a Clean Peppy Web Design.
35. It's Not all Business All the Time – Adding a Personalized Blog Header Brings
Human Interest to a Business Website.
Chapter 2: Images are Everywhere in the Physical World: Signs, Banners, Giveaways,
Packaging and Experiential Marketing that Inspires and Persuades.
1. A Packaging Design That Really Helps The Consumer – Avoiding Lingo And Using
Customer's Own Words To Stand Out.
2. A Local Brewery Makes The Case For Better Beer Branding – Using Images From
Your Business And Local Area To Brand Your Product.
3. A New Spin On Making A Hit Record — Bringing Direct Mail Campaigns To The Next
Level, With A Mailer That Invites Recipients to Get “Hands-On”.
4. Making the most of your 15 minutes of fame – Using Posters and On-site Displays
Together With QR Codes and Social Media to Reach 24-45 year Olds.
5. Handing Your Brand Over To Your Customers – Getting Customers Deeply Engaged With
Your Brand To Create Fanatical Loyalty.
6. Free Stuff For Dogs And The People Who Dig Them – Using Beautifully Designed
Packaging For Free Product Samples “Sells” A Premium Product.
7. High tech digital communications from a 70s Chevy van – Marketing by creating an
“experience” that includes a digital billboard, social media and an onsite presence.
8. Designing wine on the inside … and outside – Stimulating the Senses with
High-End Packaging for a High-End Product.
9. A Campaign That Really Knocks Your Socks Off – Appealing To Customers' Comfort
Evokes Emotion And Differentiates A Commodity Business.
10. New Beverage Design Creates Buzz –Simplicity In Packaging Emphasizes Purity In
Ingredients For The Health Conscious Market.
11. Sustaining Good Design – Creating an Intentionally Retro Look Emphasizes
Underlying Values.
12. Hand drawn promo excites young Brits who love to draw – Giving away a
high-quality gift increases sales by luring people into the store.
13. Sweet! – Creating an Interactive Puzzle to Increase Booth Traffic at
a Conference.
14. Jump Starting a New Package Design – Creating Quality Packaging Can Lead to
Getting Carried By More Retailers.
15. Rewarding Good Taste – Growing Your Customer Base Through a Clever 21st Century
Loyalty Program.
16. A New Product Popping Up – Differentiating a Product in a
Crowded Field Through Unique uncluttered Packaging.
17. Too Big To Ignore And Too Personal To Discard – Using “Lumpy Mail” To Get
Your Foot In The Door Of The C Suite.
18. Showcasing Talented Women – Creating a Calendar With Distinctive
Photography for Year-Long Marketing.
19. Get Your Clients Talking About You – Custom Designing Any Promotional Giveaways
Makes a Big Splash Making Friends.
20. Breaking the Cutesy Barrier – Creating an Urban Chic Niche in an Existing Market,
with Displays and Packaging.
21. Waking Up Your Brand With A Little Pillow Talk— Creating A Follow-Up Campaign
That Makes Prospects Laugh And…Buy.
22. Food Trucks, Today's Eatery Trend – Creating Cravings By Using Typography on a
Truck Wrap.
23. Get me a Doctor, STAT – Interjecting Fun Into How People Perceive Your Business
with a Witty or Humorous Tshirt.
24. Thinking outside the box — Using College Lingo On An Unconventional item, to
Attract Cult Status and Build Business on a College Campus.
25. An a capella visual promotion for musicians – Attracting Your Target Market with
a Banner Containing Images and No Words.
26. Getting A Bright Start In Branding – Using 3-Dimensional Displays Integrated With
A Sales Presentation.
27. Canyon Burger (MAY BE REPLACED).
28. (Global Girlfriends) Making Friends Globally – Promoting a Book to Promote a
Socially Responsible Business, With Free Samples.
29. Much Ado About Nothing— A Campaign With Clever Props and Giveaways
Transforms A Hard-to-appreciate Concept Into Something Real and Tangible.
Chapter 3: The Power of Print: Modern Ways to Use Posters, Brochures, and
More to Compel Your Audience.
1. Who is Keith Beith? – Capitalizing on a Unique Name and Interjecting Friendliness
to Differentiate a Business.
2. Face-To-Face Illustrations – Establishing A Framework For A Firm' Identity That
Allows Employees To Express Themselves.
3. Business Cards Get Social – Creating Business Cards That Mimic Social Media Icons
Opens New Market.
4. Changing Perceptions One School at a Time – Using a Marketing Pamphlet to Update
an Organization's Image.
5. Meeting Artists In Their Natural Habitat – Creating A Series Of Posters Conveys
The Range And Variety Of A Large Event.
6. The Omaha Cow and Snowboarding -- Using An Iconic Symbol Updated With Current
Culture To Create An Au CourantLogo.
7. Translating a Global Brand into Local Currency – Making An Existing Brand Design
Resonate in a Different Country.
8. Getting To The Point in Acupuncture – Combining Professional Design With
Do-It-Yourself Execution Keeps Expenses in Line.
9. An Image Consultant Makes A Great First Impression – Differentiating a Personal
Brand By Conveying Your Personality.
10. A Recipe For Success In Publishing – Using Beautiful Evocative Images Reinforces
The Essence of A Publication .
11. The Art of Making House Calls – Using Simple Logo Imagery Marries Traditional
Values With a Modern Business.
12. A Unorthodox Community Campaign Promotes Kindness – Using A Powerful Name To
Drive Action.
13. A Communications Firm Stands Out —Using Unconventional Visuals Instead of
Cookie-Cutter B2B Design GetsAttention.
14. Is Your Name Defining You ... Negatively? – Renaming a Business Leads to More
Sales.
15. A Condo Development Has Historical Charm – Incorporating Heritage into Marketing
Visuals to Emphasize An Offering's Key Selling Points.
16. HR with a Personal Touch – Using a Descriptive Name and a Caricature for a
Consulting Business Sets You Apart.
17. All That Jazz, Funk, Blues, Pop, Hip Hop… -- Making Modifications in Your Imagery
Can Appeal To A Younger Audience.
18. Communicate issues boldly -- Using bold graphics to drive home the importance of
messages.
19. Eat or Be Eaten -- Appealing to Local Tastes and Cultural Understanding in a Local
Marketing Campaign.
20. Clothing for the cosmopolitan outdoorsy type—Expressing the importance of form
AND function for a brand in print.
21. Capturing the Legacy – Creating a Commemorative Book with High Quality Graphics
Conveys an Organization's Values.
22. Spicing Up the Ornament Market – Using Bright and Unique Online Ads to Build a
Brand.
23. All for One and One for All – Repurposing a Marketing Collateral on a VERY Low
Budget.
24. Evoking Mood Through Design – Making Your Business Entertainment Last Longer Than
the Event Itself, With Custom Invitations.
25. High End Rewards -- Offering Upscale Coupons Grows Loyalty, Prevents Cancellations,
and Sells Add-ons.
26. It's a Family Affair – Making Your Business Story Come to Life With a Beautifully
Designed Print Piece.
27. An Industrial Business Bucks the Trend -- Expressing Quality Through Color and
Design Becomes a Competitive Advantage.
28. Sharpen Your Sights -- Using Clever Advertising That Makes the Viewer Stop and
Think About Their Needs.
29. A Program for All Seasons — Creating an overarching marketing theme for the
entire year.
30. The Express Lane for Sales—A Visual Pitchbook Captures the Sales Process and
Trains An Evergrowing Sales Team.
31. 3D Business Cards – Expressing Your Creativity on Your Business Card.
32. What’s a Symchych? — Accentuating a hard-to-pronounce name can be a winner.
33. Technology can be Sexy – Poking Fun at Your Industry's Stereotypes Makes it
Easier for Customers to Relate.
34. Making Saving Look Good – Delivering Vouchers and Coupons that People Want to
Save.
35. Good Design Flows from Product to Marketing – Creating Postcards That are
“Saveable” to Keep the Sales Pipeline Full.
Addendum.
Takeaway Tips.
Credits.
256 pages, Paperback