I’m currently busy preparing for a trade fair, Midem in January. So like everyone else, I spend a lot of time mining the event database looking for potential partners. I’ve done this from different sides of the table for 15 years now (both copywriting and sales), and I still see the same mistakes coming back time and again.
brochure
I remember when it was held as a truth that the written word was dying and the world would communicate visually. Luckily for writers, the Cannes film festival is there to remind everyone that in the beginning was the word. And not only are words essential to get a story moving, they are also there at every step of the way when it is pitched to a producer, who then pitches to co-producers and financiers, before pitching it to distributors and later the press. (more…)
I’ve been working on a few projects recently that can best be described as “personal branding”, coaches or consultants that decide to build their business under their own name. But “personal branding” has a very selfish ring to it. At its worst, it’s an exercise in ego-stroking. But as the “brands” in question were perfectly aware, there’s more to personal branding than “me-me-me”.
MIDEM 2010 campaign image
In 7 years of creating the campaigns for Midem, we have seen the world of trade fairs transform at an unbelievable rate. It’s not unfair to say that many trade fairs until recently had been seen by their organisers pretty much a way of renting space to companies. Yet Midem, part of the Reed MIDEM group, has blazed a trail and is re-inventing the way trade fairs see themselves and engage with their audiences. (more…)
Countdown 100 leadership coaching
I was amazed when an art director at a major agency recently told me that on average, their contact with a client had changed every six months over the past three years. That’s quite a turnover, with the inevitable loss in productivity and continuity. Coincidentally, coach and consultant Serge Pegoff told me that between 25-40% of managers in new positions don’t meet expectations. The managers themselves claim that a lack of support was often to blame.
Pegoff and some coaching colleagues started a programme specifically to enable managers to get up to speed as quickly as possible – roughly 3 months. So when they asked us to develop a brochure and identity, the name Countdown 100 was an obvious choice. It stands out, as other programmes on the market are given horrendous manager-speak names. The visuals, developed by Pix&Com, play on the countdown theme. For details about the programme, visit Countdown 100.
Spare a thought for the music biz: over the past seven years, overall sales of recorded music have been slashed by 50%. Whole parts of the business, such as CD plants and retail outlets, are disappearing. Even professional users, such as video games and TV stations, are putting pressure on the rates to be paid. In fact, the very notion of a “record” business is no longer really applicable. Midem, as the worldwide music community’s annual gathering, has obviously been affected by this. Despite what you might think, the trade fair has been growing over the past few years (with the obvious exception of last January when it fell right after the credit crunch). How? By staying one step ahead of the game.
When the going gets tough, the tough get out and meet each other – or they should do. I’m a firm believer in working trade fairs, having seen ones such as MIDEM and the Film Market from the inside, as well as writing for MIPIM, MIPIM Asia and the MIPCOM fairs. Although many of these have seen falling figures since January of this year, one has seen a substantial growth of 10% in sales: EAS. With the Belgian agency Tagora, I wrote the website, brochure and collateral for the 2008 and 2009 editions.
Their business is attractions and theme parks, a sector that is growing. The explanation for this growth seems to be that people are travelling less far on holidays and will therefore be spending more time at theme parks, museums, attractions and attractions. Check the EAS 2009 site.
Here’s a challenge. Take a shot of the client that actually means something, and will stop people in their tracks. The Tagora agency in Brussels did just that recently with a brochure for EAS, the European trade fair for the attractions industry. They put the owners and managers of attractions onto and in one case into their attractions. The two managers on the photo are actually on a ride, and it’s not Photoshopped either. They also got the manager of a water park to sit under a cascade with her laptop and in a business suit. It’s a simple, fun idea that makes for the best corporate portraits I’ve seen in ages. All you need is a good idea, a great photographer and clients that are willing to play ball.
I should also point out that the EAS was a success and The Write Stuff did the copywriting for the brochure of the next edition 