Paper and Print - the new black?

We were lucky enough to attend a breakfast talk last week held by K.W.Doggett, centred around a discussion on selling print and the return on investment this medium provides. The morning was backed by research and facts from the Value of Paper and Print (VoPP), which is an industry report about the effectiveness of print. Kellie Northword, the very inspiring woman behind (VoPP) and Executive Director of Two Sides, provided us with some really interesting case studies and inspired us again about the power of print in today's ever expanding online landscape.

Key facts that impressed us were:

93% of female magazine readers engage with print advertisements (YouGov, 2013)

Letterbox distribution reaches over 18.3 million Australians, five days a week (ACA, 2014)

67% of people believe paper to be more trustworthy than digital

Newspapers are read by more than 15 million Australian's every month, or 86% of the population aged 14+

20% of users remember an article better when ready on paper (Miratech, 2011)

Psychological and physiological studies demonstrate the human brain will retain and recall messages better when read from paper (Wolf, 2012)

Throughout the talk, we heard how print has had to defend itself over recent years, it has been criticised with headlines such as 'print is dead', 'the paperless office' etc, yet it remains one of the largest industries in Australia. As a country we spend $790 million a year on magazines, one of the highest per capita across the globe. Print still remains a strong industry and has the widest reach of any channel.

We loved this example of Microsoft who placed a WiFi enabled print advertisement in a special edition of Forbes to promote its Office 365 software, providing free internet to those who kept the magazine with them. Once activated, the router embedded within the pages provided users with 15 days of free internet, which could easily be used by up to five devices simultaneously.

In summary, which channel mix promises the best from print, TV, radio to newer and emerging channels such as the internet and digital? Which is the most cost effective and efficient combination? The answer isn't really one or the other, more a much-needed understanding of how each inter-relates and connects the audience. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses - digital offers instant connect, while print will hold our attention for longer. Television can be socially engaging, while magazines are selected and held onto. 

We didn't need any more convincing (although the stats really surprised us), it just confirmed our love for all things printed!

Lastly we couldn't help but laugh at this tongue-in-cheek 'bookbook' from Ikea. 

Thanks to K.W. Doggett for the opportunity to attend this talk and to the very inspiring Kelly Northwood. For more information check out www.valueofpaperandprint.com.au 

Exploring creativity at Easter

What does Easter mean to you? Maybe your religious and spend most of Easter at church or maybe you just like the two days off (if you're lucky!). For me, the opportunity to spend time with family and friends and get creative with decorations, treasure hunts and a whole lot of good food and drink.

The creative mind of the Graphic Designer rarely sleeps and from my experience expands into event theming, interiors, crafts, kids parties, the odd invitation and so on and so forth. As with many of our graphic projects here at Adcore Creative a mood board to inspire ideas is an essential part of the design process. Pinterest has become such a useful tool when sourcing inspiration and creative ideas, no cutting and pasting required. See below a small selection from our Easter mood board, why not pop on over to our Pinterest page for a look into what inspires us at Adcore Creative. 

Simplistic graphic poster Found on imprint.printmag.com

Table arrangement by Beci OrpinFound on broadsheet.com.au

Painted eggs Found on oleanderandpalm.comEaster Card Found on fun.kyti.me

Beautifully handcrafted bunnies from Full Tilt Nanna

Easter outfit of choice brought to you by Karen Walker

Wishing you an inspired and creative Easter.
Maria x

Essential branding steps for your business.

It's a busy time starting up a new business and it's is easy for business owners to dismiss branding as unimportant. We live in a society where we are met with a barrage of messages, as a new business you need to be able to stand out from your competition. Great branding can go a long way in allowing you to shine over your competition and ultimately grow your business.

Creating a solid brand message is what will get new business knocking on your door, not just a smart logo.

We've put together a list of essential branding steps to ensure your brand message is hitting the right mark.

1. Define your brand's mission. Describe what your business hopes to accomplish for your customer and why. Who are you and what makes you different? What are your core values?

2. Determine your target audience. Who is your customer? Where do they live, where do they socialise, what products do they use etc.

3. Who is your competition? Research them, what are they doing well? How can you be different? What makes you different from them?

4. Define your brand personality. If you were to describe your brand as a person what would they be? Feminine or masculine? Build a profile of your ideal client. 

5. Put together a detailed creative brief. Get together with your designer, the more information you can bring to us such as - who is your target market, whats your unique selling point and what you would like your overall brand to look like. A platform such as Pinterest is a great way to create a mood board of images that you like, which shows us what you like and why you like it.

6. Create your core branding. Partnering with a design studio that understands your brand message will go along way in creating the best possible result for your business. Begin with a logo and branding, making sure that it aligns with what you have already determined above. Next develop a website, this will most likely be where your customer gets their first impression of your business. It will be a great tool for leads and will act as a communication tool to a larger audience.

7. Develop social media profiles. It's not necessary to be across all social media channels, chose the platforms that are appropriate for your target audience and business and pour your energy into them, instead of bits of each.

8. Collateral. What do you need? Consistency across all of your marketing material is crucial, should you update all of your marketing material so that you have consistency across it all? Work out what are your main forms of interaction with your clients - is it your stationery? and work at getting them 100% right.

For more information call for a chat!