Many of us work to promote services, or trying to convey a sense of what isn't necessarily a tangible product.  The difficulty in that lies with the fact that there isn't a great beauty shot to promote, perhaps it is an experience like education that you can't guarantee an identical experience for each of our customers. So, how to go about getting their attention, and making them feel your message.

The British Heart Foundation found a quite interesting way. Traditionally, we have seen the heart attack warning commercials, talking about people who have had an attack and their love for life and thankfulness for the care they received....happy, happy, warm and fuzzy. But the British took a bit of a different approach. And, while I typically don't praise behavior that uses fear and intimidation to relay the message, for some reason, I think this might have been the most effective way to reach their target. While I may be inclined to tear up to the happy, happy warm and fuzzy, I am not your typical heart attack candidate.

So who are their target? Do you know a man in his 50s who perhaps isn't so in tune with his health, and shutters at the thought of an ongoing relationship with his doctor? If so, perhaps this is the approach to try....the heart attack simulator.

What do you think? Get the message across? I think it probably did, and the style and message of the video, perhaps in the style and sense that most of their target might relate to, might not be compelled to grab the remote and start their 2 minute, 2 second surfing marathon.

Know you audience, know what message might speak to them. It won't likely be the same the speaks to you. In fact, it might just scare the bejeebers out of you.

Sometimes it's really hard to envision a finished design project when you are dealing with a unusual space -- especially one that travels at 40 mph. This past winter Augsburg College (Minneapolis, Minn.) chose to pursue "wrapping" a MetroTransit light-rail car since the Hiawatha Line comes within blocks of campus and many students use the service daily. Information about the light-rail system is also something that we include in our day and weekend college admissions collateral.

Mark Chamberlain:
Production Manager at Augsburg College Office of Marketing and Communication
www.mchamberlain.us
 

Put this on the "I gotta get me one of these!" list. While not entirely functional, the cool factor on these is through the roof. Created by little factory this scarf is laser cut utilizing the letters of the alphabet to create the pattern, giving it a interesting and textured appearance. Almost random feel from afar, but quite interesting as you get close enough to recognize what the design is.

For those of us who love to see letters as art, this is a must have. Check it out at:  http://littlefactory.com/scarf/uppercase/

For those who might not appreciate the random letters, what can this inspire? Perhaps it is your latest tagline, cut into the scarf, which can double as a impromptu banner. How about your next sporting event giveaway? Scarves with your team name, motto, etc laser cut out of them? 1,000 fans holding up your sports team banner could be a really cool effect in a stadium and it would likely be taken home and pinned up on walls, bulletin boards and in offices for years to come. Can you say that for the little foam fingers?