You Never Know Until You Ask

Courtney created a great survey we've sent to all past and present clients. We really want to get a read on what we're doing well and what our clients value, but also where we stand to improve. The responses have been insightful and have given us much to think about as we look to 2010.

As Megan blogged earlier, the upcoming year holds some exciting projects for us. It is my new year's resolution for MBM that we are careful to really listen to and learn from the survey feedback.

Maybe you have a suggestion or constructive criticism for us? Please let us know!

Holiday calm before the storm

As 2009 is coming to a close, it's hard to believe that January is just around the corner. In our business (like most others), late December can be fairly quiet - annual budgets are spent and everyone's just trying to wrap up the year. It's easy to forget that those first quarter 2010 projects are just around the corner...

A couple things on the horizon - Courtney and I will be busy as we initiate the second phase of a major branding campaign for one of our bank clients. We'll also be continuing to shape identity and sales support materials for a new senior living client. And undoubtedly, there will be a campaign or marketing need that hasn't yet be anticipated.

Looks like 2010 will be off to a busy and creative start!

Bah Humbug?

A holiday update from the person at MBM who doesn't particularly care for Christmas:

Last week I saw Richmond Triangle Player's Scrooge In Rouge. It was a laugh riot!

This week has been quiet, with Megan taking vacation time for the week. And Kelly is taking time next week. After a client giving me a hard time, I decided there's no need to be open 1/2 day on Christmas Eve so the week is winding down quickly.

Lori from the Greater Richmond Chamber and I spent the afternoon outlining a marketing plan for their 2010-2012 strategic plan. We finished off a tin of Chex Mix and she left me with a bottle of bubbly for later!

MVYRadio has been interspersing more and more holiday songs so I'm actually almost getting in the mood. Who doesn't love The First Noel as sung by The Crash Test Dummies?

A few more gifts to purchase, a few more friends to toast with and then off to North Carolina where the Christmas joy of my 5 year old nephew is sure to be infectious.

Have a good one, ya'll.

The Deets

This week, it has been all about the details for me. I've been focused on a mailing for a banking client that has multiple parts, quantities and pieces. And of course there are numerous options for printing and mailing. So at this point, I am weighing and comparing all the costs to see how we can produce an effective and impactful piece, while printing and mailing in the most efficient manner. So lots of deets.

Kelly trivia: "The Deets" is also one of my favorite question categories on the board game Seinfeld Scene-it!

Congrats Virginia Partners Bank!

It is an exciting week for one of our clients, Virginia Partners Bank, as they open their brand new Main Office building in Downtown Fredericksburg. The new building is beautiful so if you are in the area you should stop by and check it out.

We started working with Virginia Partners Bank when it was just Bill and Lloyd working out of a borrowed space. MBM had the pleasure of assisting with marketing materials from the ground up including the capital raising process, brand and logo development, and general marketing/promotion of the Bank.

Virginia Partners Bank celebrated its one year anniversary in August and has experienced great success in a short time. The Bank has opened two offices and has more than $89 million in assets.

Congrats VPB on your success!

Procrastination, Overconfidence and The Crud

Courtney's on the back end of her sinus infection, I'm on day 2 of antibiotics for bronchitis and Kelly's at the beginning stages of whatever's going around. Megan is blissfully germ-free as I write this.

I can only speak for myself, but today is a week and 2 days after I woke up with a sore throat, which progressed daily. I procrastinated, I was overconfident that my immune system could win the battle...and obviously, I ended up with The Crud. I'm old enough to know better and now I (and everyone around me) am suffering the consequences.

When I feel better, the first thing I'm going to do is revisit my goals, plans and to-do list. I have a feeling there are a few other items out there that I'm procrastinating or overconfident about.

Through The Looking Glass

As much as I'd like to start this blog with one of the classic quotes from Alice in Wonderland, it just feels too cliche today. Anyway, what I'm thinking about is the difficulty of holding a mirror up to your own company. Although we've done some of our best ever brand, logo and culture work this year for clients, we just can't seem to clarify MBM's brand. We've tried every tactic on ourselves but somehow we just can't seem to articulate who we are and what is special about us. It's frustrating but we're not giving up. We just put the finishing touches on a survey for current and former clients and hope they'll give us that extra insight we need to finalize our work. Stay tuned for updates and probably a new website when we get it right! And if you're struggling with the same issue, let us know. Maybe we could help each other?

PS - how cool is this film going to be?
http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/07/22/tim-burtons-alice-in-wonderland-teaser-trailer/

Annual Reports

This week I will be working on a creative brief and design concepts for a client's 2009 Annual Report. Can you believe that 2009 is almost over??

Annual report season can get kind of crazy since they all need to be completed, printed and mailed to Shareholders around the same time. And it is one of those projects that sort of sneaks up on you because of the holidays.

So I'm trying to not be swayed by elves, sugar plums and other fun holiday distractions and get this 2009 report started. I think we've got a great initial concept - look for updates in early 2010!

Oh, and did I mention that we won first place for one of our Annual Reports in 2007 from the American Bankers Association? Call us if you need help with yours!

New client website

So, I have to share a new client website. Maggi, Jason, and I spent the summer and fall working with Creative to provide a fantastic new website. Their brand has been evolving over the last few years, and they needed to update their website to reflect this evolution.

Be sure to check it out - Creative's new site.

SWAG

Now that we are headfirst into December and the holidays are approaching, 'tis the season for holiday premium item purchasing! For most companies, purchasing a logo-imprinted premium item for holiday gift giving has been the norm. And we're not talking cheap. But with the current economic client, will premium item vendors be begging for some business?

Over the past few weeks, we've been struggling with the holiday gift giving dilemma, and decided that gift giving is appropriate, but on a more conscious level. We'll tell you what our gift is later in the month, as to not spoil the fun!

Speaking of premium items, we have also been researching free giveaways for one of our banking clients who will be offering a checking account promotion next year. Did you know that you can purchase a toaster that toasts your logo right onto the bread? It's true. You can buy just about anything and put your logo on it (one location only, and add an additional $0.20 per piece for more than one color in your logo). :)

Michael Scott from The Office says it best,

"Swag! Stuff we all get. I basically decorated my condo for free with all of my swag."