Eat, Sleep, Breath, Tweet.
A study last year found that the average young American spends nearly every waking hour online. Whether they are on their computer, iPad, smart phone, TV, gaming system, or other device, they are constantly connected.

Many parents might panic at the idea of pale, bleary-eyed kids sitting in the dark brainwashed by media when they hear this statistic… but the older crowd is no less accustomed to having internet access whenever we want it. Who hasn’t–at some point–pulled out their tablet PC on a bus ride to catch up on the news, checked in through a location-aware app at their favorite restaurant, or (gasp) taken their phone with them into the bathroom?

Dr. Michael Rich, a pediatrician at Children’s Hospital Boston who directs the Center on Media and Child Health, said there is no need for concern. Constant access to media is unavoidable, and is “like the air they breathe, the water they drink and the food they eat.” Basically, if you are a parent: get over it… And if you have a brand: make sure everything you do to market your brand has a way to interact for these constantly-connected consumers!

Even the most traditional media can become interactive. For example, billboards have turned into an interactive game for McDonald’s. As a promotion in Stockholm, the fast food chain has created a product-themed arcade game on a massive digital billboard. Passersby can go to a website (http://picknplay.se/) from their phone to connect directly to the billboard and play the game live projected for everyone in the area to see. If they beat the 30-second challenge, their phone automatically is sent a digital coupon for a free McDonald’s treat.

Packaging has turned into a social media success for the SpecialK cereal box. They are using the entire real-estate on the back of their package for a “What will you gain when you lose?” interactive promotion. Consumers write a word in the branded word bubble design on the back of each box, take a picture of themselves with that word and upload it to the brand’s Facebook page.

Even a local letterpress studio I recently visited is using their 19th century printing machine to print a QR code pointed to their website on takeaways for customers who leave the store. Ironic? Perhaps. Effective? Definitely.

It’s time to connect.
More and more brands are finding creative ways to make their printed materials transcend their traditional confines. How can you transform your offline media into an opportunity for more interaction?

The way a person’s eye trails through a layout can be the key to comprehension and retention of the message your company is trying to relay. And when done correctly, it will lead your viewer to follow through on the call-to-action and take the next step with your company or product. Here are five best practices to ensure the information in your print advertising, brochure, sales sheet, tradeshow booth, retail packaging, point-of-purchase display, website and other layouts are being viewed in the most effective way.

1. Determine the order you want information delivered before creating the layout.
Before your information is placed in a layout, put it in order. What is the first thing you want people to notice? If the information is for a magazine ad, it might be the headline. If it’s for a package, it could be the product name and logo. For a promotional landing page, you may want a call-to-action to be the first thing noticed. Number your content and keep in mind the order as it is designed into a layout. A great self-test you can do once the information has been placed in the design is the blink test.

Close your eyes… now open them on your layout… what’s the very first thing that you look at? Is it the information marked #1 on your list of hierarchy? If not, assess the design to remedy this. The remaining four practices provide ideas to help you troubleshoot.

2. Use fonts wisely.
The bigger a font, the more prominent it will be. True. A bold font will stand out in a crowd. Yes. San-serif typefaces are eye-catching, while serif typefaces tend to be easier to read in paragraph form. Proven. Putting words in ALL-CAPS, italics and underlines shouts they are important. Of course. However, using all of these treatments in the same layout will lead to chaos. A sophisticated layout uses only one or two of these methods to indicate “important: read this” through type style. Adding too many different type treatments in one layout is as effective as highlighting every single line in a textbook when studying for a test.

3. Use icons and color for quick-read summary information.
Some information can stand alone. This type of “CliffsNote” information can be designed for quick reference and easy reading. Bullets are the stand-by method, but go a step beyond this and you’ve got an even more successful way to showcase this information through the use of icons. Creating universal symbols for each bullet point will attract the eye in the same way, hooking the viewer visually first and engaging them to then read the related content. The icons give the viewer an idea of what they’ll be reading about before they get too involved. In your information order, icons are most effective for items that are the second or third piece on the list. Use of color for icons can move them forward or back in that rank. For example, a complimentary color that blends in with the rest of the layout will not place as much emphasis as bright contrasting colors.

4. A classy and updated call-out can be just as effective as a bright orange star burst.
Call-outs often bring to mind some sort of infomercial graphic or clearance sticker in neon colors. These design elements are commonly referred to as “violators” because they invade the space of a layout with a totally unrelated style. There is often still a need for this kind of information prominence when you want your audience to “Call Today” or see a “New Product”, but you can be just as effective at getting attention without sacrificing design. For example, in a layout with many straight lines and 90-degree angles, a call-out can stand out through the use of a more organic shape and curved lines.

5. Keep important information “above the fold.”
We are all familiar with the top news story being placed in the top half of the front page of a newspaper. That’s the story that will catch your attention when sitting in a stack or in a news bin. The same practice is successful for other media as well. For example, websites have a “fold” that is generally considered to be about 760 pixels down the browser window. This is the length the average website viewer has their monitor settings at to see a web page without scrolling. Items near the top of your order should reside here, while lower priority items might require scrolling.

If the information in your branded materials does not follow these best practices, you are not getting the most out of your content. Contact us to see how we can control the eye and the understanding of your customers.

Show Off Planet-Friendly Features Without Sounding Phony.

Turning the “green” trend into green profits has been an alluring fad ever since Al Gore stood on that mechanical lift pointing at flowcharts. At that time, the shift in environmental responsibility broadened from being touted only by granola-makers to something consumers were demanding of all products they purchased. The green marketing phenomenon has proven to be more than a passing trend: BBMG recently reported that 86% of US consumers who say the words “environmentally friendly” describe them “well,” and 34% say they describe them “very well.” Additionally, Edelman reported the number one issue that consumers care about globally is protecting the environment (92% of those surveyed!).

It didn’t take long before everything from cleaning products to airlines were dipping a toe in the murky “green” water. Look on any grocery store shelf and you’ll see buzzwords such as “natural,” “eco-friendly,” “free-trade,” and “organic” float across product messaging like the cure-all snake-oil claims of generations past. This is called “greenwashing” (originally in reference to the practice of hotels trying to make higher profit by not washing towels or bedding daily and passing it off as conservation) and consumers are quickly becoming wise to these often misleading baits.

So how do you highlight the very real environmental benefits of your product or company without sounding gimmicky or insincere? Consider these three best practices:

1. Focus on your unique selling points (USP). Be specific about these points in your brand positioning strategy. Check out CockadoodleDOO, E-cloth, and Nature’s Remedy in our portfolio for examples of using specific characteristics of your brand positioning strategy to back up claims of environmental responsibility.
2. Create a graphic badge. Once you’ve honed in on the USPs of your brand strategy, create a graphic badge highlighting these USPs for quick recognition on your product packaging design. The badge we created to highlight the whole-kernel corn used to make World’s Best Cat Litter™ is instantly recognizable on the product packaging, website, brochures and other collateral. This badge is effective because it quickly communicates a brand message about whole-kernel corn that is easily understood.
3. Start a conversation. Foster a dialog through inbound marketing with your customer. Recently, Dell declared they wanted to build the “greenest PC on earth”. The company launched IdeaStorm as a platform to solicit “direct feedback from, [its] customers, suppliers and stakeholders” on how to do just that. Shell and General Motors have incorporated similar inbound marketing tactics which have lead to increased visibility on connected social media and blogs. These consumer and expert voices add increased legitimacy to any “green” claims. Our own success at this is being proven through the Social Media Marketing and Blogosphere Engagement efforts for World’s Best Cat Litter™ and the Greenopolis community for Waste Management.

If you can achieve this trustworthy image of a green company through highlighting your environmentally friendly USPs, official badges, and real (honest) unstructured branding communications, you will be well on your way to joining the ranks of Tom’s of Maine, Stoneyfield Farm, and Patagonia.

Interested in crafting your green brand strategy without running into the “greenwashing” trap? Give MicroArts a call.