apt blog

#prsongs

Did you see all the PR people taking over Twitter last Friday? #prsongs was one of the top trending topics throughout the day as pr’s, marketeers and journalists all joined in the fun, replacing song titles with a PR theme. Some of the office favourites included: ‘I just called to say... Have you got my press release?’, ‘Let’s get digital’ and ‘I’m talking with the man from The Mirror’.

This was an unusual trend for Twitter as trends usually tend to be news stories or something celebrity related (does anyone else think it’s all about Justin Bieber and One Direction at the moment?!).  So it was great to see our news feeds filled with #prsongs and a little harmless Friday afternoon fun instead.  

Networking is a key part of cracking the PR industry and making contacts is vital. Twitter easily lets you interact with others to share your thoughts and ideas, whether it’s sharing thoughts on the latest political scandal (most recently the 2012 Budget) or just chatting about the weather. 

#prsongs was a great opportunity for people in the industry to get themselves heard by showing off their wit and creativity and sharing a trend with likeminded people. It’s really great to see that PR’s are using their Twitter accounts for work related tweets... but having fun with it too!

Our obsession with augmented reality continues; this time with Tesco!

For those of you who haven't noticed yet, we're big fans of Augmented Reality and the affect it's having on the marketing industry! At the end of August, we wrote about Smart Phone Augmented Reality in our post 'An addiction prediction' which took a look at Cadbury's new partnership with Blippar to turn their chocolate into an addictive game. This month, it's time to look at the latest Blippar partnership... with Tesco!

Blippar is a reality app that can be downloaded to a smartphone or a tablet and used to turn ordinary objects into interactive masterpieces. I hasten to add it doesn't work on everything, but it does work on a lot! You download the app, log on, search for a 'type' of object e.g. food, drink etc., then point the camera and an interactive element will appear. The interaction will vary according to the object, so you'll have to point and see!

Blippar-Tesco Partnership

Rather than a specific object, Tesco has chosen to create interactive print adverts to get their customers buzzing. Labelled 'the Big Price Drop', Blippar has been engaged to add interaction that enables users to get store location information and free recipe ideas, whenever they point their smartphone at an advert; Tesco claims this will help add a 'personal touch'!

Whilst clearly not as addictive or fun as a Cadburys, this could prove to be a useful element for consumers. It is likely to depend on their need at the time (personally I'm not bothered by the recipes). Then again, searching for a local store isn't massively different to the Supermarket apps you can normally download!

If I'm honest, I love the sentiment and visually it's fantastic, but in this case I'm not sure I'm bothered by the content in reality! I'm a big fan of Blippar, but I'm not convinced it works with everything. For the Tesco Partnership, I'll watch this space and check out the stats when they are released, to see just how effective it's been! Is this a case of enhancement for the sake of it?

For those of you who want to see how it works, you can watch the video here:

Collective marketing - A superpowerful combination?

In Marketing Week from the 25th August, there was an interesting case study on Proctor and Gamble, looking at their collective marketing strategy in their bid to save money. Interview available here...

Collective Marketing is an initiative whereby parent companies bundle their complementary brands together into one advert in a bid to target new audiences and save money. On occasion there will also be a cross-company initiative if the products complement but don't compete with each other. Marketing Week identified three main types of collective marketing/brand bundling including

1. Executive Bundling - using your buying power across brands to save money on advert slots
2. Big Idea Bundling - cross-company selling of complementary products e.g. washing machines and washing powder
3. Endorsement or co-brand bundling - adding an additional brand to your product in a bid to sell more and split the cost e.g. PG Tips and the Rainforest Alliance.

As a consumer, I had never noticed/been conciously aware of this process, other than the obvious Supermarket adverts. Since reading the article however, I've been on the look out for these collaborations, from both a personal and industry viewpoint.

The first obvious example I see? Collective marketing of the new Jalapeño Doritos and Citrus Pepsi Max by parent company Pepsi Co. The advert combines a cartoon strip theme, with the 'Firefinger' crisps and 'Icefist' drink turning two 'regular Joes' into superheroes. The two products are hailed as a 'superpowerful' combination with the aim of persuading consumers to buy both products at the same time. Visit the website here...

So how will Pepsi Co benefit?

• Monetary value - Pepsi Co will have saved money by making one advertising slot work twice as hard, using the same space to promote two products that complement one another.
• New audience generation - the advert is aspirational and implies that the two new products are the coolest/best on the market, enticing people to buy them.
• Cross-audience promotion - this type of collaboration will potentially target new customers for the company, from their existing consumer base; loyal Doritos consumers may be enticed to buy the drink and vice versa.

I like what Pepsi Co did here; ok, so I won't be rushing out to buy the drink because personally I can't stand fizzy drinks, but the advert did do its job! It made me watch, it successfully marketed two products (both of which I can remember) AND it combined two products into the same space.

This method isn't without risk; picking the wrong products and combining two brands with opposing values could be an advertising nightmare. At the same time, unless handled carefully, this method also dilutes the messaging of the individual brands and runs the risk of reducing the overall effectiveness of the advert.

Thanks to Marketing Week for highlighting Collective Marketing and I'll definitely be on the lookout for more examples in the near future!

Watch the superpowerful advert here...

Apt Academy: Hollie's week!

Hollie came to Apt for work experience to indentify the differences between marketing and PR. Here is a brief description of her week by Hollie herself!

"From day one, I learnt ten times more than I had expected at Apt. Every day was a new one, and I was taught new things and told about different clients/tasks, so I was kept really busy throughout the week. I’d felt as if I was not only benefitting myself from the work, but as what I did was proof read and actually used within the business and clients, it was as though I made a difference.

I really enjoyed being given little projects I could work on in the day and things I could work on independently, then getting feedback from everyone. It helped me look more deeply into what I was working on and I was definitely kept busy all the time.

I was taught how to use the Apt mailer, which allowed businesses to send things such as newsletters, statistics and websites. It helped so much that I could see the entire process from start to finish, as well as actually sending off my newsletter for Good Taste Foods and the very end!

Doing the ‘todays’ for both Good Taste Foods and SOHO Coffee Co. was really fun as well, as it let me put my own style into live websites and I could check the next day to see if my messages had been posted!

One of the main things I wanted to know was what the difference was between marketing and PR. I decided that I enjoyed working in both parts of the company (marketing and PR) and that I’d love to look even more into marketing so I could make a decision between the two! Doing the How-To guide for Google Analytics helped me learn how to use the program as I was writing down what I learnt in the form of instructions.

Being downstairs in the office let me see both sides of marketing in action by just swapping which conversation I listened into! From my time in Apt, I’ve learnt that it’s most beneficial is I search for as much work experience as possible and gain as many networks as I could to gain links and relationships between different companies.

Overall, my placement has been fantastic – I loved the atmosphere I was in all day and I couldn’t have faulted it. I was welcomed to the team really nicely and it’s such a great family at Apt."

Old Spice is back and taking the social media world by storm!

If you had asked us last week what Old Spice was, we would have either said ‘a fragrance that my granddad wears’ or ‘pepper that you haven’t used in a while’ and up until yesterday that’s probably the response most of you would have given.

However yesterday all that dramatically changed...Old Spice launched one of the most outstanding social media campaigns we have witnessed since the age of...well, since the age of social media!

The campaign started with an ominous tweet from the Old Spice twitter account which said “Today could be just like the other 364 days you log into twitter, or maybe the Old Spice man shows up.” And show up he did!

On Tuesday, Old Spice man Isaiah Mustafa began collecting questions posted at him on sites like Twitter, Reddit and Yahoo Answers, and answered them with personalised YouTube video responses. (He even proposed to someone on a commenter’s behalf!) This of course then created amazement as within minutes they could watch their response, which were then blogged and tweeted like wild fire – everyone wanted their own Old Spice video!

The campaign has been, and still is, such a success because they made personal connections with influencers. They reached out, by name, to prominent media, celebrities, news outlets and the general public who should be aware of Old Spice, addressing them with personalized messages that they’ll remember. As a result Old Spice is now the third most watched video on youtube.

Have you got your personalized message? We are joining the thousands by trying to get ours!

Apt Academy: Lily's Secret Diary Revealed!

The apt academy is a prestigious work-experience programme that gives hard-working, motivated and ambitious students the chance to hone their skills in a real-life, hands-on working environment. Here, one of our students reveals an extract from her diary...

"On my first day at apt marketing & pr, I was nervous and really didn’t know what to expect. Even though I did know someone here at the office (Rhian Dark) I was still worried about how I would fit in and really focus on the tasks I was given. Although, I was excited and really looking forward to see how it was and meet everyone. So far I have learnt a lot more than I expected to learn. If im honest I thought I would be just photocopying and making the teas and coffees. But I was mistaken, once I had settled in and met everyone in the office; I was given a little project, which I could do over the 2 weeks I was here. I was really surprised but relived that I really could understand what they did and how they managed the whole office.  

I have learned quite a lot of skills on the computer, which really could help me in the near future. If I have learnt anything the most, it would be the fact I have gained a lot of confidence within myself. Its helped me realise I can ask for help when needed, and just do as much as I am capable of doing. I have enjoyed a lot about this placement, I really thought that it helped that I had a project to focus on and it made me think about how I could pace myself through real office based work. I was worried about the skills I would of needed for this placement, but I have realised I have come here to learn and understand the way of working in an office. That is what I enjoyed about it, is that I have always wanted to work in an office, and now I have I would be happy to work in this kind of environment in the future. 

I have spent time in both pr and marketing while I have been here, it has been something I thought I would never do. Don’t get me wrong it’s something I have wanted to do, but I don’t think I knew what pr and marketing was before I came to this company for work experience. I have learnt a lot from working in both areas and its something I would be interesting in doing when I am older. When I was working in marketing, I had been given a project on researching clients and finding out how to use a website which is really helpful for finding this kind of information. I did enjoy this task, because I had a deadline and a certain amount of research I needed. It made me think of how I needed to pace myself through this project, to make sure that it was all done on time. I then worked with someone in pr, this was very interesting. This is the sort of thing I would like to do when I am older, it’s associated with media and like I said it is something I am really interested in. I was given a press release to look at, I didn’t have a clue what it was before I came here, but now I have added to a press release and understand what it is and how it is used. Also in pr there was a planned launch for Tuesday and Wednesday of my second week here. I found this really interesting to see the whole preparation and the result of the launch. I was there to help put all the press packs together, and it was really enjoyable to see the way they organise the way it all works. 

Overall, my time here has been an amazing experience. All my friends are at placements which are not in offices. This is why I have found it interesting and enjoyable, because it is something quite different to all the placements my friends at my school have chosen. I think it has something to do with how well the apt crew have helped settle me in and worked on what I wanted to do and what I was happy with doing. I have to thank them all though, because I have realised the way work is actually like, I thought it was just a place you earn money. Well really it is, but in my eyes it’s different because it’s where you earn money and where you learn a lot of new stuff. I will definitely remember my experience here, and I hope they remember me. I am very glad I chose to do my work experience here. It has been really quite fun in a way because everyone gets on with everyone. Plus everyone seems to just be quite layed back and work as a team well. I actually don’t want to leave!"

Lily, Aged 15

If you are interested in applying for work experience, please email Ruth

World Famous Sculptor Selling Cheltenham Home

Selling your house can be a painful experience, especially when estate agents are involved. Which estate agent do you register with, how much commission will they take and what do you do if they don’t make a sell? It makes you wonder if the ‘middle man’ is really necessary...

Ian Norbury, the world famous wood sculptor and artist has decided to take the mammoth task of selling his Cheltenham home of 30 years into his own hands after ‘having had a disastrous experience last year with an agent who will remain nameless’ The property has its own blog (click here to view), and those who are interested can contact the couple directly to organise a tour or to find out more information at no extra cost. 

 
As you would expect from a high profile artist, the interior is remarkable and stunning; carved furniture, stain glass windows and original Norbury woodwork makes this property an opportunity not to be missed.

Here at apt we are huge fans of the property, the artist and his wife and their unusual approach to selling. If we had £500, 000 spare we would definitely make an offer! 

The Queen is coming to visit!

At apt we are very excited. Next week on Friday 23rd October the Queen is coming to Gloucester and Cheltenham!

Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh will sail into Gloucester on the canal to be met by Lord Lieutenant for Gloucestershire, Sir Henry Elwes. They will visit Gloucestershire College in the morning and GCHQ in the afternoon.

We will be there to give her a wave!

home sweet home

Just a short post to wish Hannah (our first-class marketing exec) the very best of luck when she moves house later this week! Hope it goes swimmingly Han! :-)

Mmmm...chocolate!

OK, so we're off for Easter now! Actually that's not strictly true, we'll be checking emails and the boss Angie will no doubt be in over the weekend (workaholic that she is:).

Anyway, have a great break and we'll see you next week...