Print Express

The Importance of a Trade Show or Exhibition for Exhibitors

Filed under Business Tips

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The internet has completely transformed the face of business forever. Now deals are done remotely, products are sold without a single cash transaction ever taking place, and brand loyalty is created through social networking sites and advertising strategies. The face of business has changed. But that’s not to say there isn’t still a place for face-to-face communication. In a world where digital communication is the standard, the human touch can be hard to come by. That’s where the trade show comes into its own. What’s more, a trade show doesn’t just pose the opportunity for a single dialogue. It allows you, a small businesses owner, to communicate on mass with hundreds - or even thousands - of members if your target market in just a few days. An opportunity that’s not to be missed. Here is a quick look at the importance of the good, old-fashioned trade show in any progressive marketing strategy, plus a few suggestions of ways you can make the most of your stand.

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Imagine a vast room filled with people who al have one thing in common; they are specifically interested in your product. Specialized industry trade shows offer exactly that. The potential for sales conversions are huge. A targeted audience of qualified buyers. No website or social media strategy can ever offer the same opportunity. 

A great way to meet your potential customers

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As well as a chance to meet your customer, a trade show is an opportunity for your customer to meet you. It gives them the chance to get to know the people and personalities behind the brand. Use it as a chance to make quality market research discoveries that you can take away and include in future development.

Product Testing

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Purchasing used to be a tactile experience. The feel, smell and visual appeal of buying has all but been eradicated with the invention of online shopping. At a trade show, your customers can handle the product; they can accurately assess its value and quality. Make sure you have a good supply of samples to hand out. 

Enhance your customer’s experience

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At a trade show you get the opportunity to build an immersive brand environment. This can be done not only through your stand, but also by integrating exhibitions, product demonstrations, seminars and conferences. These can all add value to your trade show experience - and your customers’ experience too. 

Build on your brand loyalty

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Brand loyalty is much harder to build through your website. Trade shows offer the immediate advantage of allowing you to host interactive displays, hospitality and networking events. Customers want to be listened to. Here’s your chance to lend an ear. Talk to people. Pay attention to their main objections to purchasing. You might find out some very useful information regarding the shortcomings of your product or service.

Launch a new product

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A trade show is a brilliant place to launch a new product. What’s more, it’s an excellent hunting ground for sales agents or distributors in new markets.  They also allow you to keep an eye on the competition. You’ll be able to assess and evaluate their product in direct comparison to yours. You might even learn a thing or two about ways you could improve what you do. Furthermore, trade shows are a valuable way in which you can learn more about current and future industry trends.

Get exposed

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Aside from fellow exhibitors and your customers, there is likely to be another very important group of attendees at any high profile trade show; the media. Use it as an opportunity to interact with the trade press and attend any press conferences, seminars and meetings that may be taking place. 

Your stand: A three-dimensional billboard

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More than a mere pitch, your stand poses the potential to communicate who you are and what you do. Think of it a three-dimensional billboard. And like a billboard it’s imperative that it quickly communicates and catches the attention of passersby. Think visually; include striking graphics, colours and slogans that stand out from your competitors. 

A competitive advantage

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Some trade shows are so important you just have to be there. To fail to attend would be to give your competitors a huge advantage and could potentially damage the credibility of your company. In tough economic times the expense and inconvenience of exhibiting can sometimes put people off. But consider the benefits of exhibiting, and the potential negative statement not attending could have on your brand. Target your trade show exhibition and it’s a golden opportunity to maximize your brand presence. 

Make your Offline Marketing Drive Online Conversions

Filed under Business Documents , Business Tips

These days, very few consumers are focusing on one media format at a time. They have the radio on at work, they watch TV whilst browsing Wikipedia on their tablet or they shop online with their phone nearby, ready for a text or to browse the internet on another device.

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Because people are consuming and using information through a mix of online and offline media, businesses must create online and offline marketing strategies that work together to promote the business.  Though having a mix of online and offline marketing is a no-brainer for companies which have both on and offline revenue streams, it is crucial also for companies which primarily rely on online conversions.

Importance of offline marketing to online companies

Online marketing has its benefits and appeal, but the simple fact is that, although customers may prefer to find and interact with a business online, they are part of the offline world, listening to radios, watching televisions and perusing direct mailers before deciding what to do with them. Offline marketing simply provides several more avenues through which online businesses can reach their target audience. It can also uncover niches or even just individuals outside the target niches that a narrow online focus can miss.

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If it is important for your business’s marketing messages to be where your target market can find them, it is important for you to use offline marketing. After all, those online conversions are made by people living in the real world.

Kinds of offline marketing and how they can drive online conversions
There are three basic forms of offline marketing, and they can all be used to drive online conversions.

Face-to-face marketing
Face-to-face marketing is essentially just about talking to people in the real world about your business. Most face-to-face marketing happens at networking events, trade shows or when out and about in the community. This technique allows potential clients and valuable contacts to personally connect with your business’s brand representative, whoever that person is. This personal connection means they are more likely to buy your products or help your business grow any way they can.

The best way to drive them to your website is by using business cards, vouchers or branded freebies. Use whatever you think will best remind them to use your site when they need what your business provides, and make sure the item directs them to the part of the site they likely want to find.

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Print Marketing

Print marketing includes everything from direct mailers to ads at bus stops. Many people see these methods as “casting a wide net to catch a lot of fish”, and this approach has largely fallen out of favour as consumers come to expect individualised marketing materials and targeted ads. In response, agencies that specialise in print marketing have begun to create more targeted campaigns, and these campaigns are getting results.

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Your print materials must include clear calls to action directing the newer, bigger audience to your website, and it must also include a web address that is easy to remember. Try to direct the target audience of each print campaign to the relevant section of the site, so they will be more likely to convert once they are on your site.

Other media marketing

Television and radio still command huge audiences, though few people sit down, turn off their laptops and mobiles, and just concentrate on the television or radio. This is an opportunity for offline marketers. People use all these devices in conjunction with one another, looking up information on the programme they’re watching whilst it is on or being reminded to check out a store’s sales online when the radio ad comes on.

Source:© xavier gallego morel - Fotolia.com

Though these marketing techniques can be expensive, costs can be mitigated. You can hire university students or recent graduates to produce an ad for less than an ad agency would charge. Have your ad aired at off-peak times, when rates are lower. You can also try to buy single slots, rather than whole ad packages, to test out the effectiveness of your ads before investing significant amounts of money.

Just as with the paper and print ads, you need to remember the calls to action pushing consumers toward your website. It’s even more important to make the name of your company stick, so think about how you can incorporate your website name into the ad.

How to track offline marketing’s effectiveness

When online businesses think of marketing, they think of measuring effectiveness. Luckily, there are several ways to tract the effectiveness of your offline marketing, so you can refine and improve your marketing strategy.

Try custom landing pages or customised redirect domains. You can then set up funnels in your analytics package to track how many people are coming to those pages or sites. You will need to consider duplicate content penalties from Google and other search engines, but these can be avoided. Put ‘noindex’ meta tags on the custom landing pages to keep robots from indexing your page, and make sure customised domains have truly unique content on them.

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You can also use shortened URLs that use UTM parameters to track the traffic source. This means taking a URL like “http://www.yourdomain.com/?utm_source=TitleOfMagazine&utm_medium=magazine&utm_campaign=spring2013” and shorten it to something like bit.ly/A45u3. You can even get personalised shortened URLs that are more memorable than the Bitly URL. In this case, it would be something like doma.in/campaign.  If, for example, you run a home improvement website, you can include a shortened URL in your ads that sends readers of a gardening magazine straight to the gardening section of your website. You can then track that as a specific campaign in your analytics package, monitoring its success as compared to other campaigns.

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If you are an online retailer, you can include discount codes. Ads already promote these quite heavily, and their usefulness in both driving conversions and in tracking makes them appealing. Simply add the phrase “Enter promo code Garden15 for a 15% discount” to your ad, then set up your analytics to track which users have used that code.

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Whatever method you decide to use, remember to keep track of which URL or site has been set up for which offline marketing campaign and when they were launched. After that, all you have to do is see which ones work best for your business.

With that, you should have some really good ideas of how offline marketing can help drive online conversions.

The Logo, the Name and the Business Card: How They Are All Significant to Your Brand

Filed under Branding , Business Cards , Business Tips , Logo Design

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Consider your first impression on meeting a new acquaintance or business associate.  Think of the way your opinion is made or broken based on the little things- the strength of a handshake, the frankness of their eye contact, the cut of their clothing.  Obviously, we cannot afford to be superficial.  It is important to make careful observations of those with whom we come into contact, and these occur over the period of our acquaintanceship.  But nothing can undo the initial slight of a bad first impression.

If we accept these facts, then the significance of the logo, the name, and the business card really emerge into full view.  Here we find the handshake, the eye contact, and the dress of your brand’s first impression.  Let’s take a moment to consider how to make the best first impression possible.

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The logo is the simplest possible way of identifying your brand.  At times, the logo doesn’t even involve words, but is a simple glyph or sign that can be read even by the illiterate.  The logo then, is a non-verbal cue that sums up the spirit or flavour of your brand.  Think of the aggressive Nike swoosh or the Apple that evokes knowledge.  There is so much that can be said about the style of your brand without words.  Try to avoid using more than two or three colors or three-dimensional designs.  You want something that is as recognizable in black and white as it is in color.  In your logo, you have a symbol of your brand that must be instantly recognizable.

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The name of your brand is similar to the logo.  You have a syllable or three to grab the attention of the customer.  You need to convey not only the style and flavour of your product, but probably give a hint as to the nature of your business as well.  You want something simple, something that rolls off the tongue and conveys an emotional connection.  This is why so many brand names use the personal names of their company’s founders.  Incorporating your own name is a quick way to show your own personal investment in your product or service.  It gives the customer the impression that they’re not dealing with some faceless business, but with another human being like themselves.  Consider giving your customers that personal connection.  In the 21st century, it is also important to be web-friendly. Create something that is not only memorable, but is easy to type into a search engine.

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Your business card not only incorporates all the qualities of the logo and the brand name, but extends those qualities to your name and position.  The business card is a physical reminder of both your personal first impression and that of your brand.  Make sure that your business card stands out and shows what you specifically have to offer.  Naturally, you must include all the pertinent contact information.  Whether you chose a classic design with conservative colors and traditional typeface, or something bolder with colorful images and aggressive composition - these choices say a lot about your company and brand.  No matter if you elect to use fine embossed paper or include a 21st century QR code, be sure you’re sending the right message.  

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If you follow all of these tips, you are sure to make that positive first impression.  Your logo will stand out on first sight.  Your brand name will stick in your potential customer’s memory.  And the business card that you hand to them will link both of those impressions to you and your position.  From there, all you have to do is look forward to earning the business of another satisfied customer.

The world's most popular destinations to photograph - Infographic

Filed under Infographic

 Holidays may only last two weeks, three or four if you’re very lucky. But the memories you make will stay with you for much longer. And the photographs you take play a huge part in keeping your memories alive. Whether you’re embarking on a European city break, Stateside driving experience or a once in a lifetime trip to the ancient worlds of the far east, you’re sure to be feeling pretty snap happy. With that in mind here’s a look at some of the world’s most photographed landmarks, vistas and views. Yes, they are popular, but that doesn’t mean your photographs need to be predictable. If you’d like to shoot breathtaking panoramas, awe-inspiring natural wonders and captivating people we know where to find them.

Read on to learn where to go, plus pick up some tips on how to avoid the typical tourist trap postcard-style shots. Click on the infographic for a larger version. 

The world's most popular destinations to photograph - An infographic by the team at Print Express

Embed The world's most popular destinations to photograph on Your Site: Copy and Paste the Code Below:

<img src="http://www.printexpress.co.uk/blog/image.axd?picture=2013%2f4%2finfographic500.jpg" _mce_src="http://www.printexpress.co.uk/blog/image.axd?picture=2013%2f4%2finfographic500.jpg" width="540"> <p>The world's most popular destinations to photograph - An infographic by the team at <a href="http://www.printexpress.co.uk" _mce_href="http://www.printexpress.co.uk">Print Express</a></p>

What does your logo say about you?

Filed under Business Tips , Logo Design

A logo is much more than a pretty picture attached to a website or a business card. It’s the biggest marketing tool that a company has and is the key element of a corporate identity. The message that it portrays will shape consumer perceptions of a company. Often the first thing that potential clients will see of a business, the logo needs to make the right impression. Consumers will make assumptions of a company’s personality, reputation and values based on what they see in the logo and interpret from it. Therefore, it is crucial that a logo should reflect the right kind of image that the company wants to present. 

Every element of a logo should convey a strong message about the company that resonates with its customers; its personality, ethos, aspirations and what it is offering. It should be clear and concise and should not require any explanation to be understood. If a logo truly does hold a strong association with the company and what it stands for then it will ensure consumers feel connected to that company. Used consistently and frequently, over time a logo will become memorable and will install confidence in consumers. 

Outlined below are some important points to consider when creating your company logo, to ensure that it says exactly what you want it to say about you and your business. 

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Don't jump straight into the design

Before jumping straight into the design of your logo it is vital that that you spend some quality time thinking about what exactly you want your logo to say about your company. Think about your company, its values and services and shortlist the most important elements you want to be portrayed in the logo. It’s also important to carry out some thorough research into your target audience and what appeals to them. Whilst it’s important that you like your company logo, it’s even more important that it will resonate with your potential customers. 

Invest in your logo design

Your logo is the foundation for the graphical branding of your business. Investing in a quality logo that will stand the test of time is well worth it. Trying to cut corners by using low-cost stock graphics or attempting to create something yourself when you don’t have the expertise will make your logo appear cheap and unprofessional. Instead, work with a professional designer. 

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Think hard about every element of your design

It’s important to consider each element of your logo design, as every individual component will evoke a particular emotion with the consumer. For example, many corporate companies use grey and sombre shades to give a professional and dependable feel, however this can sometimes appear aloof and unwelcoming. Capitalised fonts give a sense of authority, but using all uppercase may seem pushy and aggressive. At every stage of the design, always consider your target audience and proceed with caution.

Be consistent

Once your logo is created, have your designer create a logo standards manual indicating the exact specifications of the logo image, size, font, placement, and colours. Reproducing your logo whilst adhering to these guidelines will ensure that your logo always looks exactly the same wherever it appears, helping you to retain a thoroughly professional corporate identity. 

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Stick with your logo

Creating a logo is the first step in creating a brand identity. Consumers will become familiar with your logo and feel reassured whenever they see it. Changing it too frequently will damage the brand equity that you will have worked hard to build. Creating a timeless logo design from the outset should ensure that you always have a relevant and sleek look. However, if your logo does become out-dated, a refresh can be carried out whilst still keeping your logo recognisable to loyal consumers. 

Designing a company logo is not a trivial activity, rather one that could make or break your business. Communicating a lot of information in one logo is by no means an easy task, but if you keep in mind the above tips and advice you should be able to create a logo for your company that says exactly what you want it to say.

The Perfect Poster Design

Filed under Posters

In the world of business, there are a few marketing tactics that a graphic designer can make use of depending on the company’s product offerings. For offline marketing, some of these tactics include leaflets, flyers, folders, brochures, posters, banners and billboards. Out of all these tactics, posters are one of the most effective as they are great visual tools for promoting, advertising and raising awareness. There are different varieties of posters depending on the purpose of the poster including marketing posters, movie posters, event posters, vintage posters, sports posters and social awareness posters, just to name a few.

There are no established rules for designing posters. However, effective posters should be enticing, memorable, informative, concise, exuberant, and at the same time, convey the message. In order to create this effectiveness, posters need to be well-designed and imaginative. This stimulating article offers some tips on how to design your poster.

1.Know the Purpose and the Target Audience

An example of a children's event poster - the poster has some elements of child-like fonts and cartoonish images.

These are some of the basics for designing the posters in order for you to understand and convey the message yourself. For example, if it’s a poster for a children’s event, the poster will need to show some of these elements such as child-like fonts and cartoonish images. If you are targeting a young adult market, you can use more artistic designs and elements.

2. Visually Visible

An example of a poster that has a unique take on an apple. It also makes use of white space, a powerful element in poster design.

Posters need to be eye-catching in order for your target audience to take notice of them. This can be through mesmerising images, captivating photography, shocking imagery or illustration. The images need to be relevant to the purpose of the poster and type of audience.

White space – a powerful yet one of the most unused elements in poster design. This is because it balances out the central idea as well as creates a flow between the text and images. The white or negative space draws the viewers’ attention to a particular display element because it balances out the central idea. This creates a flow between the text and images thus make it more legible. When using the white space element, remember the rule 1/3-2/3 whereby 1/3 is white space while 2/3 is the text and images.

3. Keep it Simple

An example of a minimalistic poster - short, sweet and to the point.

“Pictures are worth a thousand words”. Bear this in mind when you are designing your posters to make your posters visually appealing. Convey your message through images and colours rather than large chunks of text. If you want to give more information, you can direct your audience to your website.

Create a persuasive element through a using tagline. This will not only attract attention but also create curiosity about what the poster has to say.

Some of the text that you can include:

• Title of the event/product

• Any promotional offer

• Name of the company

• Your contact details including your website

• Date, Time and Venue of your event/promotion

4. Fantastic Fonts and Typography

A typography poster - bold, beautiful and creative

Typography is an important part of creating posters where some make use of this as their main visual element. Unusual and unique fonts and typefaces can be as appealing as posters with images. In posters, typography does not have look dull and dreary. It can be bold, beautiful, creative and colourful. As a matter of fact, graphic designers and artists use typography to communicate their thoughts and ideas through their work. Designers are able to explore new dimensions and view different perspectives when given the opportunity to use typography in poster design. That is what inspiration is all about!

Typography can make a poster look eye-catching and memorable; however, the following factors need to be taken in to consideration:

Minimise your fonts to just one or two, as the more the fonts, the more confusing and untidy your poster will look.

Use large font that is legible for more than 5 feet away. Avoid printing titles and large block of text all in upper case as it will look like you are “shouting” at your viewers.

Try to keep all your text at one place and avoid spreading the text to different places on the poster.

Avoid fonts that are crazy or too artsy as they may be illegible. For the main title, you can use a sans-serif font such as Arial to make it stand out.

5. Creative Colours

Colours should compliment or match the main image and text on the poster, as seen in this Sony Ericsson poster.

Colour is one of the easiest and quickest ways to make your poster stand out. To make your posters look visually attractive, make sure that the colours either compliment or match the main imagery and text on the poster. A dark colour or using more than one colour can cause issues with the colour of the font that you use. It is advisable to just use one pastel colour as it does not interfere with the content on the poster. A pre-determined colour palette is an ideal way to ensure there is a consistency in the colour combination.
 
One of the sources where you can find these ideas for colours, palettes and designs is Colour Lovers.

6. Flowing Information

An illustration of an events poster where the main title is in a bright and bold font. The rest of the information flows down the poster in the order of importance.

This is one of the most essential aspects of your poster design. A poster’s main aim is to communicate the message in the quickest way possible therefore the manner in which information flows is important for maximum effectiveness. You can start with most important piece of information in a bright and bold font and work your way down in the order of importance. Design your poster in such a way that the information flows down as though you were writing a story. You can use prominent images or typography to highlight key facts or call to action. If there is more text than images, you can use tables to differentiate the sections or numbering and point systems.

7. Think Outside the Box – The Sky is the Limit!

Be creative, spontaneous and feel inspired - Entice your audience with a poster design that they will never forget!

Dare to be different? As a graphic designer, there is no end to your creative therefore have the freedom to design posters that will capture your audience. Trying out something new will not only make your poster design memorable but will also convey the message efficiently.

Love Portal? Win a replica Portal gun & more

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Update:

We've picked a winner! We had a ton of incredible entries - we loved seeing your creative Portal artwork and a massive thanks goes out to everyone who entered.

We're really happy to announce the winner is Sam Huckle, and the winning entry is shown below. 

We do have some runner up prizes to send out too, so check your inbox to see if you've won! Thanks again to everyone who entered, and for all the sponsors for helping promote it and supplying extra prizes.

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At Print Express, we love Valve's creative puzzle game Portal. We also love designers and the cool artwork they create, and so we've decided to merge our two loves into one awesome competition.

To enter, you'll need to get drawing, painting or designing a Portal based piece of art. It can be a scene from the game, one of the characters or anything Portal related that you can think of.

Post your artwork on your blog, or on somewhere like Flickr or Behance, or email it to us at competitions@printexpress.co.uk and we'll announce the winner on May 3rd. Make sure you email us the link to where you've posted your artwork so we can be sure we've seen it, as well as your postal address so we know where to send your prizes if you win.

If you win, you'll have your handiwork turned into a super professional print, which we'll send to you along with a full size replica handheld portal device!

We also have a load of prizes for runners up, courtesy of the incredibly kind people at Valve, including a miniature Portal device, sentry turrets, core plush toys and more!

As ever, there are a few rules:

• The work must be yours, and you must own the rights to it
• Deadline for entries is April 30th, 2013
• Winner will be announced on our blog on May 3rd, 2013
• We're planning on showing a few of the entries off on our blog, but you keep the rights to all your artwork.

We can't wait to see what you come up with. Good Luck!

Competition Sponsors and Prize Providers 

Interview with Hitesh Mehta: Eco - Architect

Filed under Interview

Hitesh is an eco-Architect, eco-Landscape Architect, Environmental Planner, Professional Photographer, Adjunct Professor and Author. Here is his story…

Hitesh giving a presentation in traditional African attire

1.If you were introducing yourself to me in an elevator, what would you say in 30 seconds (no more than two lines)?

I am a beach bum during the morning, at night I am a conscientious party animal and in-between, when I feel like it, I get my clients to pay me to visit the most exotic locations in the world!! 

In action in Indonesia

2. What was your journey to becoming an eco-Architect?

During high school and university, I began to travel Kenya with a group of intimate friends and before long, we had observed most parts of this amazing country that has some of the most varied landscapes on the planet. Kenya has one of the natural wonders of the world—The Great Rift Valley—snow-capped mountains on the equator, fresh and salt water lakes, rivers, equatorial and montane forests, deserts, savannah, oceans and of course one of the highest concentrations of mammals on the planet. In addition, Nairobi is the only city in the world that has a National Park within its boundaries. Just 30 minutes from my work, I would be in the wild with zebras, lions, and cheetahs, with my office building still in view on the horizon! So, as you can see, the pristine yet fragile landscape around me and my wish to protect it for future generations was an influencing factor of why I chose to pursue a profession of environmental planning.

After taking my degree in architecture in Kenya, and a Masters in Landscape Architecture at University of California, Berkeley, an academic career as an Assistant Professor at the University of Nairobi followed. But 15 years ago, I felt strongly that I needed to take all my interests—architecture, landscape architecture and conservation—and combine them into one. I decided to focus on ecotourism and ecolodges and became convinced that there were better ways to integrate sustainability and tourism—protecting both endangered species’ habitats and local communities. I noticed first and foremost the striking disconnect between architecture and the landscape on which the safari lodges were built—ugly, modern buildings that were anything but timeless. I remember asking myself, “As landscape architects and planners, are we truly the stewards of the land and oceans, or are we destroyers?”

It is at this point that I developed a precocious interest in the holistic relationships between landscape architecture, environmentalism, local community benefits and tourism. In 1995, I wrote what is considered the first research paper on ecolodges in the world. I decided that my calling was to go deeper than simply helping to control the aesthetical features of my residential house projects. I was already a conservationist and had grown up with deep-rooted ‘ahimsa “philosophy of non-violence, so after working for five years in the traditional industry, I felt the need to get back to my roots and eco-architecture was the right path to take! 

As such, my focus in landscape architecture moved to pristine and fragile natural areas where tourism was uncontrolled, and had large social and environmental impacts and required a new planning paradigm to protect the sanctity of those places. Projects in national parks, for example, would need careful storm water and wastewater discharge, non-invasive plant species, alternative energy sources and energy conversation methods.

Lecturer at University of Nairobi

3. What inspires you to create the designs that you do?

My inspiration to protect and preserve nature and create low-impact designs is a result of my humble upbringing in Kenya. I grew up in a family that practiced the ancient Indian Philosophy of Jainism and from day one, the principles of ‘ahimsa’ – non-violence were instilled into my everyday life. In my family, we have been vegetarians for over forty generations!!  I am currently now a vegan.This early childhood has influenced the way I design, think and live – a low impact approach. Ecotourism designs are low-impact, practice non-violence principles and, as a sector of the tourism industry, has played a role in alleviating poverty in several rural parts of the world. It is the one sector of the tourism industry that has the greatest respect for both faunal and floral species as well as the welfare of the local people. Simply put, ecotourism is the ‘Jainism’ of the leisure industry.

Childhood Family Portrait

What’s keeps me motivated and passionate is that I want to make a difference in this world; I want to save it from the chaos that it is experiencing. When I am laying on my death-bed, I want to be able to ask just only one question and that is “what have I done in my lifetime to make mother-earth into a beautiful place?”….and I want to be able to have at least five satisfying answers. 

In my designs, nature is my greatest inspiration and also the harmonious architecture developed by indigenous communities around the world. Design in this global age of heightened cultural and environmental sensitivity needs to be holistic in nature and sustainable in all aspects of the design process.

Working in Costa Rica

4.How would you describe the line of your work? 

HM Design is a unique one-of-a-kind planning and design firm which practices it’s very own quadruple bottom line philosophy – one that balances economic, environmental, social and spiritual aspects for every project.

The firm began in Nairobi, Kenya in 1990 as a traditional Architecture and Landscape Architectural practice but is now based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and has now metamorphosized into a specialty eco-planning and eco-design office. The President, Hitesh Mehta has built projects and consulted in over 55 countries spanning six continents and is a multi-international award winner in the fields of Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Environmental planning, Urban Planning and Design, Interior Design and Photography.

Design in this global age of heightened cultural and environmental sensitivity needs to be all-encompassing and holistic in nature and sustainable in all aspects of the planning and design process. In every project, HM Design tries to create an eco-plan or eco-design that has never been created before. Each plan and design is a response to the local context: physical, metaphysical and cultural.

All HM Design projects have a respect for animals, plants, local people and the spirit of the place. The approach right from the outset is that of Low-impact development. This stewardship-motto of taking care of Mother Earth and all the species that inhabit on it begins right on day one and continues into Construction Supervision.

Hitesh sees his Firm’s work as an opportunity to improve the earth for all. Greatly influenced by Gandhi’s spiritual and moral principles, HM Design strives every single day to be “the change it wishes to see in the world.”

HM Design Logo captures the philosophy  of the work done at the office – low-impact and with low ecological footprint.

5 .Could you tell us more about eco-lodges and where we can find them?

Ecolodges are the environmentally and socially friendly tourist accommodation components of Ecotourism. By its definition, you can only find them in natural locations and not in cities and towns. I first got interested in Ecolodges in the early nineties after twenty years of safaris in Eastern Africa. A research paper (1995) was followed by criteria systems (2002) and finally a definition in 2004. In short, ecolodges are “low-impact, nature-based accommodations of five to seventy-five rooms that protect the surrounding environment; benefit the local community; offer tourists an interpretative and interactive participatory experience; provide a spiritual communion with nature and culture and are designed, constructed and operated in an environmentally and socially sensitive manner.” 

Crosswaters Ecolodge

6. You have written a book, “Authentic Ecolodges” – could you tell me what was your thought behind the book.

 A few months after the launch of my first book- International Ecolodge Guidelines in 2002, I saw the need to complement it with a pictorial book that showcased most of the authentic ecolodges on the planet and in so doing celebrate the amazing work of local craftsman, indigenous communities, architects, landscape architects, engineers, owners, operators etc. 

 After a journey that took me to 46 countries spanning all six continents and at a cost of $800,000 (my time and expenses), I am delighted to state that Authentic Ecolodges is the first “chai-table” book in the 32 year history of ecotourism.!  My journey around the earth spanned from a remote village in Mongolia, to the backwaters of South India, to the deserts of Namibia and to the forest canopy of Amazonian Brazil, representing some of the most forward-thinking ecolodges. Little did I know then that this would become a ‘labour of madness’ project!  I say “chai” because almost twice the number of people drink tea than coffee in the world!

 The three main reasons I wanted to do this book was to raise the bar in the ecolodge industry, increase awareness amongst travellers of today and add to the body of work for professionals and academicians alike.  Some of my case studies like the Crosswaters Ecolodges show how metaphysical approaches have been used whilst others show the spiritual communion that ecolodge provide to guests. As I mentioned earlier, there are unfortunately many cases of greenwashing, whereby lodges are marketing themselves as ecolodges when they are at best nature-based lodges or in a few cases town eco-hotels.

The cover for Hitesh Mehta’s Book “Authentic Ecolodges”

7. What up and coming trends in design really inspire you?

• The trend that is integrative. That involves local wisdom and knowledge into the design process

• The trend that employs a ‘cradle to cradle’ philosophy in the materials selection process

• The trend that blends aesthetics with environmental consciousness.

• The trend that uses only recycled and re-used materials for buildings. 

8. Tell us something unusual that happened in your career?

I believe that everything is meant to happen so the word unusual does not exist in my dictionary. There have been several times in my career where I wanted something badly ( whether a project or a job) and then for some  reason it did not take place BUT then what transpired after that has been better than what I wanted. So in my life the usual is unusual.  For me, insanity is better than sanity! 

Meditating on Mt. Kenya

9. Do you have any advice for the aspirational designers reading this interview? 

Yes, stick to your belief and do not let anyone put you down.  Learn from Architects and Landscape Architects that are truly making a difference to the environment and local communities. Avoid getting into the media hype that idolizes the so-called “star architects”. And do know that from very basic beginnings, you can indeed go to the top!...but you must have a vision, discipline and tremendous passion to make a difference. 

10. Which blog do you visit the most?

The blog for my latest ecolodge project  http://www.kwanari.blogspot.com/

and of course my own office blog: www.h-m-design.com

All the photographs that have been placed on this blog post are courtesy of Hitesh Mehta. Read more on his photography tips in an exclusive interview with Printerpix.

“Capture the Hearts of your Target Audience”

Filed under Business Tips

The world of communication has become noisier and more complex than it has ever been before. There are more media channels which our consumers are exposed to and there are more interactions with the brand and customers than there was 10 years ago. The competition has become fiercer where you need to be ahead of the game of your competitors in order to grab your customers’ attention. Capturing the hearts of your Target Audience is not magic – it’s an art! It’s all about communicating effectively in order to make your TV adverts, product offerings and marketing campaigns more memorable. It’s about engaging, persuading and convincing your audience is a sure way of winning them over.

Here are top ten tips that will create that “WOW” factor to your audience and captivate their hearts entirely.

1.Identify your target audience

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In the oversaturated communication environment of today, it is easy for promotional messages to get lost in the clutter. It’s quite tempting to create a generic advert however this would not appeal to your potential customers thus your marketing efforts would be wasted. You need to identify the sort of customers that you want to attract and make sure that the message speaks to them at a personal level. 

Key Factors for Establishing your Target Audience:

• Know your product/ service thoroughly.

• Find out what the current issues that your audience are facing and how you can resolve them.

• Identify the sort of media that they consume at different times of the day so that you can place your messages in these media channels accordingly.

• Tailor make your profiling and targeting based on the feedback and analysis that you receive about your target audience.

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2. Housekeeping Rules

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A little bit of housekeeping for you before you even start thinking about how you will communicate to your audience.

a) Identify what your objectives are for the campaign. Whether its frequency or reach, you need set these objectives so that you can have an effective marketing campaign to ensure that you use the right media channels to convey your message.

b) Have a set budget to ensure that you plan your campaign accordingly and place your adverts and message in appropriate places so that you do not blow your whole budget on just one media channel after which you have no money for the rest of the campaign or any contingencies that may occur.

c) Carry out a competitor analysis to see what sort of media channels they are using and what type of campaign they are running. You can also see what has worked for them and what their weaknesses are. Once you have identified these, you can then create a marketing campaign so that it is just as effective if not better.

d) Identify what your strengths are and use these as Unique Selling Proposition (USP) in your key messages to your target audience. This way you will be sure that you have the competitive edge that will add value to the decision making process of your potential consumers when considering your company’s product offerings.

e) Be omnipresent - have an integrated marketing communications plan that will have a combination of different media channels both online and offline which you know your target audience will be using throughout the day and place you messages in these channels accordingly. This way, your message will stick in the mind of your target and will recall your brand and consider your product or service when they are making their purchasing decision.

3. Have a Catchy Slogan

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This is a great way of making a message stick in the minds of your target audience and challenging in the way you view the product being advertised. A catchy slogan is one of the most essential ways to create brand recognition. They are also useful as the can be easily integrated into short commercials and banner ads on the internet as well as Social Media.

An example of a successful catchy slogan was Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign. At the time when this campaign was launched, Reebok was a big player in the Sports Apparel category where they had higher sales and a great market share. Nike’s aim was to increase their market share and be the choice of the people. They wanted the slogan to motivate people to be active and that they would look cool if they were seen wearing Nike sports apparel. 

Nike also ensured that their brand incorporated smart, humorous and cool advertising alongside this slogan to make people act and feel cool even though they were not being active. All this advertising made their market share sky rocket from 18% to 43% in the 90’s while a boom in sales from $800 million a year in 1988 to upwards of $9.2 billion in 1998 (Source). Want to look like Nike? Just Do It!

4.Mischievous Mascot Marketing

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Mascot marketing is an effective way to capture the attention of your target audience as it creates a lasting impression among consumers. A mascot is a personified character that represents and promotes a brand, product or organisation. This is an effective approach to take as it encourages association with a brand and top of mind during the decision making process. A mascot is a great way to increase brand visibility quickly and boldly in a noisy media environment while helps in increasing sales.

For example, the meerkat, Aleksandr Orlov, the founder of Comparethemeerkat.com was a successful mascot for the online price comparison website Comparethemarket.com. Previously, this website was a low ranking one however after the introduction of Aleksandr, the website’s traffic grew by 80% while increasing its online presence in social media where he gained 50,000 followers on Twitter and 700,000 Facebook Fans. (Source)

5. Impactful Images which are Impressive

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Creative ad campaigns which make use of images create a sense of admiration and amazement to the people that a brand is trying to target. Spectacular ad campaigns stand out from the dull forms of adverts that we see every day on the internet, TV and outdoors. Creative images not only encourage memorable impressions of a brand but also inspire customers to share these ads with their peers thus increases reach and awareness of a brand. An advantage of having impactful images is that it encourages people to spread the message thus you don’t have to spend too much on a big campaign of you have a tight budget.

Images can also come as spectacular outdoor advertising such as the Imodium billboard campaign below:

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6. Enticing Incentives

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Everyone loves a good deal when making a purchase whether it’s a money off coupon, discount voucher, free gifts or other benefits offered as part of a loyalty scheme will encourage customer retention as well as win new business.

These incentives can be done through social media channels such as Facebook. For example, The Book Binding Workshop offered a free hardcover book to anyone who spent $300 of book binding supplies. This campaign was successful because they managed to increase their fans on Facebook for 50 to 650 in just a month furthermore saw an increase in sales of $15,000. (Source)

7. Viral Online Videos

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Online videos are one of the most captivating ways to make your brand memorable. Why? This is because they provide entertainment while conveying the message that you want to send out to your target audience. They can be cheap to create, humorous, free to transmit on online channels such as YouTube, they can be shared if effective and you can make them as informative as you want without boring the viewer. 

To make them successful, make sure that your message is clear, let the customers how to use the product and where you can buy the product from. You can engage as many of the senses as possible in order to transmit the message.

The Dollar Shave Club’s Youtube video was one of the most successful online video campaigns in 2012. In its first four days of the launch, it drew more than 4,000,000 page views! This was a popular campaign as the CEO made the video on a very simple fact of creating a powerful sales pitch that made people laugh while at the same time made it memorable to the viewers. Not only did the brand manage to engage with its audience but also showed that they were affordable and at the same time raised their awareness that the product is indeed used by almost everyone.(Source)

8. Sassy Social Media 

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Social Media is an essential way of engaging your customers and building a relationship with them. Social media is a great platform for reaching out to your customers where you can offer instant feedback, promote your products and services and at the same time monitor conversations about the brand’s industry, competitors and researching on the type of potential products a company can come up with. Some of the social media channels include Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, Flickr, MySpace amongst others.

For example, Benitos Hat’s, a Mexican Restaurant in London, created a  Twitter campaign ‘Tweets For Eats’ where the company asked offices in London’s Zone 1 throughout lunch times between 31st October and 2nd November 2011 to ‘Tweet for Eats’ that was sent to @benitoschat with their company name and the hashtag '#dayofthedead'. The more tweets a company made, the higher the chance they were to win a free feast for their workmates. In addition to this, anyone who saw and tweeted a picture of the Day of The Dead car received a discount on food in the store. 

This Twitter campaign not only increased the restaurant’s sales by 25% but also gained a Twitter reach of 800,000 – enough to get @benitoschat on Twitter. The brand also managed to achieve 13 pieces of media coverage as well as mentions on national radio breakfast shows.

9. CSR will raise the profile of your company

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Here is a great opportunity for positioning your company in a positive way in your community. By doing something “good” often helps in increasing customer engagement; making it easier to build relationships with your customers. Some of the ways which you can do this is through sponsoring charity events, participating in activities created by the local community or changing you attitudes in a positive way towards issues that would affect the community. 

For example Walmart is well known for its leadership in environmental issues. They established this title in 2008 when they ran an ad campaign that was aimed at raising awareness about the environment and decisions that consumers made when deciding on the type of products that they would buy. This enabled them to gain customers as well as retain customers thus building a big consumer database. (Source)

10. Outstanding Customer Services

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Providing excellent customer service will not only win you repeat customers but will also make you stand out from the rest of the competition. Satisfied customers will recommend your business to others thus winning new customers therefore increasing your customer database. Great customer services mean that you are proactive with how you deal with customer complaints as well as acknowledging and acting on customer feedback to make a difference to your company. This is one sure way that will “wow” your customers. 

For example, Sainsbury’s, a grocery store in the UK, responded to the query sent by a little girl, “Why is tiger bread called tiger bread? It should be called giraffe bread.” The manager responded to this query and renamed the bread early in 2011. The girl was acknowledged with a gift card and a personal response from the Customer Services Manager himself saying “I think renaming tiger bread giraffe bread is a brilliant idea – it looks much more like the blotches on a giraffe than the stripes on a tiger, doesn’t it? It is called tiger bread because the first baker who made it a looong time ago thought it looked stripey like a tiger. Maybe they were a bit silly.” (Source) This story made the headlines and got people talking about the brand and its bread. This therefore proves that acting on customer feedback can help you “wow” your customers and encourage other customers to consider you when making their purchasing decisions.

There is a wide range of ways of engaging your customers. It all comes down to how effectively you can convey your message to your target audience. When a piece of communication is relevant to your brand, informative, captivating, emotionally connects with your target audience and has a call to action, you are certainly going to capture the hearts of your target audience that will certainly consider you when making their purchase decisions. Be adventurous to try something new and be creative – these are some of the ingredients that will help you create a marketing campaigns that will “WOW” your audience.

Print Express Wedding Invitation Competition

Filed under

Are you currently planning your dream wedding?

If you are the creative type who loves getting stuck in with designing and crafting then we have the competition to suit you!

We are asking you to design your own wedding invitations for the chance to win £150! Whether you are hand crafting the invitations or designing them on Photoshop we want to see them. Just upload your invitation into a jpeg file and send it to us via competitons@printexpress.co.uk

The best entries will be selected and uploaded onto our Facebook page where you will be able to get your friends and family to vote for them. The invitation with the most ‘likes’ at the end of the competition will win!

We know how expensive weddings can be which is why we are running this fantastic competition. The winner will also receive a canvas or photobook after they get married, from their own wedding photos. 

Rules:

• Only one entry per couple

• Deadline to enter is 1st March 2013

• Open to residents of the UK and Ireland

• Must be your own work