In Defense of Facebook

Posted on May 21, 2010 by Heather Sundell

It was the beginning of my sophomore year and the entire student body at USC had just gained access to the newbie social networking site. We learned that Facebook originated at Harvard, spread to the other Ivy’s and finally made the 3,000 miles journey west to Stanford, UCLA, and USC. My friends and I carefully crafted our retrospectively primitive profiles by adding birthdays, classes and other basic information. We agonized over the perfect profile picture because if you recall, users were only offered one pixilated representation.

Recently Facebook has undergone scrutiny regarding their privacy settings. It seems that people are suddenly feeling violated by the somewhat complicated privacy options. In fact, recently I have found myself defending Facebook’s honor whenever a disloyal user casually threatens to un-friend the online sphere. I stand by my conviction that social networking will only further infiltrate our society; there is no sense in fighting an inevitable. I’m sure there was much controversy over e-mail in its infantile stage; how impersonal! Can you imagine not using it now?

Honestly, having been a Facebook user for six harmonious years has afforded me the luxury of growing with the network. Mark Zuckerberg and his team have introduced countless changes and tweaks every year, which has made understanding what Facebook is today fairly seamless for long-time members, such as myself.

However, every one of those new additions was met with resistance from users, because people don’t like change. Some people might remember the controversy over the introduction of the news feed about three years ago. The modification took some adjusting, but right on its heels followed its cousin, Twitter.

But back to the privacy uproar of present. Yes, more information is available online; your information to be exact. However, skeptics tend to overlook that users are in full control of how much information is given. The only real requirements are your full name and email, which is a heck of a lot less incriminating than ordering a pair of shoes online.

While the sharing of personal information is admittedly a scary subject, it’s the future. I suppose I just don’t find our future to be bleak. The world wide transmission of information has led to so many wonderful reunions and created an easy way to connect. I personally keep in touch with literally hundreds of people I would have otherwise let fall to the wayside of my life. Aside from personal connections, I feel more connected to the world in general, and I don’t even mind being shown targeted advertisements every three seconds.

Bottom line: Next time you get frustrated/upset because you keep getting Farmville invitations or you just saw that your Ex is engaged…rethink pressing the delete button. The truth is you’ll only end up signing up again once you get bored/curious/over your Ex.

-Heather Sundell

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Allow myself to introduce… myself

Posted on May 7, 2010 by Justin Clark

I usually look much more professional than this

Hi, I’m Justin! I’m the newest addition to the creative team here at Brand Iron. I started here right as we moved into our amazing new offices (perfect timing if you ask me).

I grew up in Oklahoma, you know, “where the wind comes sweeping down the plains”, making me a perfect fit here at the Brand Iron ranch. As a freelance graphic designer I had the opportunity to work from anywhere, so last summer I decided to saddle up and hit the ol’ dusty trail, which led me straight to Denver City.

One of the best things about being a freelancer (other than the fact I could just roll out of bed and be at “the office”) is the opportunity to be involved with a variety of design projects. That definitely hasn’t changed since starting here at Brand Iron, which is one of the reasons that my transition has been such a smooth one. On top of the variety of projects ranging from coding websites to designing bike jerseys, Brand Iron has the added bonus of working with highly motivated talent and an inspiring work environment. I’m very excited to be a part of the Brand Iron team and I look forward to cranking out some awesome designs for our clients!

A tad more about me…

When my mom would take me shopping as a kid I’d make my own toys from objects I found on the floor. I’ve known what I wanted to do since middle school and have been designing professionally since the 11th grade. Since then I’ve designed everything from edgy band merch for artists you’ve heard on the radio to corporate websites for brands you see in stores.

I have a balanced love of technology and nature. I love any sort of creative outlet, especially ones that require me to get my hands dirty. I love music, and chances are if you stop by I’ll be the one wearing gigantic headphones and maybe even dancing in my chair a little.

-Justin Clark, Design Bandit

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Branding and Positioning for Acquisition

Posted on April 26, 2010 by Michael Doyle

You can’t ignore that fact that business has been down the last several years. The question is what can we do now? Today is perfect time for businesses to brand and position their companies for expansion, growth and a possible acquisition. Having gone through two major recessions over the last 10 years, money has been next to impossible to come by for many businesses and mergers and acquisitions have come to a screeching halt. With this current recession ending and the dot com bust becoming a thing of the past, many business owners want to build up their businesses and cash out.

The best and most effective way to get acquired is to brand and position your company for growth, expansion, increased revenue and profits which will in turn lead to increased business value. Now is a great time to gain market share because a lot of businesses have been hammered by the recession and many don’t have a lot of cash to finance branding, marketing and expanded sales efforts, thus making it great time for you to take advantage of weakened competitors and gain market share.

Branding and positioning your companies to own your space in the marketplace, by defining key differentiators and an easy to understand brand value proposition allows people to understand how and why you are better than the competition and why they should buy your product or service.

Don’t waste any time or allow your competitors to grow and expand before you do. Brand and position your company and prepare yourself for an acquisition that will set you up for life. Get started today.

-Michael Doyle, CEO and Brand Champion

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Brand Iron | Day 41

Posted on April 5, 2010 by Josh Barker

Hi

Hi

It’s been a few months since my first day here at Brand Iron, (41 days to be exact) so while a little delayed, this technically serves as my introduction post.

The professional-me snapshot:
My early agency existence sprouted primarily public relations and social media experience. With a few shifts on the marketing scale over the past several years, I had a good feeling from the get-go about the awesome opportunity Brand Iron offered to continue down this path. Joining the team as a Brand Wrangler, (in Google Translate terms, think – account manager) I right away took the reins of the race horse that was my client project list.
My days were busy at the onset but great nonetheless. In fact, I’d like to take this second to say how rad the team is here at ‘the ranch.’ It’s always a transition to start somewhere new – getting ingrained in the processes, adapting to the culture, absorbing the general agency practices – but starting with day one I was embraced by this group. A collective mix of talent and passion, I realized it almost instantly. Things are different here. Hard work doesn’t come easy but here, it’s done well because the people love what they do. In short, I thought (and shared with others), ‘this is awesome.’

And now a few other things:
As a Colorado-native and former-Denver dweller, I recently (re)relocated back to the Mile High city, after being in Boston for a bit. Living just up a square from Harvard and a stone’s throw from the Charles River, I worked with PR firm Porter Novelli while there. From traffic and digital mapping to B2B software to commercial printers, I supported a list of technology companies through PR and online marketing. After my return, I spent a few months with the Denver Film Society as a part of the media relations team to promote the 32nd Starz Denver Film Festival, before saddling up with Brand Iron. Among many things, a definite high point of 2009 was investing in some serious mat and mental time to become a certified yoga instructor. Whether in the studio or at the office, the practice keeps me grounded.
Now that the weather has turned, I’m stoked to be back near the Rockies. White water rafting, baseball games (let’s go Sox!), and hiking – have set a goal to conquer my first 14-er this year – will fill the summer’s when-not-at-Brand-Iron activities list.

And in the meantime, you’ll find me, along with the rest of the crew, doing what we do at our sweet new digs on 24th and Larimer. (More on that soon…)

-Abbey O’Neal, Brand Wrangler

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Hello Brand Iron Friends!

Posted on March 15, 2010 by Heather Sundell

My name is Heather Sundell and I am the newbie here at Brand Iron, it’s been almost a month since I started here as an Intern. I clock in at about 25 unpaid hours a week. Why? Because it’s awesome place to work.

A little over a year ago I became an economic cliché and was let go from my job. (Let the somber violin concerto commence.) After a few months of frantic job hunting and questioning my entire past 23 years of existence, I decided that a change was in order so I picked up my entire life and moved from the only home I had ever known, Los Angeles, to Denver.

Despite the change in location, I quickly started to realize that my English degree from the University of Southern California (no matter how prestigious the football team) was, as so many peers predicted, quasi-useless.

Apart from my education, my prior jobs in online marketing and web management weren’t exactly the directions I wanted to go. I began to rethink my strategy. I would have to go back to square one and offer my services as an unpaid intern.

So, here I am learning the agency business and I couldn’t be happier. Brand Iron is a wonderful company, and I feel so fortunate that I was given a chance to learn and grow in the branding and advertising industry with such friendly, knowledgeable co-workers.

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Michael Doyle Speaks at Aspen Grove

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Michael Doyle

Last Wednesday, our very own Brand Champion Michael Doyle gave a talk entitled “The Importance of a Brand. How to create one. And how to make it memorable.” It was an intimate gathering of about ten business leaders perched on backless stools and Michael had them all engaged.

The event kicked off with everyone introducing themselves and their industries.  As always, it was great to see Brand Iron friends, clients, as well as some new faces. All the guests expressed how they felt their companies could be better branded, and the marketing issues they faced. It was great to see such a wide spectrum of professionals attending for a common purpose: to learn how to better brand their companies.

Using digital slides to illustrate his main points, Michael touched on important points such as scouting out the competition, owning the market space and being the next big thing (easier said than done.)  He stressed the significance of branding yourself before another company brands you, using the popular television ad war between AT&T and Verizon as a relevant example.

At the conclusion, Michael and the rest of the guests exchanged business cards and mingled like it was a cocktail party and not an 8:00am lecture on branding. The event can definitely be considered a success and Michael was even asked to come back. Aside from a repeat of last week’s talk, Michael has a lot more speaking engagements already scheduled for this year. Stay tuned!

Written by Heather Sundell, Marketing Intern

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“It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows YOU.”

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Michael Doyle

A close friend of Brand Iron, David Avrin is currently touring the country with his new book, “It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who Knows You.” For more than 20 years David has been on the forefront of the marketing, public relations, and branding industries. Now he is taking his show on the road to share his wisdom with small business owners and entrepreneurs all over the country, promoting his fresh off the press publication.

Recognized as “The Visibility Coach,” David is a well-known international speaker and consultant. He has been able to come to the rescue of many professionals and entrepreneurs by refining their messages, building their brands and promoting the unique aspects of their business. Avrin understands the plight of small businesses’ inability to afford hiring outside firms. He has developed strategies to build market awareness without the high costs.

Avrin’s published argument that “it’s not who you know, but who knows you,” makes perfect sense in this economy. It’s impossible for a professional to know all his potential clients, but it is perfectly feasible for all the potential clients to recognize a business. Avrin believes this is possible through raising the profile of the business and creating a strong brand implementation. Below is a passage from his introduction (which he explicitly asks you to not skip):

“The fact is that you can never know all your prospective customers, but if you’re going to attract new customers or clients, they’d better know you. As I am fond of reminding my audiences: “If they don’t know who you are, they can’t buy what you’re selling.”

Check out his book, recently ranked No.1 in Small Business Marketing Books on Amazon.com.

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Tiger Woods – A Failed Attempt at Apology

Posted on February 19, 2010 by Andrew Hoffman

This morning Tiger Woods broke his three month silence and apologized on national television. The under 15 minute press conference gave Woods a chance to apologize for his actions and clear up some “rumors” that had been spreading since the Thanksgiving night incident.

Woods read line for line from a sheet of paper which he reportedly wrote himself and every once and awhile would look up to stare deeply into the camera as if “look into camera” were written right on his sheet. Many people hoping to get a heart-felt and sincere apology were extremely let down.

Despite weather or not you feel Woods meant what he said, much of the nation was tuning in to hear what he had to say. The Wall Street Journal reported that there was a slight lull in market activity during Tiger Woods’ press conference “it seems like there was something of a lull and definitely a clear pickup during and after Tiger’s somewhat creepily choreographed apology.”

So how will Woods attempt to regain forgiveness from his family, friends and fans and win back the respect of those in the golf world as well as his once faithful sponsors? I know if I were him I’d start with a real apology, one not rehearsed, one from the heart, and I’d look into my friends and families eyes when I gave it. As for his sponsors, in my opinion he’s tarnished his name forever. The sport of golf may accept him back, but his name will always carry a connotation beyond just a great golfer.

-Kaitlyn Anderson, Junior Brand Wrangler

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MTV Updates Classic Logo

Posted on February 11, 2010 by Andrew Hoffman

MTV Logo - Before and After

MTV released it’s newly updated logo today. The logo facelift was done by the in-house design team which had the tough job of updating the world wide icon which had been previously untouched since August of ’81. As you can see the white strokes giving the log dimension have increased in width, the TV has been smoothed out, and the legs of the M have been chopped off giving the appearance of greater width. But most notably “MUSIC TELEVISION” has been removed probably due to the lack of music videos in the past 5 -10 years. Go to Mtv.com to check out the new applications of this unmistakable icon.

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Brand Iron is a finalist for the DMCC Small Business of the Year Award

Posted on February 2, 2010 by Andrew Hoffman

The Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce has just informed us that we are one of the three finalists in their Small Business of the Year, Business Award Program. For those of you keeping track of Brand Iron news, this is the second year in a row we’ve been up for this honor.

We are very excited to be a finalist as three are many great small businesses in downtown Denver. We would like to thank all our clients and partners in helping us achieve a great 2009.

The announcement will be made at The Business Awards luncheon on Wednesday, April 21st at the Hyatt – Colorado Convention Center from 11:00 am – 1:00 am. Stay Tuned.

- The Brand Iron Team

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