StrawberryFrog Takes Home Two Yellow Pencils At The D&AD

Jim Beam + StrawberryFrog took won two Yellow Pencils at the prestigious D&AD Awards at the end of April 2012.

Familiarly known as the ‘Yellow Pencils,’ the D&AD is one of the most internationally respected and prestigious creative awards for the design and advertising industry.

Each year a select few brands are celebrated for brilliance in commercial creativity. Yellow Pencils are presented at a gala ceremony in London before thousands of guests.

On the very rare occasion that a piece of work breaks the mould or sets a new standard of excellence in creativity, the Black Pencil is awarded.

StrawberryFrog and its client Jim Beam will be showcased in the D&AD Annual & Showreel for 2012.

The D&AD Awards span 27 different categories encompassing all aspects of the communication mix from writing and art direction to architecture, music videos and photography. Over 25,000 items from across the globe were entered then judged by the cream of the global advertising industry over 10 days by, eminent practitioners selected for their expertise in their field, looking for great ideas that are well executed and appropriate.

StrawberryFrog won the two Yellow Pencils for its work on reenergizing the iconic Jim Beam brand with “Bold Choice” featuring Willem Defoe, directed by Dante Ariola and produced by MJZ.

“Congratulations to our clients at Jim Beam,” says Kevin McKeon, CCO of StrawberryFrog New York. “We are thrilled with the recognition for this work. Jim Beam’s marketing management stand for strategic smarts and creative excellence and these two awards – among the most respected in the industry - are a big shout out to them.”

APCO Worldwide + StrawberryFrog to Bring New Global Communication Model to Major Brands

APCO expands creative resources with majority-stake investment

StrawberryFrog advances international growth goals

Washington, D.C. (February 16, 2012) – Award-winning global communication consultancy APCO Worldwide has acquired a majority interest in movement-marketing agency StrawberryFrog, APCO Founder and CEO Margery Kraus announced today. The investment will pair APCO’s international stakeholder-engagement and business-strategy expertise with StrawberryFrog’s skill in creating innovative cultural movements, accelerating a shared vision to provide communication counsel and execution to some of the world’s most iconic brands.

“Clients understand that persuasion today requires finding points of shared interest and then launching campaigns that connect emotionally, whether they are marketing products, enhancing reputation or advocating on issues,” said Kraus. “StrawberryFrog’s focus on movements is incredibly relevant for clients today and in the future, and it aligns perfectly with APCO’s approach to stakeholder engagement. We believe this partnership is a breakthrough idea, and we are thrilled to have found a talented team with impressive leadership, a legacy of strategic and creative excellence, high-caliber
clients and a wonderful business trajectory.”

“We have an ambition to be more active on the global stage and doing it differently than other agency networks,” said Scott Goodson, StrawberryFrog chairman and co-founder. “We’ve had many suitors over the years, but we found in APCO an incredible meeting of minds and vision. APCO’s independent spirit and global pedigree is a strong cultural and strategic fit with StrawberryFrog. We know this will offer an opportunity to further power our philosophy of cultural movements as we move forward.”

Launched in 1999, StrawberryFrog will maintain its own culture, brand, creative independence and management, including Goodson, Chief Creative Officer Kevin McKeon and Co-Founder Karin Drakenberg, who lead a team well-known for conceiving innovative campaigns for many of the world’s strongest brands.

“The StrawberryFrog difference has always been our culture and unique ‘challenger’ mindset – our little red frog symbolizes our efforts to challenge the dinosaurs of our industry,” said Goodson. “We believe creativity and a commitment to movement marketing is what enables companies to outperform competitors and redefine their categories. We are taking the leap with APCO because they fundamentally understand and respect our philosophy and are dedicated to helping our culture thrive globally.”

Leveraging APCO’s international client portfolio and network, the company plans to use this investment as a springboard to strengthen and expand its global presence. APCO and StrawberryFrog will each continue to serve their own clients while looking to collaborate in new ways that bring next-generation thinking to their diverse client portfolios. Along with its core creative and digital businesses StudioAPCO® and APCO Online®, APCO will bring to bear its proprietary research models and presence in 32 global markets.

Said Kraus: “The world is changing, and so are the needs of clients. Stakeholders are interacting with brands in new and complex ways, wielding real power and measurable influence while significantly raising expectations for companies. Throughout APCO’s 28-year history, we’ve worked to understand the relationships between people, companies and society. Just as we’ve built a leading reputation for helping clients create lasting engagement with diverse stakeholder audiences, StrawberryFrog has developed a proven, innovative movement-marketing approach, which has become an emerging new trend in marketing in the United States and around the world. Together, we can deliver remarkable results.”

StrawberryFrog is known for its global brand-building work for Heineken. Last December, TIME magazine selected StrawberryFrog’s Jim Beam “Bold Choices” advertising as one of the top 10 TV ads of 2011. Other recent award-winning efforts include innovative digital work for Pampers, iPad/iPhone apps for P&G’s “Hello Baby” and acclaimed work for Sabra, Mahindra of India, and The-Girl-Store.org for Nanhi Kali.

For more information, please visit LeaptoWhatsNext.com

For further information please contact
Elizabeth Wolf | APCO Worldwide
202.778.1470 | ewolf@apcoworldwide.com

About StrawberryFrog
StrawberryFrog, the world’s first cultural-movement agency, is an independent advertising firm. Launched in 1999, the agency has created award-winning work for Emirates, BlackBerry, Frito-Lay, Google, Pampers, PepsiCo, Heineken, Microsoft, Mitsubishi, Morgan Stanley and Onitsuka Tiger. More information is available
at www.strawberryfrog.com www.facebook.com/strawberryfrog

About APCO Worldwide
Founded in 1984, APCO Worldwide is an award-winning, independently owned
global communication, stakeholder-engagement and business-strategy firm with
offices in major cities throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and
Asia. APCO clients include corporations and governments; industry associations
and nonprofit organizations; and six of the top 10 companies on the Fortune 500.
The firm is a majority women-owned business. For more information, please visit
www.apcoworldwide.com

DGA nominates Jim Beam TV Spot By StrawberryFrog Best Commercial Of The Year

The Director’s Guild of America’s nominates Jim Beam’s Bold Choice Paralells commercial by StrawberryFrog and poduced by MJZ for best of the year.

Nomination: Jim Beam, Ad Agency: StrawberryFrog: Director Dante Ariola (MJZ) Parallels, Unit Production Managers: Natalie Hill, Brady Vant Hull First Assistant Director: David Dean Second Assistant Director: Carl Jackson

Nominations below:

‘Curb,’ ‘Modern Family’ top DGA TV noms: ‘Breaking Bad,’ ‘The Killing,’ ‘Homeland’ among drama noms

HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and ABC’s “Modern Family” reigned in the Directors Guild of America’s TV nominations with two bids apiece. Helmer Patty Jenkins also grabbed two mentions in the nominations unveiled Tuesday. The DGA will unveil the winners Jan. 28 at the DGA’s 64th annual awards ceremony in the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland. The “Curb” noms went to David Steinberg (for the seg “The Divorce”) and Robert B. Weide (“Palestinian Chicken”). “Modern Family’s” mentions went to Fred Savage (“After the Fire”) and Michael Spiller (“Express Christmas”). Don Scardino is a contender in the category for the “Double-Edged Sword” seg of NBC’s “30 Rock.” “Modern Family” has won the DGA comedy series trophy twice in a row with Spiller winning last year. Jenkins took nods in drama series category for the pilot of AMC’s “The Killing” and as one of five directors in Lifetime’s five in the TV movie-miniseries category. The drama category saw two other pilots besides “The Killing” take nominations —Michael Cuesta for the pilot of Showtime’s “Homeland” and Tim Van Patten for HBO’s “Game of Thrones” first seg. “Breaking Bad” creator/exec producer Vince Gilligan scored a drama nod for helming the season finale of the AMC drama, as did Michael Waxman for the series finale of NBC/DirecTV’s “Friday Night Lights.” It was the first DGA nom for Cuesta, Gilligan and Waxman and the eighth for Van Patten, who won two DGA comedy trophies for “Sex and the City.” Martin Scorsese won the DGA drama trophy last year for the “Boardwalk Empire” pilot. The TV movie-miniseries category saw four other directors for Lifetime’s “Five” along with Jenkins — Jennifer Aniston, Demi Moore, Penelope Spheeris and Alicia Keys. “Five” competes against Jeff Bleckner for “Beyond the Blackboard” for CBS’s “Hallmark Hall of Fame,” Jon Cassar for Reelz’ “The Kennedys,” Stephen Gyllenhaal for Lifetime’s “Girl Fight” and Michael Stevens for HBO’s “Thurgood.” On the reality front, the contenders are Neil DeGroot (NBC’s “The Biggest Loser”), Eytan Keller (Food Network’s “The Next Iron Chef: Super Chefs”), Brian Smith (Fox’s “MasterChef”), J. Rupert Thompson (NBC’s “Fear Factor 2.0”) and Bertram van Munster (CBS’ “The Amazing Race”). Veterans dominated in the musical variety category with Louis J. Horovitz (CBS’s “The Kennedy Center Honors”) and Don Mischer (ABC’s “83rd Annual Academy Awards”) each taking their 16th nomimation while Chuck O’Neil (Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart”) and Glenn Weiss (CBS’s “65th Annual Tony Awards”) each scoring their eighth nod. Don Roy King (NBC’s “Saturday Night Live with Host Justin Timberlake”) took his fifth nomination. Mischer has won 10 DGA awards. Go to Variety.com for a complete list of the DGA’s TV and commerical noms. And the nominees are: MOVIES FOR TELEVISION AND MINI-SERIES ** Jeff Bleckner - “Hallmark Hall of Fame: “Beyond The Blackboard”” (CBS)Directorial Team: Production Manager: Lester Berman First Assistant Director: Anne Berger Second Assistant Director: Ben Scissors Second Second Assistant Director: Alex Leimone Additional Second Second Assistant Director: Louis Lanni ** Jon Cassar - “The Kennedys” (Reelz Channel) ** Stephen Gyllenhaal - “Girl Fight” (Lifetime) ** Demi Moore - “Five: Charlotte” Jennifer Aniston - “Five: Mia” Penelope Spheeris - “Five: Cheyanne” Alicia Keys - “Five: Lili” Patty Jenkins - “Five: Pearl” (Lifetime)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Richard Rothschild First Assistant Director: Cara Giallanza Second Assistant Director: Hope Garrison ** Michael Stevens - “Thurgood” (HBO)Directorial Team: Associate Director: Jim Tanker Stage Manager: Arthur Lewis DRAMATIC SERIES ** Michael Cuesta - “Homeland,” “Pilot” (Showtime)Directorial Team: Unit Production Managers: Michael Klick, J. David Brightbill First Assistant Directors: Ivan J. Fonseca, Louis J. Guerra Second Assistant Directors: Karen E. Collins, Kim Kennedy ** Vince Gilligan - “Breaking Bad,” “Face Off” (AMC)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Stewart A. Lyons First Assistant Director: Nina Jack Second Assistant Director: Louis Lanni Assistant Unit Production Manager: James Paul Hapsas Second Second Assistant Directors: Anna Ramey, Joann Connolly ** Patty Jenkins - “The Killing,” “Pilot” (AMC) ** Tim Van Patten - “Game of Thrones,” “Winter is Coming” (Pilot) (HBO) ** Michael Waxman - “Friday Night Lights,” “Always” (NBC)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Nan Bernstein Freed First Assistant Director: Cleta Ellington Second Assistant Director: Carla Bowen COMEDY SERIES ** Fred Savage - “Modern Family,” “After the Fire” (ABC)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Sally Young First Assistant Director: Alisa Statman Second Assistant Director: Helena Lamb Second Second Assistant Director: Matthew W. Heffernan ** Don Scardino - “30 Rock,” “Double-Edged Sword” (NBC)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Diana Schmidt First Assistant Director: James E. Sheridan Second Assistant Director: Jennifer Truelove ** Michael Spiller - “Modern Family,” “Express Christmas” (ABC)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Sally Young First Assistant Director: Jim Hensz Second Assistant Director: Helena Lamb Second Second Assistant Director: Matthew W. Heffernan ** David Steinberg - “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “The Divorce” (HBO)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Dale Stern, Jonathan Harris Stage Managers: Jonathan Harris, Jerri Churchill, Denny Barry ** Robert B. Weide - “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Palestinian Chicken” (HBO)Directorial Team: Associate Director: Dale Stern Stage Managers: Jonathan Harris, Jerri Churchill, Dana Jackson MUSICAL VARIETY ** Louis J. Horvitz - “The Kennedy Center Honors” (CBS)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Jim Tanker, Mike Polito, Richard A. Preuss Stage Managers: Garry Hood, Andrew Feigin, Doug Fogel, Arthur Lewis, Dency Nelson, Tammy Raab, Doug Smith ** Don Roy King - “Saturday Night Live With Host Justin Timberlake” (NBC)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Bob Caminiti, Stefani Cohen, Michael Poole Stage Managers: Gena Rositano, Chris Kelly ** Don Mischer - “83rd Annual Academy Awards” (ABC)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Jim Tanker, Lori Margules, Jennifer Mischer, Michael Polito, Richard A. Preuss, Leslie Wilson Stage Managers: Gary Natoli, Josh Berger, Rita Cossette, Dave Cove, John Esposito, Valdez Flagg, Alissa Levisohn, Arthur Lewis, Dency Nelson, Ron Paul, Vince Poxon, Tammy Raab, Jason Seligman, Doug Smith, David Wader ** CHUCK O’NEIL - “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” (Comedy Central)Directorial Team: Associate Director: Paul A.J. Pennolino Stage Manager: Craig Spinney ** Glenn Weiss - “65th Annual Tony Awards” (CBS)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Ken Diego, Robin Abrams, Debra Gelman, Ricky Kirshner Stage Managers: Garry Hood, Peter Epstein, Andrew Feigin, Lynn Finkel, Doug Fogel, Jeffry Gitter, Phyllis Digilio-Kent, Arthur Lewis, Jeff Markowitz, Joey Meade, Tony Mirante, Cyndi Owgang, Jeff Pearl, Elise Reaves, Lauren Class Schneider, Annette Powlis REALITY PROGRAMS ** Neil P. Degroot - “Biggest Loser,” “Episode #1115” (NBC)Directorial Team: Associate Director: Andy Nelson ** Eytan Keller - “The Next Iron Chef: Super Chefs,” “Next Iron Chef Episode” (Food Network)Directorial Team: Associate Director: Tom Borgnine Second Assistant Director: Patrick Cunningham Segment Director: Stephen Kroopnick ** Brian Smith - “Master Chef,” “Episode #201” (Fox)Directorial Team: Associate Director: Anna Moulaison ** J. Rupert Thompson - “Fear Factor 2.0,” “Scorpion Tales” (NBC)Directorial Team: Stage Managers: Thomas Kuk, Alexa Sheehan ** Bertram Van Munster - “The Amazing Race,” “You Don’t Get Paid Unless You Win?” (CBS)Directorial Team: Segment Director: Evan Weinstein Associate Director: Dan Coffie DAYTIME SERIALS ** Larry Carpenter - “One Life to Live,” “Episode #10917” (ABC)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Teresa Anne Cicala, Tracy Casper Lang, Michael Sweeney Stage Managers: Alan Needleman, Keith Greer, Jennifer Blood, Brendan Higgins Production Associates: Kevin Brush, Nathalie Rodriguez ** Casey Childs - “All My Children,” “Episode #10712” (ABC)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Anthony Pascarelli, Marika Kushel Stage Managers: Michele Azenzer, Teri Pensky, Brendan Higgens Production Associates: Diana Jones, Allison Reames, Lia Katz ** Mike Denney - “The Young and the Restless,” “Episode #9710” (CBS)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Marc Beruti, Chris Mullen, Robbin Phillips Stage Managers: Tom McDermott, Herbert Weaver Jr. Production Associates: Erica Meyer, Vanessa Noland, Nancy Ortenberg ** William Ludel - “General Hospital,” “Intervention” (ABC)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Christine Magarian Ucar, Denise Van Cleave, Penny Pengra, Peter Fillmore, RC Cates, David MacLeod Stage Managers: Craig McManus, Crystal Craft Production Associates: Christine Cooper, Andrea Compton ** Scott Mckinsey - “General Hospital,” “Episode #12364” (ABC)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Christine Magarian Ucar, Denise Van Cleave, Penny Pengra, Peter Fillmore, RC Cates, Dave MacLeod Stage Managers: Craig McManus, Crystal Craft Production Associates: Allison Reames, Christine Cooper ** Cynthia J. Popp - “The Bold and the Beautiful,” “Episode #6057” (CBS)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Clyde Kaplan, Casey Kasprzyk, Steven Wacker, Catherine Sedwick Stage Managers: Laura Yale, Douglas Hayden, Lisa Winthur-Huston ** Angela Tessinari - “All My Children,” “Episode #10704” (ABC)Directorial Team: Associate Directors: Marika Kushel, Anthony Pascarelli Stage Managers: Michele Azenzer, Teri Pensky, Brendan Higgins Production Associates: Diana Jones, Allison Reames, Lia Katz CHILDREN’S PROGRAMS ** John Fortenberry - “Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred” (Nickelodeon)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Pavlina Hatoupis First Assistant Director: David Mendoza Second Assistant Director: Blake Perkinson Second Second Assistant Director: Michelle Schrauwers Additional Second Second Assistant Directors: Alex Leimone, Crisoforo Aguilar ** Jeffrey Hornaday - “Geek Charming” (Disney Channel) ** Michael Lembeck - “Sharpay’s Fabulous Adventure” (Disney Channel) ** Patricia Riggen - “Lemonade Mouth” (Disney Channel)Directorial Team: Unit Production Manager: Brent Morris First Assistant Director: Kaaren F. Ochoa Second Assistant Director: Chemen A. Ochoa Second Second Assistant Director: Sarah Lemon Additional Second Second Assistant Director: Kevin Black ** Damon Santostefano - “Best Player” (Nickelodeon) ** Amy Schatz - “A Child’s Garden of Poetry” (HBO) COMMERCIALS ** Lance Acord (Park Pictures) The Force, VW Passat - Deutsch LA First Assistant Director: Thomas Smith Second Assistant Director: Rob KayPaint the Town, NIKE Basketball - Wieden & Kennedy/Portland First Assistant Director: John Lowe Second Assistant Director: Stanley Wiencko Second Second Assistant Director: John Scott WilsonSweetest Moment, NBA - Goodby, Silverstein & Partners First Assistant Director: Mike Saffie Second Assistant Directors: Sam Alvelo, Marcin BorkowskiThe Chosen, NIKE - Wieden & Kennedy/Portland First Assistant Directors: Howell Caldwell, John Lowe Second Assistant Directors: Ben Randolph, Bob King, Stanley Wiencko DGA Trainee: Gabriel Blom ** Dante Ariola (MJZ)Parallels, Jim Beam - Strawberry Frog Unit Production Managers: Natalie Hill, Brady Vant Hull First Assistant Director: David Dean Second Assistant Director: Carl Jackson Second Second Assitant Directors: Vincent Terrazzino, Gail ShandBlack Betty, Volkswagen - Deutsch/LA Unit Production Manager: Natalie Hill First Assistant Director: David Dean Second Assistant Director: Carl JacksonGas Powered Everything, Nissan Leaf - TBWA Chiat Day Unit Production Manager: Brady Vant Hull First Assistant Director: David Dean Second Assistant Director: Carl Jackson ** Fredrik Bond (MJZ)Date, Heineken - Wieden & Kennedy/Amsterdam First Assistant Director: William BookerThe Entrance, Heineken - Wieden & Kennedy/Amsterdam ** Steve Miller (@radical.media)Pommel Horse, Dos Equis - Euro RSCG Worldwide/NY First Assistant Director: John Churchill Second Assistant Directors: Frank Tignini, Trevor Tavares Second Second Assistant Director: Gavin KleintopSpeed Dating, Dos Equis - Euro RSCG Worldwide/NY First Assistant Director: John Churchill Second Assistant Directors: Frank Tignini, Trevor Tavares Second Second Assistant Director: Gavin KleintopPygmy, Dos Equis - Euro RSCG Worldwide/NY First Assistant Director: John Churchill Second Assistant Directors: Frank Tignini, Trevor Tavares Second Second Assistant Director: Gavin KleintopGuinea Pigs, Geico - Martin Agency First Assistant Director: John Churchill Second Assistant Director: Trevor TavaresSushi, Geico - Martin Agency First Assistant Director: John Churchill Second Assistant Director: Trevor TavaresFort, Cheetos - Goodby Silverstein and Partners First Assistant Director: Michael Salven Second Assistant Director: Robert KayParking Lot, Ortega - Grey Worldwide First Assistant Director: Michael Salven Second Assistant Director: Robert Kay ** Noam Murro (Biscuit Filmworks)Handle Bar Moustache, Heineken Premium Light- Wieden & Kennedy/NY Unit Production Manager: James Powell Veal First Assistant Director: Tommy Gormley Second Assistant Director: Ian Robert Calip Second Second Assistant Director: Michael KingHot House, DirecTV - Grey/NY Unit Production Manager: James Powell Veal First Assistant Director: Scott C. Harris Second Assistant Director: Mark R. Robinson Second Second Assistant Director: Brady SloanPinata, Volkswagen Tiguan - Deutsch/LA Unit Production Manager: James Powell Veal First Assistant Director: Scott M. Metcalfe Second Assistant Director: Ty ArnoldIs It Real?, EA Battlefield 3 - Wieden & Kennedy/Portland First Assistant Director: Michael David Salven Second Assistant Director: Erv E. Gentry Second Second Assistant Director: Eric Schneider

Will ‘Occupy’ Affect This Year’s Christmas Shopping?

By Scott Goodson

Scott is the founder of StrawberryFrog, the world’s first cultural movement agency. His first book, Uprising will be published by McGraw Hill soon.

Here’s a question for you. Do you think a movement like Occupy Wall Street (OWS) can change people’s shopping habits, particularly in the run up to Christmas?

Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing, certainly thinks so. She believes that OWS will definitely impact the way Americans buy holiday gifts this year.

She said: “Occupy Wall Street has discouraged the affluent and the aspirational alike from wanting to indulge in conspicuous consumption. If you are in the 1%, you want to go undercover, avoiding extravagant ‘bling.’ If you are not, you want to avoid the appearance of identifying with this much-maligned group of ultra-affluents.”

So if we can forget about over-indulgence this festive season – if people want to appear less greedy – what will they buy instead for their loved ones and in the coming years to follow? Danziger predicts a continued interest in all things practical.

She explained: “Affluents are looking to give gifts of things people really need. Technology fits beautifully in this framework, with great prices and functionality people need in their lives.

“Experiences too have become an attractive gift solution this year, thanks to the many attractive deal-of-the-day offers from Groupon, Living Social and others. These experiences save the gift giver lots of money, all the while maximizing the gift recipient’s pleasure.”

Of course, there aren’t enough facts to suggest that OWS has discouraged shoppers from over-consuming. We’re only second-guessing these changing consumer attitudes instead of basing them on any hard evidence. That’s why Danziger and Unity Marketing are planning to carry out new research next year, looking at the shopping habits of 1,500 people.

If you’d like to support the research, Unity Marketing is looking for sponsors. Simply fill out their New Gifting Study 2012 sponsorship form.

While we wait to see if Danziger’s predictions are right, we can definitely all agree that there has been a shift in people’s buying behavior ever since the global economy went into crisis. Whether that is now coupled with an ever-growing movement against consumerism and greed, we’ve yet to find out.

It certainly seems as though more and more people are ‘making do’ and spending their money on ‘experiences’ or practical things rather than ‘stuff’ they don’t actually need.

So if Danziger is right and this movement continues to take hold with people buying less and less, how can brands jump on the back of it ahead of the holidays? How can they make the most of anti-consumerism attitudes? How can you encourage Christmas shoppers to buy your products when they are buying less?

Movement Marketing, that’s how. Because if brands don’t start to look at the changing, consumer landscape and adapt themselves accordingly, they might struggle to survive in 2012.

TIME - The Top Ads of 2011 Beam “Bold Choice”

(From TIME Magazine, Dec 11, 2011)

Bold Choice — Jim Beam, By StrawberryFrog

Congrats to our clients at Jim Beam for this incredible recognition!

TIME: In this Jim Beam ad, (by StrawberryFrog) a younger version of actor Willem Dafoe sits in an Appleton, Wis., Greyhound station and stares at two buses. (Dafoe indeed hails from Appleton.) One is bound for Milwaukee, the other, New York City. “Before long,” Dafoe says above a slow, serious musical accompaniment, “the choices you make and the ones you don’t become you.” The ad then imagines what Dafoe’s life would have been like had he boarded that bus to Milwaukee instead of New York, city of dreams. Milwaukeeans should hate this commercial: we see an aging Dafoe alone in a diner, wearing a musty sweater; in another shot, he’s a trapeze artist; in yet another, he’s shoveling elephant dung. He’s a high-flying businessman and chess champion — score two for Milwaukee — or a limo driver. He’s some kind of skinhead at a rave, or he’s a cold fashionista. He’s even a sumo wrestler. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with these professions. But he’s not Willem Dafoe, the famous actor.

For the close, we return to the bus station. “Bold choices,” Dafoe says, “take you where you’re supposed to be.” A young Dafoe heads for the New York bus. Dafoe, who usually plays intense characters, is an odd fit for this ad. And we’re not sure what Jim Beam has to do with it. (Did Dafoe rely on some liquid courage to make his bold choice?) But we know this: “Choices” is a strangely inspiring, and wise, piece of advertising.

Movement Marketing

StrawberryFrog coined the phrase “Movement Marketing” or “Cultural Movements” back in 1999. Forget about ads. Spark a movement instead. Brands today can’t ignore the fact that the marketing landscape has radically altered in favor of movement marketing. There hasn’t just been a shake-up here, there’s been an earthquake.

Why? TV, print and radio have their place, but with the advent of social media and new technologies, everyone is online. Everyone is talking, and sharing. And so the opportunity is there for brands to be part of the conversation.

Cultural Movement marketing seeks to mobilize a brand’s audience via shared brand experiences, towards brand goals that benefit the brand, the consumer and society or culture. This marketing model is fundamentally better suited for today than the traditional purely product-driven USP models of the past.

Because, as I’ve said many times, it doesn’t center on the products. It’s an authentic, genuine sharing of passions between a brand and a customer. Smart brands, like Apple, are already aware of just how powerful this can be and have already radically altered their marketing approach.

Indeed, the StrawberryFrog team – including myself – will be explaining to marketing enthusiasts just how Cultural Movements are devised, created and launched in a dedicated workshop at the forthcoming Cannes Lions festival (19-25 June).

There’s no doubt Cultural Movement marketing is still ‘new’ to many. And so we aim to teach professionals of the future why it’s so important in these times that brands start the conversation and spark a movement. And why dollars spent on movement marketing work harder and achieve better results than traditional avenues. Because let’s not forget that thanks to the internet, mobile technology and social media, the whole world is your audience.

And if you get movement marketing right, there are potentially millions of people who will be ripe and ready to hear what your brand has to say. Who actively want to become part of it, a ready-made army of loyal brand advocates who encourage others to follow suit.

Sounds too good to be true? Welcome to the new age of marketing.

By Scott Goodson, Founder of StrawberryFrog

IF ONLY I WANTED TO OWN A JUICE SHOP I WOULD HAVE STARTED A MOVEMENT

By Heather LeFevre, Head of Strategy StrawberryFrog Amsterdam

I discovered juicing this year when Diego Zambrano decided to go on a 60 day juice fast and mark his progress on this blog.

Now, I only know Diego through twitter, but I would say about half of his tweets are about bacon and other pork recipes he enjoys. So I was intrigued to find out what instigated such a project. It turns out, a man died of a heart attack on his long-haul flight and a friend of his nearly died the same day of heart complications. Then he watched a couple of documentaries and decided to try the juice fast.

If you wanted to understand his reasoning, he explained, you had to watch Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. Curious, I watched the film. And though I didn’t decide to fast, I too started drinking fresh vegetable juices and urging my friends to watch the film and have juice with me. I started a mini-movement in our StrawberryFrog office.

Suddenly everyone was popping into the local juice shops during lunch. One of the options near my office is a fresh juice shop in Amsterdam called Frood. They have a second location near my house so I became a frequent customer. Sadly, they have just gone out of business last week. They had posted a sign that they were looking to sell the business, and for a moment I thought about it. Why? Because I am truly passionate about juicing. I believe in it. I believe that you can get far more vitamins into your body from juice than you could ever eat on your plate. That the nutrients I get has changed the way I feel and I can see it in my skin when I drink it consistently.

I imagined myself replacing the disinterested girls behind the counter and making every customer a fan of juicing, spreading the good word around down. I thought about how I would market the shop. In addition to all the social presence they lack, I envisioned putting 50 or 100 copies of the documentary in mailboxes in the neighborhood. Return the DVD to the shop for a free juice. Then repeat. I’m convinced I would have saved that business. If only I wanted to own a juice shop. But that is what starts a movement. True, authentic, passionate belief that others can buy. Because as we’ve learned from Simon Sinek, people don’t buy WHAT we do, they buy WHY we do it. It’s not about what or even how you do something differently. It’s about dedicating your brand to a purpose and never deviating from it.

Read more on Uprising.

Become a Social Business

With newspaper circulations down, television commercials easily skipped and social media the number one activity on the web, brands are naturally following the crowd by going ‘social’ and joining millions of people online.

They’re setting up Twitter accounts and Facebook pages. They’re getting on Google+ and even dipping their toe into LinkedIn. Some have started blogs and created Flickr or Vimeo accounts to share pictures and videos.

Whilst this is all worthwhile, many brands are still getting it completely wrong. They’re trying to integrate social media into their old ‘marketing mix’ rather than understanding the whole purpose of social media.

They’re missing the point by throwing out one-way marketing messages like before, screaming things like ‘Buy This’ and ‘Get your 20 per cent discount today! Ok maybe that last message pulls a lot of eyeballs but is that any way to build a premium brand?

This traditional, one-way marketing doesn’t work anymore. Consumers are already bombarded with thousands of marketing messages on a daily basis but the majority of them are ignored. Most banner ads don’t get a click-through - it’s about 1% on the good ones. Nearly half of all direct mail is never opened. And there are OVER than 200 million Americans on the ‘Do Not Call’ list.

So what else can you do to get your messages out there?

Today, we are all connected. Today, smart brands make business personal. And they do that by becoming a social business rather than applying the same old marketing techniques to the new medium of social media. They realize that ‘social’ isn’t a new way of marketing, It’s a new way of doing business.

A social business doesn’t just do social, it uses strategic and creative excellence, and extraordinarily well thought through content to create brand lust, engagement heat and ultimately passionate advocates for the business and it’s products and services.

Brands that get social media right by becoming social see phenomenal success. Just look at the facts. Nearly two thirds of businesses have acquired a customer through their blog. A quarter of B2B firms have gained a client through Facebook. Company websites that have a blog get 55 per cent more visitors than those who don’t. There’s even evidence to suggest that web visitors from social sites convert 59 per cent higher than those who aren’t communicating directly with their customers. On Thanksgiving day our clients at Jim Beam welcomed their 1 millionth fan on Facebook, after some savvy social by our Beam & StrawberryFrog team.

You see - it’s not just about ‘going social’. It’s about becoming a social business. It’s realizing that marketing doesn’t work like it used to. Today, successful brands become social ones.

So how do you become a social business?

Essentially, markets have become conversations. If you want to become social you have to start listening to your customers, joining in on the global conversation and building relationships. If you do that, you’ll build trust and transparency. And brands that are trustworthy in today’s digital era will fair much better than those who aren’t yet social.

Because in this socially connected, real-time and mobile-enabled world, isn’t it better to be human and real than try to bombard irrelevant marketing messages like before? Isn’t it smarter to get personal and understand that people want to feel connected with humans not logos?

If you’re ready to take your company to the next level and become a social business, there are movement strategies for growth and how you can achieve that.

Read more inspiring articles JOIN UPRISING at http://www.uprisingmovements.com

IS BRAND LOYALTY THE CORE TO APPLE’S SUCCESS?

By Scott Goodson, Founder of StrawberryFrog. His book Uprising will be published by McGraw Hill early next year. 

Apple has just launched a software update to fix a problem that was draining the battery life of its new iPhone 4S, something that caused a wave of complaints from customers and critics across the globe.

Of course, it didn’t help that Apple apparently took several weeks to even acknowledge the glitch. Or that it came on top of lots of other problems with the new iOS 5 operating system – all of which are now resolved according to the software giant.

But will this damage Apple’s reputation? Is there a growing uprising against the Californian company? Are people ditching Apple to go elsewhere? Is its PR team panicking? It would seem not.

You see, whenever Apple has problems with its products, its customers are incredibly forgiving and patient. They understand that issues can sometimes arise and they’ll continue to buy Apple products despite any mistakes they might make.

But why is there such a huge loyalty towards Apple?

Well, it’s mainly because of the late, great Steve Jobs. Apple is Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs is Apple. People feel like they have a personal relationship with Apple because they’re essentially thinking of Steve.

And when you think about how incredibly passionate Steve was about Apple products, ensuring they were of the highest quality and cutting-edge design, you can understand why people are willing to be lenient.

By creating an emotional connection with its customers, Apple has done the near impossible – it has acquired a loyal following. Brand loyalty has played a huge part in its global success. There’s no doubt about that.

So if people will forgive brands that sometimes mess up, how can you ensure your own brand gets the same kind of attention?

Firstly, you have to build relationships with your customers. And that means being trustworthy and transparent. You do that by embracing the Internet and social media. You can start blogging. You can talk directly to people on Twitter. You can use Facebook to show who’s behind your logo. All of that is obvious.

Secondly – and this is the real key to brand loyalty – you have to carry out some movement marketing. You have to stop telling people about what your company makes, and instead think about what you believe in. And what you believe in has to touch a nerve with your target market.

Steve Jobs did this brilliantly. He told the world that he believed in innovative, high quality products and would always strive to bring the best technology to the market. In fact, Apple’s mission statement doesn’t really talk about what it does; it talks about what it believes in.

It reads: “Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software and Internet offerings.”

With this inspiring mission statement in mind, consider what makes your brand tick. If you’re a car company, don’t put messages out there that say ‘We sell cars!’ Think about something that will tap into your customers’ emotions and go for it. Like, for example, the ‘Against Dumb’ campaign my StrawberryFrog did on fighting big mass over-consumption for Smart USA.

Whatever you choose, you have to believein something that starts from the very core of your business. It’s no good saying you believe in saving the environment if your company wastes tonnes of paper every year.

Apple’s worldwide success is because its mission statement resonates throughout each and every part of its operations. Brand loyalty begins from the inside out. You can’t fool people and loyalty won’t come so easily.

People who buy Apple products know of the passion and dedication that went into making them. They know Apple is committed to making the best quality software systems and products possible. They also associate Steve Jobs with Apple, feeling as though they have an emotional connection with the company. And that’s why they’re happy to overlook the odd glitch.

But brand loyalty isn’t just about forgiving brands for the odd mistake. It also means people won’t go elsewhere, even if the competition offer lower prices. It keeps revenues high and retains market share. You can see why brand loyalty is a priority for any business.

If you want brand loyalty, figure out how you can connect with your customers and start a movement that you believe in. The rest will certainly follow.

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