Happy Birthday, Jenn!

It’s Jenn’s birthday this weekend! As a Senior Account Executive at Vision, Jenn thrives on developing strong client relationships by providing outstanding creative that is on strategy, on time and within budget. She loves her Dunkin’ and has over 20 years of experience studying dance as well as being an award-winning choreographer and dancer. Get to know Jenn and what inspires her:

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WITH VISION & WHAT’S YOUR ROLE?

12 years with the company and Senior Account Executive.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO DO OUTSIDE OF WORK?

I love being the coolest soccer mom around. Ryan is a player for Wizards Sports Club, an elite soccer club team, and even though it seems we are always headed to practice or a game, I love it! There’s no better feeling than when he scores and finds me on the sideline, and I’ve made some truly amazing soccer mom friends!

IF YOU COULD DESCRIBE YOUR EXTENSIVE SHOE COLLECTION IN ONE WORD, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

Enviable.

WHAT IS YOUR GO-TO COFFEE ORDER?

French Vanilla, Light & Sweet.

WHAT ARE YOU MOST EXCITED ABOUT FOR THE YEAR TO COME, BOTH WORK AND PERSONALLY?

I’m excited to see Vision continue to grow and expand our capabilities for our Clients. Outside of work, I’m not sure what this year will bring, but I’m excited to find out! One thing is for sure…you can bet there will be new shoes!

Teacher Appreciation Week

When you’ve had a great teacher who you truly enjoyed learning from, they leave a life-long impression on you. Through guidance, inspiration, and support, from a young age and throughout college, our teachers have had such an incredible impact on all of our lives. This week is #TeacherAppreciationWeek and we wanted to take a moment to reflect on all of the teachers who have impacted us, inspired us, and helped guide us over the years.

So many teachers meant so much to me as I struggled to become an adult. However, it was a group of college teachers whose influence I still have, a diverse group: Mac Davis (a tough-minded literary brawler from Chicago) at UC Santa Barbara who taught me the difference between thinking and having an opinion; Rhagavan Iyer (brilliant double PhD from Oxford), also at UCSB, who simply demonstrated in every lecture what it was to think and create; Kathleen Fraser at San Francisco State University, who introduced me to the greatest classroom I have ever experienced — the remarkable and unfathomable literary community that is San Francisco. These people and places informed me then and continue to today. – Larry

I appreciate every art teacher and professor that I have had for all the guidance and encouragement throughout my school years – Michael

I was most inspired by the entire graphic design faculty from college. To this day, I am grateful for the skills and sensibilities that they imparted. They unselfishly shared knowledge which has been passed down through the generations of teachers before them. – John

Although I have always admired all teachers and think every one of them deserve recognition for what they do, I particularly was inspired by my high school math teacher. Going into high school I struggled to catch up with the level students coming in from other schools were at, but this teacher wouldn’t let me give up. He had a way of making me understand and accelerate in learning. I remember feeling defeated at times and he would somehow be able to push me ahead. His style of teaching was amazing and he made learning math fun and rewarding. Math actually became my best and favorite subject in high school. I actually considered being a math teacher because of him. – Lori

I was inspired by my dance teacher of over 20 years – Miss Nancy Carole.  She taught me so much more than dance.  She inspired me to have a good work ethic and to be independent, confident and resilient. She always said that “the end of one step is the beginning of another”, and that’s a piece of life advice I have carried with me. – Jenn

There have been so many teachers over the years that have made an impact on my life. One of my college drawing professors once said ‘don’t be an artisan, be an artist’ and that’s always stuck with me. My college design professor was always extremely supportive of conceptual creativity, let my senior thesis idea flourish, and always treated our small tightknit class like equals and friends. I also had another professor who taught an art history class called Seminar in Contemporary Art that was also a poet and had the best dry sense of humor. Listening to his lectures on works of art were truly one of the most entertaining and memorable things for me.  – Brianna

I think the teacher who most inspired me was my design professor in college. His good sense of humor, disposition and dedication to teaching helped and motivated me to learn more and more about design and creativity. He was not only my professor but later became my good friend and co-worker at my first job as a graphic designer. As time went on I appreciated more his love of art and experience in graphic design. – Richie

My American Cuisine professor during senior year of college. He genuinely cared about helping students grow and expanding their thinking. He enabled creativity, instilled confidence and pushed me to go beyond my comfort zone. He was invested in making sure every student got as much out of their education as they could which continued after graduation. The way he approached teaching and enabled a positive teamwork environment has been in the back of my mind at every job I’ve ever had. – Angela

My son’s teachers at his daycare are fantastic. It was hard as a first time mom to let my child spend all day, all week with someone I really didn’t know at the time. But day after day it amazed me the things they were teaching him and how fast he was learning. The very first day I dropped him off at daycare, he was 3 months old, and they had him painting! They laid him on his tummy with his chest over a pillow and gave him a paintbrush with green paint and let him explore how the paint worked. They brought him outside and let him explore what the autumn leaves felt and looked like. He even learned to wash his hands at 3 months old which allows me to do it fuss-free at home when needed.  They were teaching him and letting him explore things that I – as a new mom – just assumed he was too young, or not ready for. His teachers have taught me that he is always ready to investigate, learn and dive into things no matter how young he is! – Ashley

I had an English teacher in high school that really cared about what he taught us. He was passionate about teaching us and really pushed us to work hard. – Mark

Sure!  Mr Ryan.  He was my 5th grade teacher.  He always had a way of getting the most out of me even when I wanted to give up.  Very nurturing and caring.  I will never forget him! – Carla

The Importance of Good Design in Business

First impressions are everything. Technology has granted businesses with multiple avenues for brand exposure making the emphasis on good design more important than ever. Everything from your logo, your website, to your social media accounts, advertisements, packaging, etc.; the list goes on and on. Good design can make a difference between locking in a sale or losing a potential customer.

According to a survey by Tyton Media, 48% of people said that a company’s website design was their number one determining factor of its credibility. Let’s think about that for a moment. Almost half of your potential customers weigh your entire credibility on your company website. So why not make an impactful statement, make a good impression, and establish credibility through good design right from the very first website visit?

It’s not just about your company’s website either. During the 10 seconds it takes to form a first impression, your brand logo design is 13% more likely to grab someone’s attention and 71.6% more likely to get a positive response the more unique and memorable it is. (Source: Siegel+Gale)

Consistency is also key in maintaining successful brand design. Whether it’s across your social media accounts or package designs, it is critical to keep the look and feel of your branding consistent. Brand consistency promotes easy recognition, trustworthiness, and reliability. No one can get to know your brand when it’s visually chaotic and always telling a different story.  Good design creates a connection with your customers. When you create a visually impactful, memorable and emotional connection with your branding design, you are showing your consumers who you are as a company.

Create a style guide to determine certain rules when applying your branding to different assets. This will ensure consistency across anything and everything you apply your branding to. This also makes things easier when you have multiple designers handling different promotional materials or marketing collateral.

Good design plays such an important role in creating strong marketing strategies. It’s the difference of taking messaging that is in the form of plain text and creating an impactful message through imagery and design. Let good design bring your brand success and start getting creative!

Sources: Tyton Media, Siegel+Gale, 360 Advertising Week

Happy Birthday, Sharon!

We kicked off this week with Sharon’s birthday! We were excited to sit down with our fearless leader and delve deep into her psyche in honor of her birthday. As Executive Vice President and Partner at Vision, Sharon has drawn from her experience in account management and marketing to help define and broaden the agency’s direction and focus. She loves to run, watch the Mets and would love to shoot hoops with Michael Jordan someday. Get to know Sharon and what inspires her:

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WITH VISION & WHAT’S YOUR ROLE?

I have been with Vision since 1991. I do account service work. I oversee the account service team, provide account oversite and help with overall strategic planning.

HOW DOES A TYPICAL DAY FOR YOU NOW DIFFER FROM WHEN YOU FIRST CAME TO VISION?

When I started at Vision, I was doing a great deal of new business development and account service. I spent most of my days on the road going to see clients, showing layouts, getting client feedback, and pitching new business. This was all pre-internet. Today, I am still a big believer in going to see clients and learning from them first hand. I still do some account work now but also spend time on big-picture initiatives for the agency and some clients and manage most of the agency’s pro bono work.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB?

I love that every day is different and I love the people I get to work with – my co-workers and my clients. They are smart and passionate people who inspire me every day.

WHAT INSPIRES YOU THE MOST ABOUT BEING A LEADER?

What inspires me most is the chance to make a difference and to work with people who care about the results as much as I do. I am very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with the clients that I had over the years. I have worked with everyone from office managers to CEOs and they all bring so much to whatever project they are working on. It’s my responsibility to make their ideas a reality and to add whatever value I can along the way. It is a job I am so grateful for.

WHERE DO YOU HOPE TO SEE THE COMPANY IN THE NEXT 5-10 YEARS?

I want us to continue to make service a priority while expanding our capabilities. I want to continue to work with clients who inspire us and I want us to continue to have a team of passionate, dedicated staff who “get it” – understanding why it matters to always do our best.

Check out the amazing red velvet (Sharon’s favorite) birthday cake that our very own Angela baked! (It was delicious!).

Brand Authenticity in the Social Media World

How Can Your Brand Be Authentic on Social Media:

Sometimes it’s easy for businesses to forget to put the SOCIAL in their social media. Think of it as a stage for your brand to really have its own personality. This is where you are constantly engaging with your customers by answering questions, liking comments and providing support that they crave and need. No one wants to talk to a “bot”; they want the human factor now more than ever. Even if you aren’t using a bot you don’t want to risk sounding like one. The same mentality should apply to your content as well. You still want to create content that is on-brand and consistent with your messaging, however, you can also use this as an opportunity to connect with your followers and develop a relationship with them. Ask questions and engage the users so they just don’t scroll on by. Make them stop and appreciate what you’re giving them. Give them what they didn’t know they needed. 

Remain relevant with current happenings that can relate back to your brand. Be approachable in your voice to establish trust and legitimacy with your current or potential customers. 

What Brands Are Successful at Staying Authentic on Social Media:

NETFLIX

Netflix for the win, for well, everything. What started as a new and more convenient alternative to Blockbuster video has now exploded into a media streaming phenomenon with original shows and movies and a top-notch social presence to boot. What does Netflix do on social media that makes it so successful? 

1. They never try to sell you anything. Well, at least not directly on Instagram.

• There are no gimmicky sales posts with fake scenarios that consumers know aren’t real. Their imagery does not reflect one of a traditional advertisement.
• Netflix uses Facebook as its platform to showcase movie and show trailers and then Instagram for funny memes and brand awareness.
  

Source: Instagram

Source: Instagram

Source: Instagram

Source: Instagram

KFC

Still succeeding as a favorite fast food restaurant serving tasty fried chicken since its small start in 1930, how does KFC remain relevant on social media? First and foremost, you can’t check out their Instagram without your mouth watering. But what has KFC done to continue turning out new engaging content?

1. They have fun with their food.

• The recipe has never changed so to keep things fresh KFC gets creative with their content. No simple beauty shots of their food found here. More like funny edited situational photos, videos, and animations that are overproduced for the pure joy of it. On top of that, they planted this hidden gem on Twitter by following only 11 other accounts: 5 Spice Girls and 6 guys named Herb which was undiscovered until @edgette22 noticed on Twitter and his tweet about it went viral. This little nod to their recipe containing 11 herbs and spices was pure marketing genius. They took things a step further by sending him a painting of him and Colonel Sanders as a reward for finding their hidden marketing gem.

Source: Twitter

2. The Colonel is not just a mascot. 

• The Colonel dominates their social media but he never gets old. With the ever-changing Colonel now being represented by famous actors, comedians, and musicians, this campaign continues to evolve and take on new personalities with each new person. That doesn’t mean the original Colonel is out though. He is still the most featured Colonel with constant fun visuals that truly come to life and stay relevant.

Source: Instagram

Source: Facebook

3. They stay relevant with social events and pop culture.

• They keep serving up the fun visuals for holidays, sporting events, seasons and more. They’re always creating something unique and different.

Source: Instagram

Airbnb

A service connecting real people with amazing living quarters up for grabs for vacation rentals? Sign me up. Often cheaper than the major hotels and resorts while offering more space and privacy for its vacationers, this service has gained popularity as a better choice for travelers. We all love dreaming about vacations and Airbnb capitalizes on that.

1. They use user-generated content.

• What better way to sell a dream vacation than to show real people enjoying their own dream vacations in the places you can rent? No strategically planned professional lighting and lenses to make things bigger than they are. They show their actual customers enjoying their experiences in the most authentic way thus generating a “this could be you” mentality. 

Source: Instagram

2. They create serious FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out).

• The user-generated photos are half of the equation. The other half is all about their voice. Their honest and approachable tone assures you of the reliability of their trusted hosts and upholding standards while setting the scene. 

Source: Instagram

3. They create a sense of community.

• There’s nothing better than getting a good recommendation on a place to stay. Airbnb is like your truth worthy and reliable friend who also happens to connect you to a whole group of people with their reviews and recommendations. We trust our peers and they aren’t afraid to ask their followers questions too. They ensure that their follower’s voices are heard.
  

Source: Facebook