BBH ZAG http://bbhzag.posterous.com Most recent posts at BBH ZAG posterous.com Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:32:00 -0800 From Lag to Launch: Playground Sessions http://bbhzag.posterous.com/from-lag-to-launch-playground-sessions http://bbhzag.posterous.com/from-lag-to-launch-playground-sessions

The promise that a group like ZAG offers an ad agency is when the agency owns the brand they have the potential and the responsibility to do great work. They can only blame themselves if this doesn’t happen. Even when the stars are aligned, launching a start up is never easy. The BBH and ZAG team seized this opportunity for  Playground Sessions.

The Background:

Playground Sessions is an invention that came through the Brand Lag process that ZAG developed. The lag was discovered over two years ago by a team that included Terris Poole, Greg Andersen, Ben Jenkins, Theodora Stites and Chris Vance. To make the lag a reality the team worked with a software developer out of Salt Lake City called Media Rain and the YouTube piano sensation David Sides. The past two years were spent securing music rights, developing lessons, coding software, designing websites, applying visual identity, growing social communities, wooing investors, drafting legal documents, entertaining partnerships and more.

The Creative:

The concept of Playground Sessions is to reinvent the way people learn music. The creative team used BackStage.com to find somebody in New York who wanted to learn how to play piano but has never tried before. We found an amazing guy named Will White. We asked him to learn a song using Playground Sessions and perform a concert featuring that song in 30 days. With the production expertise of B-Reel we created a documentary-style cinematic journey that follows the 30 days that Will took to learn the song. You can see here:

 

The Propagation Plan:

Prior to Launch Comms Task: Be Social We first set up a “Coming Soon” website using Weebly and MailChimp to capture emails. We then established a User Voice account to help determine the types of songs that we secured. We started our social presence and grew these communities organically over the first 10 months with Facebook (3000 Likes) and Twitter (700 Followers). It was a good start with our initial Beta testers. Our Social Media team used Sysomos and Shoutlet for monitoring, engagement and tracking.

Launch Comms Task: Be Fascinating The week before launch we started advertising on Google with Ad Words and Twitter with Promoted Accounts. We grew our Twitter following to over 6000 leading up to the launch date. On November 3rd, 2011 we worked with YouTube to seed a special announcement video for David Sides fans using annotations. You can see that here:

Post Launch Comms Task: Be Famous On November 7th our Clear Channel national radio campaign started which we loved from a context standpoint running on many Top 40 music formats. We kicked off our Facebook video campaign with the help of Social Envy that earned over 125,000 views. Finally our friends at Ad.ly got Playground Sessions into the hands of celebrities and here are some of those Tweets:



Today we have over 13,000 Twitter Followers, over 9,000 Facebook Followers. We have had hundreds of people install the software on their computers and are excited about the future press and partnership deals that we are working on.

Credit and Special Mention:

  • David Sides: YouTube Sensation
  • Andrew Howlett: Media Rain CEO
  • Amy Hatch: Media Rain Digital Producer
  • Nate Ross: Media Rain Developer
  • Ryan Nelson: Media Rain Developer
  • Nigel Bogle: ZAG Board Chairman
  • Neil Munn: ZAG CEO
  • Chris Vance: Playground Sessions CEO
  • Terris Poole: Playground Sessions Lead Designer
  • Amanda Spivak: Playground Sessions Assistant Brand Manager
  • Colin Gorman: Playground Sessions Partnership Manager
  • Darren Majewski: Playground Sessions Royalty Rights Manager
  • Jim Altieri: Playground Sessions Music Technologist
  • Erin Riley: Playground Sessions Marketing Director
  • Griffin Farley: Playground Sessions Marketing Director
  • Greg Andersen: BBH New York CEO
  • Suzanne Kucera: BBH New York CFO
  • Colleen Leddy: BBH Engagement Planning Director
  • Susan Corbo: BBH Creative Director
  • Maja Folgero: BBH Jr. Copy Writer
  • Felipe Montt: BBH Jr. Art Director
  • Ian Hart: BBH Senior Copy Writer
  • Dave Brown: BBH Senior Art Director
  • Andrea Rodriguez: BBH Broadcast Producer

 

 

  

 

 

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5Bc9zmLFSLTj gfarley gfarley Mon, 31 Oct 2011 08:27:00 -0700 Yves Behar: The Agenda Setter http://bbhzag.posterous.com/yves-behar-th-agenda-setter http://bbhzag.posterous.com/yves-behar-th-agenda-setter

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Wed, 27 Jul 2011 10:03:00 -0700 Qualcomm’s Awesome Augmented Reality SDK (via @techcrunch) #AR #SDK #mobile http://bbhzag.posterous.com/qualcomms-awesome-augmented-reality-sdk-via-t http://bbhzag.posterous.com/qualcomms-awesome-augmented-reality-sdk-via-t
via techcrunch.com

now available for iOS more info http://goo.gl/RVv12 via (@techcrunch)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Tue, 26 Jul 2011 08:27:00 -0700 Cinemetrics (via @vanguardbots) http://bbhzag.posterous.com/cinemetrics-via-vanguarbots http://bbhzag.posterous.com/cinemetrics-via-vanguarbots
via vimeo.com

Amazing Data Viz. Netflix could use this right about now

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Mon, 18 Jul 2011 11:32:00 -0700 ‪Avatar Kinect Demo (via @vanguardbots) http://bbhzag.posterous.com/avatar-kinect-demo-via-vanguardbots http://bbhzag.posterous.com/avatar-kinect-demo-via-vanguardbots
via youtube.com

Avatar Kinect Demo
waiting to use this for transatlantic work calls

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Thu, 30 Jun 2011 09:28:00 -0700 ‪Software Creates Interactive Streaming Video‬‏ http://bbhzag.posterous.com/software-creates-interactive-streaming-video http://bbhzag.posterous.com/software-creates-interactive-streaming-video
via youtube.com

game changer.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Tue, 14 Jun 2011 08:12:00 -0700 Bre.ad, The URL Shortener That Aspires To Be Your Own “Personal Billboard” (via @vanguardbots) http://bbhzag.posterous.com/bread-the-url-shortener-that-aspires-to-be-yo http://bbhzag.posterous.com/bread-the-url-shortener-that-aspires-to-be-yo
via techcrunch.com

wow this is a great idea

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Sat, 11 Jun 2011 04:07:00 -0700 THE IMPORTANCE OF DEFINING THE PROBLEM http://bbhzag.posterous.com/the-importance-of-defining-the-problem http://bbhzag.posterous.com/the-importance-of-defining-the-problem

Last week I  read about this genius invention by a 13 year old boy -  a doorbell that rings your mobile when you're out. He's already lined up some sizeable deals with telco. companies. Like lots of great ideas it seem so obvious in retrospect. He said it was in response to the fact that his mum was always missing Royal mail deliveries. For me it really reinforced that clearly nailing the problem you are trying to solve is a big part of successful innovation. We've got to find those simple problems.

http://bit.ly/lzLokb

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1274373/profile_pic.jpg http://posterous.com/users/hesWm4lwTMCKu Neil Barrie neilbaz Neil Barrie Fri, 27 May 2011 09:33:10 -0700 @BBHZAG NY http://bbhzag.posterous.com/bbhzag-ny http://bbhzag.posterous.com/bbhzag-ny
Media_httpimagesinsta_difqr

Taken at Bartle, Bogle & Hegarty

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Sat, 21 May 2011 14:51:00 -0700 Linkedin from Alpha to IPO [InfoGraphic] http://bbhzag.posterous.com/linkedin-from-alpha-to-ipo-infographic http://bbhzag.posterous.com/linkedin-from-alpha-to-ipo-infographic

Linkedin_info

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5Bc9zmLFSLTj gfarley gfarley Tue, 17 May 2011 11:53:00 -0700 Metaio Bets Augmented Reality On Tablets Is The Future (via @fastcompany) http://bbhzag.posterous.com/metaio-bets-augmented-reality-on-tablets-is-t http://bbhzag.posterous.com/metaio-bets-augmented-reality-on-tablets-is-t
via fastcompany.com

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Fri, 15 Apr 2011 11:55:00 -0700 GOAB. A TV Experience Concept http://bbhzag.posterous.com/goab-a-tv-experience-concept http://bbhzag.posterous.com/goab-a-tv-experience-concept
via vimeo.com

cool concept video from Syzygy Lab

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Thu, 07 Apr 2011 15:55:00 -0700 GoPano Micro brings 360-degree video recording to the iPhone 4 http://bbhzag.posterous.com/gopano-micro-brings-360-degree-video-recordin http://bbhzag.posterous.com/gopano-micro-brings-360-degree-video-recordin
Media_httpwwwblogcdnc_xjmet
via engadget.com

this is awesome
for more information http://goo.gl/lfcd2 (via Kickstarter)

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Tue, 29 Mar 2011 07:53:00 -0700 BBH and Spark Ventures Launch The Black Sheep Fund http://bbhzag.posterous.com/bbh-and-spark-ventures-launch-the-black-sheep http://bbhzag.posterous.com/bbh-and-spark-ventures-launch-the-black-sheep

Author: Adam Arnold, Partner, BBH Today sees the launch of The Black Sheep Fund - which we believe is the first venture capital fund of its kind. It is a venture between Zag (BBH's brand invention business) and Spark Ventures - the London based VCs that backed start up phenomena including lastminute.com, Kobalt Music, notonthehighstreet.com and Moshi Monsters.

The background is increasingly obvious: There is a dearth of seed funds for start ups. If things feel tighter than they used to be in the States - then it is ten times harder to raise money in Europe right now. The banks demand personal guarantees for business loans (!), and institutions are incredibly risk averse. If you are proven entrepreneur with a string of successful exits under your belt, then you will get by. But if you are young, hungry and full of belief in your big idea - you might well get nowhere. The thing we spotted was that the next big digital business is just as likely to come from new entrepreneurs - and that is why we set up this fund.

The premise is simple: We offer a unique cocktail of business building and brand building  in one investment package. All VC's invest cash and sit on boards. Our fund will do this plus it will help to ensure the business captures the imaginations and loyalties of consumers too. We call it 'creative capital'. We aim to invest this creative capital in businesses that intersect consumers, technology and content. Examples would include smart new social tools, disruptive e-retailing concepts or contagious GPS games. The portfolio will be broad so long as the role of the brand is business critical. The Fund was announced today in the Financial Times, and we already have our foundation funds in place. Over the next quarter we will be meeting prospective start ups and raising the rest of the fund - targeting £10m GBP.

The invitation is open: If you or anyone you  know is currently sitting on a great start up idea that they plan to take to market - then do consider the Black Sheep Fund on your short list of VC's. We are primarily a UK based fund, but we are idea led - and a good enough idea with the right management could be invested in overseas. And, if you are an angel, with a growing desire to re-enter or join in the start up scene, then do get in touch for more information. The fund will qualify as an Enterprise Incentive Scheme (EIS) - which the UK government made increasingly attractive in the Budget last week. Get in touch: fund@bbh.co.uk 

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/5Bc9zmLFSLTj gfarley gfarley Mon, 21 Mar 2011 09:22:00 -0700 X-Ar Exoskeletal Support Arm (via @vanguardbots @fastcompany) http://bbhzag.posterous.com/x-ar-exoskeletal-support-arm-via-vanguardbots http://bbhzag.posterous.com/x-ar-exoskeletal-support-arm-via-vanguardbots
via fastcompany.com

Equipois' X-Ar provides exoskeletal support allowing users to keep their arms outstretched for hours on end.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Wed, 16 Mar 2011 07:38:00 -0700 H4X0R: Video Screens in Times Sq NY http://bbhzag.posterous.com/h4x0r-video-screens-in-times-sq-ny http://bbhzag.posterous.com/h4x0r-video-screens-in-times-sq-ny
via youtube.com

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Fri, 25 Feb 2011 14:13:00 -0800 Authenticity Is King Because Branding Bores Everyone #Co.Design http://bbhzag.posterous.com/authenticity-is-king-because-branding-bores-e http://bbhzag.posterous.com/authenticity-is-king-because-branding-bores-e

Authenticity Is King Because Branding Bores Everyone

Why a brand's audience needs to experience your message.

Today, any brand has a potential army of credible, unpaid spokespeople that are willing to work on its behalf. And this army is the exact same group of people who are willing to work against it.

This is the new world of what I call the “post-positioning era” of branding. In the post-positioning era of branding, what you say about your product or service matters almost nothing at all, and what I, the consumer, can do with it matters completely.

The new conditions of brand success:

1. Deliver a kick-ass product.
2. Be honest.


Our ability as advertisers to contrive and disseminate an emotional response through advertising is diminishing rapidly. And brand exposure is not the same as brand experience. A single one-star review on Yelp trumps 60 seconds of Super Bowl airtime.

But this is good news; you no longer need to “capture” your audience. People are willfully engaging with your brand, starting discussions about it of their own volition, and using it as a way to define who they are, by “liking” a brand on Facebook, or touting it on their blog. They just want to know why your company should be part of their own personal brand.

There’s a lot of talk about the dialogue between a consumer and a company, but it’s an important idea. Brands have a responsibility to create a better structure for those conversations. We need to stop buying and selling ideas about brands that don’t have any substance behind them and start enabling people to discover the why they should incorporate a company’s brand into their own.

You no longer need to “capture” your audience.

Mountain Dew screams “EXTREME!” from the rafters. Red Bull says it “gives you wings.” Both brands have their logos on skateboard ramps, and the products are essentially the same commodities, with the same ingredients. Mountain Dew has T-shirts. But Red Bull lets you see and feel what it’s like to fly a plane at 400 mph, 10 feet off the ground.

Only one of them is a Harvard Business School case study.

The difference is not positioning; it’s experience. Branded experiences are designed interactions that leverage the inherent stickiness of participation—the strongest driver of preference we know. Red Bull has woven its brand into human experiences—not just as a sponsor, but as a participant. They walk the walk: the brand could almost be called a fan.

Red Bull’s “sponsored” experiences credibly inspire many of their consumers to authentically participate in creating and sharing “branded experiences” such as Flugtag. Mountain Dew is less credible because it is still using the old guard type of branding and messaging principles.

If a brand says “we want to be seen as X,” the correct response from a marketer is “Are you actually X?” or “Then go be X,” because no amount of positioning can swing the needle if you aren’t actually delivering the experience.

Today’s consumers are stingier with their brand loyalty than in the past because they can afford to be: they are burdened only by an abundance of choice and knowledge. For me, as a consumer, value can mean money, status, or just a smile on my face, but I will point others towards where I find it or where I find it lacking and I will do it publicly and quickly.

The success of brands like Zappos shows that a good experience has measurable value. I’ll pay Zappos the same amount of money—or even more—for shoes I could easily get elsewhere. Why? The product experience will be identical, but the brand experience was better. Zappos’s motto is “Powered by service” and it emphasizes that service is the primary product—shoes are just a secondary product.

As a result, I’ve come to trust that brand to sell me anything, a fact Zappos, and their imitators, have been quick to notice. At the core of this “product” is a zealous and ongoing dedication to consumer experience at every single touchpoint. They asked, they listened, and they won.

[Top image by Mark Zastrow]

<div class="disqus-noscript">View the discussion thread.</div>

Jamie Monberg

Jamie Monberg

Jamie Monberg is Chief Experience Officer at Hornall Anderson, where he quietly (and not so quietly) espouses the belief that defining int... Read more

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via fastcodesign.com

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/1lxpWJIlP9TP Amanda ahspivak Amanda Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:28:00 -0800 IBM Watson: Intel on the Jeopardy Supercomputer (via @fastcompany) http://bbhzag.posterous.com/ibm-watson-intel-on-the-jeopardy-supercompute http://bbhzag.posterous.com/ibm-watson-intel-on-the-jeopardy-supercompute
via fastcompany.com

an in depth interview with the people behind the Watson supercomputer
for more info visit ibmwatson.com

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York Thu, 17 Feb 2011 08:45:00 -0800 New ZAG Project: Playground Sessions http://bbhzag.posterous.com/new-zag-project-playground-sessions http://bbhzag.posterous.com/new-zag-project-playground-sessions
via youtube.com

Here is a first look at our new ZAG project, Playground Sessions (@playgroundpiano), featuring David Sides.

This video...
-Introduces you to Playground's interactive music suite
-Highlights Playground's social and gaming functionalities
-Previews Playground's Play To Learn methodology
-Explores Playground's revolutionary technology

To learn more, visit theplaygroundsessions.com

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/1lxpWJIlP9TP Amanda ahspivak Amanda Thu, 27 Jan 2011 14:51:00 -0800 Amnesia Connect App: visually transfer content to devices (via @mightyfarley @amnesiafish) http://bbhzag.posterous.com/amnesia-connect-app-visually-transfer-content http://bbhzag.posterous.com/amnesia-connect-app-visually-transfer-content
via vimeo.com

Razorfish has developed this really slick Amnesia Connect app which allows users to visually transfer information from the Microsoft Surface to various mobile devices.

For more info click below:
amnesiarazorfish.com.au

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/629608/zag_logo.jpg http://posterous.com/users/4bht0AClkXdv BBH: ZAG New York BBH: ZAG New York